The definitive Championship Manager
It is hard to believe that a simple text based game could have the staying power and addictiveness that this game has. Any football (soccer) fan that has ever dreamed of managing his or her favourite club needs to own at least one game from this series. This is the definitive edition though, with updates for the 2003/2004 season. The balance between realism and gameplay is just right in this game, whereas its stablemates had a tendency to either be too basic or so complex that they were impossible. It is possible to succeed with CM 03/04 with some thought and a LOT of time.
Because the game is open-ended with no way of ever completing it, and the fact that it will continue to generate new players until the end of time, the game will always entice you to come back to it. Plus you can live out footballing fantasies with the game, such as leading real life non-league teams into Europe, or managing your home nation in the World Cup.
The game is almost exclusively text based, however there is the 2D pitch that appears during matches and allows you to see how your team (and your opponents) are working. This also shows you where weaknesses are. Graphically this is a non-event, simply having coloured dots moving around the screen, though it serves its purpose well.
The game requires a reasonable understanding of football and a basic grasp of different tactics. It is possible to play without these though little success will be achieved.
Sound is surplus to requirements in Championship Manager games, and thus the only sound you get is generic cheers and whistles during the matches.
This game is the most detailed CM of the EI/SI partnership with indepth training regimes, individual player tactics, press and player relationships, plus the customary huge database of players, managers and coaches from around the world. The number of leagues to manage in has been expanded again, though in all honesty most people will not use these, and will just stick to their home nation or maybe some of the other highclass leagues.
It is very hard to explain how good this game is to someone who doesn't know the CM series, as the game never sounds up to much. However anyone who knows the series will know just how fantastic the games are. And this is the crowning glory of the Sports Interactive/Eidos' partnership. A simple, yet totally engrossing game that will easily whittle away months of your life.