There have been two significant jewels in the crown throughout the PES series, the much loved Master League and, hand-in-hand with that, the in-depth editing functionality. Over the years they have both developed significantly – particularly editing, which has been helped in a big way by the growth of the online community, allowing PES fans to easily share their hard work with others – and, at present you are never more than a few clicks away from an overwhelming library of Kits, Option Files and Crowd Chants etc, the fruits of hours of painstaking labour.
Despite the massive demand for it – editing on Konami’s football title peaked on the last generation of consoles, allowing kits in particular to be customised to previously unprecedented levels. On PES 5 users could edit chest logos and kit colours, add writing to players’ backs, emblems to shorts, and a variety of other tweaks – but the series and has struggled to reach those dizzy heights recently. The switch to the current gen saw the series’ evolution stripped back to the basics, with PES 6 offering very little in terms of editing – a world away from its predecessor.
PES 2008, 2009 and 2010 all started to right the wrongs created by the generation switch – so what can we expect from 2011? Rumours of “full kit creation”, similar to the system used on the PC version were doing the rounds – which would have been a “tick-all-boxes” solution but unfortunately we’re still not at that level for console users. In fact there hasn’t been much new added in terms of kit creation – at present we can still add chest logos and change the kit markings but the back of the shirt, shorts and socks still remain relatively untouchable, and we still lack the ability to add an outline colour to squad numbers.
Additions and Reinstatements
So what’s changed? Well, firstly let’s cover what’s returned... When it comes to PES, we’re not strangers to being frustrated at the surprise removal of those tiny little things that we don’t notice until they’re taken away from us – so, the 96% of people that voted for its return will be happy to know that the “Base Copy” option has been come back in PES 2011. For those that don’t know – Base Copy allows you to copy the aspects of one player and drop them onto another, for ease of editing.
Also, and somewhat more significantly – “PES Shop” finds its way back to the series in the next PES release – now accessible via the main menu as an option called “Extra Content”. From here you can purchase new hairstyles for use in edit mode – which not only include the “bespoke” hairstyles used by the superstars (Beckham, Messi, Ronaldo etc) but also the stranger items that have been seen in the past. We’ve previously been able to play as penguins, or ride ostriches whilst chasing the ball on the pitch, and though I can’t claim to have seen those options in 2011 I did see pumpkin heads and gladiator helmets which hopefully give us a taste of things to come. And, akin to this – we’ve become used to a variety of different balls, but now the options available for purchase in the PES store include a pillow, a classic brown leather ball, a sweet (in a wrapper), a barrel and even a ball of paper.
Also, gone are the days of playing and replaying the league/cup modes to unlock all players – as Classis Players and Classic Teams can once again be purchased from the Extra Content area. This will no doubt go down well with the completionists – as I’ve often been told of the frustration of having to complete the International Cup with multiple teams to get all players, a process which takes hours of repetitive play.
There is also a hint that DLC will be taken down via the Extra Content section in future – which we haven’t had any info on, other than an option that suggests so. My guess is that we’ll be treated to a selection of both free and paid for items via PSN/Xbox Live (a quick reminder that this build is essentially the finished article – barring all online capabilities, as well as final licensing/kits/rosters and possibly a few game play tweaks).
New options for editing leagues have been introduced – we can now add emblems to a specific to a league/Cup rather than just simply changing its name, and those emblems can be added to players’ sleeves too (left, right or both) much like the “football” logo seen in the Champions League mode. Also, drawing further comparisons with the Champs League – a specific entrance theme can be designated, adding a slight broadcast quality to the intro scenes.
Allied to this – a league/cup name audio file can be specified too. We didn’t test this – but I’m guessing that a short sound bite can be entered for commentary purposes? This would work well with the new intro commentary which now says team names, and even geographical references (“city rivalry” was mentioned in a match between two unlicensed London teams).
Other League based tweaks include the option to specify a particular match ball, and also the ability to edit league structure. We can now move teams from one league to another manually. Also, any editing done in PES 2010 can be imported with the “import prequel data”, which will save time for those that like to put a lot of manual work in.
Stadium Editor
2011’s most publicised editing improvement has been the ‘all new’ Stadium Editor – you now have the potential to create and personalise stadiums, which can added to the teams of your choice. Fancy making a stadium to accompany your Merseyside Blue – well now you can!
Though simplistic at first glance, this could be a bit more of a complex addition than it seems. Essentially, building a stadium just requires the choosing from the following:
• 8 types of “Turf Pattern”
• 8 types of “Layout” (which is basically the outer shape of the pitch)
• 8 types of “Track Image” (choose whether to have a racing track, gravel concrete etc surrounding the pitch)
• 6 types of Stand
Creating the stands has some sub-elements such as choosing seat colour, the design of the managers’ bench (4 options) and the light intensity. Also, as was shown with some old school Konami graphics on the recently released images – the designs can be completed by adding your own artwork for advertising boards and in-stadium banners. Depending on the size of the stands, you have between 4 and 7 elements that can be customised, allowing a lot of potential for personalisation. Finally, the finish of the stands can be chosen; corrugated metal, steel – or even a wooden effect roof for the lower league teams.
Once all that has been put together – it’s time choose the setting for your stadium. You are given the option to specify a background layout, with a variety of both urban and rural backdrops. After that, you can also add a background image, with stock items including city scenes – and a mountain range that looks suspiciously similar to the one seen in the background on the PES 3 intro (a little bit of nostalgia for you).
As with aspects within the stadiums themselves, the backgrounds can be customised even further by adding your own images. Sticking with the aforementioned Merseyside Blue example, uploading a picture of a panoramic view of a relative Merseyside Area could give your stadium the finishing touches that’s needed to bring it to life.
So, what’re your thoughts on what you’ve read? Overall, I’m quite pleased with what I’ve seen, though I must say I was hoping for more. It may just be personal opinion, but I’d have liked to have a greater degree of control when it comes to kit creation – the amount of work that is being put into creating unofficial option files easily warrants the ability to add extra details.
We also have two leagues of fake clubs which can be fully edited and customised to represent any teams of your choice – which is a positive as we can stop teams like Ganzoraccio from entering the Champions League, and also lose the potential for “Player A12” to appear in Master League or Become A Legend by accident. The downside was that it looks like we are limited to editing these teams – I couldn’t find the potential to add any extras.
The stadium editor is a worthwhile addition for those that will embrace it. As mentioned, it seems pretty simplistic – but with a bit of effort, and some outside input (imagery) the potential for stadiums is great. The atmosphere in games will be significantly different and rightly so – after all, the way a match ‘feels’ plays a big part in your enjoyment. A lot of you will be happy to know that you can now play your early cup and division 2 games in stadiums other than the San Siro or the Santiago Bernabeu – PES has been crying out for a good set of minnow stadia for the lesser teams, and now we can add them.
Despite my personal grumbles – Konami have clearly put a lot of effort into PES 2011. We already know that the gameplay has improved tenfold – Fury’s article will confirm that it has only gotten better since the last time we saw it, and I can verify that editing has clearly started to move forward too. The additions and enhancements are all valid – and Stadium Editor will create a new direction for the artwork elite to move in.
I find it strange that full kit editing hasn’t been looked at – what with the distinct visual improvements, advances in creating realistic atmospheres and the broadcast quality camera views, but it’s also these exact things that makes it less of an issue. There has been so much put into 2011, be it a new additions or the return of old favourites, it’s easy to forgive Konami and the fabled Blue Sky Team for not taking editing back to where it was in PES 5 – but, my fingers are still crossed for next year.
