Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 Review

Multiplayer:

The one area where PES always struggled a bit compared to FIFA was in the online sphere. PES 2018 appears to have solved many of the issues. Playing over multiple games I was pleased not to encounter any of the stutter which could plague previous versions (although I have heard of other players who still find this an issue). The main problem though is the matchmaking can be pretty slow. As with FIFA, the sheer number of modes means that even with a substantial player base, those online can be spread quite thinly. As a result, I was frequently waiting over a minute to connect to other players, even on evenings and weekends.

Presentation:

I’m not sure Konami ever intend to compete on a spectacle/ broadcast level with EA and the huge budgets they throw at their games, and instead intent to compete purely on gameplay terms.

The TV coverage (barring the branded Champions League/ UEFA modes) is pretty bare bones generally, and doesn’t appear to have been given a makeover in the last two years. The crowds also remain a generation behind, and the commentary pairing of Drury and Beglin still goes over some of the same lines I was moaning about three or four years ago.

They sound genuinely bored in some of the new commentary, and the game still suffers from un-natural sounding commentary from the PS1 era when there’s a slight pause or change in tone when a team or player name is inserted into a line of dialogue. Frankly its embarrassing at this point in time.

Conclusion:

The problem I have with “Pro Evolution Soccer 2018” is that it feels like an incredibly incremental update. Be a Pro needs a major overhaul in the light of FIFA’s story mode, whilst Master League could also do with some more polish. The gameplay has been tweaked, but feels largely similar, and when the biggest feature is the return of a novelty mode from the PS2 era, you start to feel as if you’re clutching at straws for what to say. Pro Evo is by no means a poor game, but it feels like all the great momentum of the last three years has completely stalled here, and what’s left is a placeholder or window dressing for something hopefully greater to come.