Sticking with football after the FM2007 review, we hit the field with the last great Pro Evolution Soccer.

PES6 was the last of the series with a development focus was on the “last” gen of consoles, the Playstation 2 era. Konami still hasn’t figured out the current gen, allowing EA to not only close the gaping chasm that existed between the rival teams, but to pass clearly ahead with FIFA 09.

But when this review was released, PES was king. I liked Konami football games better than the FIFA series from way back in the days of International Superstar Soccer and, while a lot of people think PES5 was best, I think that PES6 was the true peak of the Winning Eleven franchise.

The sequels were shamelessly disappointing, while FIFA got their act together, “borrowed” a lot of features from Winning Eleven, expanded, innovated and now offer a vastly improved football experience. Unlike most fanboys, I don’t mind really; I just want to play some good football!

But the crowd always loves the underdog and the question remains whether Seabass’ team, having much more limited resources than EA Montreal’s, can ever hope to catch up and retain the crown.

I remember a menacing figure telling me: “Don’t be too proud of this technological terror you’ve constructed. The novelty of moving pictures is insignificant next to your Knights of the Old Republic review.”

It might have been a dream.

Getting ready for the bonus d-day review of Football Manager, I decided to re-examine one of my all-time favourite games: Knights of the Old Republic. The piece also includes a glance at the sequel and a nod to Mass Effect, then still in development.

My love for Bioware was probably apparent, which led some people to believe I’d be very interested in reviewing Mass Effect and that I would love it by default. Surprisingly though, it turns out I am quite objective when push comes to shove.