Overview
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| FM 2013 overview screen |
Above is the FM 2013 Tactics overview which we're all familiar with. The 3 usable tactics are on the left and match training can quickly be switched on the bottom right. To the right are the players with all the information you need next to them. Adjacent is the pitch with all the players on them clearly showing your formation and player roles.
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| FM 2014 overview screen |
And now for this year's edition. On first looks, the new screen looks roughly the same as last year's game. The tactics have been moved from the far left to the top right, and instead of having to press the play icon to choose that tactic, you can just drag the alternative tactic onto the starting tactic to change it. A nice nifty touch. Other than a new shortcut that goes to player instructions, there's no new groundbreaking stuff to see on the overview screen.
Team
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| FM 2013 Team screen |
Here's where the fun starts. On 2013, the general strategies and playing styles made up the base of your tactic, and all the in match shouts were just to add minor detail to them during the match based on the match situation. You could use the sliders on specific instructions to tell your players exactly how fast you want them to play or how much to time waste.
BANG
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| FM 2014 team screen |
Where in the world did all the team instructions go? It feels strange looking at this screen as that empty space has always been occupied by masses of toggles and options. The only survivals from last year's game are the general strategies. As for playing styles and specific instructions, they have been moved into the "Instructions" category. Let's have a look at that shall we?
When you press the instructions button, you'll come to this screen. The old playing style instructions are still present with "Shorting passing" and "More direct passing" along with new options which were the in match player shouts from FM 2013 such as "Hit early crosses".There is disappointingly only one new instruction, which is "Go Route One". I feel SI could have added a few more new commands rather than just one, but more will probably come next year.
In placement of the defensive line slider, SI have directly replaced this with the"Much higher defence" and "Push higher up" instructions. Some fans may be disappointed that they're restricted to just 5 levels of defence line rather than the 10 they had before, but personally I'm not too fussed about it. I felt the old system was restrictive in itself not allowing you to choose the key instructions right from the off such as "Pass into space", so I'm very happy that 2014 allows you to do this now. It'll now also be able to differentiate your tactics from others with than 5 options of playing style. This new system will definitely take some getting used to but in my opinion, the evolution of the tactics team tab is far superior to the previous one, mainly due to the wealth of instructions you can pick on the tactics screen rather than sorting it all out in the match.
Player
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| FM 2013 player attributes |
The player screen in FM 2013 shows the player's role and duty, and all the required attributes to play it. If you click show instructions, you can look under the bonnet:
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| FM 2013 Player instructions |
Every aspect of the player's role can be toggled and changed. Some with the use of sliders, or though a drop down list.
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| FM 2014 player attributes |
One thing that no one can deny is FM 2014 has improved on space efficiency. This screen shows a lot more useful information than on FM 2013. You can still see the role and duty, along with the attributes. The newest additions can be seen when you press the add instructions bar.
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| FM 2014 player instructions |
Here is the direct replacement for the "show instructions" on FM 2013. I have mixed feelings towards this. Unlike the team tab, some instructions haven't been completely replaced in the new game, for example: there is no way of configuring mentality or creative freedom for a centre back. I feel this new system is more restrictive than the previous one, but it's not a deal breaking change, and it's something I will just put up with
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| FM 2014 individual player instructions |
This is something I definitely welcome on the player tab, the ability to have preset instructions for individual players. For example, if Sakho was good at long passes, I could configure his preset specific instructions to pass it more direct. At the same time, if I know that Skrtel can only pass it within a 2 metre radius, then I can set his instructions to pass it shorter. I no longer have to go to the "Show Instructions" button before every game to switch this option as the game will automatically change the position instructions depending on if Sakho or Skrtel is playing. It's a big time saver, and it makes playing to a player's strengths a lot easier.
Conclusion:
Football Manager 2014's new tactics screen is a long awaited welcome to the series, and one that will definitely benefit the game in the long run. Whilst fans will have sceptical looking at it for the first time, once you start getting used to it, you'll find it's a far better system than before. The new team tab has a lot more depth than before, and the ability to have specific instructions for your players is a big time saver. Overall, The new system is far more life like and realistic than the old system, and as a result should bring even more satisfaction for your hard thought victories.
