I turned to the dark side. Not of the Force – of video game football.
I’m sure I was not alone. I am of the generation raised on Pro Evolution Soccer, what was once the best, most popular football game on these shores. On PSone and PS2, it was football game. A few two-versus-two games to get warmed up before a big night out, a sip of a drink every time the ball went out of play. And of course we’re running late – we had to have a rematch, and another, and another…
And then Konami completely messed things up. The transition to the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation was a disaster for PES, as EA Sports’ rival FIFA series took hold. PES, you could argue, has yet to recover from that own goal. I moved over to FIFA along with a huge number of PES players, and didn’t look back.
As we approach the start of a new console transition, Konami is desperate to avoid past mistakes. And in order to make sure it hits the PS5 and Xbox Series X running, PES is, effectively, taking a year off. PES 2021 is a stop-gap game, a season update, and it is cheaper as a result. I was shocked to hear the news. PES hasn’t done anything like this ever, really. I doubt EA would ever consider such a thing.