|
|
|
FOOTBALL, TACTICS & GLORY (PC)
|
a.k.a. Football Tactics
Publisher: Creoteam. Developer: Creoteam. Released: June 2015. Genre: Management; Turn-based strategy. Posted 20th July 2017. By Alan Passingham © 2017 |
Browsing Steam or GoG’s holiday season sales is a bit like going into a video store circa 1987. Most indie games, like their straight-to-video counterparts, rarely receive extravagant press exposure meaning clear indications of their quality are not always apparent. There is a lot of cheap, dire sh*t out there and you never really know what you are going to get, which invariably leads to VHS Russian Roulette. Much of the time you would have paid just 99p to end the night washing your eyes out with detergent to prevent the sheer awfulness of Moontrap or Saturn 3 being burned into your retinas for f*cking eternity. The joy! However, on occasion a little gem, like The Ice Pirates (space herpes) or The Kentucky Fried Movie (catholic high school girls in trouble) pops into existence, which brings goose bumps to the arms and happiness to the soul. Football Tactics is a bit like that…
Plucked out of early access obscurity for a measly tenner, Football Tactics is the antithesis to the better regarded Football Manager. It’s a much slender management sim for a start that does away with all the boring sh*t that has made Football Manager feel more like a full-time unpaid job than a game in recent years. Indeed, it harks back to the good old days of Champ Manager where you could just get on with buying Stan Collymore, Chris Armstrong and Tommy Johnson, selecting a 4-3-3 formation and playing the damn match. Gone are the reams of player data and endless set of media obligations. In are only four player characteristics with each linked to a standard defence, midfield or attacking role. There be no false nines, sweepers or wing-backs to further confuse things here. The simplicity in design means a team can quickly be selected so you can get on with the important guff - match day.
Browsing Steam or GoG’s holiday season sales is a bit like going into a video store circa 1987. Most indie games, like their straight-to-video counterparts, rarely receive extravagant press exposure meaning clear indications of their quality are not always apparent. There is a lot of cheap, dire sh*t out there and you never really know what you are going to get, which invariably leads to VHS Russian Roulette. Much of the time you would have paid just 99p to end the night washing your eyes out with detergent to prevent the sheer awfulness of Moontrap or Saturn 3 being burned into your retinas for f*cking eternity. The joy! However, on occasion a little gem, like The Ice Pirates (space herpes) or The Kentucky Fried Movie (catholic high school girls in trouble) pops into existence, which brings goose bumps to the arms and happiness to the soul. Football Tactics is a bit like that…
Plucked out of early access obscurity for a measly tenner, Football Tactics is the antithesis to the better regarded Football Manager. It’s a much slender management sim for a start that does away with all the boring sh*t that has made Football Manager feel more like a full-time unpaid job than a game in recent years. Indeed, it harks back to the good old days of Champ Manager where you could just get on with buying Stan Collymore, Chris Armstrong and Tommy Johnson, selecting a 4-3-3 formation and playing the damn match. Gone are the reams of player data and endless set of media obligations. In are only four player characteristics with each linked to a standard defence, midfield or attacking role. There be no false nines, sweepers or wing-backs to further confuse things here. The simplicity in design means a team can quickly be selected so you can get on with the important guff - match day.
|
|
Jumpers for goal-posts - build your team up from humble, park-life beginnings.
The match engine is where Football Tactics largely differs from most other footy management sims, as it hands control of the action over to the player. Direct intervention via a hands-on turn-based and probability scoring system relies on in-game strategy as much as luck to reign supreme. Think Heroes of Might and Magic but with footballers instead of griffins. Each turn consists of three actions to be applied across the team. Players can do the usual footy actions within the confines of the 7 by 11 grid that represents the pitch, although the success of passing, shooting and tackling is largely dependent on the players ability score under one of the four key characteristics. For instance, when playing a short pass to a team-mate in space this action is automatically completed. However, attempt a short pass where an opponent can intercept and the pass skills of both are used in a random number generator to define success. Obviously, having a higher attribute in the pass skill helps to ensure this test is passed more often than not, but the random number generator certainly lends itself to more interesting and challenging games that require a sense of strategy. Do you play that risky move first that may mean you get a pop on goal this turn, or do you just play the percentages?
Of course, ensuring greater success on the pitch requires player improvement. Dealing in the transfer market is one way to achieve this, albeit only a small-pool of players are available from the out-set. Player characteristics can also increase, however, through experience points received after the end of the match. More man-of-the match performances leads to a player levelling faster and increasing stats in defined training areas (the four player characteristics) quicker. Additionally, players can learn new skills through training such as sliding tackle, nutmegs, cannon shots and layoff passes. These add a further dimension to the match dynamic as successfully implementing a skill provides an extra action per turn, although these skills can only be used in certain circumstances. Used wisely, they can become potential match winners. The post-match levelling also provides more money and manager points to develop the team set-up. This includes increasing stadium capacity, developing a youth academy, enhancing the ability of your scouts to find more players on the transfer short-list and developing coaches so they have a greater impact on the experience players receive. Managing income, particularly so you can afford player contracts as they becoming better players is also a vital component of this part of the game. Marvellously, this is all managed within just a few management screens. The management component is light in Football Tactics but contains enough depth to see your decisions affect the team where it matters.
Of course, ensuring greater success on the pitch requires player improvement. Dealing in the transfer market is one way to achieve this, albeit only a small-pool of players are available from the out-set. Player characteristics can also increase, however, through experience points received after the end of the match. More man-of-the match performances leads to a player levelling faster and increasing stats in defined training areas (the four player characteristics) quicker. Additionally, players can learn new skills through training such as sliding tackle, nutmegs, cannon shots and layoff passes. These add a further dimension to the match dynamic as successfully implementing a skill provides an extra action per turn, although these skills can only be used in certain circumstances. Used wisely, they can become potential match winners. The post-match levelling also provides more money and manager points to develop the team set-up. This includes increasing stadium capacity, developing a youth academy, enhancing the ability of your scouts to find more players on the transfer short-list and developing coaches so they have a greater impact on the experience players receive. Managing income, particularly so you can afford player contracts as they becoming better players is also a vital component of this part of the game. Marvellously, this is all managed within just a few management screens. The management component is light in Football Tactics but contains enough depth to see your decisions affect the team where it matters.
|
|
No longer your average pub-team, although pub-weather can still make tackling tricky.
Adding to the punchy dynamic of the match engine and management decisions is the straightforward nature of Football Tactics. It’s an easy game to get into, the basics are simple enough to pick-up (the in-game tutorial is excellent) and each match only takes a few minutes to play. The first couple of seasons are a nice introduction where you should be able to earn promotions or win the odd divisional cup, but at the point where things could begin to get a little too predictable and easy the challenge is turned up to 11. Better teams with better individual players become common place opponents making even a draw feel like a victory. In-game goofs are ruthlessly punished. Your tactics change to accommodate a less direct, get more players behind the ball approach against the most developed teams. Patience is required to slowly build your team into a shower of fearless world-beaters. This gives Football Tactics an essential more-ish appeal and the near deadly ‘one-more game’ approach that can easily wreck marriages. In other words, perfect gaming criteria.
To say I have thoroughly enjoyed Football Tactics would be an understatement. It’s a gem of an unheralded game. Far above a plucky little Bournemouth, perhaps more like a Brian Clough galvanised Nottingham Forest. The simple presentation, quirky in-game graphics (complete with different weather systems and backgrounds as your stadium size increases) and the delightful ‘thump’ sound every time the ball is given a hefty boot merely add to the top-class management and tactical components on offer. Delightful! So, if you’re looking for a less testing and more accessible footy simulation that features an excellent match-day engine where you have direct control, Football Tactics is the new Brian Kidd on the block…
To say I have thoroughly enjoyed Football Tactics would be an understatement. It’s a gem of an unheralded game. Far above a plucky little Bournemouth, perhaps more like a Brian Clough galvanised Nottingham Forest. The simple presentation, quirky in-game graphics (complete with different weather systems and backgrounds as your stadium size increases) and the delightful ‘thump’ sound every time the ball is given a hefty boot merely add to the top-class management and tactical components on offer. Delightful! So, if you’re looking for a less testing and more accessible footy simulation that features an excellent match-day engine where you have direct control, Football Tactics is the new Brian Kidd on the block…
|
In a nutshell...
"Think Heroes of Might and Magic but with footballers instead of griffins... if you’re looking for a less testing and more accessible footy simulation that features an excellent match-day engine where you have direct control, Football Tactics is the new Brian Kidd on the block…" |
Visual: 7/10
Audio: 7/10 Gameplay: 10/10 Longevity: 9/10 OVERALL: 9/10 |
Vid by Creoteam
|