Football Manager 2006 (Xbox 360)

For the first time Football Manager 2006, a game which has developed cult status amongst football fans, has come to Xbox 360. In fact this version represents the first conversion on to any console from the popular pc game. Many of you guys may have heard of football manager developed by SI (Sports Interactive) who also developed Championship Manager (CM).

{For those not in the know, Football Manager is just an update of the old CM game, but with the name changed due to change in ownership}.

For those who have played the any of the yearly pc versions of this game, you will be happy to find that this games doesn't abandon those true principals which made this game great. For those who haven't played any version of the this game and desperately wondering what I am talking about, don't worry I'll introduce you to the purposes of this game.

Game Overview

Football Manager is as the title suggests a football management simulation. The game allows you to be in full (well almost full) control of a football team of your choice, you make the decisions - the club, the players, the tactics, the training etc. These decisions will either bring your club success or failure, glory or humiliation (or complete boredom if you couldn't care less). In short the future of your club is in your hands. You can start off with any team you want, the number of leagues in this game is truly extraordinary and will almost definitely make sure that your favorite club is included whether its the giants of the game, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool or the minnows in the Conference. If you don't like English football, then don't despair as there are leagues available from Italy and Spain, to lesser known footballing nations such as Poland and Japan.

Also, I'm sure many of you will be glad to know that you can also manager national teams. Yes, that means move over the likes of Sven and Mclaren, you now have the hope of the nations football team in your hands and it's down to you to get the players to deliver World and European glory. Being club and national manager at the same time is also possible. The key lies in how you deal with your 'superstar' footballers, although there is a simulated media in the game, it is not highly responsive. So if you were England manager and decided to pick a 17 year old striker who had never played in the Premiership, then you can get away with it without being criticized!!!

Playability

The key to enjoying this game is to understand its purposes and limitations. A lot of people who have played this game have complained that you can not actually play a game of football yourself. This view is rather naive, this is game is not Fifa Football or Pro Evolution Soccer. This game attempts to bring you the realities of being a manager of a football team, hence naturally you can't actually control the players themselves, rather you must 'manage' them. Hope we have that cleared!

The brilliance of this game lies in the that you can make your management style as complex or as simplistic you want, like I said earlier you are in control. Some like to be pedantic and control every aspect of the game down to individual training regimes. Whereas if you want you can take a very laid back approach, allow coaches do the hard work (i.e. let computer take control) and then sit back and see what results your team produces.

Visually the main screen from which you control each aspect of the game may be a bit daunting if you haven't played the pc game, but you will soon adapt and will regard the depth of information as essential and part of the real game environment. The user interface in general is a step up from the pc version. The thing that is impressive on the Xbox 360 version is the load times, on the pc this was rather long (unless NASA designed your computer). But with Xbox 360's power the load times are short and allow you greater time to enjoy the game. This version of the game incorporates all the main features from the 2004 and 2005 pc version of the game.

Multiplayer allows users (up to 8) to take part in a league or a cup competition over Xbox Live with achievement points and world leader board rankings up for grabs for the victors. The game will be constantly updated through Xbox Live by Sports Interactive thanks to downloadable content or automatic updates, this could range from new signings during the transfer window or a complete new overhaul of the leagues (who won, who got promoted and who got relegated etc).

Every year improvements are made to the game and this version contains many new features which are designed to make the game even more realistic than it already is. There is increased media interaction, man management of the players is increased and for the first time you can actually have a half time team talk. So if you team is losing at half time you can either do a rousing Winston Churchill speech or give your players the Alex Ferguson style hairdryer treatment! There is just so much detail in the game that it will leave hooked for months. The beauty of the game is that the challenges never seem to end (like real management). Even if you have won the title for the last 3 seasons, there is always a challenge to maintain the hunger in your players or control there ego, then there is injuries, players retire or pass their peak, it is a continual evolution.

This game isn't for everyone, at the beginning it used to be a very niche market but slowly as the game has developed millions of have found this game enjoyable. Nevertheless there are gamers who want instant action, thrills and spills or have no interest in football then they may find this game rather boring.

For many this will be an excellent release and a highly addictive one. The transformation to Xbox 360 enhances the game further allowing better visuals and a smoother game playing process. For a footie fan this is a must, no other management game is this realistic or has the level of detail as Football Manager. For the summer period when there is no football around, this is a perfect alternative.