Soccer Fanatic

For many years, Pro Evolution Soccer has lagged behind its Fifa brother which it has long battled with to be a serious contender in what has only ever truly been a two-horse race on the football games track.

Pro Evolution Soccer 13: Featured Poster

Year after year, Fifa has managed to emerge the victor in terms of the overall football simulation package it offers the player, with its glossy overcoat and online experience that is around ten times as superior as the Pro Evolution Soccer Counterpart.

The arrival of Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 marks an historic landmark in the battle of the ball, and more importantly, in the internal battle of Konami against itself to make a football game that people could seriously pit against Fifa 13 and actually consider it a serious threat. Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 may not have the official licenses of its counterpart, but it’s back with some serious changes to its gameplay and an on-pitch experience that has the potential to leave Fifa crying in the changing room in spite of its glamour and glossy finish.

The main clincher of Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 isn’t something that you’re going to immediately notice. After all, the game still hasn’t really changed in terms of its aesthetic, which really needs a drastic overhaul if it’s going to compete with Fifa’s highly polished dazzle and razzle. The game has improved dramatically in the area that matters the most, however: the gameplay. Now, Fifa 13 brings us some perfectly competent football simulation with First Touch and some other gimmicky-sounding features, but Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 has absolutely tonnes of football substance packed into the gameplay. There have been drastic improvements to the AI of your opposition and also of your team, leading to a difficulty level that feels absolutely perfect, but also a team that won’t simply run past the ball when it comes to them like they aren’t actually being paid to play football.

The basis of the game’s gameplay greatness is actually the highly refined control system that lets you control all aspects of a ball’s movement, finely tuning it with the L2 and R2 buttons (for PS3, at least) and using the two joysticks to control peripheral players when they are around the ball. This makes for a football experience that is hugely responsive and superior to Fifa’s gameplay in almost every way. The brilliant controls result in accurate passes and superior control of the ball in the air, but Konami has also made sure to decelerate the pace of matches a little in order to allow you time to perform flick kicks, completely manual passes, and other skills that feel almost like you’re actually there on the pitch.

Pro Evolution Soccer 13: Barcelona

There are a few downsides to the Pro Evolution Soccer experience, however. The most noticeable is the visual side of things, with the goal celebrations looking a little odd and the menus frankly looking as terrible as they have always been. The gameplay also has some issues, such the heading aspect, which is almost a no-go area since the players seem to be stuck to the ground when the ball flies overhead. The stereoscopic 3D functionality is also on the worse side dire and really isn’t worth bothering with. Ardent Fifa fans will also point out the game’s lack of official licenses and also the absence of the visual splendour that Fifa has by the hangar full. To the Fifa nuts, I say look at Pro Evolution Soccer’s representation of the game’s particluars, which is of such quality that it dominates Fifa’s on-pitch gameplay hands down. The graphics aren’t really up to scratch, and this is even truer of the menu designs, but Pro Evo’s Master League is superior to Fifa’s single player game as well.

Find out where to buy the latest Pro Evolution Soccer from Konami.

SoccerFanatic.co.uk is a not for profit website aimed at promoting the best past and present footballers from around the world.