CM5 dated, CM-Online goes live
Eidos announces a firm release date for Championship Manager 5 on PC, and reminds us that subscription-only CM-Online is now running.
Eidos has announced that Championship Manager 5, the publisher's first foray into PC football management since its split with Sports Interactive 18 months ago, will be released in the UK on 18th March and internationally on 1st April.
Which means we've lost that bet about which will be back in action first, Jonathan Woodgate or Championship Manager...
PS2 and Xbox versions of upstart developer Beautiful Game Studios' management debut will follow later this spring.
But it's the PC version which is Eidos's first major test, as the game had to be developed in around 18 months after Sports Interactive went off to refine its codebase under the new banner of Football Manager with SEGA Europe. That game came out last year and enjoyed chart success despite the label-change.
In a related announcement, Eidos pointed out that Championship Manager Online is now, er, online and playable through subscription at www.cm-online.com. Subscribers can set up "buddy leagues", which let you compete in a league of friends. Clubs from six national leagues are present, with more to be added by co-developer Jadestone and the game continually updated with real-world data.