Underutilized features/options with no value or advantage/things that do not work?

[MonagHusker]

I hesitate to use the term “broken,” but are there options that are part of the game that don’t work or seem to have no purpose?

I like the various options to mean something. As if there are advantages and disadvantages to each rating or move. FM is incredibly deep, but I feel there are things people don’t do because there seems to be no advantage or don’t work.

Pep-talks – It seems like the goal is to make everyone happy (in the green). The assertive/calm “got Faith” seems to be a popular choice. I see aggressive used at times, but what about the rest. Each choice should have some value it seems.

PPMs – Is there an advantage for “Argues with Officials?” Is it possible to get more fouls called in favor of your team because your player is more apt to be in their ear much of the match? What about “Avoids using weaker foot?”

Tactics – Are there any that just don’t work? Or do they all work, but maybe you need to have the very top team/players to do it?

Attributes – Do they all have value? Are some overvalued? Is it better to have a “below average” player with off-the-charts determination and work rate, rather than a well above average player in everything but determination and work rate?

Feel free to add or discuss whatever. This is not intended to be a negative commentary on the game – I have new games I am not playing, because I keep playing this! I just want to know other ways to look at it if possible, or get more out of it.

 

[Bigpapa42]

As is pretty much always the case with FM, it depends....

Pep Talks - its not just about making people happy. Sometimes its about motivating. If all you ever do is praise the players so they are green, the side will get complacent. Results dip. So you need to take into account the context of the situation. A 1-0 win over a side three divisions below you in the Cup doesn't really deserve effusive praise from the manager.

PPMs - they are not about "advantage". They about realistically recreating a player and their actions. So Arguing with Officials might not have a lot of upside, but certain players do it habitually. Hence the PPM. Other PPMS... it depends. They can be useful if they fit the player and how you want to use them, or a negative if they don't work for how you want the player to play. So again... it depends.

Tactics - really not sure what you mean by this. Formations or actual tactical instructions? Formations are neutral (in the words of Jonathan Wilson) so any formation CAN work. Its all about what you are trying to do, the instructions, and the players. And in terms of tactical instructions, they are very contextual to the situation, so none are really "useless".

Attributes - none are "useless". Some are more valuable and some are dependent on how the player is being used. There is no single attribute that makes a player "great" or "useful" all by itself. What attributes I will prioritize depends on how I want to play. So again, it depends.

 

[MonagHusker]

As is pretty much always the case with FM, it depends....

Pep Talks - its not just about making people happy. Sometimes its about motivating. If all you ever do is praise the players so they are green, the side will get complacent. Results dip. So you need to take into account the context of the situation. A 1-0 win over a side three divisions below you in the Cup doesn't really deserve effusive praise from the manager.

PPMs - they are not about "advantage". They about realistically recreating a player and their actions. So Arguing with Officials might not have a lot of upside, but certain players do it habitually. Hence the PPM. Other PPMS... it depends. They can be useful if they fit the player and how you want to use them, or a negative if they don't work for how you want the player to play. So again... it depends.

Tactics - really not sure what you mean by this. Formations or actual tactical instructions? Formations are neutral (in the words of Jonathan Wilson) so any formation CAN work. Its all about what you are trying to do, the instructions, and the players. And in terms of tactical instructions, they are very contextual to the situation, so none are really "useless".

Attributes - none are "useless". Some are more valuable and some are dependent on how the player is being used. There is no single attribute that makes a player "great" or "useful" all by itself. What attributes I will prioritize depends on how I want to play. So again, it depends.

Thanks!

To be fair, my FM experiences have been limited. YouTube saves or plug n play type tactics, that have helped but probably have me not utilizing the game to the full.

For tactics, I was thinking more of ones I seldom see used. For example, I don't see a lot of more direct style of play (separate thread in tactics forum on that).

Thanks again! I think i just need to be willing to take chances; learn by experience (good or bad); and track what i see.

 

[Bigpapa42]

Yeah, it just depends on where you are looking. Direct can certainly work. It has its drawbacks. There are people playing that way, if you look in threads asking for help. Seen a couple recently where people were playing quite direct. People creating and sharing tactics might use it a bit less frequently but that's a slightly different situation - they are creating tactics that, hopefully, work for different squads with different skill levels.