Eidos and SI (makers of Championship Manager) parts

[ragnar]

For those who are interested (I imagine that it is only Curt and me :)) the big news on the Championship Manager horizon is that Eidos no longer will publish Sports Interactives games (the makers of CM).

Eidos will keep the Championship Manager name though, but SI will keep the code:


Both parties will retain their respective intellectual properties, with Eidos retaining the name ?Championship Manager? and Sports Interactive keeping ownership of the player database and source code.

Eidos will develop Championship Manager internally, with an update release planned for the 2004/2005 football season, while Sports Interactive will announce its plans for future football projects in the first quarter of 2004.


I wonder what this will mean for the manager game market. Hopefully Eidos will be able to continue to improve CM, even if I don't have that high hopes and Sports Interactive will finally get some real competition.

[pleto4_ryan]

will finally get some real competition.

Competition.

Best substitute for a better future ;)

Eidos was smart to keep the name :P

[bigjko]

Wouldn't it be hilarious if everyone would get confused and think SI's new manager game was just some cheap clone of Championship Manager and Eidos would make millions just from the name alone?!

No?

Alright, I'll let myself out then.

FOOTBALL FREAKS!!

*runs!*

[ragnar]

Yes, Eidos had apparently registered the CM name already with the first version.

But those who are smart will stick with Sport Interactives games.

[pleto4_ryan]

But those who are smart will stick with Sport Interactives games.

I believe people who bought CM are smart. It's a "difficult" type of game, and those who play it (fans) understand perfectly the difference ;)

[ragnar]

Yes, they are simply outstanding when it comes to manager games. I mean, the best manager game is CM4, the second best CM3, the third best CM2 and the fourth best is CM1. Then comes the rest of the manager games. :)

[SamandMax]

Pretty soon Eidos is going to have 'Championship Manager: Tomb Raider Edition'. Then they'll blame it's poor sales because the Tomb Raider movie did bad.

[Kolzig]

Well, I hope people wll be wise and stay with SI, whatever the next game will be named.

Eidos is going to destroy the CM line of games, I sure it will become a lite manager game.

I'm so happy that Sports Interactive got to keep the database and the source code.

The database is something really important in the CM games.

[ragnar]

Yes, the database and the match engine are really the heart of SI.

But I think it wouldn't have been _that_ much trouble for SI to recreate the database with it's enormous network of researchers. Now, it is of course better to not have to recreate it though.

[James]

I think the fanbase of Championship Manager is quite dependent on the professionalism of Sports Interactive to create such a high quality series. I don't believe Eidos could do it on their own. Personally, I'd like to see Sports Interactive get their hands on the official licenses, this would no doubt mean linking up with EA, but I believe it would add another element of accuracy and professionalism to an already fantastic game.

I've been playing Championship Manager 4 constantly since I bought it on release. Really, it alters one's perception of the game. One starts to look at players that one could purchase in the game, and look to apply tactics and formations used.

[Sly Boots]

I'm sorry, I just couldn't let this thread die (last one on this forum)!
I'm a huge fan of Championship Manager, and I too will go with Football Manager. One of my friends is a researcher for Romania, and he's already researching for the new game (he did it for CM4 too). So the team kept its researchers. It's a funny thing, SI has 13 programmers, but the credits for the game are huge, there's hundreds, maybe thousands of researchers.
Actually, I'm glad they parted with Eidos, since they will die anyway (some really bad marketing decisions). Couldn't they pay 13 men, or did they push the team to leave by interfering in their decisions.

I think CM brought 50% of Eidos' profits, and CM5 will be a dissapointment. Yet I'm glad there will be competition, because Total Club Manager really sucks. It's like watching someone else play FIFA, and not very goo either. A younger friend of mine tried to convince me TCM is better. It has 3D graphics, he said. I laughed in his face.

Anyway, long live Football Manager!

And for the ones not interested, it's FOOTBALL, not soccer.

[Jony]

About championship manager 4.....didn't that come out like 1 or 2 years ago? When is the new version comming up?

[Kolzig]

CM4 came out in march 2003.

The new Eidos version is supposed to come out sometime in the next six months or something.

The new SI's Football Manager is also coming quite soon I think.

Football Manager 2005 is the new football management game from Sports Interactive and is set for release in Q4 2004. Here is a list of confirmed new features

Updated user interface

Football Manager’s user interface will look markedly different to anything that has come before. Navigation between screens will be easier, with each screen explaining what information is on offer and how to get to other, related information. Consistency between separate game elements will also be more noticeable than in previous football management games: operations such as player filtering and sorting will now work consistently throughout the game. The game’s look – which now includes a two-panel option – will also be easily customised, allowing managers to store their preferred views and to return quickly to them.

Refined game engine

Sports Interactive’s long-standing and award-winning game engine has been refined and tuned in accordance with the feedback received from fans of its previous games. For example, the new game incorporate more than 30 extra fields for player data, including the all-new new ‘preferred moves’.

Updated database and competition rules

As has always been the case with Sports Interactive’s management simulations, Football Manager 2005’s database and competition simulation will be as up-to-date and accurate as is humanly possible.

Pre- and post-match information

Managers will be presented with enhanced information before and after each match, to show team line-ups, injuries and tactics before the match, and lots of stats about the match afterwards.

International player news

For the first time, managers will receive information on international performances, allowing them follow their players’ careers and ascertain how they are performing at the highest level.

Cup summary news

Events which unfold in each round of all of the major cup competitions will be delivered to the manager in a news summary.

2D clips from agents

Managers are likely to receive ‘video clips’ (executed using the game’s acclaimed 2D match engine) of a player’s performances, sent to them by that player’s agent with view to a possible transfer.

Coach reports on squads

In addition to commenting on individual players, coaches will now offer their opinions on the squad as a whole, thus helping managers to decide which areas of their team need improvement.

Job centre for non-playing positions

Non-playing jobs will be advertised through an in-game ‘Job Centre’, improving the manager’s ability to hire coaches and other staff.

Mutual Contract termination

Managers will be able to offer surplus players an opportunity to agree mutual contract termination, which will reduce the cost of releasing players and trimming squads.

Enhanced player loan options

Managers can now approach other clubs to offer young players on loan, a process which will make it easier to give younger players competitive experience. Also, when players’ loan periods expire, the manager will have an opportunity to extend the loan (where appropriate).

Manager ‘mind games’

Managers can click on any other manager’s name and issue a comment to the media relating to that person. The effects of these comments will see an increase in the amount of pressure surrounding title races, relegation battles, Cup ties and so on. It will also be possible to use this feature in relation to your own players, other clubs, media pundits etc.

Football Manager 2005 – Further Features

Playable leagues in 43 countries.
More than 140 playable senior divisions and in excess of 100 playable cup competitions.
Reserve and junior league competitions.
More than 235,000 players and staff (from 145 different countries) with players boasting more than 120 separate attributes and non-playing staff boasting 40.
A database of more than 14,000 clubs, 3,000 of which can be managed.
Data supplied by a network of more than 2,500 researchers from around the world.
Updated 2D ‘top-down’ match engine.
Improved ‘radio commentary’.
Increased interaction with the media.
Reworked injury system.
Improved scouting system.
Improved finance module to reflect the changing face of football.
Comments when negotiating with human managers (network multi-player game only).
Inclusion of U18 Caps.
More realistic awards system.

[edlglide]

I love Championship Manager........and I'm sure the new SI sim will be great.

Now if only we could get Konami and SI to combine Championship Manager and Winning Eleven into one uber game -- it might be the greatest of all time. *chuckle*

[Jony]

CM4 came out in march 2003.

The new Eidos version is supposed to come out sometime in the next six months or something.

The new SI's Football Manager is also coming quite soon I think.


*Drooling.....huuuuuuuhhhh

I can't wait.

[peb]

And for the ones not interested, it's FOOTBALL, not soccer.

I don't see why people get upset when we Americans call it soccer and everyone else calls it football. Considering there are hundreds (and even perhaps thousands) of different languages in the world, you'd think people would understand when we have different words for the same thing. Hell, we have different words for the same thing within the same countries! Who cares what you call it.

Just my international pet peeve for the day. Carry on.

[Sly Boots]

I just don't understand why americans call that poor excuse for a rugby rip-off football (it's played mosly with the hand) instead of the real thing. And you do speak the same language as the British. I like rugby, it's a sport of gentlemen, and American Football seems to take only the bad side of it and amplify it to the max. For example, the protective gear (helmet,..). Why don't rugby players use helmets? Because their main goal is not clubbing the adversary, they concentrate on the ball, fair-play being the key word. There are few injuries in rugby.
Now, maybe I don't like how the word "soccer" sounds, that's my problem. But I feel that by using a totally different word undermines this sport. In USA, there's the impression that soccer is for the kids and the women (no wonder why the US female soccer team is so good). I have seen lots of american movies where girls play soccer, that's ok. But I've also seen movies where dogs, chimps or elephants play soccer. In other words, anyone can play soccer except for "Real Men" (tm). Why? You don't get injured in soccer (I wish that was true, but Chivu is out for 6 months).
The Football World Cup is the most watched sports event in the world, followed by the Olympics and, surprise, the European Football Championships. So it deserves a little respect. When USA made it to the quarter finals of WC2002 the whole world was amased, except for the americans. They didn't care. Bush, after being asked about it (before the quarter), after looking surprised (FOOTBALL?! Oh, you mean soccer) said yeah, sure, great, we shall win it than, with a visible lack of interest (and knowledge).
Well, different cultures I guess.

[peb]

I just don't understand why americans call that poor excuse for a rugby rip-off football (it's played mosly with the hand) instead of the real thing. And you do speak the same language as the British. I like rugby, it's a sport of gentlemen, and American Football seems to take only the bad side of it and amplify it to the max. For example, the protective gear (helmet,..). Why don't rugby players use helmets? Because their main goal is not clubbing the adversary, they concentrate on the ball, fair-play being the key word. There are few injuries in rugby.
Now, maybe I don't like how the word "soccer" sounds, that's my problem. But I feel that by using a totally different word undermines this sport. In USA, there's the impression that soccer is for the kids and the women (no wonder why the US female soccer team is so good). I have seen lots of american movies where girls play soccer, that's ok. But I've also seen movies where dogs, chimps or elephants play soccer. In other words, anyone can play soccer except for "Real Men" (tm). Why? You don't get injured in soccer (I wish that was true, but Chivu is out for 6 months).
The Football World Cup is the most watched sports event in the world, followed by the Olympics and, surprise, the European Football Championships. So it deserves a little respect. When USA made it to the quarter finals of WC2002 the whole world was amased, except for the americans. They didn't care. Bush, after being asked about it (before the quarter), after looking surprised (FOOTBALL?! Oh, you mean soccer) said yeah, sure, great, we shall win it than, with a visible lack of interest (and knowledge).
Well, different cultures I guess.

You're misinterpreting my post. I like football/soccer and I do respect and follow it. I know plenty of "Real Men" playing it over here, but it's just got to compete with other established sports and it gets lost in the shuffle. And I know the British speak the same language and call it something else. The Brits call apartments "flats" which for us is short for flat tires on a car, but I'm not getting bent out of shape over that. And Bush...well, he's generally clueless about everything.

My point is: who cares? Why get upset over one word? I find it hard to believe that "using a totally different word undermines this sport".

[Kolzig]

Why? You don't get injured in soccer (I wish that was true, but Chivu is out for 6 months).

On an interesting note, I suffered an injury while playing football over a year ago, I had broken my right knee anterior cruciate ligament=ACL.

Doctor is on friday, that's when I'll hear the news, whether I can get back to the game. :)

[ConcreteRancor]

And you do speak the same language as the British.
Ahem....

Lorry, prat, afters, abattoir, loo, quid, bop, blagged, aerial, public school, back bacon, pram, caravan, chips, crisps, wellies, wee, draughts, propstand, beefburger, lolly, biscuit, dustcart, fag, fishfingers, bonnet, boot, gammon, gherkin, poof, pitch, piles, aubergine, torch, petrol, arse, berk, knickers, pillock, whinge, nought, windcheater, noughts and crosses, nappy, hob, lemonade, love bite, minced beef, treacle, rasher, randy, roger, row, saloon, sellotape, shandy, swede, telly, ten-pins, waistcoat, wanker, zed, and football.

And you're saying we speak the same language? In the words of Cousin Avi: "I thought this country spawned the f*cking language, and so far nobody seems to speak it."

[Mattsius]

On an interesting note, I suffered an injury while playing football over a year ago, I had broken my right knee anterior cruciate ligament=ACL.

Doctor is on friday, that's when I'll hear the news, whether I can get back to the game. :)
Yeah, I remember that. You were pretty crushed back then because you couldn't play. Not surprising I guess. Where do you play btw?

Good luck with the doctor. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. :)

[Kolzig]

Well, I play on the lowest division, the 6th.

But I still love to play football, even though I have no real talents. :)

Anyway my number one sport is floorball, our team is in the 3rd division in that, so I guess me & the guys have some talents for floorball. :D

And I've been waiting for doctor to show green light for 15 months now, tomorrow will be the judgement day.

[log p]

my favorite sport to play is pinball...what?...not a sport?...well then cross-stitch...err...yeah...ping-pong then

[Jony]

Ahem....

Lorry, prat, afters, abattoir, loo, quid, bop, blagged, aerial, public school, back bacon, pram, caravan, chips, crisps, wellies, wee, draughts, propstand, beefburger, lolly, biscuit, dustcart, fag, fishfingers, bonnet, boot, gammon, gherkin, poof, pitch, piles, aubergine, torch, petrol, arse, berk, knickers, pillock, whinge, nought, windcheater, noughts and crosses, nappy, hob, lemonade, love bite, minced beef, treacle, rasher, randy, roger, row, saloon, sellotape, shandy, swede, telly, ten-pins, waistcoat, wanker, zed, and football.

And you're saying we speak the same language? In the words of Cousin Avi: "I thought this country spawned the f*cking language, and so far nobody seems to speak it."

Well thats just dialect and slang. Anyway I never liked the word "soccer" *shudders. It sounds so irritating. I might post why it shouldn't be called "soccer" *shudders, but no one would be interested in an adventure forum.

[scabb]

I'd be interested to know the US English for the following:
-Lemonade (Sprite, 7-up - Is this just soda in America?)
-Shandy (Beer + Lemonade!)
-Gammon (Half Pork, Half Bacon! Brilliant!)
-Sellotape (They have to say Sticky-back Plastic on the "telly", because Sellotape is a brand name. Like Tannoy, which we use for Loudspeakers even though that too is a brand-name.)
-Gherkin (What do you get on your McDonalds "beefburger" [Which are generally called hamburgers over here :shifty:]?)
-Aerial (I take it you mean the kind used for receiving TV Signals etc?)

A lot of the words you mentioned are slang, and you have your equivalents which we find just as silly (Hickey for love-bite, cookie for biscuit, pants for trousers). We have biscuits called cookies, of the chocolate-chip variety. I like how the Brits simply shortened the word "Underpants" to "pants", whereas the Americans took it to mean "the garment that is underneath your pants", thus giving birth to "Pants" instead of trousers. I have no idea which is the more correct definition, but it's quite interesting in a dull sort of way.

It would also be interesting to know what you all call the television remote. Nearly everyone I know has a different nickname for it, including "Remote", "Mote", "Flipper", "Flicker", "Clicker", "Changer" and even "Totem". We use "Clicker" in our house. ;)

[log p]

i refer to the remote control as "the missing link", seeing as how it is often going on ventures between the sofa cushions or to parts unknown...and in the not-so-glorious state of my lazyassedness i refuse to change the channels if it involves standing up and walking to do so...hence "missing link"...also can be called the "key to avoiding being disgusted by george dubya's mug"...but mostly its just a remote or a channel flipper

[ConcreteRancor]

I'd be interested to know the US English for the following:
-Lemonade (Sprite, 7-up - Is this just soda in America?)
-Shandy (Beer + Lemonade!)
-Gammon (Half Pork, Half Bacon! Brilliant!)
-Sellotape (They have to say Sticky-back Plastic on the "telly", because Sellotape is a brand name. Like Tannoy, which we use for Loudspeakers even though that too is a brand-name.)
-Gherkin (What do you get on your McDonalds "beefburger" [Which are generally called hamburgers over here :shifty:]?)
-Aerial (I take it you mean the kind used for receiving TV Signals etc?)Lemonade: Well, we just ask for a Sprite. Or a 7-up. Either one. What I hate, though, is when you ask for, say, a Sprite, and the server says "7-up okay?" Yes, 7-up is okay. They're the exact same thing.

Shandy: No one I know drinks this vile concoction in the states. I don't believe there is an actual name for it over here. I think the closest thing we have is Mike's Hard Lemonade, but that doesn't have beer in it.

Gammon: If this is referring to what I think it is, we call it Canadian Bacon.

Sellotape: Scotch tape. Not all made by Scotch, true, but it has now joined the ranks of Xerox, Kleenex, and Thermos.

Gherkin: Pickle.

Aerial: Antenna.

Note too that I used a "British Dictionary" to find a lot of those words. Hence "beefburger," which I was a little surprised at myself, but I figured, what the hey. And since I don't believe there is an actual scientific term for a hickey, I consider love-bite to be a word in its own right, not just slang.

And remote control is just "remote" in my house.

[edlglide]

Lemonade: Well, we just ask for a Sprite. Or a 7-up. Either one. What I hate, though, is when you ask for, say, a Sprite, and the server says "7-up okay?" Yes, 7-up is okay. They're the exact same thing.

I don't know about that -- personally I hate both those drinks, so I think they taste the same, but I have a feeling that they're like Coke and Pepsi. Some people say they taste exactly the same, but they really aren't that similar.........I could easily pick which one was Pepsi and which one was Coke in a taste test. As an example, my mom loves 7-Up but can't drink Sprite. And it's not just the brand name, because I've seen her get a glass of Sprite that she thought was 7-Up and not be able to drink it.

[ConcreteRancor]

I don't know about that -- personally I hate both those drinks, so I think they taste the same, but I have a feeling that they're like Coke and Pepsi. Some people say they taste exactly the same, but they really aren't that similar.........I could easily pick which one was Pepsi and which one was Coke in a taste test. As an example, my mom loves 7-Up but can't drink Sprite. And it's not just the brand name, because I've seen her get a glass of Sprite that she thought was 7-Up and not be able to drink it.
I can pick out Coke and Pepsi, but Sprite and 7-up are far too similar for me. I tend to buy Sprite though, if I have the choice. Just out of habit.

[scabb]

Shandy: No one I know drinks this vile concoction in the states. Really? I think shandy is actually quite nice, but usually better with cheapo lemonade. 7-up and Sprite tend to be too lemony. Or you can buy it pre-made, if you're posh. ;)

[DomStLeger]

And since I don't believe there is an actual scientific term for a hickey, I consider love-bite to be a word in its own right, not just slang.

It's called a Bruise. Or if you want to be completely scientific "a bruise caused by one person sucking somebodys skin, usually (but not confined to) the neck" :D

[Sly Boots]

7 Up is sweeter than Sprite, also it's more flavoured.
Had no idea that the two are lemonades, just water and sugar.

[ConcreteRancor]

It's called a Bruise. Or if you want to be completely scientific "a bruise caused by one person sucking somebodys skin, usually (but not confined to) the neck" :D
My sister gave herself a hickey by sucking her lower lip into the top of a Snapple bottle. She had a big purple ring around her lower lip for about a week. It was hilarious.

[Kolzig]

Eidos gets new stupid ideas.

Announces Championship Manager Online.

http://www.jadestone.net/

[Sly Boots]

Actually, it's not such a bad idea.
And I didn't know CM will be developed by Swedish. That could mean more objectivity (the English have the funny idea that their premiership is by FAR the best league in the world).
Still, I hate Eidos, so I'll go with FM2005.

[DomStLeger]

CM5 is being made by Beautiful Game Studios which I think are british based. Jade Studios are making the online version.

Thing I don't get, is CM5 for the PS2. Can it really handle such a processor intensive game? I mean, I'm doubting the PS2 was designed to be fast at processing spreadsheetsd full of datd was it?

[Kolzig]

Well CM5 will most likely have a weee small player database.


And to tell something about CM Online makers Jadestone, only thing they have made in the past is small mobile games.

I think it's a too big step from mobile games to a massive multiplayer football manager game.

[ragnar]

I don't care about Eidos games. It's SI that is the team!

[Sly Boots]

Anyway my number one sport is floorball, our team is in the 3rd division in that, so I guess me & the guys have some talents for floorball.

Excuse my ignorance, but what is floorball ? Maybe I know the sport, just not its translation in English, so a brief description would do.

[Kolzig]

It's SI that is the team!

This is exactly what every CM fan should be told, Football Manager is SI's next game, and CM is Eidos-shite from now on.

Every single one of my CM playing friends have not had even a clue about this fact. But they were quite glad when I told them how things are.

[ragnar]

Excuse my ignorance, but what is floorball ? Maybe I know the sport, just not its translation in English, so a brief description would do.
It's called innebandy in Swedish. You play with a curved stick on the floor (indoors) with a perforated white ball and relatively small goals.

[Kolzig]

http://www.floorball.org/

If you want to know about floorball, that's a good place to start :)
It's a sport that is widely played in Sweden, Finland and Switzerland right now.

But the federation has already a lot of members, including USA and Canada.

And in Finland it's called salibandy.