Football Manager 2018

 PC
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 33
  3. Negative: 0 out of 33
  1. Gamer.no
    Nov 13, 2017
    70
    Football Manager 2018 is still an engaging manager experience, but focus on realism over fun combined with a lack of innovation leave the game less interesting over time.
  2. PC Invasion
    Nov 9, 2017
    70
    Football Manager is an annual series that really only has to worry about competing with itself. Aside from a few pipe dream projects on Steam, there are really no other football management titles around. Despite not all the feature changes being an unqualified success, Football Manager 2018 is still to be recommended as an absurdly detailed simulation title. To this day, it has a propensity for generating narratives rivaled only by the Paradox grand strategy games. But if you do already own Football Manager 2017 I’d regard the yearly upgrade as gently desirable rather than an urgent necessity.
  3. GamesRadar+
    Nov 9, 2017
    60
    While still liable to take over your every waking hour, Football Manager 2018 takes the delicate balance of previous years and weighs it down with too many superfluous, or downright irritating, changes.
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In Progress & Unscored

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  1. Eurogamer
    Nov 13, 2017
    Innovations in the right places keep an old veteran match fit. [Recommended]
  2. Rock, Paper, Shotgun
    Nov 10, 2017
    In many ways, I feel the same way about Football Manager 2018 as I do about football in 2018. I love the sport, but I found so much of the talk around it and the personalities involved more than a little bit tiresome.

Awards & Rankings

46
#46 Best PC Game of 2017
48
#48 Most Shared PC Game of 2017

User Reviews

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User Score
6.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 111 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 50 out of 111
  2. Mixed: 28 out of 111
  3. Negative: 33 out of 111
  1. icefrom70s
    Nov 19, 2017
    0
    I've played every single FM since the first release and every single CM since CM 2001/2002. You cannot be serious with this game, FM18. By farI've played every single FM since the first release and every single CM since CM 2001/2002. You cannot be serious with this game, FM18. By far the worst game the series has ever produced. It's 10 days since it has been released and it's not yet ready to hit the market as a live game. Full of bugs, it's absolutely ridiculous. I'm leading 3-0 at half time and I'm getting equalized because it won't make my substitutions. Once I make my changes, the substituted player appears on the bench in place of the player that should have gone on the pitch, but on the pitch is still the substituted player. So I have the same player two times (once running out of position on the pitch as I've changed the tactic and once chilling down on the bench). And many other bugs. Thanks SI for destroying all my trust in the series. I will think twice before I will buy any other FM. I think I will stick with FM16 as your work stopped there.… Full Review »
  2. LordSigmar
    Nov 12, 2017
    4
    it is very laggy and runs poorly. Not much has really changed, wait for a sale.

    Also the amount of injuries in this game is shocking.    it is very laggy and runs poorly. Not much has really changed, wait for a sale.

    Also the amount of injuries in this game is shocking. Chelsea won the league last year using the same team every game. If you tried this in FM your whole team would be injured.

    Here's a case I lost 3-0 to chelsea in the first leg of the champion league. The second leg I conceded an early goal. So the match is lost so I put it on the lowest intentisty possible and said take a breather. Guess what, I still got 3 people injuried during the game. The sports scientist makes no sense, all my players have high injury chance even with rotation. Rotating a whole squad every match is not realistic, managers stick to their best 11 and 3-4 subs, not having to sub in full teams after every game.

    Also the match engine still needs work,. My full backs always seem to do this stupid shot cross which gets saved or goes wide. I am getting so bored of watching this that I have turned 2d on. I always miss penalties. I have scored 5 penalties out of 11 even tho I have neymar etc taking them.

    The new dynamics system is more of an annoyance than fun game play. For instance a rotation player demanded a new contract even though his average rating was only 7, I refused and half the team rebelled and called me out to explain, resulting in lost morale.

    Also the new scouting system is terrible and its better just to scout all the players from the top teams yourself.

    All in all don't buy this game, that are too many bugs and its laggy, I spent half my time on this game pressing spacebar and waiting for the next screen to load.    … Full Review »
  3. ShadowPeter
    Nov 10, 2017
    6
    Another year, another Football Manager. For those who do not know this series, which already dates from 2004, it is a football game thatAnother year, another Football Manager. For those who do not know this series, which already dates from 2004, it is a football game that offers us the position of coach and we have to lead our club to success, being necessary to manage everything, including players, training and tactics. Many of those who know this series should already be asking what news has this FM 2018 in relation to the previous one. They are few and nothing more than an attempt to join the useful to... the game that still has the old problems of the previous Football Manager's.

    Dynamics is a new system of Football Manager 2018, which aims to add a new layer of realism to the game. This system aims to relate the state of team cohesion with the state of administrative support and team performance on the pitch. The hierarchy (Dynamic) presents a table, divided in 4 parts, with the players who are influencers. Social groups, which can be divided into 3 or 4 groups, are meant to show the connection between the players. In Dynamics (Satisfaction), we can also observe the happiness of the squad, if they are happy with the training, with the club, etc, just as we can call a team meeting and talk about the team's current performance, to try to increase the morale of group.

    Football Manager 2018 also has a new feature called "Medical Center". With this, we can see in more detail the injuries of the players, take care of the physical condition of the players, see the history of injuries that the players had and see the Risk Analysis of each player, among other things. Scouting only received a better organization and for the first time in the series, we can improve the facilities and buy packages that cover local, national or continental leagues. As much as the Social Groups and Medical Center were the aspects that pleased me more in this Football Manager, as well as I liked the fact that we can observe the strengths and weaknesses of our next opponent. The graphics engine has been slightly upgraded (it now supports DirectX 11), although it is considered to be minor. A plus of this Football Manager 2018 are the loadings. I notice they are much faster than the previous titles.

    But leaving the new features and the graphics engine aside, and time to talk about what is one of the most important nuclei of Football Manager: tactics. As always, the player has to build a tactic with his feet and head to lead the club to success. Offensive or defensive football, with or without ball possession, fluid or structured, frequency of crossings, short or mixed passes, etc. There is a lot for the user to choose. However, I have a negative point to point to the tactics of the game. I feel that some tactics are too strong compared to others. For example, I use an offensive 4-3-3 layout (two center defenses, two lateral defenses, three middle and three forward) offensive and in one of the games I gave 8-0 to FC Bayern Münich and I find it unrealistic.

    Goalkeepers, even the best, like David De Gea or Manuel Neuer, look like ducks to defend. They don't know how to force the balls to go forward or to another direction that does not carry the ball to the goal. The engine of the game (attention I'm not referring to the graphics engine) is somewhat retarded. Sometimes the players do not do what we ask (in the instructions) in the corners and the on free kicks. I ask them (in the corners) to point to the 2nd pole and do the exact opposite or send the ball to the other side.

    Sports Interactive likd (by negative) to undermine our club, with some players complaining constantly that they need minutes or because they want to be the starters. What about transfers in this Football Manager?? Sports Interactive also continues to sleep in this chapter. Clubs demanding a huge millions of euros cake to try to hire a completely unknown X player is nonsense. For example, I tried to hire an unknown young striker from AC Milan and the Italian club asked for 39.5 million.

    The new features of Football Manager 2018 brought a little breath of fresh air to the series, but the old problems continue to persist and Sports Interactive doesn't want to resolve that. Football Manager 2018 did an exhibition "à lá" SL Benfica (without anything against the club and without anything against the fans) and leaves from here with a draw.    … Full Review »
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