Football Manager 2018 New Features & Improvements

The FM18 features video wasn't as long as the one for FM17 and it certainly wasn't as revealing; we learned very few things about what will make it onto Football Manager 2018.

However, Sports Interactive will be certainly dropping new videos in the next few weeks leading to the pre-release Beta access in late October.

This pre-release Beta access is one of the special rewards for pre-purchasing FM 2018 from fmscout.com (and other selected retailers).

I have watched the initial feature news video closely to prepare this informed and well-presented list of all the new and improved features you can expect from Football Manager 2018. So here goes...

Football Manager 2018 Screenshots

DYNAMICS

Key new addition

Dynamics is touted to be the most significant innovation. It's a newly implemented area where you can check on the squad's hierarchy (in regards to leadership and influence), get insights on the distinctive social groups within the team (who are close and/or get along on and off the pitch), monitor player happiness and hold team meetings.



- At the top of the Overview screen you can see the three mains areas you need to keep on top of: Match Cohesion, Dressing Room Atmosphere and Managerial Support.

- The Hierarchy screen shows a pyramid view of the players, ranked by their influence in the dressing room.

- Social Groups greatly expand on the relationship system from previous Football Managers. This now makes the bonds that are formed between players more important for you to consider when dealing with your squad. Social Groups will alter the way you deal with players’ requests, as upsetting one member of a social group can turn the rest of that group against you, especially if they’re very influential.

- The Happiness screen gives you a player-by-player breakdown of their happiness with the various different elements of their life at the club.

Dynamics correlates your management of the dressing room with your team’s performances on the pitch. It is a wide-ranging and three-dimensional system that will really change the way you approach your squad handling and man management.

MEDICAL CENTRE

Key new addition

The medical centre is a much needed enhancement to the game, allowing us to get insightful injury related analytics. We can now easily monitor injuries within the team, assess risk of injury for players who have recently returned to training after injury, see which players get injured often (therefore are injury prone), and compare current season's injuries to the past.
In other words, increased depth to sports science, finally making proper use of sports scientists.

- Sports Scientists return this year with a more visible presence as they report directly to you with regards to the physical condition of your squad, freeing up your physios to focus on treating injured players.

- A new dedicated ‘Sports Science’ attribute for medical staff.

- You can view the feedback from your Sports Scientists on the new ‘Medical Centre’ section which is your one-stop shop for everything related to the fitness of your squad. There are five panels within the section offering the most detailed insight and analysis of your team’s condition in the series’ history.

Your medical team take on a bigger role than ever before, providing you with more information about your club’s current injury situation as well as advising you about how to avoid injuries occurring in training.

SCOUTING

Major improvements

- Scouting is being completely revamped to better reflect how real clubs actually find players, and Data Analysts are now central to this.

- Scouting packages (senior and youth) are introduced. For a fee (taken from your available budget), you can choose to scout the whole world or just the league you're competing in.

Football Manager 2018 Giveaway

TACTICS & TRAINING

- Big overhauls are coming to the AI new tactical options.

- Four new player roles added: Segundo Volante, Carrilero, Mezzala and Inverted Winger.

- Various UI enhancements to the tactic creator to display the vital information you need better than ever.

- New attributes for training goalkeepers: GK distribution, GK Handling, GK Shot Stopping

- A new Player Preferred Move (PPM): crosses early

- Analyse the positives and negatives of your side's performance from some or all of your last five matches.

- A new option for attacking corners to set more than one player to "lurk outside" on attacking corner kicks.

MATCH EXPERIENCE

- Improved stadium designs and match presentation.

- New graphics engine. New motion capture animations.

- New Data Analyst camera. And multi-zoomable.

- If a player has scored 2 goals & you get a penalty, you can now choose if he takes it or not.

BOARD & FANS INTERACTION

- New board request to go from amateur status to semi-pro.

- Improved fan polls.

FANTASY DRAFT

Minor improvement

New-look fantasy drafts for a more streamlined experience.

FOOTBALL MANAGER TOUCH

Major improvement

With attribute cards, it's now easier and faster to assess your squad.




Pre-purchase FM18 from fmscout.com to enjoy early access to the Beta version by late October, a free copy of FM Touch 2018 for PC (also with early Beta access), a unique buyer badge on our site, and our gratitude for supporting our community financially.