Pro Evolution Soccer is charting a new course, it seems, as PES 2022 is apparently planned to be a free-to-play entry to the established football simulation series.
As a result of the pandemic, Konami needed to deviate from its usual approach for Pro Evolution Soccer. Instead of developing an entirely new title, eFootball PES 2020 received a season update celebrating the 25th anniversary of the series. This consisted of new data to correspond to the latest player data and club rosters out there at that time, thereby refreshing the game without being a fully-fledged title of its own.
Funnily enough, the update also features UEFA Euro 2020, which ended up being rescheduled to 2021, so the event is totally fictionalised in eFootball PES 2020. The same thing happened to Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, as the Olympics have been pushed to 2021, but this game didn't alter its title to reflect this. I suppose it would have meant a lot of costly reprints.
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Check out this insight into the differences between a day in the life of a professional gamer and a professional footballer right here.
Once more, PES 2022 could usher in a revolution for the longstanding series of football sim games, according to Video Games Chronicle editor Andy Robinson. Speaking on the site's podcast, Robinson claims that the next game will be "properly free-to-play" and promises to "really change it up." Where he has sourced this information from is not stated, but a statement such as this does pique our curiosities.
Video Games Chronicle is also the source on the new historical map on its way to Warzone, as well as the fact that Call Of Duty: WWII Vanguard will be hopping back to Modern Warfare's engine to ensure compatibility between the battle royale and the next entry to the series. Consequently, it is possible that this comment on the future of Pro Evolution Soccer is on the money as these previous reports tally with what Activision itself has said on Call of Duty.
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At the moment, you can try out an open beta test for New Football Game (yes, really) on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and Xbox One. Konami wants to "evaluate the quality of the online matchmaking and connection to the servers," and clarifies that the gameplay will be subject to change before the full release. We're definitely learning more about PES 2022 in an event on July 21st, so we'll let you know whether this report holds water nearer to the time.
Featured Image Credit: Konami