Pro Evolution Soccer 2009

The new Pro-Evo had to be good this year and it is, EA has upped it's game no end and Pro Evo makers know it, last year's Konami offering was lacking, still great but signs of a slip were there.

The first thing that struck me about this Pro Evo was that they have ramped up the productuion levels and opening platform to the game, in the past Pro Evo has always stuck to gameplay and not been overly bothered with how it looks on the outside, now it is bothered and there is a real statement of intent here that that the overall package is meant to impress, highly stylised, highly visual, it looks wicked!

That said when you get into the game itself although player models, stadiums are acceptable - FIFA quality they ain't. EA pride themselves on perfection and realism of the look of the game, Pro Evo competes at this but doesn't excel.

What Pro Evo has generally always done in the past is provide a unique and stunning representation of how football on a console should be played and for the most part it does it again here... this is a real signal of Pro Evo's attempts at doing something worthwile on a next-gen platform.

The first real point of note with the gameplay is that if feels very smooth in comparrison to last year's, the passing and speed flows a lot better and it's a more enjoyable feel all-round, I didn't like the look and feel of the players when jockeying the opposition, they looked bulky and crab-like, but having said that generally the mechanics of the players are very good.

At it's guts this game is Pro Evo through and through and shares the nitty gritty 'real' football feel that it's predecessors held so dear, Jon Champion and Mark Lawrenson grate in the background, whoever decided that Lawro would make a good voice-over should hire Vlad The Impaler as a kids entertainer.

The guy is annoying enough on Match of The Day - why have him on this with his inane smarm?

Enough Lawro bashing though, nothing takes away from the sheer addictiveness of Pro Evo, gameplay is satisfying and when you do something right it feels very rewarding, shots look stunning and it does play out very well.

There is enough on Pro Evo to keep all bases covered, one-player action is gripping with the new 'Become A Legend' feature - see Fifa 08 with a few additions... and the UEFA Champions League license is good for business too.

Of course Pro Evo was always about the gameplay and for those that 'get it' the multiplayer features and sheer brilliance of playing this game cannot be matched by any sports game, not even FIFA - although FIFA is much better online.

Pro Evo is the ultimate 'get your mates round for a beer' game, I have been playing these games with the lads since International Superstar Soccer on the SNES - it has never lost it's appeal.

Pro Evo fans will rejoice that the game is back on a firm footing. A definate improvement even if it doesn't boast the same innovation and mainstream appeal of EA.

Expect some blog updates on Pro Evo over the next few weeks.