PES Chronicles

I woke up this morning (Monday 22nd October) knowing that there was no real point in heading into Coventry city centre to look for PES2008 on the shelves, but planning to do it anyway. Why is this? What is it about PES, more than any other game, which motivates its fans to behave in this manner? A question for another time.

I waited until after midday before leaving the house. I figured that if stores got their deliveries this morning then I should leave them a decent interval to unpack them and decide what to do with them. I passed the morning restlessly, trying to play FIFA08 and failing. It crashed on the loading screen once, and I quit a game in disgust after I ballooned a shot into the stratosphere while clean through on goal. Say what you like about PES, but its core shooting mechanic is the best there is.

Finally I went out and hopped on a bus. Bleedin’ half-term holiday. Kids everywhere, instead of being away at boarding schools where they rightfully belong. And when did pushchair manufacturers start making their products look like small armoured cars? After five (probably single) mothers got on the bus and parked their small armoured cars at the front, there was no more room for any others, so I suppose I should have thanked them, as the bus made double-quick time into town.

My first stop was HMV in Hertford Street. It’s not immediately clear where the PlayStation3 games are – sadly, this is all too common – so I had a confusing few moments wandering up and down the aisles. Finally I spotted the PS3’s pitiful few shelves, and had a look. No PES2008. And not even any empty boxes on display, saying Coming Soon, as there usually are. Hmm. Not a good start.

As I was leaving I saw some bloke stride in and approach the game shelves in the same kind of way I had walked in a few minutes ago: all purposeful and optimistic… He got to the shelves, scanned them quickly… and then his shoulders sagged. He turned aside, looking disgusted. I’m certain he was doing the same thing as me. Looking for PES2008. How many fans across the country were out there today, on the streets, in the wild, fruitlessly searching? Dozens? Hundreds? Thousands?

Next I walked down to Gamestation at the bottom of the ramp. Back in the day of the PS1 this was my favourite store in town. They gave the best trade-in rates and always had the best selection of games on the shelves. Ever since they sold out to GAME, they’ve gone seriously downhill. Trading in games with them is now almost pointless, unless you’re trading in lots of games. £1 per game is not unusual. I took in a rare copy of Shenmue II to them and got just £4 for it. Robbers.

But all of this is by the by. They didn’t have PES2008. They didn’t even have the empty box on display. Again this struck me as unusual. If I didn’t know that the game was coming out for certain on Friday, I’d have been worried.

Next I went to Argos. Nothing there. I walked out and back up the Arcade, then back down it, looking for a struggling independent retailer who would be bound to want to flog their wares ahead of all the big boys. I was sure I remembered seeing such a place in the Arcade a while ago – months, years ago? – but there’s no sign of one now. There’s a store on the corner, opposite that pub (what’s that pub’s name these days?) , which deals in games, but not computer games. I walked in for a quick look. All board games. I walked out.

I went into Coventry Market for the first time in years. The place brings back memories of childhood for me, being dragged around it by my Mum. I walked all the way round once, arriving back at the point where I had come in. No independent games stallholder! Damn.

Next I went to Woolworths, to Virgin, and finally to GAME in Broadgate. None of them had the game or even any sign that the game is coming out. I started to guess that no one had any stock in yet. It’s a rollover, people!

So I went home, and checked my e-mail, and saw…

(I’ve blacked out my credit card number and the order number. You know, just because I’m like that.)

Now. When I had calmed down, and after I had posted on PESfan something like: “OMGZ Im gettin the game tomoz!”, I checked my previous orders with GAME just to see what the likely delay is between the PENDING stage seen above, and the stage I want to see, i.e. DISPATCHED. And it turns out that there can be up to 24 hours between the two. So the only thing I can realistically hope for is that I could get the game on Wednesday.

This puts me in a quandary. I have to go into town tomorrow (Tuesday) to pay a bill. If I see PES2008 sitting on a shelf somewhere, with that ‘buy me’ look about it, will I be able to resist, knowing that my preorder copy is being shipped probably at that very moment ?

I don’t know. Wait and see, I guess. Wait and see.