Category: Reviews

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” →

Retro Review: FourFourTwo Touchline Passion

Published on by Chris Fuller

“If you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
“Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, and – which is more – you’ll be a man, my son!
“Ladies and gentlemen, Fuller FM will be playing 4-4-f***ing-2.”

Welcome to another Retro Review here on Fuller FM. Today, I’ve decided to return to a rather obscure football management game from my childhood, and see if it still holds up two decades on.

The year is 2002. Arsenal have just won the Double, Real Madrid are the European champions, and teen wonder Wayne Rooney is about to make his Everton debut. Meanwhile, a new challenger to Championship Manager’s throne has emerged – with strong backing from a best-selling magazine, the game’s flashiest diamond geezer, and the glamorous new face of ITV!

Go grab yourselves some of Mr Kipling’s exceedingly good cakes, because we’re about to take a deep dive into Mike Bassett’s favourite video game. This is FourFourTwo Touchline Passion. Continue reading “Retro Review: FourFourTwo Touchline Passion” →

Review: We Are Football

Published on by Chris Fuller

And so 2021 is coming to an end. I hope you’ve enjoyed the Christmas holidays as much as possible, and that you’ve been keeping safe with your loved ones during what has been another difficult winter period.

You may’ve noticed that there hasn’t been much Football Manager content on here lately. Yes, despite my cautiously positive review of FM22 back in November, I still haven’t bought the new game yet. I’m still concerned about some significant bugs that apparently weren’t fixed in the December update, so I’ve instead been “considering my options” and looking at alternatives.

Today, I’m reviewing a game which emerged earlier this year as the latest challenger to FM’s throne – a game which is often called WAF for short. To quote Cardi B, it’s time to bring a bucket and a mop for some Wet-A** Footy!

Oh, sorry, I mean… We Are Football. Continue reading “Review: We Are Football” →

My thoughts on Football Manager 2022

Published on by Chris Fuller

After a quiet few weeks, Fuller FM has returned for another season! I took some time off from blogging after finishing my journeyman series, partly to recharge my batteries, and partly because of a family crisis, but now I’m ready to get going again!

Football Manager 2022 has been officially out for just over a week now. Unlike last year, I decided to forego the beta and not pre-order the game straight away. The demo came out alongside the full game on 9 November, so I waited for that so I could try before I buy.

I’ve now spent the past week or so playing through half a season with Millwall, seeing for myself how FM22 has changed – for better or worse. These are my initial thoughts on the new game… Continue reading “My thoughts on Football Manager 2022” →

Retro Review: Total Club Manager 2005

Published on by Chris Fuller

It’s time for another ‘retro review’, where I find a vintage football management video game and see if it’s still as good (or bad) as I remember it.

This is the third part of my ‘EA MAY’ mini-series. Throughout this month, I am picking out a number of titles from EA Sports’ opinion-splitting FIFA Manager series to see how they developed – for better or worse.

This series ran from 1997 to 2013, and for today’s review, I’ve plucked out a game from the middle of this run. Let’s find out if Total Club Manager 2005 really was as special as the man on its cover… Continue reading “Retro Review: Total Club Manager 2005” →

Retro Review: FA Premier League Football Manager 2000

Published on by Chris Fuller

Hello there, folks, and I’m glad you could join me for another ‘retro review’, in which I take a retrospective look at a football management game from years gone by.

This is the second part of my ‘EA MAY’ mini-series. Throughout this month, I will be reviewing a number of titles from EA Sports’ FIFA Manager series, which was a major player in the genre from 1997 to 2013.

I’ve already looked at the original release, but now it’s time to fast-forward a couple of years, to 1999. Here is the game that dragged this series kicking and screaming into the new millennium – FA Premier League Football Manager 2000. Continue reading “Retro Review: FA Premier League Football Manager 2000” →

Retro Review: FIFA Soccer Manager

Published on by Chris Fuller

Welcome to a new Fuller FM ‘retro review’, where I pluck a classic football management game from the mists of time and ask whether it still stands up today.

This is actually the first review in a mini-series that I will be running throughout this month. This is ‘EA MAY’, where I will look at four different games from the FIFA Manager series – Electronic Arts’ long-running, polarising challenger to Sports Interactive’s monopoly on the genre.

To kick things off, I’m looking at the game that started it all for EA back in the mid-1990s – FIFA Soccer Manager. Continue reading “Retro Review: FIFA Soccer Manager” →

Review: Soccer Manager 2021

Published on by Chris Fuller

As great as the Football Manager series is, it’s sometimes worth having a look at the other football management games on the market. That’s why I’m back today with another of my occasional reviews.

My first game review on Fuller FM was two years ago this week, when I had a look at Soccer Manager 2019. I didn’t think much of that game, and neither was I too keen on Soccer Manager 2020 when I reviewed that last year.

Now, though, I think it’s time to find out whether the latest title in this free-to-play series is a major improvement, or another underwhelming experience. This is my honest review of Soccer Manager 2021… Continue reading “Review: Soccer Manager 2021” →

My thoughts on Football Manager 2021

Published on by Chris Fuller1 Comment

It’s been a while, hasn’t it, folks?

There hasn’t been much blog content on Fuller FM lately, mainly because I’ve had a little break from writing… but also because I’ve been playing Football Manager 2021 almost non-stop since the beta came out in November.

For me, two months is plenty of time to get stuck into the most in-depth football management simulator on the market, and see how it compares to previous versions. Releasing a new game in the middle of a global pandemic was always going to be a real challenge, but how have Sports Interactive fared in these unprecedented times?

Have they romped ahead of their rivals like Rangers, or have they had an unmitigated disaster like Sheffield United? The answer is probably somewhere in the middle, but here’s what I think about FM21…
Continue reading “My thoughts on Football Manager 2021” →