Football Manager 2020 hits shelves and is available to download this autumn as Sports Interactive roll out the latest instalment of their popular simulation game.
The previous edition - Football Manager 2019 - sold over a million copies and fans of the series will be eagerly anticipating the new release.
With more announcements expected in the coming weeks, Goal takes a look at Football Manager 2020, including release dates, how much it will cost and more.
- Football Manager 2020 release date
- Football Manager 2020 devices & platforms
- How much will Football Manager 2020 cost?
- What new features will Football Manager 2020 have?
Football Manager 2020 release date
November 19 is the release date for Football Manager 2020. Football Manager Touch 2020 and Football Manager Mobile 2020 will also be available on November 19.
From August 27 until the launch date, fans who pre-purchased Football Manager 2020 (for PC and Mac) received a 10 per cent discount.
Those who pre-purchased the game were able to get their managerial careers underway early through a fully-playable beta version.
You can view the trailer for the new game below.
Football Manager 2020 devices & platforms
Football Manager 2020 will be available to play on PC, Mac and Google Stadia.
Football Manager 2020 Touch and Football Manager 2020 Mobile will also be available to play on devices such as the Nintendo Switch, tablets and mobile phones.
Football Manager 2020 (for PC, Mac and Stadia), Football Manager 2020 Touch (for PC, Mac, iOS and Android) and Football Manager 2020 Mobile (for iOS and Android) will all be released simultaneously.
Football Manager's developers confirmed in June that the game would be one of Google Stadia's launch titles along with the likes of Final Fantasy XV and Assassin's Creed Odyssey.
That means it will be playable via Chromecast and a variety of devices which support Google Chrome, including computers, mobile phones, smart televisions and tablets.
Sports Interactive boss Miles Jacobson confirmed in June that there were "no current plans" to release Football Manager on Xbox One or PlayStation 4.
How much will Football Manager 2020 cost?
The standard edition of Football Manager 2020 will cost £39.99 in the UK. The pre-purchase discount price is £35.99. Football Manager 2020 Touch costs £21.99.
The standard price for the Football Manager game has increased from £37.99, which was how much the previous two editions retailed at. It is the first price increase since Football Manager 2017, which originally cost £34.99.
To put the price into perspective, the standard edition of FIFA 20 costs £59.99 ($59.99), while the standard Pro Evolution Soccer 2020 game initially cost £47.99 ($59.99).What new features will Football Manager 2020 have?
Football Manager 2020 will include new features and improvements, with Sports Interactive revealing some of them in September.
Last year, Football Manager 2019 saw what developers described as "the biggest overhaul" in the game's training section, while VAR and goal-line technology were introduced.
Football Manager
As well as that, the game featured official Bundesliga club names and badges after an agreement was reached with the German league, while female coaches were also included.
But what is new in Football Manager 2020?
New development centre
With the new development centre in Football Manager 2020 you can keep a closer eye on your young talents and become better equipped to help them reach their potential.
Not only will the feature give an overview of the youth teams, you will also be able to keep track of how young players are faring while on loan - that is, who is thriving and who needs to be recalled.
As well as that, the yearly youth intake will now be previewed so you can assess the outlook and identify the players with high potential.
Club Vision
FM20 sees the introduction of 'Club Vision' which is essentially an expansion on the old boardroom, where objectives and philosophies were laid out.
Instead of seasonal targets, Club Vision will allow you and the club to chart a long-term course into the future, with five-year plans in addition to season-by-season goals.
Better graphics
One of the consistent complaints FM fans have is the graphics of the game engine, but improvements are assured in FM 20.
The game's developers have endeavoured to make their human models - players and managers - more realistic by redesigning their appearances.That means greater detail in their body composition and clothing.
As well as the individuals, the game will also see a much more realistic match experience, with better lighting and discernible differences in weather conditions.
Football Manager
Playing Time Pathway
In tandem with the development centre and other aspects of the game, the new playing time pathway feature allows managers to incorporate pathway expectations into contract negotiations.
Backroom staff
FM 20 has tried to mirror the diversity and importance of backroom staff roles that has occurred in the real world.
As well as introducing a Head of Player Development role, your staff will be on hand to provide you with more in-depth advice on a variety of topics.
Will women's football be included in FM20?
Unfortunately, it doesn't seem likely that women's football will be included in FM20, with Jacobson indicating on a number of occasions in recent years that it is not yet "financially viable".
What that means in practice is not exactly clear, but it suggests that a lot of work would be necessary in order to fully implement.
In a 2018 interview with PCGamesN, Jacobson said: "We’d need to put lot of work into the match engine, particularly graphically, and we’d need to redo thousands of animations via motion capture due to the differences in body shapes, plus a lot more besides."
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