Yeah, I don't get it...

In the past, I thought they put everything in an xml file for the explicit reason to allow the user to customize the interface. The default colors are miserable IMO - attributes in particular. I wonder why the switch to being less-customizable?

I get the same error as the game setups. It shows up three times and then the game freezes and I have to shut it down.

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Edited as there may be a problem with being beta patch compatible before trying read the linked akter thread at SI. Seems some have it working while others do not.
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original post..
I read somewhere on the SI board (can't find it now to link to) that it lets SI use the same files for all versions of FM (ie xbox 360, psp, and pc\ mac) where before they had to make a different set for each version. So a time saver for SI. Also someone else posted it speeds up the load times, though I never saw a confirmation from anyone at SI.

SI will be releasing a "tool" that will allow users to go in and mod these files, though of course it's not ready yet.

FWIW if you play with the files through trial and error it seems you can make the changes now. Akter posted about his colored attribute mod at SI here..

http://community.sigames.com/eve/for...9682085353/p/1

I haven't tried it as it also darkens the new white skin (still white just not as bright) and since I'm happy with that the way it is I'll wait until I can change the attribute color only.

Here's a screen shot the Ackter posted.

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/5...allic03qc7.jpg

and a link to d'load the skin at sortitoutsi..

http://www.sortitoutsi.net/index.php...le&fileid=4865

Getting a CTD every time I click on coach's report, going to reinstall without the beta patch and see if that fixes it...

That's three different results from four different users. I wonder what is causing the difference in behavior....

Saved game cannot be loaded now, reinstalling the beta patch.....sigh...

Well, clean reinstall with the beta patch fixed it so I can view coach reports without a CTD.....sigh of relief....

I don't know if this explains anything, but I have been having problems with a fan in my computer. I looked into it, and discovered that the fan on my graphics card had failed. It's a PCI slot card, so I took it out and reverted to the graphics controllers that were on my computer. So, I started the game, decided to give the PLA 2008 a go, and now it works. I don't know why, but, oh well.

BOO-YA~! Another satisfied customer :)

I'm in the semis of the Champion's League. I'm first in the EPL with a 9 point cushion with 6 to play. And the board keeps whining about my exit in the league cup. GET. OVER. IT.

dola

Having a blast with the game.

SO Ive heard install the Beta patch and DONT install the Beta patch. I have digital DL version. Is there a definitive yes or no to this installation yet?

Install the one linked on the last page. I think at least 5 people have reported that this one works fine. I've had no problems, although my team is playing much crappier since the patch... might have to try creating a new tactic now that closing down works properly

I can run and load up but I crash to desktop after a while.

Wow, sounds like you're having a lot of fun. :) What team are you?

Arsenal.

I always start out FM with a monster club. (usually Inter or Arsenal) I play out a career with them and then take over the smaller club and try to work my way up. For me, it's equally fun to do it both ways. I know others couldn't play with a big team in a big league. Won in the Semi's. Liverpool in the Final.

troy's gotta be the good guy, of course. :D

how does budget look? how do the kids look?

Just took my Solihull Moors to the playoffs in English Conference North, despite preseason ranking of 19th. Got a huge 5-0 victory in the last game of the regular season to seal the playoff spot. But unfortunately I lost 3-1 in the first leg of the playoffs.

FYI: My team also took a big nose dive after applying the patch. I wonder if I was unwittingly taking advantage of some limitation.

My conference south team took a massive nose dive after I applied the patch. I'm seeing defenders react comically badly to the ball post-patch a lot - in three games I had two goal kicks bounce straight down the pitch past my two center-backs allowing the opposition striker to waltz in and score.

Logically, maybe this could be the effects of the closing-down bug being fixed (players are reacting to the man instead of the ball)? If so, maybe was tweaked a little too far the other way?

Admittedly I was using an adaptation of a pre-patch tactic, so that probably accounts for the drop in form, but I tried tweaking and I still sucked. Even my crappy rec league team defenders play better than my Newport County defenders right now :)

Interested to see if anyone else has the same impression, or if I'm just doing a horrible job with my tactics and sliders.

....sigh.

Lost the majority of my offseason in a crash.

nice touch: once you have been manager long enough (1.5 years?) the board will give you the opportunity to tell them WHAT TYPE of feeder club you want them to look for.

choices:

any type
national loan/first option
commercial link
international loan/first option

the kids all look pretty darned good. To good actually, because Real Madrid, Inter, AC Milan and Barca have come after half my squad during both transfer windows and caused a lot of unhappy players. (sorry, I'm not selling you Rosicky or Hleb or Toure or Fabergas or Clichy. Ugh.

You start out wtih 47 million in the fund. That's for the expectation you get a European place. You can raise it to about 60 if you promise a title contender. I stuck with 47.

For kicks, I wanted to see if I could get Adriano. I could. 35 million of my transfer budget gone, but he's a stud in this version as well. 20 goals for me. Adebayor is pissed. Thinks there is to much competition for place, even thought I'm playing him in 85% of the games he's been that way all season. It's not impacting his performence though, so I really don't care.

I went through a quick fire one year run without purchasing anyone. If you do that, in year two you have about 115 million to purchase players. The catch is the second year seems to make the players REALLY tough to get. (at least for the big names) 72 million for Frey? I don't think so.

Players with the biggest values (toward the end of season one) are Cese at 42 million (dollars, not pounds), Toure 31 million, Van Persie 20 million and Gallas 20 million.

One other note: Alex Ferguson was sacked midway through the EPL season. At the time ManU was in 9th place in the EPL.

On another note, I thought I remember some post about training and how to set it up for those of us who don't want to get that in depth with it. (I think you set it up a certain way and change it a little every month or something) anyone have that laying around somewhere?

Morale is my biggest issue post patch. Mine just took a dive after my first loss of the year with Millwall (I started unbeaten in 13) and I have never been able to get more than half my team above poor/very poor since then, despite fighting for a spot in the promotion playoff goinh into the last week of the Season. I went 11 straight without a win at one point, but you would think after winning 3-4 in a row eveyone would at least be above poor.

I see some strange things by the Defenders too, like stopping right in front of a ball and giving up possession to the opponent. That said, I still don't see closing down working as well as it did in prior versions.

thanks, troy.

i. want. mine.

but i'm fighting with myself to make me wait for patch 2. if i get the game now, i'll start. i have limited willpower with hot chicks or FM.

wow, that sounded dorky.

I'm just waiting on the "real" patch, and been playing the unpatched version. Seems to me like there are fewer horribly annoying issues.

I usually play with Inter as well. When I was in Italy, our investors were also the owners of Inter, so I got a little behind the scenes look at how the stuff actually works. :)

The only problem I've seen from the patch is that I can no longer access the "view recent changes from training" screen.

It has been a few days with no new posts... Are your guys still finding this game better than last years? Still waiting on the first real patch? Having problems with the beta patch? Or just so engrossed in your careers (as FM is known to do) that you haven't come out in a couple of days?

engrossed in the game here :)

currently addicted

busy.......can't talk right now

Still waiting on my copy to arrive. Stupid post office said it was delivered Monday, and I'm still trying to straighten it out.

crashing to desktop every so often in Vista. Not happy.

Trying to get promoted to League one right now...XP, Beta Patch, no major issues right now.

Plugged into the PLA, managing NoVa in the 2nd division NE. NoVa is one of the lower prestige teams in the 2nd division, so the roster is weak and I'm getting pummeled on a regular basis. Fortunately, the board has given me a 4-year plan (!) to get promoted, so I've hopefully got time to work things out. I've got to avoid relegation in that time (bottom 3 in the 14 team division are gone to the unplayable 3rd div.) which would automatically get me sacked, and I'm in 12th.

Neat thing about the PLA I missed earlier - Norway's soccer schedule runs from April to October, so it's active when the other leagues are off, and vice versa, so it makes for nice scoreboard watching :)

Notts County finished their first season in 7th place, losing promotion in the playoffs.

We had plenty of cash to play with in the offseason, and made use of it, bringing in several new faces who have done well. Of huge note is a 20 year old striker we picked up, who managed 2 hattricks in a row, and had 11 goals in 10 games.

...which prompted the press to masturbate all over him, and utterly destroy his confidence for the next match. He botched 2 easy goals and generally just played awful. Kid can't handle the spotlight.

Waiting for the final patch before starting my long term dynasty.

Do you guys set 1 training and never change it during the year, or do you alter the training regime throughout the year?

Also, has anyone figured out how to schedule a Fan Appreciation day?

1. I set-up one for each position in the 07 version and continue to use that. I just don't know enough about it to alter it.

2. I thought I read that the club schedules them randomly.

Got Watford to finish 6th in the Championship my first year, so I'm three games away from going to the Premiership (we started the year very strongly, had a five game losing streak halfway through, and then surged forward again, and then sputtered a bit at t the end).

If we do make it, we will get utterly tooled in the Premiership, but it's worth trying..

Took my Solihull Moors (English Conference North) to 3rd place in season 1, but lost in the first round of the playoffs.

Now 18 games into season 2, we're currently in 6th place.

Solihull have the lowest team value in all of the playable English playable teams and no benfit of a Parent club. Although I've had good success on the pitch, and always been below our wage budget, our team is absolutely bleeding cash. Currently $120K in the hole. The biggest whammer was the $75K payout to the players at the end of season 1, based on our team's success. So in season 2, I set the players bonus to "Low", so now half my team is pissed off about it. Not sure how much it affects their performance, but I suppose it does somewhat.

In season 1, I was able to pick up a couple really good free transfers (GK Russell Payne from the USA who by some miracle got a work permit approved and DR Angel Rangel) but haven't been able to lure even 1 player over to my team on loan.

Just finished a great 2nd year in Serie A. Got Juventus back into UEFA Champions League. Will post results and highlights when I get home. Very proud of this team, which was driven by some very shrewd acquisitions that I made (to whit: Trezeguet became a sub, and Del Piero is gone).

Bit overloaded in some areas and will have to trim some players in the coming season (lots of unrest), but have solid young players developing and am looking forward to reaping some serious cash and being able to be a true transfer-market player again.

i don't like to come up for air when i'm playing FM. It becomes my life.

Havent even started. Seems like a monumental task.

:(

My copy arrived today!

Ordered: October 29
Shipped: November 1
Post Office said it was delivered: November 5
Arrived: November 8

What a long, strange trip it's been.

It's not really. You just type in the name you want for your manager, choose your nationality, the team you want to manage, then click Start. Worked for me. ;)

Okay, so I'm trying to figure out this PLA thing. I have extraced it into the data directory, where the game is located (not inside the WWSM08 directory in My Documents, right?). Now, the readme says to start a new game, then choose the PLA2008 database -- how do I do that?

cant talk now, ive about to survive my first season in the Championship. need to find a few new players in the offseason to make a push (or at least survuve again) for the EPL