Worldwide Soccer Manager 2006

Perhaps my favourite part of Football Manager 2006 is the adaptation of the match engine into today’s defence-minded tactics. Teams are now more likely to play 4-5-1 and will often change tactics throughout the game, keeping you on your toes. It’s amazing once again at how you can swing a game with some simple changes, like setting a forward to run on the ball more in an attempt to coax a defender on a booking to challenge him and get sent off.

From the Olympics and World Cup down to trying to avoid relegation from Poland’s 2nd League, you can lead your manager to compete anywhere.

The best version of the best football management game ever made... The best just got better. Again.

Despite the fact that people may find a level of fun has been lost under the layers of improvements and options, the majority will still find that nothing comes close to quenching that thirst for power that Football Manager so eloquently provides.

This game is just as addictive as it ever was, it’s deeper than it ever was, and you can fiddle away with more stats, tactics and other various twiddly things than you ever could. We can’t find anything major to complain about.

Simply the best. Easy to play, hard to quit. Still too clinical. Where are the Gazza's of the simulated football world? [Nov 2005]

For a mere 30 quid, I have hundreds of hours of fun lying ahead and I can honestly say that having played computer games for nigh on 16 years, Football Manager 2006 is quite honestly the best I've ever played.

Football Manager isn’t a matter of life or death. It’s much more important than that.

Even if I'd never played the game before and found the prospect bewildering, I could have used the extensive in-game tutorial to get to grips with it. Or, as an experienced player, I could have noticed how the new features subtly present themselves over the course of several weeks, inexorably sucking you in to a parallel universe. [PC Zone]

It's imposingly deep and demanding. [Dec 2005 p.89]

The interaction between manager and players, media, and other managers just adds to the enjoyment and longevity of this title.

So far ahead, you can't see the competition. [Feb 2006, p.79]

Even if you already own Football Manager 2005, I think that this new version is an absolute must-buy. It’s got a lot of cool new details, and you know you want them.

The second edition in the legendary sports-sim developer’s new soccer management series is every bit as addictive as it predecessor, which is to say that the damn thing should be investigated by the FDA. [Mar 2006, p.52]

It can run a little slow and it's not without its niggles, but Football Manager 2006 is still the best for football and definitely this season's best footie sim. [PC Gamer UK]

Quite solid, and if there is one problem, it is the steep learning curve. If you are new to manager-type games, then the huge amount of options can lead to quick frustration, but the tutorial and succinct manual alleviate this, if only a bit.

It’s far closer to the seasonal updates that interspersed the "Championship Manager" series. That said the list of enhancements do make a great game even better and will be fully appreciated by the fanatics.

WSM has its hooks set deeply enough in me that even the frustration isn't enough to tear me completely away. I may put the game down for a few days, a few weeks, or even a few months. But like an alcoholic who's been clean for an extended period of time, all it takes is one drink - or two clicks on the World Soccer Manager icon - to fall right back off the wagon again. In this case, I find that I don't mind that so much.