Ok, I’ll fess up – Until Pro Evolution Soccer 6 I hadn’t really played any of Konami’s soccer games. Sure, I had seen them in action, and had a kick around with a mate, but never really explored it at any great length. FIFA was my soccer game of choice, mainly because it was pretty, had players and locations I could identify, and was easy to pick up and play. But FIFA has its faults and I was always left unsatisfied, hoping that the next game would improve on the fact that the game always seemed like a poor simulation of the Beautiful Game.

Case in point – Apart from FIFA 2006 (for original Xbox) I’ve pretty much sold or traded my past copies of FIFA because I can’t see myself playing them beyond a few months. But there must be something about the number 6, as I won’t be trading my copy of Pro Evolution Soccer 6 any time soon, well at least until PES 7 comes out. Because when I play this game, I feel as I am really playing a game of soccer. It’s like every gripe I’ve ever had about any soccer game has been addressed and fixed. There are still some flaws though, which is of course to be expected, but call me a convert.

What strikes me most about this game is how it seems like a real soccer game. My major annoyance with other soccer games is you can punt the ball forward, but there never seems anyone to be in place. Even with complex team and individual placement organisation appearing in the very latest games, I always felt my team wasn’t up to the task of getting in position when plays were made. I used to think it could be because I tend to pick lower ranked teams (go Villa!), but even when picking Brazil or Arsenal team AI seemed to be lacking.

In PES, players actually take runs to get into position, they run on the ball, and the game never seems to lag behind the play of the ball. I can’t pinpoint for sure if it’s the fact that passes to teammates are tighter, or if their on field positioning is better, or even if the controls are more precise, but I’ve found myself much more able to do exactly what I want my team to do. I never felt I was wrestling with the player as if they were determined to do their own thing, like bolt down the pitch, even though the ball was behind him.

Players seem to respond quickly and more realistically to what’s happening around them. FIFA introduced the trick stick, but players in PES 6 automatically turn the ball away from an opposing player, or tap in through their legs to another teammate, and it’s all so smooth and natural, it’s beautiful. It’s the fact that it all seems so easy and seamless that makes it a truly better game. And, unlike so often in other soccer games, I never felt a mistake was anything but my fault… well, most of the time. If I shot the ball and it went wide, it was generally because I wasn’t in a good position, or was being pressured by the opposition so lost my cool, or held the button too long to shoot the ball. Frees and Cards given felt like the result of me tackling from behind, or slide tackling when an opponent was off the ball, not some arbitrary decision on the game’s behalf. If the opposition got through my defence, it was because of a mistake I made somewhere, either in having my defence too far forward, or by not concentrating on the play.

The main thrust of the PES 6 is the long and involved Master league, in which you select a team and work your way up through the various league divisions. This is quite in depth, and the ability to refine your team’s playing ability is quite daunting. From being able to choose not only formations, but variations within formations – so you might have a 4-4-3 formation but choose to drop the main striker back a little to provide more midfield support – to being able to determine individual runs, to determining forms of attack and defence, the serious soccer gamer can tweak to their hearts delight. And this does have an impact on how the game is played. A change in formation can be the difference between a win and a draw.

Because EA owns the rights to most of the teams with an exclusive deal with FIFA, many team and player names have to be substituted for others, which is a shame. Long time PES players may be used to this, but for someone new to the series it can be a little off-putting. However, given that PES has a lot more leagues and teams than FIFA 07’s pitiful line up, fans should be a lot more happier and be able to find their team here. There are 4 licensed leagues; Eredivisie, Spain La Liga, France Ligue 1 and Italy Serie A, plus 11 licensed international teams, including Australia, plus a further 15 licensed teams including Arsenal, Celtic and Juventus. One interesting omission is the ability to change team and player names. In the past everything was editable, so even though Aston Villa is called West Midlands Village, you used to be able to edit the team names, player names, and the kits to a much better approximation of the real team. This is absent from the Xbox360 version for some unfathomable reason.

PES 6 looks great too. Sure, it’s not truly next-gen as the game engine is the same one used in the past, but the player models look great, and their likeness is even better than FIFA, which to me is pretty strange given EA’s advanced technology in this area. The animations are smooth and quite varied, and the stadiums feel exciting. Having a ref on field jumping away from the ball as well as lines men who follow the play and signal with flags adds even more authenticity. Unfortunately I found other areas of presentation to be less than ideal. The icons are confusing and small, menus require far too many button presses, and the whole feel is positively archaic compared to other soccer games.

Audio wise the game is good, with the usual crowd cheers and players calling for the ball, but the commentary of Peter Brackley and Sir Trevor Brooking can be a little repetitive, and they lack the enthusiasm of other soccer game commentators. It is funny how they use fake player names though. The music on the menus sounds like something you’d hear in an old soccer review show from the 90s – it’s kind of European techno-ish, but it too sounds outdated.

Online the game plays OK. The set up and connection is fine, but the game suffers from terrible lag, especially when playing people from other countries. The rules and penalties for pausing and disconnecting are a welcome addition, although as in many online games there are a few people who use exploits and ruin the fun for everyone. And if you disconnect because of the bad lag, you get a negative mark against your name, but if it’s unplayable then that seems a little unfair too.

Conclusion:
PES 6 is one of the finest soccer games I have played. Everything when playing a match feels fantastic. Scoring goals takes hard work, and when you do you feel as though you really have earned it. You feel in total control over what happens, and although sometimes luck plays a part, it feels more like the luck you find in a real life soccer match, rather than a fault or glitch of the game. The presentation lets the game down however, and lack of ability to edit team names and kits is a feature sorely missed.

Pros:
Excellent simulation of the beautiful game
Long and deep Master League
Scoring goals takes work and patient, but the pay off feels great
Excellent range of teams and leagues to choose from compared to other xbox360 soccer games

Cons
Steep learning curve could put off players of other sports games.
Poor presentation in menus
Lack of team editing a real shame, given the lack of real life teams available
Very laggy when playing online.

88/100