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Big changes are ahead for the FM franchise: big enough to warrant a Football Manager 2021 feature guide, even! If you've not been in the loop, FM21 seems like a major leap ahead for the popular football management series.
We've been covering the official announcements in broad strokes already, but with the latest developments, it became clear that a dedicated overview would be needed. As you can probably imagine, this is precisely what we aim to do with this article! Here, you'll find out everything about Football Manager 2021's new features and how they mesh with the established gameplay loop we all know and love.
From the game's fresh layer of interactions all the way to end-of-season developments: we've got it all! All you need to do is scroll on ahead and read up. On a similar note, if you're considering getting an FM21 pre-order, here's what you get by doing so. Now, without further ado, let us see what this Football Manager 2021 feature guide can offer.
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Football Manager 2021 Interactions
Though it might not seem like it at first, interactions are crucial for a grounded round of Football Manager. For quite some time now, the Football Manager games have been attempting to offer more than just a mathematical simulation of how a given football match might go. Developers have been increasingly emphasizing the human element. Naturally, getting this right is no small feat, and these features have always been lacking. Especially when compared to the incredibly robust simulation features.
The Football Manager 2021 interactions roster aims to alleviate this issue. The renewed selection of social features is rather impressive:
- Gestures
- Quick Chats
- Face-to-Face Conversations
- Press Conferences
Most of these are pretty self-explanatory. Regardless, we think it's worth pointing out where the novelty comes from.
FM21 Gestures
This universal feature is being added to FM21 in a broad stroke. The effect is rather simple: you will now not only have the opportunity to choose what you say in conversations but also how you say it. Whether it's the option to shrug your shoulders or offer an affable hug, FM21 will let you do a lot of contextually appropriate stuff that we definitely didn't expect to make its way into the game. Naturally, your gesturing will have an effect on the game, and we can't wait to see how this pans out in the long run.
FM21 Quick Chats
The Quick Chats feature is essentially a retrofit of the previous FM games' Chat features. Naturally, you'll be able to quickly chat with anyone and everyone using this item. What's particularly interesting, however, is that the feature's interaction windows will pop up as an overlay to whatever else you might be doing.
FM21 Face-to-Face Conversations
Face-to-Face interactions are getting a major face-lift in FM21. With a greatly increased number of unique 3D environments and a contextual boost provided by the introduction of Gestures, the game will feel far more immersive than ever before. Speaking with someone face-to-face will no longer be limited to two speakers only, and you'll also have the opportunity to observe what the other people might be gesturing at any given moment.
Once a Face-to-Face is done, you'll receive a comprehensive summary as to what's been accomplished and how others may have perceived you. Further, you'll also be able to do a variety of contextually-relevant actions, such as making a call.
FM21 Press Conferences
Every Press Conference you might be privy to in FM21 will now begin with a neat briefing going into the fray. This briefing might include a list of important journalists in the crowd, for example, as well as the topics you should expect for them to touch upon. Events themselves will, in the meantime, be rich with important context. Whether it's playtime statistics or opposition discussions, you'll always know what's what.
Joining you during Press Conferences will be your Press Officer and - sometimes - other important NPCs. The new interaction features such as Gestures will all come into play, of course. This will lead to a way more natural and interesting simulation of the real deal.
Football Manager 2021 Matchday Overview
When it comes time for balls to start hitting the net, it's Matchday. Much as you'd expect, Football Manager 2021 builds on its impressive legacy and carves out something fresh and familiar at the same time. As per the official pitch: "matchdays have been enhanced and improved to provide a more realistic, immersive experience with modernised presentation, enhanced simulation and renewed focus on [player] involvement."
Though there's a lot of ground to cover, we've separated the relevant announcements into three major sections:
- Pre-Match
- Mid-Match
- Post-Match
Sensible, right?
FM21 Pre-Match Improvements
Far as pre-match improvements go, it's all about tactics and hype. Since we've already explained how much better AI interactions will be in FM21, it goes without saying that these improvements also extend to the pre-match build-up. From tactical meetings with staff and players all the way to opposition analysis - players will have more tools than ever before, and better ones, too.
You'll also need to take into account whatever social media happenstances may have occurred. Is your fanbase unhappy with your match lineup? Do they want a specific player on the bench? Should you gesture like a madman just to eke out a reaction from your opposition? Expect all of this information - and more - to be provided to you via your Press Officer.
The fan-favorite Team Talks feature will be available pre-match, of course. You'll also have access to it on the field, however, where the players' body language might play into who you choose for the, say, penalty kicks. Interesting stuff all around.
FM21 Mid-Match Improvements
As ever, graphics are continually being improved in the Football Manager franchise. Now, don't go into FM21 expecting FIFA levels of visual fidelity. Things will look, run, and behave better, but not that much better. That's not what we're getting with this year's installment, and it's not the focus of the experience, either. Do, however, expect a refreshed user interface with a much-improved broadcast implementation. Said broadcasts will also come into play pre- and post-match, so the experience should generally be rather seamless.
The goal has primarily been to streamline the playing experience. Whether through making UI elements easier to discern or by making important features more easily accessible, FM21 makes an effort in empowering its players. UI improvements alone won't do enough, however. That's why your assistants, coaches, and data analysts will all be readily available at any given moment during any given match. How you use all this valuable data, however, will be up to you.
FM21 Post-Match Improvements
The theme of doing more with less continues in the Football Manager 2021's post-match feature set, too. This year, the wonderful people working on the game have decided to come up with their own customized xG system for stat tracking and analysis. The 'expected goals' feature-set is nothing short of incredible: "Among other factors, our model considers the shooting player’s distance from goal and the angle and speed of their shot to determine xG, we’ve also accounted for the position of the other players on the pitch relative to the shooting player too."
In other words, we are getting a comprehensive stat tracking rework. It's going to support both half-time and full-time summaries, depending on when you want to pull them up, as well as creating a background timeline for you to consult when you need it. In a game as stat-driven as Football Manager 2021, this is one of the best improvements we could've asked for.
Football Manager 2021 Recruitment
A crucial aspect of every Football Manager 2021 feature guide, the importance of the series' recruitment features cannot be overstated. This is, after all, the primary way in which you expand your team's respective toolsets. Stop recruiting good and promising players, and you're done in the long term. It goes without saying that the team working on FM21 wishes to foster a more useful and interactive system for their latest release, much as they've done with just about everything else in the game.
As the official pitch puts it: "New staff roles, meetings, and interactions all add to an updated, more realistic in-game transfer landscape to ensure that FM21 reflects the life and times of a modern manager in today’s market." This is primarily accomplished using the all-new Recruitment Meetings interface.
Recruitment Meetings in FM21
This new functionality is all about adding fresh talent to your ever-growing roster of players. You'll get access to a variety of new NPCs who will assist you in not only finding the right players for your crew but also in targeting which of the team's needs should be tended to.
The way this will work is that you'll define which target parameters you need recommendations in, and then, say, your Chief Scout will present you with a list of potential matches. Way more intuitive than we first thought it would be. This fresh search engine will let you go into as much detail as you feel is necessary. You can stop after a single modifier, or add three more of them: perfectly scalable.
Recruitment Meetings will take place once a month, and they will draw from a talent pool that is inspired by the real-world market. We're not sure yet how the in-game economy will update to keep track of a world as volatile as ours, but we are looking forward to seeing it in action.
Football Manager 2021 End of Season
The ultimate goal of every Football Manager 2021 player is to add a successful seasonal campaign to their list of successes, obviously. To better foster such accomplishments, the game's End of Season functionality is getting some massive improvements and additions.
As the screenshot above may suggest, trophy presentations are one of the things that devs are improving upon. Celebrations through-and-through, these events will now commemorate your greatest victories in an appropriately bombastic manner. "Confetti cannons, podiums, the media and the cups and trophies themselves all add to the event. You might even witness a lap of honour too, if you’re lucky."
After the match itself is wrapped up, the media hype will continue. Expect numerous broadcast interviews and media events to keep you in the limelight a fair bit. The goal is, naturally, to make you feel like a winner. From everything we've seen so far, FM21 is doing this right.
FM21 Season Review
Our most eagerly anticipated feature, however, might be the Season Review. Following a successfully completed Season, players will be treated to a massive and comprehensive overview of everything they've done and accomplished over the course of said Season. This screen will show you both the highs and the lows of your latest campaign, providing you with an opportunity to reminisce and reflect. Something we haven't usually gotten much of in previous Football Manager titles.
In less romantic terms, however, you'll also be provided with a wealth of statistical information. From financial breakdowns to general recognition and social media interactions: FM21 Season Review will be the ultimate way to digest the game's feedback in a neat and celebratory manner.
Football Manager 2021 Feature Overview Wrap-Up
Whew. That was a lot of stuff, wasn't it? We do hope that we've been successful in summarizing the most exciting new features in Football Manager 2021. Our goal wasn't necessarily to cover everything. Instead, consider this a neat snapshot of what's to come! That's right: there's more to FM21 than we've written here. But you knew that already, didn't you?
Football Manager 2021 is set and primed to launch in a month, on the 23rd of November. If you're eager to start playing the game sooner, consider placing a pre-order to nab the Early Access offer.
Naturally, you can expect more FM21 coverage right here at 2Game, so stay tuned.
Get Football Manager 2021 today, and grab the pre-order discount along the way!
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