Football Manager games have the potential to suck up hundreds or even thousands of hours out of players, and each year’s game comes with a new feature set to make strides towards making the game as close to reality as possible. Now, Sports Interactive, the developers behind the popular management sim, has, after announcing Football Manager 2021 release date, dropped the first details on this year’s upcoming game.
In a video posted on YouTube, and in conjunction with YouTuber and founder of non-league football team Hashtag United (who have a partnership with Football Manager) Spencer Owen, some of the headline features of FM21 were unveiled. One of these features is the introduction of gestures when in conversations with the press and your players. When welcoming a new signing to the club, you might greet them with open arms, or when dealing with a player who is acting up, you can show your frustrations through your body language as well as word choice. It aims to add a new dynamic to interactions and make them seem more realistic and human. As before, your responses will affect your reputation as a manager, and you’ll benefit from having the ability to pull a player aside for a Quick Chat, a short, informal conversation on any particular topic.
The Football Manager matchday experience has been given an overhaul, with both the pre-match buildup and post-game reaction contributing to making every game feel as big of a deal as the real-life equivalent. You’ll now be greeted with teamsheets, and opposition reports that now (finally) factor in the love-it-or-hate-it statistic of expected goals (or xG) into data analysis (xG also features across the game where it would be expected too).
Recruitment is an aspect of Football Manager that is arguably where the real stories come from (like the obsession with wonderkids), and FM21 continues to enhance the transfer ordeal by setting up strategy meetings, so unlike some clubs (not naming any names), you might be able to string together a competent transfer window by planning ahead.
Finally, at the end of every season, you’ll be presented with a recap of the year, alongside your best and worst moments, so you can really get an exact understanding of what you just achieved.
Football Manager 2021 will release on November 24 on Steam and Epic. Players who pre-order early will get access to the beta around two weeks from release. For the first time in a decade, FM21 will mark the series’ return to Xbox and will launch with the Switch version in December.
