*Official* Football Manager 2023 Early Access Beta Feedback Thread

[Jonthedon26]

I know many people have commented on this, but I am almost certain that the recruitment focuses are broken! Scouts come back with so few players and the comment always says "we are struggling to find any recommended players, so you may want to widen the search parameters to generate more recommemdations"

[Lempicka]

3 hours ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

Too many repetitive questions every pre-and post match. Then, if you're playing in a top league you have to do it all over again in the interview before kick-off.

I agree that they'd be boring IRL as well, but this is a game. Maybe press conferences should be limited to important or 'televised' games - to lessen the monotony.

I also feel that the could be improved by being asking more questions relevant to the match/tournament you are about to play. Too many questions about the demands of reserve players - when you really want to be asked about whether you though the second goal was offside, or issues around VAR. 

My pet hate is press conferences about loanee signings when you're playing in the lower leagues. Is an 8 question interview really necessary when you signed a bit of cover for your injury prone semi-pro right-back?

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by Lempicka
typo

[diLLa88]

15 minutes ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

They are indeed, so why introduce it in a game? You either have an idea to make them fun to do or you do not put it in the game.

I would probably never really like them, because it is not why I play FM personally. So I'm probably not the one to ask how to improve it. What I would like personally is an option to turn them off all together instead of having the ass man do them for me, simply because his answers still have an impact on squad morale, which I don't want.

 

[rp1966]

20 minutes ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

Mainly for SI to recognise how utterly tedious the whole concept is within the game and seriously scale back how much we have to interact with it.  Yes, they're part of a managers job - OK let's have some questions to represent the fact that they exist. But let's keep them to significant matches only. Dispense with the tunnel interviews completely, all they do is repeat what you're asked in the pre and post match press conferences. And most of all limit the max number of questions to 3 so that the small pool of questions doesn't get repeated as often. And finally better contextualisation for the questions.

But better still, just allow a preference to be set along with things like first transfer window to exclude the whole module. In the background it can apply a neutral answer,  That way you also eliminate the current problem with delegation in that when you get a job interview you get quizzed about how you deal with the press (and I believe it even tries to manipulate you into making a promise to attend them in some cases).

[jimbo22]

40 minutes ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

At least remove the stupid response of “I wouldn’t swap (my league 2 striker) for anyone not even Mbappe. 
 

that reply really annoys me more than it should! 

[XaW]

32 minutes ago, Eddie Boop said:

Forgive me if asked already, but when does the in-game editor usually release? Same day as full release?

Yes, it's released with the full game.

[Dagenham_Dave]

3 hours ago, BamBamBam said:

You are happy with the squad planner? Come on....

Certainly am, love the feature. Needs some work done to it, but the idea is a great one. 

[XaW]

45 minutes ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

This where my suggestions a few years ago:

 

[bahmet]

3 часа назад, Neil Brock сказал:

Has that top team actually qualified, or are they banned due to failing FFP?

Liverpool win CL, Everton EL

[dunk105]

1 hour ago, Becanes said:

If SI doesn't do an official post explaining how mentality is different this year, would you consider doing an unofficial post explaining it?

One thing Rashidi has said in his videos and twitter is that "mentality" should be really labelled "risk".  Not too sure how it works myself but have found that its better to tell your defence either to step up or drop back as this doesnt leave them to their own devices and certainly cuts down on some of the silly things Ive seen.

[CFuller]

1 hour ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

I don't mind the repetitive questions. As you say, real-life interviews and press conferences are boring. It's the repetitive irrelevant questions that annoy me.

I'm currently managing Betis in La Liga. Ask me about the upcoming match. Ask me about our opponents' strengths and weaknesses. Don't ask me about Elche's manager putting a backup striker on the transfer list - yes, Elche are also in La Liga, but I don't need to have an opinion on everything that happens in our league!

And I really don't need to be asked about my loanees before every single game. Yes, I know Diego Lainez is having a good season at Braga, you don't need to keep reminding me! And how is that relevant to our big derby match against Sevilla? 

My 'favourite' questions right now are those new questions you get about playing players in "new positions", even if you've played them there all season. And again when you change their role slightly (e.g. from a wing-back to a full-back).

I've also noticed that some of the questions and answers have been reworded. They now seem to be a lot more verbose and full of corporate jargon, which I suppose is more realistic, but I'm sure the same things could be said more effectively in plain English. I'll look out for some examples when I'm next on the game.

[dannyfc]

18 minutes ago, dunk105 said:

One thing Rashidi has said in his videos and twitter is that "mentality" should be really labelled "risk".  Not too sure how it works myself but have found that its better to tell your defence either to step up or drop back as this doesnt leave them to their own devices and certainly cuts down on some of the silly things Ive seen.

Honestly that's how I always thought it worked anyway, hence why most low block counter attacking tactics also needed higher mentalities to ensure the ball is played quick enough to exploit the space.

@Rashidi any insight on what's specifically changed from previous years? ta 

 

[Wolf_pd]

I have hidden a post just now.

Let's keep the language clean in here. Thanks.

[bahmet]

Edited November 6, 2022 by bahmet

[pandamk]

The good:

• The changes to the match engine are really well done. I feel like introducing more of a chaos element had the potential to be a disaster if done badly, but it feels good. This probably isn't getting the credit it deserves because it doesn't 'pop' like other headline features might have but it changes the game significantly for the better.
• Skin changes look good.
• Still early but tactically the game has felt less prone to a small handful of player roles that are far more effective than others and more about building a cohesive team, which is good. I'm facing a lot of 3-4-2-1s which I don't think is unrealistic as it has become a very popular attacking shape, but I think it plays a bit more defensive in FM with three CBs + two DMs than it does in real life. Quite a lot of cagey games. But overall I'm encouraged by the tactical side.

 

The not-so-good:

• While not terribly implemented by any means, I feel like the squad planner is another example of SI observing how people play the game and then attempting to build tools to cater to that into the game itself. This seems logical on the surface, but I think it's very difficult to build such a tool that is more intuitive for me than the way I've been doing it myself for years — and the way every other player has been doing it with their own quirks and differences. It doesn't really make my life easier than just having Excel or Notepad open.
• Similar kind of idea with interactions, which continue to be incredibly dull. We all 'imagine' the game and the storylines in our heads and autopiloting through in-game press conferences doesn't add anything. I would much rather more time was spent on the core of the game — match engine, tactics, recruitment etc — than this stuff.
• Have to echo that as has been discussed, improvement to international management and set pieces feels a long way overdue.

[HNLFan]

At what time the full game should be released? 00:01 on Tuesday or?

[themadsheep2001]

1 hour ago, dunk105 said:

One thing Rashidi has said in his videos and twitter is that "mentality" should be really labelled "risk".  Not too sure how it works myself but have found that its better to tell your defence either to step up or drop back as this doesnt leave them to their own devices and certainly cuts down on some of the silly things Ive seen.

Yes. Rashidi and I would argue it's been this way for years, but with lower mentalities being more user friendly, i think they are more about risk than ever before. 

[rdbayly]

Where is the data view of the pitch where you can isolate the locations of specific player actions in a match (e.g. key passes, mistakes, shots) - Does this still exist?

Also, where is the view that shows the areas of the pitch where assists are coming from and the type of assists / goals (e.g. crosses, through balls)?

Cheers.

[rdbayly]

Where is the data view of the pitch where you can isolate the locations of specific player actions in a match (e.g. key passes, mistakes, shots) - Does this still exist?

Also, where is the view that shows the areas of the pitch where assists are coming from and the type of assists / goals (e.g. crosses, through balls)?

Cheers.

[rdbayly]

Where is the data view of the pitch where you can isolate the locations of specific player actions in a match (e.g. key passes, mistakes, shots) - Does this still exist?

Also, where is the view that shows the areas of the pitch where assists are coming from and the type of assists / goals (e.g. crosses, through balls)?

Cheers.

[Rashidi]

1 hour ago, dannyfc said:

Honestly that's how I always thought it worked anyway, hence why most low block counter attacking tactics also needed higher mentalities to ensure the ball is played quick enough to exploit the space.

@Rashidi any insight on what's specifically changed from previous years? ta 

 

So basically this is how I see it. 
Your formations style comes from your out of possession instruction. This tells your team how to behave when they do not have the ball. In essence it sets your shape. Along with the line of engagement, this defines your zone of compression. In other words it tells your team where you want to the opposition to play the game.

Your defensive line instructions like Step Up More and Drop Deeper tells your block how to behave ie move.

Your choice of formation and roles and duties dictate how attacking and defensive your team will play. A bottom heavy system will be more defensive naturally so players need to attack specific zones and play certain roles and duties to attack certain spaces.  So if you have a wingback and say a striker on attack duty, their focus is to step up and attack first chance they get. And this is where mentality comes in.

When your team is playing on defensive or lower mentalities your attacking and support duties are affected. When you need to defend, attacking duties will try and get back and help you defend.( based on your zone of compression -space between DL and LOE). The more you raise your mentality the more you affect their risk appetite to bust forward. On higher mentalities those same attacking duties may not get back.

Mentality on the lower ranges are producing distinct patterns of play where they obey the zone strictly. Naturally as the game progresses players who carrying yellows or have poor condition may not get back in time. 
 

Are lower mentalities and low blocks the only way to play. No gegenpressing systems are still way too strong and I hope SI raise the injury rate or make conditioning a serious problem for sides that play gegen pressing a whole season.

[AllyJoseph]

On the topic of interviews, my suggestion to change them(and a lot of the bloat tbh) would be to remove them entirely in their current state.

In its place have a news item saying the manager said he was "pleased" with a win, "disappointed" with a loss etc. However, make it a rarer event to actually have to comment on something, so for example every few months you may be asked to comment on a transfer target or an injury or a controversial decision. Because these scenarios will now be more focussed and rarer, you can really expand the current dialogue choices and branching dialogue/outcomes. For example, you could start a chain of interview responses which end with you annoying a player, or disrupting another player, or going down in history with a "you dont win anything with kids" or "special one" comment.

Each comment would be transparent in what your choice's outcomes could be, allowing for a positive and negative outcome if necessary(example below). Each outcome has a hidden percentage chance based upon "media handling" attribute a manager has.

A. He had a great game (Has a chance of improving player X morale/rare chance of becoming favoured personal)
B. He had a poor game (Will lower players morale/has a chance to make player unhappy with managers comments/Has chance to motivate player)
C. He has more to come (Could upset player/could change players personality to determined)
D. I dont want to comment on individual performances. (chance to lower player X hierarchy/chance to have a small improvement on team morale)

Obviously this is pie in the sky spitballing, but I'd expect a dev team to have time to really flesh something like this out and form little organic storylines.

[Scriblerus]

Is there a way of seeing club details before choosing which to manage? I've just dived in to have a look at the mechanics (my previous version was FM19, so plenty of changes) and couldn't see how to get info before opting for a club (I was down in the - to me - unknown depths of the Danish 3rd division). I'm talking about the screen that I could find in previous versions that gave info about kit, ground, training facilities, etc...

[Stevicus]

 

This looks bad doesn't it

 

Penalty given, and apparantly it's such a blatant penalty that I don't think VAR even got involved. But it clearly looks like a dive doesn't it

 

Maybe in my head I can rationalise it that it's somehow a bit of a dive and there's enough to fool VAR and the entire stadium but the game could at least back that up by making it vaguely look like he was fouled rather some Olympic level diving well before the defender gets anywhere near him. 

[Malicious Penguin]

5 hours ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

To scrap them.

[janrzm]

8 hours ago, Volband said:

What do you guys actually want from interviews to change? I always see complaints about it, so I am very interested in what would you actually propose, because they are pretty boring in real life as well. 

The rationale needs to be that if something is boring IRL, why on earth would you want to emulate that in a game people play for escapism. The only way around this if you are determined to keep them is to A) Make them more specific to what's actually going on in your season. Which is no doubt difficult and time consuming and B) Limit the amount of times you have to endure them.

Similar thing with meetings, the memory of Chris Wilder waxing lyrical about the benefits of meetings for 10 minutes will live with me forever.

Edited November 6, 2022 by janrzm

[josh381991]

Not sure if its just me but i feel like there are alot of shots that cannon off a defender into orbit before landing into the keepers hands.

 

Another thing i have noticed is forward having a over the top ball drop in front of them in the box and putting it into Row Z! These are forwards like Rashford, Ronaldo etc so decent players.

 

Might just be me but interested to get feedback.

[blazertaz13]

I have not picked up FM23, but I was curious if anyone has looked at MLS.  How does it handle over a five years or more?  Do clubs stay competitive?  League I want to play, but roster management has been a struggle for AI clubs.

Thanks,

[Tyburn]

2 hours ago, Scriblerus said:

Is there a way of seeing club details before choosing which to manage? I've just dived in to have a look at the mechanics (my previous version was FM19, so plenty of changes) and couldn't see how to get info before opting for a club (I was down in the - to me - unknown depths of the Danish 3rd division). I'm talking about the screen that I could find in previous versions that gave info about kit, ground, training facilities, etc...

It’s still all there.

When setting up a game choose “pick a club later”. Load the database, do all your manager stuff, then it’ll give you the option to pick a team. As the database has now loaded it’ll have all the info for a club, as if in game. Choose a club, zoom around a bit to gather the info you want, back out to choose a club, choose a club.

[diLLa88]

6 hours ago, diLLa88 said:

I have issued a refund for now. Will see if it goes through.

General reasons for me are the following:

• Match engine animations are much better in this version, but how it plays out tactically is not. Too many braindead decision making, errors and just not following instructions.
• Squad planning of AI is still as broken as before, which ruins long term games.
• Too many issues with B team players complaining for new contracts, and then asking salary on par with the first team while stating that they deserve it -> cannot extend contracts of B team players unless you want to waste your wage budget on it
• Introduced features not working as intended. Scouting is completely broken for me, squad planner not adding anything to the game, etc.
• Same issues as in previous versions have not been fixed, AGAIN, as is tradition. I just cannot accept it any longer. Items that have been fixed are also broken again, which basically means that they just do not look at their previous fixes. Yes, in march some stuff will be fixed and improved, but then in FM24 they will just be broken again.
• Interviews, morale management, player conversations, etc. are a pain in the ass still and have not been improved. I just skip through them until they become a real issue, and then there is no meaningful way to fix the issue. Any choice you make is basically a coin flip where they either move on or go completely balistic. Players are as moronic and stubborn as ever.

I'll keep an eye on the development, but am not optimistic that it will improve in such a way that it is a true improvement over FM22.

 

BTW for anyone wanting to refund on steam, but is in doubt whether it's still eligble, mine just got refunded succesfully at 115 hours in game time. As long as it is before official release steam tends to be very lenient.

[janrzm]

12 minutes ago, blazertaz13 said:

I have not picked up FM23, but I was curious if anyone has looked at MLS.  How does it handle over a five years or more?  Do clubs stay competitive?  League I want to play, but roster management has been a struggle for AI clubs.

Thanks,

I asked that question on reddit last week out of interest. This was the best reply.

"Great strides have been made to get the rules incorporated properly and make realistic connections between Senior and the II teams...definitely playable but still is not as difficult as it probably should be. Still two significant flaws: 1) AI struggles with the complexity of MLS rules...often signing good players but having to cut them at registration time because they dont fit the rules and 2) because there is no real USA lower league play there is no connection between academy teams, II teams and Senior team. Over time there is not enough of a feeder system and II teams develop thin rosters."

Edited November 6, 2022 by janrzm

[Wyer]

Has there been an update to the beta and the ME?

The amazing tactic I was using is well not so amazing anymore

[XaW]

1 minute ago, Wyer said:

Has there been an update to the beta and the ME?

The amazing tactic I was using is well not so amazing anymore

Nope, no ME updates yet since the beta was released.

[MattKD]

A lot of attacks at least 2/3 each game start with a defensive player losing the ball near their own box. This is for both my team and opposition and with world class players with high decisions, composure and concentration. 

[Dotsworthy]

Personally, I would rather have press conferences/pre and post-match interviews be boiled down to one or two key questions, and make each answer more impactful. Apart from occasional bumps in player morale, it only impacts your relationship with the other managers. 

The game does occasionally ask some interesting questions, like being unable to beat a certain manager or team or things like a change in formation, things that tell a narrative. It would also be nice to see these questions have an impact on your relationship with the board or fans also. 

I get what SI are going for but the reality is that press conferences are boring in real life except for the odd sound bite.

Edited November 6, 2022 by Dotsworthy

[dunk105]

5 hours ago, dannyfc said:

Honestly that's how I always thought it worked anyway, hence why most low block counter attacking tactics also needed higher mentalities to ensure the ball is played quick enough to exploit the space.

@Rashidi any insight on what's specifically changed from previous years? ta 

 

Ah sorry, just get the idea from what Rashidi has hinted about is that its still subtly different this year.

On thing that I am tearing my hair out at is the ease 2 CBs in a 4 give space to run through the middle of them as they are always positioned too far apart. Realise the inside outside instruction replaces the defensive width but imo the defensive width needs to be reintroduced so we can have have both options to choose actual width and also choose if we are funnelling players inside or out.

[HighFlyingDwarf]

22 hours ago, JordanMilly said:

Because they want you to stay up?

Surely there's a fundamental flaw here.

When the board tell you they want you to play a specific style of football, it's a small group of people who have overarching responsibility over how the team is run.

Supporters are far bigger in population and aren't a hive mind. They don't have a collective wisdom in terms of how a team should play. Some fans might feel that a long ball game is a good thing, but just as many probably don't. How then is it realistic for something which has been so well received to suddenly be flipped right on its head.

Take Bournemouth for example. When they first came up, there was a lot of talk about how they continued to play an expansive game even after promotion. The supporter base didn't decide they wanted to start hoofing it just because they wanted survival https://tbrfootball.com/is-bournemouths-expansive-style-of-football-going-to-cost-them-their-premier-league-place/

[Tyburn]

23 minutes ago, Dotsworthy said:

Personally, I would rather have press conferences/pre and post-match interviews be boiled down to one or two key questions, and make each answer more impactful. Apart from occasional bumps in player morale, it only impacts your relationship with the other managers. 

The game does occasionally ask some interesting questions, like being unable to beat a certain manager or team or things like a change in formation, things that tell a narrative. It would also be nice to see these questions have an impact on your relationship with the board or fans also. 

I get what SI are going for but the reality is that press conferences are boring in real life except for the odd sound bite.

I asked back in FM21 (and before) if it was possible to see some dynamic input for boards and fans based on the users answers. A bit like when you have a new signing and their face is bottom middle of the screen, reacting to your answers with changes in morale.

I notice in FM23 there are drop down boxes top right that hold relevant information per question (perhaps it was there in FM22, but wasn’t in FM21), but, correct me if I’m wrong, the info on this drop down is static.

If we could just have a widget on screen that holds a supporter and board confidence meter, that dynamically changes per answer, it’d at least give a little more meaning to press conferences.

I know answers DO directly affect lots of areas of the game, but to see something in real time could add to some suspense and drama, I guess.

[Iwabik]

Will this be first ever Beta without ME update?

[Obaaa]

Not seeing much positivity from the reviews I'm seeing on here and on Twitter.

Game needs an overhaul at some point. A shame but it makes it a pass for me this year.

[Scriblerus]

1 hour ago, Tyburn said:

It’s still all there.

When setting up a game choose “pick a club later”. Load the database, do all your manager stuff, then it’ll give you the option to pick a team. As the database has now loaded it’ll have all the info for a club, as if in game. Choose a club, zoom around a bit to gather the info you want, back out to choose a club, choose a club.

Thanks!

[XaW]

9 minutes ago, Obaaa said:

Not seeing much positivity from the reviews I'm seeing on here and on Twitter.

Game needs an overhaul at some point. A shame but it makes it a pass for me this year.

Would recommend trying the demo after release. People often tend to use hyperbole. Looking at Steam reviews, they are "Very positive" (85% positive) so it's all about where you look I guess.

[Obaaa]

Just now, XaW said:

Would recommend trying the demo after release. People often tend to use hyperbole. Looking at Steam reviews, they are "Very positive" (85% positive) so it's all about where you look I guess.

Didn't know there was a demo, will give it a go!

I don't tend to pay much attention to Steam reviews to be honest, but when some of the big Twitch/YT streamers are voicing some negative thoughts about the game it isn't great. Maybe full release will see some more positive remarks.

[eXistenZ]

The amount of goals ive conceded with just a single ball over the top while playing a low block and lower defensive line is ridiculous

[XaW]

1 minute ago, Obaaa said:

Didn't know there was a demo, will give it a go!

I don't tend to pay much attention to Steam reviews to be honest, but when some of the big Twitch/YT streamers are voicing some negative thoughts about the game it isn't great. Maybe full release will see some more positive remarks.

Yeah, I always tell people who ask to try it themselves, rather than listen to others. What issue they have might not affect you at all. Also, I tend to take big names with a pinch of salt in general, as they often care more about clicks rather than actual content, unfortunately. Not that I know who you are referring to here, so it might not be relevant, I just think it's often better to decide for myself rather than let others influence me. Heck, I had fun with No Man's Sky at launch even if it was far from what was promised, so I didn't hang onto the social media frenzy regarding games back then either!

The demo is the full game, it's just limited to 6 month of in-game time, so it should give you enough time to evaluate.

[eye-switcher]

anyone know how to check the coach, scout, analyst that gives you advice? before you could click a link directly in the inbox or hover over an icon, now you have to exit the mail, search for you staff members name before judging if his advise based on his stats seem sound.

Edited November 6, 2022 by eye-switcher

[KingCanary]

8 hours ago, diLLa88 said:

Too many issues with B team players complaining for new contracts, and then asking salary on par with the first team while stating that they deserve it -> cannot extend contracts of B team players unless you want to waste your wage budget on it

Oh is this still a thing? Do they still ask for statuses like 'important player' too?

[Longhorn]

"I have not picked up FM23, but I was curious if anyone has looked at MLS.  How does it handle over a five years or more?  Do clubs stay competitive?  League I want to play, but roster management has been a struggle for AI clubs."

I played about half a season with FC Dallas and gave up.  The AI is still brain dead in terms of managing teams.  For example, Gareth Bale was released on a free waver, as were several other "stars".  FC Dallas finished as the 2nd best MLS defense in real life but in the game players just watch opponents blow by them, and the roster is the same as in real life.  Some comments would suggest that the problem is tactics but players standing still while opponents waltz past them is not a tactics problem as far as I'm concerned.  I tried playing some matches with a few prestigious European teams and saw some of the same things.  Perhaps if a squad has a lot of highly rated defenders they might react better, but you can count on the MLS squads to have lower player ratings.  

Edited November 6, 2022 by Longhorn

[janrzm]

45 minutes ago, XaW said:

Yeah, I always tell people who ask to try it themselves, rather than listen to others. What issue they have might not affect you at all. Also, I tend to take big names with a pinch of salt in general, as they often care more about clicks rather than actual content, unfortunately. Not that I know who you are referring to here, so it might not be relevant, I just think it's often better to decide for myself rather than let others influence me. Heck, I had fun with No Man's Sky at launch even if it was far from what was promised, so I didn't hang onto the social media frenzy regarding games back then either!

The demo is the full game, it's just limited to 6 month of in-game time, so it should give you enough time to evaluate.

100% Agree with the notion that you should always make your own mind up and what breaks the game for one person might be practically invisible to another.

I also think we should acknowledge that when most individuals express a negative opinion on the game it isn’t necessarily to influence others, it’s to make a point to the developer in one of the few ways they can.

Edited November 6, 2022 by janrzm

[GOODNAME]

Best beta that i ever played

Some things that i hope will fix in the full game :

- Transfer demonds of good players after 1 season is high and you cannot really buy a good player

- Ball over the top and CB's behavior need to improve a lot

- GK's and nothing else to say

- Lack of cutting inside from IF/IW players (they doing it but not enough in my opinion)