AFL Evolution - Launch thread

[Espe]

Just had the most epic game ever. Dunno what everyone is complaining about, the gameplay is sick

 

[SugarShane]

Finally manned up and changed to end to end view. The slow loopy end changes will take a while to get used to but it's so much better for spotting up team mates. Just wish there was a camera between medium and far.

 

[treefingers]

Finally manned up and changed to end to end view. The slow loopy end changes will take a while to get used to but it's so much better for spotting up team mates. Just wish there was a camera between medium and far.

I've been using end to end view the whole time. Honestly don't know how you could play any other way - it makes so much easier to link up and handball

 

[RossFC]

Just had the most epic game ever. Dunno what everyone is complaining about, the gameplay is sick

Shit graphics looks like an Atari 2600 game!

 

[sb944]

100%

I feel a lot of the complaints are coming from people that just haven't really put time in to learn how to play the game well. The learning curve for marking is steep and timing a spoil on a short opposition kick is frustrating as hell but the main thing holding the game back is the rigid positioning. One on one football died over a decade ago now. Hardly any of the traditional positions other than ruckmen really mean what they used to anymore. It's not so much which winger is on the right and which is on the left but which stays on the fat side and which goes to the contest.

It won't happen for this game because it would be such a drastic overhaul but if players played zonally and matched up on height/marking ability rather than going LBP locks on to RFP no matter what, you probably have quite a good albeit severely unpolished game.

Little tactics like getting a half forward to come off the square to become an extra mid or putting an extra defender a kick behind play would be awesome too.

Then again tactic/strategy literacy of AFL fans is shockingly low, so maybe having to manage all those tactics would be overbearing for very casual fans and most kids. Shouldn't be that bad if most just play on default set-ups.

I think it's less of an overhaul and more of an unrealistic goal for an AFL game. I don't know much about Fifa, but a realistic AFL game is mostly stoppages and congested play. Once it opens up, a programming team could probably tackle the problem effectively, likely why this game is kept structured and lots of 1v1. Once you cramp it up and get lots of stoppages, it's suddenly really subtle movements, physics and much more complex AI. And if they somehow get all that realistic, there is no way you'll be able to keep up with your controller anyway.

 

[Schulzenfest]

Gone from one win in my first 6 or so games on medium to three comfortable wins in a row tonight. I seem to have become competent at this game overnight. The game still has some major issues, but those who have said it's a lot more fun once you take off kick assist and figure out marking are 100% correct.

 

[illnino]

Far out, online games are just a cluster **** of handballs over the top and then a goal. My players seem to just follow the ball carrier and not be able to tackle, most likely because of a lag issue with the game, because offline, they would be tackling in the same circumstances. I remeber it was a similar story with Live 1.

As for marking, how the actual faark am I meant to time my button press when I can't even see the mark timing rings on screen until it's too late? Tried all the camera angles but by the time you see the marking rings you have only a split second to get your player into position and time your button press... let alone try to jostle with the right stick as well! I actually do better when I just button mash triangle, L2, R2 and the left and right sticks all at once.

Oh, and the camera angles are so ****ing bad for Be a Pro. Any angle except for the 'Be a Pro' angle is totally useless, and the 'Be a Pro' angle is simply not zoomed out anywhere near enough.

Very interested to see what the next patch brings, cos at the moment, unless you're playing offline at a difficulty level below Legend, the game is super frustrating most of the time.

 

[Xtreme]

Started playing on hardjust to see if I could compete... and it's not a total white wash

I lost this gamr, felt like the AI missing very easy shots at goal, could have pinched it

This eclipses my 98 point win a few days ago. It was a hot contest, they kicked 2 early on, I responded with 2 of my own. I kicked away in the second, they responded and continued their run in the third quarter. I expected them to run away with it, I was only 10 points down but my concentration was going and its hard ebough to mark the ball as it is! I kick one, they respond with another. I scored again, it was 98 - 94 for a while. I recall Tim Harley saying that the first team that scores 100 points first usually wins. Made my move, got luck on my side and scored, they kept coming back. I'd get to 106, they were soon at 104. I got to 125 and thought you beauty I'm home...... but in the last 2 minutes they scored the remaining goals of the game to make it an 8 point win for me.

I reckon the mark counter was way off - Essendon had 29 registered but it felt like way more. All of the times they took 3-4 marks on the way to their forward 50.

Roughead took a screamer (my first one!) and kicked 10 goals

 

[Dhoni Dakurri]

Only by today's standards. FIFA games were always above average. Even back in N64 days FIFA was considered the pinnacle of soccer games. FIFA Road to World Cup 98 was hugely popular. Hell, even FIFA 96 was considered very revolutionary at the time.

Pro evolution always had superior gameplay to fifa.

Fifa turned a corner with the 2009 release. Before that it was arcadey and full of loop holes for easy scoring and actually had a poor reputation.

 

[my name was taken]

I'm done in 1 night, this isn't a charity.

 

[Tigz_09]

Didn't like it for the price. Took it back the next day.
Going to wait for the bargain bin.

 

[GTOA]

My housemate bought this for me as a very belated Christmas present (from last year). I got a digital copy.

My whole concern going in was playability. I remember AFL Live2, where I was unable to master the controls, so took it back the next week.

This game looked impressive, but all I was seeing was graphics, and IMO, it can be the slickest looking game ever, yet if you can't master the basic controls, then it is a pile of crap.

Well, I got, and it is better than I expected. I turned the controls to "Legacy" (which are similar to the controls on AFL Live 1, which I did like), and have enjoyed playing it so far.

Now, the only gripes I have are the marking (but I am getting better at it. I just wish that they gave you better instructions on how to do it, and made it easier), the horrendous 50-metre, where if you move to another player in the opposition forward 50, the AI gets a shot straight in front of goal, which I hate, and makes defending harder, and the minor gripe of them having Gary Ablett jr with a beard (when he has never had a beard).

But, even if it wasn't a digital copy, I wouldn't take it back. I can live with the Ablett beard, and I can learn to master the marking. I hope they fix the 50-metre thing though. Other than that, it is a game which is giving me hours of fun.

 

[Xtreme]

Pro evolution always had superior gameplay to fifa.

Fifa turned a corner with the 2009 release. Before that it was arcadey and full of loop holes for easy scoring and actually had a poor reputation.

Its still just as easy to score in Fifa......... even on world class difficulty!!!

 

[snitzel]

Games like what?

The big games that sell heaps are full price to cover their huge budgets.

The small games that don't sell heaps are full price to cover the small sales volume.

Its very simple.

All small games are pretty cheaper. What other small scale games are full price?

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Almost like he's been fed some lines for this one.

Such a cop out these, "You just don't know how to play the game" arguments. And then he says Live 1 wasn't all that great. I'd like to agree, but to insinuate Evolution is better is just absurd. They incorporated a lot of the mistakes that the PS2 games had into De-evolution. Where Live 1 was a completely different more competent Football game. I said before, I don't know if Wicked Witch have been doing that on purpose, however, they did say they implemented things from those old games on one of the threads.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

If people think AFL Evolution looks like a PS1 game, then they are freaken blind!

I think it's an exaggeration. Even if I was a Wicked Witch fanboy, I'd find some of that criticism humorous.

 

[boncer34]

All small games are pretty cheaper. What other small scale games are full price?

Bradman

 

[SugarShane]

I think it's an exaggeration. Even if I was a Wicked Witch fanboy, I'd find some of that criticism humorous.

It's quite clearly hyperbole, but because the claims are so ridiculous it ruins whatever credibility their actual argument has. When someone says something as stupid as "AFL Evo looks like a PS1 game," they just look like a moron and their actual point gets lost.

 

[Quivorir]

I really enjoy this game.

 

[zyzzbruh]

I wish there was an AFL game in the same vein as rocket league physics. Sometimes i feel in rocket league I am jumping into packs and getting the hard ball out, moving it down the field then pushing back hard to defend.

How does afl compare to rocket league in any way shape or form

 

[Seymour Skinner]

Played a handful of games last night, it's pretty fun. I imagine it would be better playing with mates who are also terrible at the game.
My first few games we're just in the standard kick-off games, (medium difficulty) got rolled but I had no idea what I was doing so that was expected.
Changed over to career mode, made my character and plonked them in a TAC cup team, and even though you start at 50 overall everyone else in the league are trash so it's pretty easy to get a hang of the controls imo. The only real issues I've had were the marking, the stamina drain and sometimes the camera.
To help fix the first two issues I dumped all the points from my first two level ups in the endurance and marking attributes (Rated 54 overall with 97 marking lol). Endurance seems somewhat better but I still get subbed out halfway through a quarter sometimes and don't come back on for ages, marking, on the other hand, is super easy atm because all the other players are trash.
The only issue I don't know how to fix is how the camera sometimes spazzes out in the pro mode games when you get the ball around the HHF, you turn it to face the goals and then just before I go to kick it flips around and I end up kicking it the wrong way lel.

 

[Jorge]

The game has multiple issues & lacks depth but that's to be expected. What it does have is a decent foundation to build on.
Hopefully the developer can justify a follow up edition next year.

 

[SugarShane]

I knew Tex was good but I didn't know he was 10 goals from 9 disposals good.

 

[dave123]

Can someone just give me a score out of 10 please as I simply couldn't find a review for it and don't have time to crawl thru endless posts ....cheers

 

[FearTheBeard13]

This game really isn't as bad as some people are think. A lot of people were honestly expecting this to compete with FIFA or NBA 2K? Wasn't ever gonna happen, not sure why that was assumed in the first place.

Hoping a patch will fix the more irritating things like mark contests and the ball tap being the same button as handball. I'm yet to start a Pro mode just because of the substitue glitch.

Also cannot fathom why people buy this game, hate on it, trade it back in and then say they'll get it again when its cheaper. Why?! Have some patience and wait for the patch, you already have the game!

I'd give it 7.5/10. For its budget and what we got, we won't get much better unless someone sinks $5 million more into it.