With the possible combinations in your Fantasy Premier League (FPL) team close to exhaustion, now might just be time to tinker elsewhere. As we all know, a second team is the minimum dosage for any Fantasy Football addict, so if you’re looking for that next hit, here is a look at another game worthy of your consideration. The Sky Sports game is up and running and ready to be the scratch for your itch…
After getting over the initial disappointment that the game hasn’t gone 3D this year, the eye is immediately drawn to the prize fund on offer. The overall winner will fetch a £25,000 reward, with the runner-up and the third placed manager receiving a £5,000 and a £1,000 prize respectively. On top of that, there is a Manager of the Month prize worth £3,000, and a Manager of the Week prize paying out £1,500. All of which add up to an impressive prize fund of well over £100,000. The only negative is that only managers over 18 years of age and living in the UK and Ireland are eligible to claim the cash. Overseas fans will yet again be disappointed then but for the rest of us, considering this a free to enter game, the potential rewards on offer are impressive.
The game rules are reassuringly basic and familiar. Given a £55m budget you can select no more than two players per club and stick to one of three formations; 4-4-2, 4-3-3 or 5-3-2. Like the FPL game, each week you select a captain who will earn you double points. The points system is very clear and simplistic, with only nine different methods of scoring available.
Regardless of position, players earn four points for scoring a goal and three points for an assist. That does create a large chasm between the top defenders and the leading midfielders and forwards but Sky have at least look to balance this with pricing; not perfect but acceptable. Elsewhere players are penalised with minus one point for a yellow card and minus two points for a red. A three point Skysports.com “Man of the Match” award is given to one player – potentially a less problematic alternative to the FPL’s bonus point system.
Defensive points are pretty standard although the threshold for clean sheets stands at 75 minutes rather than the 60 that we’re used to seeing in the FPL. A possible problem if you’re considering defenders vulnerable to late substitution. Gareth Bale, classed as a defender here, springs to mind.
A change for the better this year sees the somewhat standard 38 ‘Game Week’ season introduced. A couple of annoying quirks remain however, such as only being able to pick your captain for the upcoming ‘Game Week’ from Tuesday onwards (even if there are games on the Tuesday). This leads me to believe that once again, the game will only be updated once per ‘Game Week’, with no live scoring on matchdays. Being able to see your rivals team at any time is another strange, and unnecessary quirk.
Like all good Fantasy Games these days the Sky Sports version now has a Knockout Cup competition. It follows the exact same principle and structure as the FPL Fantasy Cup, with two fantasy managers going head to head every week until there are two remaining on the final day of the season. Bizarrely though, considering the amounts of money being thrown around, there doesn’t appear to be a reward on offer for the winner. This may of course be subject to change by the time the Knockout Cup gets underway.
Looking at the players list, there are no major headlines other than the aforementioned Bale, Martin Olsson as a midfielder and David Silva has been priced in a similar bracket to the likes of Florent Malouda and Nani. First glance reveals no shocking revelations then; it all looks sound and solid.
Thirty transfers a season, limited to five a month is also pretty standard and easy to grasp. That’s enough to hand the casual Fantasy Manager the means to get back into the game after a spell away, while the more hands-on tinker can work their theories in the transfer market.
A little too simplistic for some tastes perhaps, the Sky Game nonetheless looks the perfect prescription for those looking for a simple game to sell to a more casual mini-league gaggle. While the prize money will attract the roving eye of the multi-entrant Fantasy Manager, like the FPL, Sky limit entry to just one team – a move that helps to make this game even more attractive as an FPL companion.
Once again we’ve launched a poll to gather your opinion on this game. Go take a look and then register your vote.