Category: Reviews

Retro Review: FIFA Manager 13

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I’m reviewing another retro football management game today on Fuller FM… and it’s time to wrap up a ‘mini-series’ that has been three years in the making!

Back in May 2021, I reviewed a bunch of games in the FIFA Manager series that was published and developed by Electronic Arts. I continued the retrospective with another review a year later. Since then, I’ve been looking to finish it off by playing one of the final games in the series.

And now that time has come. We’re going back to the 2012/2013 season – when Robin van Persie was about to deliver one more Premier League title for a retiring Sir Alex Ferguson, and when Liverpool were in the full throes of their ‘banter years’.

So here it is. It’s the final chapter of ‘EA MAY’ – my retro review of FIFA Manager 13. Continue reading “Retro Review: FIFA Manager 13” →

Review: We Are Football 2024

Published on by Chris FullerLeave a comment

Some people in the Football Manager community like to lament that FM “has no competition”. But while it has indeed been a long time since Sports Interactive have had a serious rival to their crown, perhaps that might be about to change?

Having recently become disillusioned with FM, I’m now hoping that this title from Germany will win me over with its slim-lined, strategic and less serious approach to football management. Three years after making a promising debut, is it now ready for the first-team?

We Are Football 2024, this will be your day. Continue reading “Review: We Are Football 2024” →

Retro Review: Ally McCoist’s Director of Football

Published on by Chris FullerLeave a comment

I’ve been feeling in a nostalgic mood lately… so I reckon it’s time for another Retro Review of a football management game from years gone by.

Today, I’m taking you to the 2001/2002 season – a time when Liverpool were challenging Arsenal for the title, and an English midfielder was firing Real Madrid towards continental glory. It was also a time when Championship Manager still had plenty of competition to contend with, even if some of their early rivals had fallen by the wayside.

So what happened when German developers joined forces with a Scottish footballing legend to try and challenge England’s top dogs? Let’s take a closer look at Ally McCoist’s Director of Football. Continue reading “Retro Review: Ally McCoist’s Director of Football” →

Retro Review: Championship Manager 2010

Published on by Chris FullerLeave a comment

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s Retro Review time again!

This year marks the 25th anniversary of me playing Championship Manager for the first time. It was back in 1999 that I first discovered Championship Manager 3 – the game that started a lifelong addiction for me.

I will revisit CM3 in more detail later this year. Today, though, I will fast-forward a decade to 2009, when the Championship Manager franchise was on the decline. Could Eidos really make a good game without Sports Interactive?

This is Championship Manager 2010. Continue reading “Retro Review: Championship Manager 2010” →

Retro Review: Championship Soccer

Published on by Chris FullerLeave a comment

Welcome back to this occasional series on Fuller FM, where I look back at a football management PC game from years gone by. I did not write any retro reviews in 2023, but I’m starting off 2024 with another journey back through time.

The game I will be looking at is perhaps the most obscure one I’ve reviewed so far. This shareware title had a small but devoted following when it first came out just over 20 years ago, but has now seemingly disappeared into obscurity.

Well, how about we revisit it now – and perhaps reintroduce it to a new generation of fans? From Germany, this is Andreas Osswald’s Championship Soccer. Continue reading “Retro Review: Championship Soccer” →

My thoughts on Football Manager 2024

Published on by Chris FullerLeave a comment

Football Manager 2024 has been out for close to two months now, and this game cycle is well and truly in full swing.

Regular Fuller FM readers may remember back in April that I wrote a pretty brutal review of Football Manager 2023 – canning its lack of innovation, chaotic match engine, and pretty much everything else. It was clear that a lot more would be expected from FM24, especially when Sports Interactive labelled it “a love letter to football” and “the last of its kind”.

This will be the final version of Football Manager before the series enters an exciting new chapter, but how is it looking right now? After over 100 hours of playing the game, I feel that now’s a good time to deliver my thoughts on FM24… Continue reading “My thoughts on Football Manager 2024” →

My thoughts on Football Manager 2023

Published on by Chris Fuller2 Comments

I should probably have got round to this by now, shouldn’t I?

Hey there, folks. It has now been five months since Football Manager 2023 was released, and so much has happened during its life cycle. On a personal level, my dad had cancer surgery, my old computer slowly died on me, and I’ve been getting ready to move 150 miles across the country. It’s not been much fun.

And what about FM23 itself? Well… that’s not been much fun either.

During the beta, I started a short-term save with Real Betis (which I wrote about on Twitter), but playing the game was such a frustrating experience that I abandoned it a few weeks after the full release. I’ve dabbled in a few test saves since then, but I only got into playing the game ‘properly’ again after the Winter Update came out early last month.

So, at long last, here are my thoughts about the latest installment of Sports Interactive’s football management simulation. Is this a genuine upgrade on FM22, or is it a season update too far? Continue reading “My thoughts on Football Manager 2023” →

Retro Review: Ultimate Soccer Manager 98

Published on by Chris Fuller

It’s time for another Fuller FM ‘Retro Review’, where I replay a classic football management game from years gone by. I’m particularly excited about this, because it’s an absolute doozy!

Today, I will be looking back at a game that many people who grew up in the late 1990s still remember very fondly. This was regarded as a serious contender to Championship Manager, even daring to go places where Sports Interactive would not.

We’re going back to the year 1998 – a time when northern punk anarchists Chumbawamba were getting knocked down (and getting back up again), and when Dennis Bergkamp was doing Dennis Bergkamp things. This is Ultimate Soccer Manager 98. Continue reading “Retro Review: Ultimate Soccer Manager 98” →

Retro Review: FIFA Manager 07

Published on by Chris Fuller

Hey everyone, Fuller FM here – the blogosphere’s most average virtual Football Manager, and it’s time for my retro review of FIFA Manager 07.

Some of you might remember my ‘EA MAY’ mini-series from last spring, when I reviewed three separate games from Electronic Arts’ now-defunct FIFA Manager series. Though we haven’t yet made it that far into 2022, I thought I’d revisit this series a month early. Call this ‘EApril’, if you… er, may.

Sadly, my quest to play FIFA Manager 14 – the final game in the franchise – goes on. After searching high and wide, I still haven’t been able to find a legal copy of the game that won’t cost me a kidney.

Instead, like that time when Lukas Graham’s black cat accidentally smashed a time-machine mirror under a ladder, I have gone back seven years. Here is my retrospective review of FIFA Manager 07. Continue reading “Retro Review: FIFA Manager 07” →

Review: Soccer Manager 2022

Published on by Chris Fuller

It’s that time of year again. For the fourth season in a row, I’ve had a look at the latest edition of the free-to-play Soccer Manager series.

Some of you might remember my previous Soccer Manager reviews. I wasn’t too hot on either SM19 or SM20, but I gave a more positive review of SM21, saying that I felt “the developers [were] finally steering this game in the right direction”.

Soccer Manager 2022 was released last November and can be downloaded from Steam right now (for mobile gamers, it’s also on Google Play and the App Store). But does it live up to its potential, or is it facing an early bath? Let’s take a closer look… Continue reading “Review: Soccer Manager 2022” →