Pro Evolution Soccer 2018: Rounding Up Top Reviews, Scores and Gameplay Videos

Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 is finally upon us, hitting shelves in the United States on Tuesday, September 12 before its worldwide release on Thursday, and there are plenty of positive impressions about Konami's latest effort.

After last year's superb entry into the series, PES 2018 offers a variety of new features, tweaks and enhancements to enjoy both on and off the field, though online features were not available to reviewers and some may adjust their scores accordingly once they are.

One of the most notable changes is the less frenetic pace at which the game is played when compared with its predecessor, but Konami's decision to rein in the speed of the gameplay, rather than a negative aimed at PES 2018, has seen it emerge with great credit.

Bleacher Report's own Nick Akerman hailed the change as one that enhances the authenticity of the play and requires players to put more thinking into their build-up play.

He offered a glowing review of the football sim:

So too did Adam Neaves of Game Hype, who gave the title a superlative 95 per cent.

After describing PES 2017 as the "greatest football game I'd ever played," Neaves praises this year's edition as "yet another big leap forwards," picking out the enhanced Strategic Dribbling and more intricate passing as two of the most notable improvements.

A minor source of ire came from the game's commentary by Peter Drury and Jim Beglin, with greater freedom and variety needed to enhance the presentation and the experience.

Colm Ahern reviewed the game for VideoGamer, and he too was unhappy with that aspect of PES 2018 but otherwise enjoyed the gameplay (warning: contains NSFW language):

Games Radar's Bradley Russell echoed the thoughts on Drury and Beglin, describing the pair's commentary as "banal" and "irritable," but he nevertheless gave the game four out of five, as it "is as close as we've gotten to Pro Evo perfection in a long, long time."

Russell cited the AI's ability to adapt to your approaches and the unpredictable nature of the play—through the enhancements made to Real Touch+ and more realistic ball physics—as some of the highlights.

He is less impressed with the changes made to the Master League mode, however, with the introduction of release clauses leading to situations in which "your players will often be on the move for a fraction of their value."

IGN gave more details on Real Touch+, as well as an initial score of nine out of 10:

For the most part, changes and enhancements to the gameplay appear to have had their intended effect, improving the already authentic experience that was PES 2017 into an even more realistic representation of the beautiful game.

Perennial issues with the licencing are unlikely to ever go away—and won't bother existing fans of the series given the ways around it—but the presentation, specifically the commentary rather than the impressive visuals, remains a real source of frustration in need of serious address.

PES 2018 deservedly receives strong review scores despite the criticisms—gameplay is of course, what matters most—but it's clear there's still work to be done for next year's release.

The game is available on PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC.