016 PES 2017
Pro Evo and FC Barcelona team up to nutmeg FIFA
OPM jets off to Spain to peep at the football sim’s stunningly realistic new cover stars.
The title race for PlayStation 4’s premier football game is fiercer than ever, and PES isn’t resting on its laurels. In fact, it’s building on last year’s gameplay successes by partnering with FC Barcelona for an exclusive deal. So what can we expect from the transfer coup that screams “signing of the summer”?
We’re sitting in the Camp Nou press room to find out – and the reason we’re at the legendary stadium is because Barcelona’s ground will be exclusive to PES for the next three years. Frankly, FIFA’s going to need an ice pack from that roasting. With every aspect of the stadium precisely recreated – the fabled La Masia academy and the huge club store are both visible in footage we see – the famous venue has never looked better in videogame form.
It’s not just the stadium that’s getting a meticulous adaptation. Every single player from the Barca squad has been 3D scanned for PES 2017. Suárez looks so lifelike we fear for our fingers in case our pad grows a pair of teeth and nips them. But no word yet about whether Messi’s peroxide blond locks will make the final game…
Players don’t just look their real-life counterparts, they act like them as well. If you manage to score with Neymar and click R3, he’ll even
IF YOU SCORE WITH NEYMAR, CLICK R3 AND HE’LL WHIP HIS TOP OFF…
whip his top off and air his chest to celebrate. The laws of football being what they are, this is a risky move – just like in real life, the young Brazilian will pick up a booking if he does so. There’s attention to detail, and there are the welcome lengths PES is going to in order to capture every aspect of real-life footy.
MÉS QUE UN MYCLUB
PES’s Ultimate Team rival myClub is also getting a lot of exclusive Barca goodies as well. The biggest addition for the mode is that legendary Barcelona players of the past will be available to scout for your team. Some of the confirmed stars include (the Brazilian) Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Belletti, Xavi, Rivaldo and Puyol. They’ll also be popping up in Master League too, which is mighty kind of them. On top of that, select kits from the club’s history – such as the
instantly recognisable 100-year anniversary kit from 99-00 – will also feature. As you should know by now, kitting your team out in retro gear is always a gaming highlight.
“It’s beyond our wildest dreams that this is even happening,” says PES Global Product & Brand Manager Adam Bhatti. But despite the huge love-in with Barcelona, the Spanish club isn’t the sole focus of PES 2017. Bhatti isn’t ruling out similar team-ups with other clubs down the line, telling us that “it’s not that we only want to be part of the Barcelona family; we want to be part of every club and, if we get [talking to] another club and if they give us a call, we want that opportunity.”
NOU CHAMP
Of course, none of this would matter one drop if the actual game wasn’t up to scratch on the pitch. But just like last year there’s no cause for concern: PES 2017 is shaping up to be the best game of football available on PlayStation 4. Why? It’s the most natural: during our latest hands-on test we use Iniesta to slip a through ball past a static defence, which Neymar bends his run to latch onto. The resulting rising shot – slammed in off the underside of the bar – is a thing of beauty. And as you’d expect from a game where the Barca team adorn the cover, passing is a joy. From the way you can weave through defences with snappy short taps and delicate flicks, to inchperfect through balls that zip across the pitch, attacking play is crisp, stylish and satisfying.
Then there’s the prettier-thanever Fox Engine. Player models look slightly less chunky compared to last year’s outing, while cutaway scenes in-game – such as players crowding the officials – are creeping ever closer towards photorealism. The only thing we want to see improved so far is the referees, who currently whip out cards as if they’re burning a hole in their pockets – hardly a red card offence given the MOTM-level performance everywhere else. PES 2017 is hitting stores on 15 Sep – look out for our incoming review.