A Poor performance! (FA Premier League Manager 2001 (PC))

Member Name: Andy_83

Product:	FA Premier League Manager 2001 (PC)
Date:	14/01/02 (77 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great graphics

Disadvantages: Very unrealistic

I have been fond of football management sims and have the entire collection of the famous Championship Manager series. I brought this game as i thought it would be a bit different, a change from the normal, entirely text based Championship Manager games. It had the 3D angle which appealed to me, but i found it was a little bit of a let down.

The actual game statistics were poor, there was very limited information on each individual player and i found it hard to distinguish between players on practically equal ability and skill level and with it difficult to differentiate between different players and also player transfer fees were way beyond the realms of reality. The EA mail feature i found was very annoying as it often distracted you from whatever you were trying to do. The idea of being given transfer funds at the beginning of the season depending on which goals you set yourself was also very annoying as it meant you could get the sack immediately and i felt that Leicester City trying for a top six finish with £17,000,000 to spend was very poor indeed, Dean Sturridge costing £15,000,000. How unreal is that?

The graphics however were very good and didn't get boring, the game however did lack that something that makes you want to sit down and really get stuck in. Im afraid this isn't a touch on Championship Manager and i think it will be tough to match it.

The sound is excellent, the commentary, as on many football games is first class, although every now and then it seemed to struglle to keep up with what was happening on the pitch. For example the goalkeeper had already saved and kicked up field and you would hear "Great Save" from the commentary team. When this happens you think "Oh my god"!

The potential to change ticket prices and improve your ground is a great feature and it is one that should be incorporated in more football management simulations as it is a really interesting aspect to the
game. This game is particularly good at this as any changes you make are actually reflected on the 3D image when playing which looks superb.

Overall this was not the game for me, at £19.99 it's quite good value but i prefer the more statistically based games such as Championship Manager. I'm sure many of you will enjoy the game but just to be sure try and play a demo before buying, it may only be £20 but it's always good to be sure.

Summary: