ICONIC football game Pro Evolution Soccer is to be scrapped from next season – ending 20 years of glorious memories.
FIFA’s biggest rival has been renamed eFootball and will be free to play on leading consoles and other devices.
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Pro Evo’s developers Konami have confirmed the franchise, also referred to as PES, will be re-branded this autumn as a digital-only game.
The next release will be free to play, although gamers will only get to use nine teams before being forced to pay for more.
Those teams are Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Manchester United, Arsenal, Sao Paulo, Corinthians, Flamengo and River Plate.
The game will be available to play on all major consoles, PCs and portable devices containing iOS and Android software.
Online matches will also be cross-platform, meaning Xbox and PlayStation users can face each other without needing the same console.
And popular duo Peter Drury and Jim Beglin will continue as the English-speaking commentators for the franchise.
Pro Evo has struggled to match rival FIFA in recent years, with EA’s popular franchise reportedly selling TWENTY-FOUR times more copies in 2019.
‘RIP PRO EVO’
Konami’s move brings an end to two decades of memories, with the original Pro Evo hitting the shops in 2001.
Fans have been reacting to the news on social media, with one tweeting: “This is a truly sad day for both gaming and football.”
Another wrote: “RIP Pro Evo. Konami what are you thinking? eFootball sounds so rubbish.”
While one joked: “eFootball? That’s like the Pro Evo name of Pro Evo.”
Pro Evo was once the best football game on the market thanks to it’s unique features, with referee Pierluigi Collina featuring on the cover of Pro Evo 3.
The lack of naming rights for Premier League teams was also glorious, with gamers forced to play with ‘Man Blue’ (Manchester City) and ‘Yorkshire Orange’ (Hull City).
And there was Adriano’s absurd stats in Pro Evo 5, with the Brazilian striker possessing 99 shot power.
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