Konami announces the end of PES and a reboot as eFootball. A wave of outrage follows, but it shows a harsh contrast
Free-to-play games are not always met with enthusiasm, and this is particularly evident with the Free2Play announcement of eFootball. The new title marks the end of the Pro Evolution Soccer name and the new beginning as a free-to-play title that also features crossplay between PC, consoles and mobile platforms.
That’s a lot of appealing terms in an announcement that also affects a large and loyal player base of the second big name (besides FIFA) in virtual football. Fans are taking the news largely negatively. Under the announcement trailer you can find partly scathing criticism and many disappointed or gloating voices. We did not find any positive comments after searching for several minutes.
What’s in eFootball?
The Free2Play title eFootball will be released in autumn 2021, initially for PC as well as Current- and NextGen consoles, later also for iOS and Android (with controller support). According to the roadmap, the game will enable cross-play between all platforms. The football game is being developed from scratch by Konami using Unreal Engine.
On release, only local gameplay with a range of football clubs will be possible, with online modes to be added later. FC Barcelona, Juventus, FC Bayern Munich and Manchester United were mentioned as starting teams.
Later, Konami plans to add additional content and also sell modes as DLCs. The roadmap also envisages organised e-sports events for professional and amateur players in the future. An official homepage already exists.
