PES to become free-to-play under new game title

The Pro Evolution Soccer series has been renamed as ‘eFootball’, Konami have confirmed.

The news brings to a close the 20-year PES series, which was first released exclusively on PlayStation back in 2001.

Pro Evolution Soccer 4, released in 2004, was the first edition of the series to feature licensed leagues, and had Thierry Henry and Francesco Totti.

And veteran players will surely remember PES6, famous for Adriano’s 99 shot power and the ability to score from pretty much anywhere on the pitch.

There was even a hilarious unlockable that allowed players to play as penguins or dinosaurs in-game.

The series was renamed to eFootball PES back in 2019, with the following two titles released under that name.

But now the PES element of the title has been completely dropped. The next edition of the game will be known as ‘eFootball’.

The new game will be free-to-play and only available as a digital purchase, releasing on all the major consoles.

What details have been revealed about ‘eFootball’ so far?

There will be a new game engine, as well as cross-generation matchmaking. Later on in 2021, there will be cross-platform play between Xbox and PlayStation consoles.

Konami released a roadmap for the game, which includes the opening of online leagues and a ‘Match Pass’ system.

They have also released a six-minute official reveal trailer.

The footage features players and stadiums of Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Juventus and Barcelona – all of which have partner club deals with Konami.

Arsenal and Roma are two of the other major European clubs that are licensed in the game.

In addition, Konami announced yesterday that Brazilian icon Neymar has become an ambassador for the series.

They also announced that they would be releasing a Neymar ‘Iconic Moment’ for PES 2021.

Featured Image Credit: Konami