Football Manager 2019 Touch: Switch Review
Football Manager 2019 Touch review: though traditionally bypassing consoles, this time the game series decided to come to Nintendo Switch.
Football Manager 2019 Touch review
First look
Football Manager 2019 Touch really looks different. Like the main version without the word “Touch” in the title, it has something that the franchise has never had – a clearer interface and is newbies friendly.
The latter, as you know, are experiencing tremendous difficulties, taking their first steps as a virtual football coach. Football Manager has always been ruthless to recruits who were often intimidated by the excel-like interface.
But with each year Sports Interactive is working to gently modernize the UI so that the game becomes more convenient and intuitive.
And now we see perhaps the biggest and most colorful redesign ever. Football Manager 2019 has purple colors and significantly changed the structure. But under the cover there is the same engine.
Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions Review
What is new and different in FM Touch?
Football Manager 2019 Touch is a slightly “modest” variation of the main game. It retains all the basic features of the title and trims everything that can be affectionately called “routine”. That is, pre-match and post-match conversations, detailed statistics, and so on.
As a result you get a truly portable version for all fans of the simulator. The only frustrating moment is the limitation of the number of active countries – there are only three of them, and the existing leagues.
And please don’t confuse it with Football Manager Mobile 2019 – it’s a completely different game that is just a pathetic shadow of the original source.
Even if you continue to be loyal to Football Manager 2013, many elements of Football Manager 2019 Touch will be familiar to you.
Yes, a lot has changed:
- the interface has become brighter,
- categories have scattered in different corners of the screen,
- tactical settings have become much clearer.
Like a city simulator FM is constantly being built, combining elements of modern football with timeless classics of video game architecture.
It woud be a lie to say that Football Manager 2019 Touch is overloaded with innovative new features and groundbreaking ideas.
No, the transition to a 3D engine remains the most iconic event in supernova history.
But some of the changes are still present.
Tutorial for the beginners
For example, a tutorial for all beginners. The series has a huge army of fans, but many of them haven’t played it for many years.
But in the world of video games, you need a fresh blood. For too long, Football Manager has scared away with overloaded screenshots and incomprehensible rules. Now Sports Interactive has finally tried to introduce a more obvious tutorial that explains how every aspect of the game works.
For sure the veterans will skip all lessons, relying on experience and intuition, but it would be wrong not to mention the innovation.
New tactics screen
Another important new feature is the new tactics screen. It is more loyal to those who are not supercoaches, and are not ready to develop murderous tactics with their own hands. Now you can customize your own formation based on the main existing game models.
Yes, FM Touch remains insanely difficult, and even with a star line-up, victory is not guaranteed.
Licenses (Bundersliga)
For the first time Football Manager got the licensed German Bundesliga (both the first and the second divisions), with all the teams and logos.
The portable version is deprived of the ability to import custom graphics. The Premier League remains faded, with real names, but fishy emblems and faceless player profiles. This is unpleasant, but not fatal at all – the lack of a license is much more striking when playing Pro Evolution Soccer.
FIFA 21 review: what does digital football look like during a pandemic?
Changing role of managerial team
A neutral viewer can say that the football is always the same, and this is true – roughly speaking. But even over the past 10 years, sports have grown with so many fresh ideas and innovations that no realistic game can ignore them.
Especially Football Manager 2019, which mimics the inner kitchen of football clubs.
Football directors have started to play an important role, taking over some of the manager’s responsibilities.
Gradually, the coach has less and less work, and this is reflected in the game.
The developers even brag about the emergence of VAR technology, although this already looks like a marketing gimmick.
In Football Manager 2019, you have the opportunity to share the reins with a growing number of club employees, each one with specific specialization.
Football Manager 2019 Touch feels like a lighter and less demanding game that retains depth but gives you more freedom to choose what you want to do at the club.
Technical side
We are talking about the version for the Nintendo Switch, but it, in its turn, repeats the port on the tablets.
In terms of content, it looks like a copy of Football Manager for iPad.
Since the Switch is noticeably smaller than today’s iPads, this results in the fact that interface can barely fit on a small 720p display.
Of course, you can play – after all.
The game supports two control methods – controllers and a touchscreen. How to play is up to you, although I did not make a choice at all using both methods. At the same time the finger allows you to more quickly and clearly move between the numerous sections, while the analog sticks act as a “mouse” for more point control.
Football Manager 2019 Touch is well optimized for the console – but not perfect:
- texts looks small
- speed is average
- saving could have been faster
- matches themselves look bearable
- but the statistics screen feels frankly uncomfortable.
But these are details. The main thing – a realistic simulation of events on and off the field – remains in place.
Football Manager 2020 Review: No Changes
Verdict: Summing-up Football Manager 2019 Touch review
Football Manager is alive, as are its numerous ports on every possible device.
Football Manager 2019 Touch is a decent compact version of the “original” game that allows you to manage your football team on the way to work. Slightly clumsy, but still fascinating.