Fans of the Football Manager series are in for a treat this year, with the iconic game franchise set to undergo a major revamp by developers Sports Interactive (SI).
Football Manager 25 (FM25) will be powered by a powerful new game engine which will elevate the overall gameplay experience into a completely different realm.
With that in mind, read on as we look at what fans can expect from FM25, starting with SI’s decision to utilise the Unity engine to power the game.
Unity Will be a Game-Changer for the FM Series
While FM is undoubtedly the most realistic management simulation on the market, SI believe they are yet to fully unlock the game’s true potential.
In some respects, the current incarnation of the legendary game series resembles watching live sports today on a 4K television.
While this offers an immersive viewing experience for sports fans, it does not match up to what top-quality 8K TVs deliver. It is a similar story with Unity.
SI’s studio manager Miles Jacobson has described the engine as the ‘biggest technology change’ the company has implemented in more than 20 years.
“Moving to the Unity engine is a huge undertaking,” Jacobson said. “It gives us incredible building blocks to create new foundations, unlock our potential, and power our future vision for Football Manager, with enhanced graphical fidelity and more efficient development processes.
“In the future and with more experience, it will lead to faster creation and implementation of game features and design-led tweaks. In essence, FM25 is the starting point for the studio’s next 20 years.”
SI Revamps Features and Game Modes
Before delving into what FM25 has to offer players, it is important to mention the elements which will not be included from previous editions of the game.
Touchline Shouts have been in the series for several years but have been removed until SI feels they can do justice to a feature which has received mixed reviews.
The bespoke social media screen and Chalkboard have also been axed, although the information these deliver will appear in other parts of FM25.
Create-A-Club has been omitted, although this will return in FM26 with a vast array of improvements and exciting new features.
Versus Mode and Challenge Mode have been dropped due to limited use by the FM community but could feature in future editions under another guise.
The Fantasy Draft feature has been temporarily removed but will return during the FM25 cycle alongside SI’s main data update.
New UI Will Drive FM Series into a New Era
FM25’s new UI/UX is driven by what SI has called a ‘tile and card’ system. The firm says this will ‘build a build a sense of exploration for every player to reveal the depth and detail’ of the game.
In simple terms, a tile is a panel containing different types of information. These are effectively snapshots of the details on the more in-depth cards.
The design will reduce the volume of in-game screens, which should make navigation much easier without compromising FM’s captivating qualities.
The Inbox feature has been replaced by Portal, which is designed to provide players with ‘a richer window to the wider footballing universe’.
This intuitive new FM 25 feature will allow players to develop their managerial story more effectively by delivering much deeper insights than previous editions of the game.
The switch to the Unity engine will also improve the game’s graphical elements, especially the 3D match view.
Another exciting development for FM25 is a new licensing partnership with the Premier League, which will boost the legitimacy of a game that was already realistic.
Official logos, kits and player photos will appear in all versions of Football Manager for at least the next four years, making the game even more authentic.
Women’s football will be included for the first time in FM25, a move which SI has been eager to make for the past few years.
Players will be able to move between managing clubs in the men’s and women’s leagues, thus establishing a broader and more diverse FM universe.
FM25 will also allow players to load FM24 saved games – a feature which will create much greater levels of continuity than previous editions.