The layout and style conjure up a concise idea of what Japanese games were like in the early 2000’s. Many things in this game remind you of its age, primarily its heavily clunky and low poly look. I found the learning curve steep but enjoyable, and scoring my first goal was a rewarding experience. In particular, the variety of controls assigned to different styles of kicks, passes, and tackles, not only accommodate diverse play styles but also make for a tactically interesting game. The ease of navigation in the title sequence, alongside the controls, animations and overall style within the game play itself were far superior compared to FIFA 2002, which released alongside it that same year. Make your choice based on the team’s stats, and it’s up to you to fend off against rivals and emerge victorious. By selecting one of only a handful of options in the streamlined menu, you can choose a team from amongst 54 nations to play in a variety of modes from single matches to entire tournament style leagues. The game’s premise is as straightforward as it could ever be. A surprising improvement from its predecessor, PES 2 offered slightly updated graphics and AI that greatly boosted its playability. What this variety does is creates a game that not only serves as a fun multiplayer experience but also one that you can contently play on your own for hours on end.įor a soccer game made in 2002, the universally acclaimed World Soccer: Winning Eleven 6 International (Pro Evolution Soccer 2) holds up as an amusing yet very playable game even by today’s standards, and not just because soccer games haven’t changed a great deal with time. The modes that are immediately available to the player include a match mode, a league mode, training mode, cup mode and the crowning jewel of this title, the master league mode where you take a ragtag Sunday league level team and grow them into a batch of world-class superstars. The player will have access to a mass of options to sink their teeth into when they boot this one up. It’s just a different approach for a more tactical and methodical player. You’ll find that a lot of games end 1-0 and in all honesty, it’s not to the game’s detriment.
That means being set up tactically, passing with fluidity and working your chances with care to get an end result worth celebrating. If you want to score goals, you’ll have to work for them. While FIFA will let you end every game with your pals with at least four goals each usually, this title focuses on a more realistic approach. However, what detail it misses in terms of visual splendour, the game makes up for in its gameplay mechanics. The environments and stadiums were a strong point but overall, it’s very clear that FIFA had a clear edge in graphical detail during this era.
For this title and a number of PES games that would proceed it, the graphics would look grainy, bleak and often the textures and character models would be laughable. What is brutally apparent with this title is that it isn’t going to win any awards for its presentation.