FM 2012 News Post

Football Manager 2012 Review (PC)

01:00 PM - November 14, 2011 by RaychelSnr

Insomniacs of the world rejoice, Football Manager 2012 is here. The ever popular, “just one more turn, I swear," gold standard of sports management sims has made its annual return.

Every year, the game gets deeper and more realistic in simulating the day to day lives of football managers. This year is no different. That said, not every facet of a manager’s job is playing in the finals and lifting the trophy. Some, in fact, are quite mundane, and FM — consciously or not — brings that to you as well. All that is to say that FM 2012 is a long term investment.

If you’re looking for short term thrills, look away, as this is not a pick up and play game by any stretch of the imagination. But if you’re looking for a game that will last you for months and months on end, as you slog through the dog days of winter trying to build your team, in hope for glory come spring time, this is it.

Read More - Football Manager 2012 Review (PC)

Game: Football Manager 2012Reader Score: 1/10 - Vote Now
Platform: Mac / PCVotes for game: 1 - View All

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Member Comments

# 1 jb1 @ 11/14/11 02:04 PM

Good review and I agree that this game deserves a 9, for me FM continues to set the standard. I spent a lot of time (probably too much!) with FM11 and although as you say there are no real earth shattering improvements here i still feel like i'm playing an even better game. I think most of the improvements have made a for an even better experience.

I still have some issues with AI squad management but none that will stop me enjoying a 20-30 year career!

Oh and yes I would also race through seasons on CM3 but the game has come a long way since then and yes, it now takes a lot longer to complete a season but for me that shows off one of the best things about this game, it's attention to detail.

# 2 Dazraz @ 11/14/11 02:09 PM

I was an avid fan of football management sims in my long gone youth. Those were the days of the ZX Spectrum & later the Commodore Amiga. In those days playable football games were plentiful but few lacked any real quality. It was in management simulations that the depth & immersion of the sport was realised.
Fast forward to the present day & we have a plethora of sport simulations that offer both highly detailed gameplay coupled with in depth season/career modes. Okay not as in depth as the managerial aspects of the likes of this game, but when coupled with playing your teams games, there is plenty to keep you busy.
I have invested in a couple of management games in recent years but after a few games I just get fed up & tend to put them to one side. The depth of these games is admirable but most of the depth involves carrying out tedious & long winded tasks, the benefits of which are sometimes negligible.
I recall many times of sitting up with my uncle until silly o'clock in the morning ploughing through game after game of one of numerous football management games but now I find the genre dated. Football management games have always been time consuming but the way they are today it amazes me that anyone can find the time to work through them.

# 3 Perceptor @ 11/14/11 03:53 PM

Great review. Sums up my feelings on the game. I used to fly through seasons in the older games, but I actually enjoy taking the time to review reports and really scout players. Even though I use "big money clubs," I'm always trying to develop and build as opposed to buying stars.

This is the only game I play these days and the improvements keep me coming back for more

# 4 ImTellinTim @ 11/15/11 03:01 PM

Spot-on review. Can't really add anything to this. Exactly the score I'd give the game because there still isn't an easier way to play online.

To anyone thinking about getting the game, you're in for a long learning process that might even extend into FM13, but once you hit that sweet spot, it's gold. If you have any questions, there's plenty of FMers around here that will be happy to help, just ask!

# 5 Perceptor @ 11/15/11 03:35 PM

I'm still learning now and I've been a FM addict since CM 2000.

# 6 LingeringRegime @ 11/16/11 12:55 PM

Is this a licensed game? Or are those team logos mods?

# 7 jb1 @ 11/16/11 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DEFTFUNDAMENTALZ


	Is this a licensed game? Or are those team logos mods?

Many leagues are licensed, for those that aren't you can download mods from a few different places to fill the gaps.

This is taken from the Sports Interactive Forums to explain what licenses they hold:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miles Jacobsen (Sports Interactive)


	Australia – We again have a license with the Hyundai A-League, this allows us to feature both league and club logos, as well as the proper fixture list for the current season. Denmark – Our second official license with the Superliga, with league and club logos, as well as player photo’s where we’ve been able to source them. England – Official licenses from the Football League and Football Conference, with all of their other competitions covered too. Agreement includes logos for all competitions, players photos (where supplied) and real fixtures for the Blue Square Conference, Blue Square North & Blue Square South. France – League licenses for both Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, with logos for the competitions & real fixtures for both divisions. Netherlands – Licenses for both the Eredivisie and Juliper League, with competition logos, and player pictures where provided. We also have an official license for Team Holland, the Dutch national team. Northern Ireland – License for the Carling Premiership, including logos and player photo’s where supplied. Scotland – SPL and associated competitions, including logos, player photo’s and real fixtures. South Korea – Official license for the K-League, including all logos, player photo’s where provided and real fixtures. Spain – Licenses for both Liga BBVA & Liga Adelante. This enables us to feature team & competition logos, player photo’s for both divisions and fixtures for the Liga BBVA. Please note that some of these pictures won’t make it into the game for the boxed version, but we will deliver any player pictures that are sent to us between the game going into manufacture and the release date via Steam. USA – MLS license, including player photo’s and the real fixture list. League logos too, obviously. Wales – License for the Corbett Sports Welsh Premier League + Loosemores League Cup, including real fixtures & competition/team logos. Italy – We have licenses in Italy with the following clubs, in alphabetical order… AC.Milan, Atalanta, Bologna, Cagliari, Catania, Cesena, Chievo Verona, Fiorentina, Genoa, Inter, Juventus, Lazio, Lecce, Palermo, Parma, Roma, Sampdoria, Udinese. At last count, there are over 4700 player photos in Football Manager 2012.

# 8 ImTellinTim @ 11/16/11 01:28 PM

DEFT, it's pretty much a non-issue. You can find everything you need to make the game authentic with a simple search of one of the many great community sites out there.

# 9 ey215 @ 11/16/11 07:43 PM

Skyrim and NBA 2k12 are still sucking my life away so I've been dodging my yearly FM addiction. Nice review. For those that don't know, make sure to try out the LLaMa experience. Lower leagues is really where FM thrives.

# 10 Sweed @ 11/16/11 07:52 PM

Very good review with 9 being a fair score. As you said evolution not revolution. I think FM12 feels much more polished than 11. The action on the pitch is much improved especially action around the goal. Again all IMHO. Totally worth the price of the game to upgrade from 11 to 12.

I'm from The States and knew nothing about football (strategy, transfers, leagues, tournaments, etc.) when I picked up my first version of FM in 2006. It took three months of dedicated play to begin to get a handle on things. This was back in the day when sliders were the only way to build a tactic. So while you rightly say its a large learning curve to play FM12 I actually think it would be easier starting with FM12 than FM2006 because of the in-game tutorials, help files, and the tactic builder.

If you like playing dynasty modes of sports games this is the best out there hands down. Don't let the complexity of the game scare you away. Don't let the fact you don't like football\soccer keep you from trying the game. Tons of guys have become fans because of FM. Others, while still not liking soccer, still enjoy their FM. It is the only sports game I have ever played that has left me feeling like I am involved in a real world dealing with real people. Truly an awesome game.

# 11 jesmith29 @ 11/17/11 02:30 AM

^Well said Sweed and I completely agree. Played the FM 11 Demo and bought the game from Amazon last week. I really like the larger graphics. With the help from the various web sites and forums you can get a handle on the game.

I highly recommend the FM 12 guide you can download from www.fmformation.net.

I love this game.

# 12 RoyceDa59 @ 11/17/11 10:23 AM

I will certainly pick up this game as it looks amazing, I remember Football Manager 06 was the last one I gave a try.

# 13 Marc Vaughan @ 12/30/11 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dazraz


	I was an avid fan of football management sims in my long gone youth. Those were the days of the ZX Spectrum & later the Commodore Amiga. In those days playable football games were plentiful but few lacked any real quality. It was in management simulations that the depth & immersion of the sport was realised. Fast forward to the present day & we have a plethora of sport simulations that offer both highly detailed gameplay coupled with in depth season/career modes. Okay not as in depth as the managerial aspects of the likes of this game, but when coupled with playing your teams games, there is plenty to keep you busy. I have invested in a couple of management games in recent years but after a few games I just get fed up & tend to put them to one side. The depth of these games is admirable but most of the depth involves carrying out tedious & long winded tasks, the benefits of which are sometimes negligible. I recall many times of sitting up with my uncle until silly o'clock in the morning ploughing through game after game of one of numerous football management games but now I find the genre dated. Football management games have always been time consuming but the way they are today it amazes me that anyone can find the time to work through them.

btw those of you finding it a struggle to find the time to play Football Manager on PC might be interested to know there is an iOS (iPhone/iTouch) version of the game called "Football Manager Handheld" which is designed to play far faster in the vein of our earlier titles ....

# 14 ImTellinTim @ 12/30/11 01:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marc Vaughan


	btw those of you finding it a struggle to find the time to play Football Manager on PC might be interested to know there is an iOS (iPhone/iTouch) version of the game called "Football Manager Handheld" which is designed to play far faster in the vein of our earlier titles ....

I am going to check this out this weekend as I have some iStore gift money to burn!

I like the idea of the different scenario challenges that are described in the features screen.

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Football Manager 2012 Review (PC)