14 DAY TRIAL // Pro Evolution Soccer 2014 is taking some bold steps this year: using an entirely new technological layer, the Fox Engine from Kojima Productions, and launching in North America at the same time as its main rival, FIFA 14 from EA Sports.
The team might be confident about the quality of their new experience, but time spent with it certainly rises a number of questions while also offering some truly wonderful moments.
Pro Evolution Soccer 2014 is a somewhat slower game than FIFA 14 and focuses more on manual control and gamer decisions.
It’s more important to have a clear plan for the team and for how the ball can get to the other goal because defenses are solid and tend to quickly win back the ball when the rhythm of the game slows down.
At the same time, building up a good play is more rewarding because it’s clear that player decisions and solid work with the controller lead to a shot on goal.
The biggest problem I can see with Pro Evolution Soccer 2014 after a few matches is that it’s rather hard both for the player and for the computer controlled opponent to actually create good opportunities.
As said, defensives are very good, especially for top tier teams, and it seems almost impossible to have a solid through pass reach a forward in a good position.
Of course, things might be different in the full game, when more tactical options are available and there’s a wider range of player skills on display.
The new Fox Engine is promising when it comes to player and ball physics, but the graphics quality for the stadiums and the players is not great, even if the team has clearly tried to make them look as lifelike as possible.
Some slowdowns are also noticeable, but they might be solved before the full game is out on September 19 in Europe and September 24 in North America.
We also have a full Softpedia Quick Look for the demo version of FIFA 14.