In 2003, Pro Evolution Soccer 3 was released and included a major update to the game engine, introducing new features such as the advantage rule and greatly improved long ball passing techniques. PES games were now starting to get their hands on lesser European licenses like the Dutch Eredivisie, but at least this was a start or a step towards Konami’s dominance of FIFA.
Pro Evo 3 was the first PES game scheduled for PC via Microsoft and it was popular, but the lack of online mode let it down. More improvements to the licensing deal came in subsequent iterations of PES, with many more official teams and players included, but the big one, the Premier League, always eluded Konami, something FIFA was unwilling to cede. The Master League (career mode) was expanded and the editing options were improved, making the resemblances even closer to reality.
In 2005, Pro Evolution Soccer 5 finally consolidated Pro Evo online, allowing players to play against other PES players anywhere in the world. Jubilation reigned on the online forums when we finally got real English teams, albeit only two: Arsenal and Chelsea, but again it was a start.
At this point in the story, PES was still dominating FIFA and generally commanding higher review scores, despite a lack of full licenses throughout the game. PES held up very well against the FIFA machine due to the excellent two player experience.
Playing against a computer can only be so good, as the computer’s AI is still no match for another human’s gaming experience. It was this sense of randomness and downright fun that kept Pro Evo at the top of the soccer charts and this position was further cemented in Pro Evolution Soccer 6, which for many PES fans was Konami’s finest hour.
Pro Evo 6 or Winning Eleven 10 had most of the best elements that have survived to the current incarnation. Fast, fluid and attacking football, combative tackling mechanics and a host of new tricks and moves. To go along with the ever-present official Japanese jersey, the England national team was now dressed in their official uniform, as were other nations. The Xbox version even had next-gen HD graphics and this would be the last version before Pro Evo made the transition to PS3.
There was no Pro Evo 7, the next installment would arrive in 2007 and the naming convention changed to what remains to this day: Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 or PES 2008. This was the first version to debut on PS3, but it still remained on PS2 and the other consoles. High definition graphics improved the gaming experience and PES began to move away from FIFA when it came to player similarity, though at the same time complacency led FIFA to close the gap and it was around these years that FIFA, for the first time, he began to achieve higher results. review scores, as he ironically liked the PES game of yore.
Although many things improved, PES games started to have problems during the 2008-2012 versions. Improvements to graphics, master league, competitions, licenses, and online play were negated by nitpicking changes to gameplay, which made Pro Evo more difficult, but sometimes less fun. It seemed like the game almost had a cheat mode in player vs computer games at the harder skill levels as it could be next to impossible to get the ball back or keep it against the computer. Goalies would inexplicably save weak shots directly towards unmarked forwards to facilitate touch-ins and referees could be incredibly harsh, sending off players for minor offences, while it seemed like computer controlled players could get away with it.
The past few years have seen repeated ‘review’ arrangements for PES as they have tried to reclaim the top spot. Shingo Takatsuka, known as ‘Seabass’, has created multiple buzzwords each year as Pro Evo innovates and pushes the limits of high definition consoles and what the PS3 and XBOX 360 can handle. PS3, as it initially had trouble catching up with the online system that XBOX had and now editing modes, coupled with the skill and efficiency of PES fans, means that the lack of licenses is almost irrelevant.
PES games will have their last blockbuster in October 2012 and according to all the online rumors and playable demos, PES is back. Review scores were close to those of FIFA last year and while the FIFA machine now exudes a high level of polish and excellent gameplay, if PES 2013 brings back some of that mid-2000s magic, it’ll be back to being. the best this fall.
