One week after version 1.0, the Dreamteam mode in eFootball 2022 has finally been properly launched. Season 1 can convince, but has a leg-high monetization in the bag.
After a disastrous start, the long-awaited version 1.0 of eFootball 2022 was released on 14 April. In addition to revamped gameplay, this version brought Dreamteam mode, the crown jewel of eFootball. A week later, Season 1 launches the first content offensive. What does Konami offer here?
Everything the same?
What Dreamteam is to eFootball, MyClub was to PES. Basically, this mode is Konami’s version of FIFA Ultimate Team. The comparison was true then and still holds true today: the menus may look very different, but Dreamteam works almost identically to MyClub.
You can sign and improve players, take part in events and play in an online league for fame, honour and rewards. Season 1 is catchily named “New Gameplay Approach, Creating a Dreamteam & Licences” and adds all of this, previously missing, content to the mode.
For the start of Season 1, Konami is offering several events, among others based on the newly licensed leagues such as the Japanese J-League or the American MLS.
New league structure
While most of the game plays out much like it has in the past, the aforementioned online league has seen the biggest change. In MyClub, players played without limits for ratings and points, after each week the best players in a division were promoted, the worst relegated.
In Dreamteam, the league is much more restricted. Each player has ten games per division to reach a certain number of points. If they succeed, the team is promoted; if they fail to reach the points, they face relegation.
The first divisions, where players only need three or six points to be promoted, should be a piece of cake. In the upper leagues, there could be a lot of drama and excitement for this, when every point counts. Only time will tell if this restructuring works for fans and can provide long-term motivation.
Exceptional players for real money only
New are also the changes in the economy and in the signing of particularly strong players.
As in MyClub, there are also new packs with particularly strong players in Dreamteam every week. These are usually a selection of sporting legends, such as the current Xavi Hernandez or Pep Guardiola, and a group of contemporary stars such as Florian Wirtz and Thomas Müller.
These packs can only be bought with so-called eFootball coins, the equivalent of which could previously be earned in events. In eFootball 2022, this is no longer the case – the premium currency can currently only be bought with real money.
This means that the best footballers in Dreamteam can only be signed if players are willing to put their money where their mouth is. This significant change is certainly due to eFootball’s new free-to-play model. Since the game itself is free, another source of income has to be found.
With version 1.0, Konami has brought the game up to scratch. Admittedly, many modes that belonged to PES are still missing, especially for single players. But the gameplay has been significantly improved compared to the first release and Dreamteam is now complete.
