Many of the German devs (including former Ascaron head Gerald Köhler) were leading this project, which may explain why some of the English-language translations… aren’t quite perfect.Īdorning the English cover of the DVD case is none other than a fresh-faced José Mourinho. The studio is best-known for having produced every title in the behemoth FIFA franchise since FIFA 97. TCM 2005 was released by EA Sports in autumn 2004, and developed in Vancouver by EA Canada. That’s why I am today reviewing Total Club Manager 2005. While I remember enjoying Total Club Manager 2004 a lot more than its successor, I gave away my copy of that title some time ago. Total Club Manager 2003 came out in September 2002, but it was the later two games that brought me into this series as a teenager. Fussball Manager 2002 was released exclusively in Germany, and after receiving a positive reception, the green light was given to an international release the following season. That same year, EA poached several employees from German developers Ascaron (who created the Anstoss / On The Ball series in the 1990s) to make a potential successor. This era ended with the release of FA Premier League Football Manager 2002, in late 2001. That was definitely the case with FA Premier League Football Manager in the early 2000s, when EA exploited the PL’s licence for all its worth and forgot about producing quality games. Let’s find out if Total Club Manager 2005 really was as special as the man on its cover…Įlectronic Arts’ football management simulations have had more makeovers and brand changes than David Beckham, and they’ve typically tended to prioritise style over substance. This series ran from 1997 to 2013, and for today’s review, I’ve plucked out a game from the middle of this run. Throughout this month, I am picking out a number of titles from EA Sports’ opinion-splitting FIFA Manager series to see how they developed – for better or worse. This is the third part of my ‘EA MAY’ mini-series. It’s time for another ‘retro review’, where I find a vintage football management video game and see if it’s still as good (or bad) as I remember it.

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