Former Sensible Software boss Jon Hare has delivered a blistering rant in the direction of EA Sports FC as he prepares to release the latest version of Sociable Soccer across PC and consoles.
Hare created Sensible Soccer back in the '90s, a football game which, in the eyes of many, was far superior to the FIFA entries from the same time period.
Sensible Software is sadly no more but Hare established a new company, Tower Studios, in 2004, and has been working on its spiritual successor, Sociable Soccer, for the past few years.
It comes to Steam in November and will launch on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X at a later date.
In a statement released today, Hare said:
Today, while EA Sports FC and the like are inadvertently grooming children as gamblers by packing their overpriced, overhyped simulations full of loot boxes and all manner of money traps, our game is the only one in the world offering arcade football, packed with fun, for less than half the price AND with 13,000 FIFPRO licensed, real world footballers to unlock for free… and all of the people who bought Sociable Soccer on Steam Early Access many years ago will get the whole game for free too.
We can’t compete with these corporate fuckers with regards to their $200m marketing war chests, or their ‘almost realistic until they start moving’ graphics, but we can wipe the floor with them when it comes to value for money and playability.
I am not one to brag, but I have had a #1 football game in each of the last four decades, so it is hopefully only a matter of time before our Sociable Soccer series rises to the top again. It has already brought us success and a load of money, but for me, that is not enough. What I would love more than anything is to sit on top of the pile again, for one last time, and crow about outliving FIFA and finally getting even with EA.
Sociable Soccer 24 will launch on Steam on 16th November 2023, retailing for £24.99 / €29.99 / $29.99.