A timely overhaul that should take a great game to new heights - though it's not quite on peak form this year.
Key events
2nd October 2018
PES 2019 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
30th August 2018
PES 2019 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
13th October 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
10th October 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
3rd October 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
29th September 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
26th September 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
22nd September 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
20th September 2017
PES 2018 Patch - how to download option files, get licences, kits, badges and more on PS4 and PC
15th September 2017
4th August 2017
17th May 2017
PES 2018 fans take it upon themselves to add unofficial World Cup mode
And it looks pretty good.
PES 2018 doesn't have a World Cup update - EA has FIFA's signature on that official licence. But it does have a small group of dedicated fans who have put the time into creating an unofficial World Cup update for the game.
Here's what's coming to Xbox Game Pass in May
State of Decay 2! Laser League! PES 2018! More!
Microsoft has announced the games coming to Xbox Game Pass in May.
PES loses Champions League official licence
10-year deal with UEFA comes to an end.
Konami's partnership with UEFA is coming to an end, which means Pro Evolution Soccer's 10-year run as exclusive Champions League rights holder for video games is over.
Leeds United's new badge is so bad it looks like it's from PES
We are Yorkshire Whites!
Rio Ferdinand's old club Leeds United unveiled its new badge today - and football fans are having a good old laugh about it.
Now this is more like it. After announcing an exclusive global partnership with Championship side Fulham, Konami has opened its wallet and signed a deal with Europa League hopefuls Arsenal.
Konami has scrubbed Neymar from the menus and splash screen of PES 2018 on the quiet.
Destiny 2 holds off PES and Metroid in UK charts
Titan defence.
Despite six new releases storming the UK charts, Destiny 2 is holding firm at number one for the second week in a row.
PES 2018 to get more Liverpool legends
Gerrard! McManaman! Keegan! Barnes! More!
Regular readers will know I'm no Liverpool fan (my brother, sucked in by the Irish side of my family, supports them, which adds extra spice). But even I have to admit these players are legends. Well, every one of them except Steve McManaman.
A season of rebuilding.
When I played PES 2018 earlier this year, the series' global product and brand manager Adam Bhatti told me it was the first game of a three-year cycle; a new foundation upon which Konami's looking to build. For better and worse, it feels like it. There are marked improvements in some areas, but PES's overall game has weakened slightly from last year, like a side that's spent big money recruiting three attacking midfielders during the close season while entirely failing to strengthen their back four.
PES 2018 review
Developer: Konami
Bend it as Beckham in PES 2018
Golden balls.
Now this is more like it, Konami. After the disappointing Fulham PES partnership announcement and the bizarre Usain Bolt pre-order bonus reveal, the Japanese company has pulled out the big gun: David Beckham.
Hot on the heels of sparkling deals with Barcelona, Liverpool and, er, Usain Bolt comes Konami's latest partnership for PES 2018.
It's a London club.
It's in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham...
If you pre-order PES 2018 you get Usain Bolt
Usain in the membrane. Usain in the game.
If you pre-order PES 2018 you get Usain Bolt.
FeaturePES 2018 proves that slower can be better
Gimmicks, Griezmann and gegenpressing: hands-on with this year's model.
Usain Bolt? Really? The recent announcement that the world's fastest man is to feature in Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 seems a strange, misleading and possibly even misguided step. PES has earned its reputation not on gimmicks, but by taking the sport it simulates very seriously indeed. A headline-grabbing move this may be, but it's also a little desperate, and not very PES at all.
Feature“I want to be seen as the best”
What drives a semi professional PES player to the top.
One of my favourite things about being a football fan is that the game isn't the only thing you hear about any more. The demands of a seemingly insatiable 24 hour news media has meant that journalists get the chance to tell stories that go beyond the sport itself.
PES 2018 is definitely not coming to Switch
But Konami's up for future games being ported if fans are keen.
While the world wondered whether the Switch's FIFA was going to be the real deal or not, there's a slightly more definitive answer when it comes to that other long-running football series. Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 is not coming to Nintendo's Switch, Konami has confirmed - though it is open to the idea in future.
PES 2018 release date announced
Konami promises PC version improvements.
This year's Pro Evolution Soccer, PES 2018, will launch on 14th September 2017 for PC, PlayStation 3, PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
Konami has pledged the game's PC version will be up "to the standard of the leading console iterations" after fans complained last year's entry was stuck between the current and last-gen console editions.
A list of new additions include a new user interface, contextual shielding, improved dribbling and ball control, reworked set pieces and better lighting throughout.
