In its 25-year history , the Pro Evolution Soccer saga has never been content to be a simple alternative when it comes to bringing the beautiful game to consoles and PCs: with its pluses and minuses, its deliveries have arrived every year with the spirit of retaining what makes its own acronyms great , being aware of the inevitable comparisons with FIFA. Precisely for this reason, what eFootball PES 2021 offers us is so unique.
Once the PES 2020 cycle closed, Konami made official its plans with good and bad news for its faithful community: the most ambitious and important installment of the saga was taking shape and the jump to the Unreal engine will promote the definitive push of quality in what technical, the physics and its visual section for the new generation of consoles.
Now, focusing entirely on the rebirth of PES involved making a delicate decision: PES 2021 is, quite literally, a Seasonal Update.
Those who enjoyed the previous installment will find almost everything on their site and where they left it: the same modes, the same physics, the same game experience … It’s the same game that arrived in September 2019, updated with player data and the club rosters for the 2020/2021 football seasons. Although, in fairness, there have been new signings in regards to Konami’s particular licensing war with EA Sports.
The gameplay sensations are the same with one important nuance: eFootball PES 2021 Season Update is the sum of all the changes made after the launch of PES 2020 and regularly incorporates adjustments and template updates. So if a player is on a hot streak or is poorly motivated, it will affect their counterpoint in the game.
With that premise ahead, the question posed to us is natural: to what extent is this season update worth it if we start from the previous game edition? Well, the fact that their novelties are what they are does not prevent us from facing a real great football game with its own weaknesses, but that it knows how to achieve excellence, command in hand.
The double challenge of eFootball PES 2021 in its most complicated match
Seen from a distance, all soccer games look similar . In the game, the differences greatly reveal the differences between one and the other. And the playable character of the Pro Evolution Soccer saga is exquisitely palpable in PES 2021 : his way of taking advantage of one on one or the way he moves with each cannon shot that is resolved into a goal are part of the saga’s DNA.
A hallmark that eFootball PES 2021 must wield this season before two really complicated measuring sticks: although there are hardly any differences between the previous edition beyond what is integrated through the post-launch patches of both deliveries, in essence Konami It faces the battery of changes and news in FIFA 21 and, at the same time, the next-generation version of EA Sports’ own blockbuster.
From the outset, and with regard to licenses, this year there have been very unique movements. Without going any further, with the season update AC Milan and Inter Milan are lost, Juventus’s juicy exclusivity is retained and, in the process, Konami snatches from EA Sports nothing less than AS Roma.
In fact, PES 2021 exclusively retains key Latin American teams such as the Argentine titans Boca Juniors and River Plate or the Chilean stars Colo-Colo and Universidad de Chile . Not to mention especially curious cases thanks to its new and powerful exclusivity agreements, leaving FIFA 21 with the official Brazilian kit but without its players, just the opposite happening in the case of the Portuguese team.
That does not prevent that when improvising pachangas we find ourselves with too many teams created for the occasion . Some, too notorious. In other words: seeing that Real Madrid like Madrid Chamartín continues to be a chore, but at least it has stopped giving the impression that the PES saga is the official video game of FC Barcelona. And it must be recognized that Konami has been able to give fans of the clubs associated with PES just what they were looking for.
With that ahead, where PES has always known how to shine with its own light is in its playable nuance , offering since the previous installment a scheme of passes, shots and crosses that is the natural evolution of all previous releases.
And although it must be said that, on paper, there are no changes beyond the adjustments introduced in updates , the entry into the scene of dynamic dribbling, subtle dribbling or its off-the-ball control premise remains fresh and current. season after.
On the other hand, eFootball PES 2021 lacks that visual boost that Konami is saving for the next installment, but there are subtle details that make the difference and reveal that there is a latent work throughout this season: with each new big update, PES 2021 accommodate the faces of the most prominent players and take the opportunity to update the appearances of the superstars of your preferred associates.
And despite the fact that -seen in very short distance- many of the movements do not have the fluidity and physics of FIFA , in view of broadcasting and from an Xbox Series X eFootball PES 2021 maintains the type without surprising. Knowing that, deep down, it is a title of the generation that is in its own decline.
Which does not mean that eFootball PES 2021 continues to drag the weaknesses of the previous season and retain the best of the maximum claims of the saga itself.
Intense matches for severely addictive modes
Konami withdrew from the digital stores eFootball PES 2020 Coinciding with the launch of the free-to-play version of this season’s edition, and it makes sense: it makes no sense to offer the same game twice when only one of them is receiving updates and contents.
Because, as we all know, for some time now, the epicenter of the Pro Evolution Soccer experience goes through its two star modes: myClub and Master League.
It is not that there are no options when it comes to improvising pachangas : PES 2021 offers the possibility of taking quick and alternative games online. However, the lack of many of the most powerful licenses in the football scene and the online matchmaking system continue to seriously weigh on these sections.
Online alternatives beyond myClub and the matchmaking process pale in comparison to other current competitive games, regardless of the genre we are talking about, and the fastest and easiest way to find a rival is to open the door to any type of connection, which It involves very specific jerks that inevitably stain the experience as a whole. A shame.
The online cooperative play and couch sharing alternatives introduced in past editions are still there, of course, but they haven’t quite taken off compared to the star modes of PES. Which, by the way, continue to be the true claim of the Konami football experience.
The myClub mode is designed to become our priority and main obsession. Ultimately, it is where we will truly be invited to progress, prosper, and play online. But also to strengthen our search to be the definitive club. Rewarding each achievement and inviting us to return successfully every day.
For its part, although the Master League does not need too many presentations, it is worth highlighting the set of news it received last season. Giving much more prominence to transfers and the figure and relevance of the coach. Making us hook one game with the next inevitably.
Konami casts its soccer proposal in its star modes by inheritance from the previous installment, but-to be really fair- those who renew the season with PES already had it.
And, despite the fact that the game itself offers reasons to continue to progress steadily, the introduction of an increasingly necessary playable alternative in relation to its mode selection becomes even more evident in this Season Update and, inevitably, we fixes eyes on upcoming installments .
The question around eFootball PES 2021 no longer turns to whether it is as good as the previous one: they are identical except in the most superficial details. What is truly relevant is to what extent it is worth betting on an openly confessed transitional delivery.
We agree that the lack of new features is its biggest drawback , but not enough to overshadow the perpetuation of the PES sensations and the extension of the experience around myClub and Master League continue to be powerful claims for fans. , the veterans and the huge community behind the saga.
You can’t say there’s no reason not to give the experience a chance or transition from the previous season: in addition to launching at a discounted price, Konami offered eFootball PES 2020 holders a promotion to get the Season Update. through a discount. Not to mention the free and trimmed version (with paid options) of PES 2021 Lite.
However, it is inevitable that we wonder if in this case, with the 25 years of the saga as a pretext – and exceptionally – an update could have been offered at no additional cost . Logically, leaving the door open so that anyone who did not have it could purchase it separately.
The landscape facing eFootball PES 2021 is completely unfair, especially considering that the EA Sports saga has already made the real leap to next-generation systems and its sole purpose is to buy time for the next installment. And yet, neither one nor the other prevent it from being a great game.
Because, in its own way, eFootball PES 2021 is a second chance for a love letter to the beautiful game dated in September 2019. And although it will not be the trigger that the saga needs, the words of that letter are still valid for a season more.
eFootball PES 2021 SEASON UPDATE
| Platforms | PS4, Xbox One and PC |
|---|---|
| Multiplayer | Yes |
| Developer | Konami |
| Company | Konami |
| Launch | September 14, 2020 |
| Price | 25.90 euros |
The best
- Its almost patentable playability
- MyClub mode and Master League remain at the heart of the experience
- Thematic contents related to PES Premium Partners
Worst
- No relevant news compared to the previous season
- You need to improve your online and matchmaking system
- An update with everything that implies being a transition delivery
