Pro Strategy Football series on Steam

[Leeman67]

So in my very limited free time, I've taken to checking out Pro Strategy Football 2019 on Steam. Was curious if anyone has checked this game out. I'm a big fan, although it's definitely not intended to be a direct competitor to Madden or any of the other graphics-heavy games that are out there. I would compare it more to FBPRO 95 or the Microsports series from the 90s. The graphics are 2D (they actually remind me a lot of Tecmo Super Bowl ), but the gameplay is really good from a coach-only perspective and the stats are very realistic. The ratings and play calling logic remind me a lot of Strat-o-matic. The game is now fully customizable with ability to edit rules (pro and college), teams, leagues, ratings, uniforms, field art, etc. I've created several historical league files for the game, and am really having a blast with it.

Anyway, just wanted to make everyone aware and was just curious what others thought of the game.

[Redwolf]

Hmmm, going to look into this, thanks.

How about franchise - can you play it similar to FBPro? Are there additional things like financials (regarding players and sal cap, etc)? 53-man rosters? Player trading, free agency, signings? How about AI teams - do they trade amongst themselves? Progress/regression - is the league pretty balanced over time or too much talent creep or decline (resulting in unstability)?

[Leeman67]

Hmmm, going to look into this, thanks.

How about franchise - can you play it similar to FBPro? Are there additional things like financials (regarding players and sal cap, etc)? 53-man rosters? Player trading, free agency, signings? How about AI teams - do they trade amongst themselves? Progress/regression - is the league pretty balanced over time or too much talent creep or decline (resulting in unstability)?

So here's the thing: it does have a career mode, but it's very bare bones as of right now. You basically just have a draft, and then you trim your roster during the "pre-season" down to a 43-man roster (I think). It's not a full 53 players. No free agency, salary cap, etc. It's very old-fashioned in that you really only build a team through the draft. And yes, players do progress and regress as they advance in their careers. I simulated over 20 seasons and did find it to be very balanced and believable. It's still very much a work in progress, but it has the potential to be a major player in the years to come as new features are added. There is only one developer (similar to Maximum Football), but he's receptive to suggestions. His main passion is coaching, however, so that's where he places the majority of his focus - the AI is VERY good compared to other similar games I've played.

[Redwolf]

Thanks for the reply, Leeman67

I also saw some others from my madden pc slider development days that I recognized pick it up as well as Dreamteams (from the old Maximum Football '06) - who is continuing his Metro Football League on it (and also has a ton of downloads available for it!) - so I picked it up. I haven't experienced all the finer details as I have just ran a few quick matches (honestly, very poor immediate impression (the "what the heck did I just buy??!?" reaction) - but it has since grown on me as I have been giving it a chance. Regarding franchise/career - yes, I wish it included more (like 53 man rosters!) - but if the back-end is like FPS FBPro (which I don't know yet - i know no formal free agency, for example, but are released players prior to draft thrown into a quasi-free agent pool a la FBPro, for example?) - then I will be fine with it. (p.s. I still play FBPRO'97 on an old XP mini-laptop, lol).

Still lots to investigate and lots on my plate right now (still messing with Madden 20 PC (finally developed my own sliders) - though not ventured to franchise yet, Axis Football 2019).

Thanks again for the suggestion and your reply!

[I got the ball]

Bought the 2020 version of PSF...having a great time with it.

[bquinn]

(p.s. I still play FBPRO'97 on an old XP mini-laptop, lol).

And I still play FBPro '96 on an old desktop

[Leeman67]

PSF 2021 is out, and it's GREAT!