Football Manager Touch 2017 (PC) Review

With every version of the game over the years, the astonishing detail of Football Manager has never reached a plateau. The series has become an exceptionally realistic and effective tool to indoctrinate fans on every aspect of the football world, and it is precisely because of this level of detail, and extraordinary work implemented in each title, that Football Manager has garnered the reputation it has today: a franchise of ubiquitous influence and standing in the gaming space.

With that in mind, it seems a little inconceivable that there would be any drawbacks but that, nonetheless, remains the case. Whilst each new entry receives an overwhelming amount of plaudits (and rightly so) for the amount of depth that accompanies the releases, there are many players who have felt a little left behind and found the ever increasing options, and folders upon folders of information at hand, a tad intimidating. Sports Interactive went some way to alleviating these qualms with the inclusion of Football Manger Touch, which was included in last year's entry, Football Manager 2016. It promised (and delivered) to hand a filtered down version of the game, akin to the earlier iterations, meaning more game time and less prep work, essentially. It's back this year, but this time around it's packaged separately as Football Manager Touch 2017, with it also available on certain mobile formats.

Initially, the main noticeable difference that distinguishes Touch from the main version, is the UI. It's an undeniably simpler and cleaner interface, with every option at the player's disposal easy to spot and navigate. To assume, though, that the evidently simplistic aesthetic is any indication of the overall experience, would be to presume wrongly. Many of the features from the main game are actually included, demonstrated by the social media feature, to name but one. It's that everything is able to be done far quicker, much like in the Championship Manager era. A manager can now offload many of their jobs, such as sorting out player contracts, or organising training. If the players choose so, they can pass this all on to the assistant and simply take care of the official games and team selections. This, of course, means it is possible to spend the majority of the experience on playing matches, and this is perfect for mobile gamers that want to dip in and out without any given notice.

Transfer activities are equally streamlined, whilst still containing all of the vital information for players to engage with, such as footballers' entire set of attributes and personal information. Although managers can still sift through spreadsheets of information on each footballer, they are also given the opportunity to carry out quick player comparisons to make transfers that much quicker. Everything from player wages, to morale information, is included here; it's just all on a single screen, eliminating the need for folders and hidden tabs. Even the inclusion of a simplified real-time engine makes the cut, although how much attention it will receive for those playing on the go is debatable.