PES may be the underdog, but there’s still plenty the team behind FIFA could learn from it.
Here, we pick seven brilliant PES features that could really benefit EA’s FIFA 19.
More celebrations
FIFA 19 added a load of celebrations, but Konami’s game’s are arguably more creative.
In PES 2019 you can take selfies with the crowd and even take your shirt off – providing you’re Neymar that is.
“Technically it’s very, very difficult for us to {get an in-game player} to take the shirt off,” EA Creative Director Matt Prior told Dream Team Gaming.
“This is because of the morphing of the textures – it’s one of those weird things that in real life it seems to easy but from a gaming standpoint it’s incredibly difficult.”
Konami, however have managed to figure out a clever workaround.
When you score with Neymar, the camera quickly cuts to him doing a throwing action – as if he’s just pulled off his shirt. It works a treat, and looks incredibly simple to pull off (no pun intended).
Perhaps our favourite new celebration is the group selfie – demonstrated by Man City and Argentina hit-man Sergio Aguero.
This will see the goalscorer run over to the sidelines, pull out a phone and then take a snap.
It’s available when you play a co-op match – what a lovely touch.
Editing your own kit
One of the drawbacks with PES is the lack of official team licences.
Thankfully, there are hundreds of loyal fans who create the teams and badges from scratch, which can then be imported via USB to the game.
But why does this need to be limited to PES?
The ability to edit your own team kit, create stadiums and even update sponsors would be welcomed by many FIFA players.
It certainly jars in Career Mode when your team puts on the same strip more than a decade later.
Ratings needs a rethink
EA has made dribbling round players tougher than ever – especially this year as pace has been ‘nerfed’.
There are still some cases where players with much higher speed stats are chased down by slower defenders – which simply would not happen in real life.
Konami’s game has no such problem – with individual player stats accurately reflecting what they can do on the pitch.
So, Lionel Messi can dribble past five people because his dribbling stats are through the roof.
Sure, it feels more arcade-like, but that’s what makes the gameplay so fun.
One of the biggest annoyances with this year’s FIFA is input delay – the time it takes for an on-screen action to reflect a user’s command.
PES, though, seems far sharper and responsive, leading to a much more connected experience.
Match atmosphere
What PES lacks in licences it makes up for by capturing the spirit of the game.
While EA goes some way to address the build up, through decent commentary and player highlights, a more interactive and engaged crowd would work wonders.
We’ve seen EA step up its game this year with crowds – but there’s still more work to be done.
This is esepcially true in Career Mode, where generic overlays are used for some of the competitions – for example the UEFA Super Cup.
Camp Nou
One of the most iconic stadiums in the world is replaced by a bland arena in FIFA 19.
Sadly, as long as the relationship between Konami and Barcelona remains, Camp Nou will remain absent from FIFA for years to come.
Stadium Editor
One of the best features in recent PES games is the stadium editor – which allows you to customise a number of aspects from netting to pitch pattern.
FIFA fans have been calling out for this feature for years, but EA is yet to do anything about it.
Imagine being able to add you own colours and flags to your home ground?
We’ve already seen that ICON flags appear in the stadium when you play with them – so surely this is doable from a technical standpoint?
