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What’s good, everyone? Here we are with two rounds to go and I wanted to touch base with everyone publicly to say… what it do?
First off, a special thanks to James, Gooner and Santi who have all helped us keep track of stats, monies, lineup calls, sims, etc. I can’t thank them enough!
FM21 was a bitch, huh? I guess I can’t complain. As a simmer, some of my requirements may differ from yours. Things like a rash of straight red cards or serious injuries or minute 1 goals on the first possession can make me pull my hair out. And sometimes, it feels like you’re just reading off a Script. But there are and have been moments this season that make for really exciting seasons, as a whole. Thankfully, those previously listed issues were not prevalent in this version of FM, as compared to previous versions, at least in my point of view. So I really can’t complain. But I will. Because it shit on everything I tried to do with KV Mechelen for most of the season. And I came into this season with high hopes in a league that I’ve won time and time again. And they were woeful no matter what I tried, albeit capable of the one-odd win. But zero consistency. And that’s frustrating.
But all in all, I can’t complain about FM21. I really can’t. I am not invested in anyone beating anyone else because I am first and foremost an impartial simmer. So the main thing that I’m concerned with over player ratings, accurate scouting, player info is whether the graphics will behave and display properly and whether the engine is at least not agretiously fake. So, pretty much — the bare minimum of expectations. And FM has met it! But that’s why those details are more important to me than any particular qualms I may have with the game or the engine or the design or whathaveyou. I haven’t gotten FM22 yet but it is around the corner for us.
My first edition of FM was FM12. Some of you know the story but my older brother died in 2011 and there were a lot of times where I wasn’t doing well so when Xavi invited me on a whim one night, I was in the middle of a game of FIFA, I was unsure. Don’t hate me for the FIFA. He hadn’t converted me to PES yet and Konami still hadn’t ruined PES, but I digress. I was unsure until I actually got in it and then this game and Liga itself gave me something to look forward to, something to obsess about, something to have fun with again and that was a saving grace. I still haven’t run a sim outside of Liga but I’ve run over 2,600 HOURS worth (108 days) of sims, DB work and other Liga-related work. And I’ve loved it all, even the grunt work. It really helped me out when I needed it.
Today, I am a much healthier man and still, the game is something I look forward to because the league is still something I enjoy, especially the grunt work. There’s much to love about the league. We’re both judging eachother and against oneanother based on our decisions, sometimes shrewd ones, or the personal preferences we have. I don’t know about you but when I see my players perform well in the real world, it gives me a sense of reward that I’ve gotten it right and that is just as valuable a reflection for me of how sharp I’ve remained as any league result. I’m thankful, at least, that FM enables us to be able to make judgements based on table finishes and results, as well. Who hasn’t felt on top of the world winning a league in a fake league? But I think the majority would agree that the scouting aspect is perhaps the most exciting in the league. With all of that said, I’m highly motivated heading into next season – Season 21. I know some of you are too.
Looking back, this season has been a big challenge for us. And kudos to everyone up front. So many of you stepped up and contributed when I know times can be really tough and that means a lot to me! The relocation of a once-treasured site was a tough decision to make but ultimately one we were forced into. I would have liked to have kept the site around permanently but the WordPress gods saw differently. I was told by a coder that if I’d moved the site to another host, they might have allowed the code to exist even if it weren’t “safe”. It’s firmware version was considered antiquated and left the site vulnerable and when Bluehost told me we would have to conform it, every PHP/WP Guru I talked to said it was impossible. So we built it from scratch, in WP Forum Format, which is a much heavier site than the board prior. It’s like 5 seconds to open a page sometimes and it’s so frustrating at times to wait longer than used to. But it is what it is. And as cool as this site looks, I still wouldn’t consider it permanent. I still view the possibility of being able to go back to a true Forum-based site as long as we could maintain the logos and tables. That would make me happy. But still, for now… I think our digs here will do. It’s a change of pace but I’m happy that a lot of you were able to pick it up pretty quickly. Unfortunately, we’re still missing roster pages from Curtinho and Mark, who’ve been missing the majority of the season.
I have written to them to get their thoughts on next season. Their presences here have been sorely missed. Especially during the transfer window, it didn’t feel the same without Curtinho’s magic. And speaking personally for myself, Mark helped me from the moment he joined this project that Nick and I had formed in protest. Some guys, even including my best friend Xavi4life, hesitated at the notion of leaving Effliga for Dynasty, at first. But once the good guys won out, Mark was a valuable saving grace for myself and the league and I want to thank him for that. He helped us with tables, logos and the like. Remember the cool-looking sidebar with all of our team logos next to eachother? That was largely all Mark’s handywork. I remember it felt like Christmas when the logos were changed over near the start of every new season. Mark goes back farther than me or Xavi and probably as far back as James and Santi, two of the OGs. Curt goes back to one of the first guys we recruited for the new site. Alas, this league can be the victim of the ebbs and flows in our lives and especially take a backseat sometimes to one’s personal life. I know it has for me at times. So, if this were it for either Curt or Mark, as profoundly sad as I’d be to lose them, I would understand as this league is something that you have to invest in and sometimes life can make that not worth the arsing. Ultimately though, it’s my hope that everyone returns for a great Season 21 but if anyone is having second thoughts, please let me know in a PM. And if so desired, feel free to post here that you intend to continue if you’re 100%.
As we go down the stretch, we’ll be looking to start the offseason pretty quickly now that the third patch of FM22 is available. Good luck to everyone in the final two matches, as well as the Cup Final.
DO NOT POST NEXT SEASON’S CLUBS HERE. That thread will come after the season.
The Free Agency Window for Season 21 will open Saturday, April 16th at Noon Pacific.
I know last time we had a temporary site crash when everyone tried to enter their first bids. We don’t expect to have a repeat this time around as the code has been updated recently. You might’ve noted faster page loads in the past 3 weeks, as a result. We expect this to be able to keep us steady for the big event going forward.
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