This blog will chronicle my attempts to play a complete Master League career in Winning Eleven 2007 (PES 6) using only the default players, with one small catch: past and future default players are also in the mix.
If that sounds like Greek to you, Winning Eleven / PES is a football video game, and Master League is its single-player career mode. In Master League you simulate (loosely) the ups and downs of European football, rising up from the second division to challenge the greats of the game. One of the options is to begin with a set of “default” players — imaginary footballers created by the game developers as a starter kit. If, of course, starter kits were also designed to be the worst possible starter kit.
Most folks, when playing with the defaults, try to sell them on and upgrade their squad as quickly as possible. Inspired by the accomplishments of Liam, a poster at (Not) Greg’s PES Chronicles, I’ve decided to have a go at a Master League career where I only use the default players, past and present. I’ll be writing about the experience in a mixed voice — both as the game player, but also from various points of view in the fictional world. You might see articles from the Sunday papers covering our Champions League triumph, for example.*
For the PES-minded (and who else would be here?), here’s the setup:
- Game Difficulty: Top Player
- ML Difficulty: Normal
- Player Development: Yes
- Classic Players: No
- Rubbish Players: Yes, in my squad
- Transfer Market: Normal
I’m using a fresh, unmodified Option File. I haven’t corrected the names of any teams, players or stadiums, and haven’t altered the rosters or players in any way. The league selection is up to the COM.
I’ll be playing 10 minute matches for the most part, but might switch to 5 minute matches should the drudgery get too much, and I will almost certainly have the COM simulate the burnt ends of lost seasons.
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*Not a likely example.
Thanks for the nod, looking forward to reading your Emil adventures. It’ll be a tough slog but pride is always a good motivational coach!
Pride and (I assume) frustration?
When you wrote about running an all Default ML, I thought, “wow. That is the mountaintop.”
Yep, frustration definitely has a big part to play. I had to go with 5 minute games for the first few seasons, i thinks 10 minute games over a full year would numb your soul.
Great blog by the way, my friends and I always like a background story. Espinas normally gets suspended for some night club discrepency or other, and ximelez has a history of bedding the other players wives….crazy ximelez. Anyway good luck!
Ximelez had better stay away from Iouga’s wife. After looking a bit more closely at all their stats, I think Iouga is the one default I don’t want to mess with. Even though he’s not registered for CB, I may try him all along the back four and see how he does. We definitely need cover at SB, but by his stats, he’s the best CB in the squad.
In my Aylesbury Vale story, Castolo was the king of bad attention, nursing a drinking problem in the team pub, gambling on football and eventually sleeping with the manager’s daughter.
Hey, CK Nice blog you’ve got here. Great concept behind it, although an all-default ML
Hey CKLA, Nice blog you’ve got here. Great concept behind it, although an all-default ML is definitely a recipe for disaster!
It certainly seems like a really bad idea, and you’re not the only one predicting FAIL. My wife is a bit offended that I’ve used her name for the Worst Possible Football Team, but if we can grab some silverware, I think she’ll be appeased.
I’m committed to give the project four seasons — if we’re not competing for championships by that point, it’s not likely to ever happen.