Football Manager 2017 Critic Reviews

Football Manager 2017 isn’t just a simulation game, but something that will permeate your life.

Football Manager 17 is a titan of a game, representing a depth of knowledge, complexity, customization, and humanity that would be a welcome addition to any game on any subject. If football, or soccer as many a westerner calls it, is not your favorite sport, that may very well be the only reason to not give this game a twirl. While an expert may find some small issue, as a greenhorn I can’t report a single drawback for the game, but I can pretty much find a complement for each and every aspect of this marvelous simulator.

For me, Football Manager 2017 is undoubtedly the best game in the series, and even when results aren’t going my way, I’m desperate to come back and go again. The changes to the match day experience are superb, and the social feed is a touch of genius.

Football Manager 2017 links depth and accessibility: the result is pure perfection.

After a few seasons focusing on other aspects of the game, Football Manager 2017 adds a new layer of depth to the match day and its AI. And it’s brilliant.

FM16 was close to the complete game, and FM17 is a very definite leap forward. It's not easy to improve on a near-perfect product but through smart and intuitive tweaks, this feels like the best iteration yet.

Football Manager 2017 managed to do better than last year by improving its playing style while keeping its DNA. Richer, more beautiful and more deep, it continues to be the benchmark of sports management games.

If there ever was a time where new, as well as veteran, players to the series could jump right in and get a deep football experience, that would be right about now.

There’s little to fault here and that's because SI Games takes the iterative approach. Whilst there hasn’t been a big shift on the game's workings since tactical sliders were removed in FM 2014 each version is a step forward.

Football Manager 2017 is no revolution, but it doesn’t claim to be. The franchise is, instead, built upon careful revisions and tweaks to its successful formula, bringing new feature sets on top of the base game loved by millions. It’s these millions who purchase it every year, and continue to support a developer who continues to push themselves with every release, improving their formula and giving fans the best possible experience — whether managing a world powerhouse or a lower level team just trying to balance the books, the decisions made are never easy, and genuine pressure exists. Football Manager continues to capture the essence of what it is like to truly love, fear, hate and live football, like no other ever has.

The way Football Manager has changed means a better game for everyone. You are able to do everything you need to do to run your team successfully much quicker than you’ve been able to before. The improvements to the match engine make actually watching the games fairly entertaining. Clunky elements like the conversation and press conference systems remain, but fans of the series have learned to accept these for what they are now. There are certainly more improvements to be made to Football Manager, but what we have got right now is rather good indeed.

Football Manager 2017 is the best soccer manager simulator ever, but its new features are not good enough to forget its predecessor.

Even if the changes outside player AI and the social feed feel more like tiny improvements than anything substantial. it's still a remarkable simulation and the best on the market.

Football Manager 2017 isn’t a revolution, but still the same addictive simulation we love to play every year.

Football Manager 2017 does not include revolutionary features, but it shows a massive amount of data at the disposal of managers who can create deep tactics and game plans. However, the introduction of social networks is not a big deal, and there are some wrong evaluations in the wages of players. All in all, this is still Football Manager, and if you are a soccer enthusiast, this is your game: if you missed the last two, three editions of the game, you should grab this one. If you played the iteration of last year, maybe you may have some doubts, but in the end, you should buy it as well.

Football Manager 2017 builds upon its predecessor, providing all the wannabe Mourinhos a solid way to sit on the bench. Still, the new features are not groundbreaking, so you may want to think twice before buying it at full price.

It’s far from revolutionary, but it is a very well refined version of Football Manager that empowers the player by putting all the information you need at your fingertips.

Football Manager 2017 hasn’t evolved as much as the previous entry, and some aspects need an urgent renovation. Still, it’s built on such a solid foundation that it still is a great choice for fans of football management.

This still is the same time consuming monster that it always was. Depth, authenticity, atmosphere: everything is there, while there are some comfort functions and a superficial “Social Feed” was added. If you are new to the series, this is the one to go to, but veterans can stay with last years’ version.

Football Manager 2017 isn't a revolutionary update to the series, but it's the best in a good number of years. The new match engine is such a huge improvement and the AI enhancements add to the overall feeling that this is the most realized football management game yet, feeling more realistic than ever before.