If you’d like to believe the press release, FIFA 12 outsold PES 2012 at a 25-to-1 clip. Even though I’m a little cynical of that figure myself, it’s hard not to anoint FIFA as this console generation’s footy-game king. Yes, PES still has pockets of hardcore support in various places around the world — Japan, Europe (with the notable exception of the UK) and Latin America — but the momentum is definitely on FIFA’s side. PES is looking like an army that’s ceding territory left and right as the mighty FIFA machine marches on.

Is all hope lost? Of course not.

First and most importantly, PES is still making money — which, no matter what game companies’ friendly PR departments will try to have you believe, is the most crucial aspect. And FIFA, despite what EA will have you believe, is eminently catchable and can be dethroned. And so, here are a few humble suggestions as to what the PES franchise should do if they are serious about a comeback.

Run a Spell Check

Tongue in cheek, but only somewhat. When you get certain players’ names wrong for years in a row — Sunderland’s Lee "Catermole" is my perennial favorite —it makes the product looks very sloppy.

When PES dominated in the previous era, there used to be a sense of charm when it came to the game’s, let’s just say, underwhelming presentation elements. The sense was that these quirks — typos, Peter Brackley’s non sequiturs and subpar graphics — tradeoffs for the brilliant gameplay we got in return. We essentially laughed about. It like it was an afterthought, because we didn’t really mind too much as long as the on pitch action remained great. 

Well, it didn’t. And while the past two years’ releases have shown signs of improvement, the presentation elements are still decidedly overwhelming. This time there’s nothing funny about it either, only a sense of frustration, maybe bewilderment, as to why all of it has been neglected for so long. In this day and age, as much as it pains me to say it since I value a game’s gameplay heads and shoulders above all else, you have to get the graphics right. An occasional wart here and there is one thing, but PES’ presentation is still stuck in the PS2 era. And that just isn’t good enough to bring anybody back to the stable.

Deliver on Your Promises

You’d think they’d get this one right by now, wouldn’t you? But PES’ track record begs to differ. Last year they said that penalty kicks were fixed, but they weren't. This year it was the keepers. If you say you’re going to fix something, for the love of God, fix it. Things like these irk your customers to no end, Konami.

Don't Use the Word "Freedom" Unless You Mean It 

When I occasionally wade into the eternal FIFA versus PES debate, I always try to avoid saying which game is more realistic because, well, they’re both realistic, but in different respects. 

For PES, it has always been about the big picture — how the game plays as a whole, 11 versus 11. The work that has gone into the AI and player behaviors are all designed to showcase the team game. There’s a reason why when I play PES I love to use the wider camera angles, you can appreciate everything that is taking place on the pitch that much more. 

For FIFA, realism has always been a more up close experience. It’s all about the one player on the pitch that matters — the user. From the precision dribbling to the skill moves, the emphasis is on trying to recreate what real life players do with the ball. The sense of realism, essentially, was mostly kinaesthetic — that your twiddling on the gamepad can translate into some scarily accurate moves on screen. This was always a weak spot in PES’ armor. For all its pronouncements about freedom in years past, no PES game since the introduction of current gen systems has the individual player controls felt truly free. Even the most die hard of PES fans would have to admit that, as it stands, FIFA offers much better individual controls than PES. So while the AI improvements this time around were brilliant (after all, it was the thing that carried the game to an 8 here at OS), it’s time to zoom in, step it up and focus on the human player.

Improve Master League

Sure, Master League is still the mode for offline gamers, and you’d squeeze a lot of quality hours from the game doing so, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that this is a mode that’s been largely the same for quite a few years now. From the introduction of Champions League and Europa League branding, to this year’s underwhelming addition of cut scenes, most of the recent additions have been merely cosmetic. If they don’t start showing some real TLC to the mode, offline play — once the mighty selling point of PES — can go south real fast.

Acquire more team licenses…

…But only as a final touch up. That PES didn’t boast enough authentic kits has never been why the series has struggled in sales -- not as a primary reason, anyway. Good looking shirts and logos might hook in gamers for a year or two, but eventually the rest of the product has to back it up. It’s a long road back to the top, and I think time needs to be spent on laying the foundations for a great game before putting on that final coat of paint.