Pro Evo Soccer 2017's PC Version May Be Crocked

If you're a fan of football games, you might have noticed the glowing reviews for Pro Evolution Soccer 2017 [official site] that emerged from the tunnel and onto the internet yesterday. Some of them said it was the best football game ever made. Sadly, if you're expecting the version of the game those reviews were written about to show up on PC tomorrow, quash those expectations right now. Despite the Steam page's lack of information about any differences from the main release, as with last year's title PC players should "not expect it [to be at the] same level as PS4/XBone" according to Adam Bhatti, Pro Evo's global brand manager.

Bhatti made that comment back at the end of July, stating that questions about the PC version had been answered before. We haven't been able to find anything specific on official channels and the Steam store page doesn't specify which aspects of the game might be affected by its apparent status as a current- and previous-gen hybrid.

If the changes are purely cosmetic, this might not only be a slight irritation, but I've played Pro Evo 2016 on PS4 and on PC, and enjoyed the console version far more. It's not just that the game looks muddier on PC, it feels more sluggish as well, and the much-praised fluidity of play is barely noticeable at all. I don't know exactly why that is, or precisely what differences other than visual ones are evident, but I liked the game more than FIFA on PS4 and didn't care for it at all on PC.

Whether the same will be true this year, I don't know. It's out tomorrow and I'll take it for a spin, and I'll be playing on PS4 as well to pay closer attention to the differences this time around.

Maybe we can expect better for PES 2018 however this one turns out. Bhatti said, back in July, that "early talks" about an improved PC version are happening. Until that's the case, I think the least Konami could do is make the differences between versions clear at the point of sale.