Premier Manager 3
Encyclopedia
Premier Manager 3 is a football management simulator video game for the Commodore Amiga and DOS
platforms. It was released in 1994 by Gremlin Interactive
. The objective of the game is to manage a football club successfully within the top 5 divisions in the English league system
, starting from the 1994-95 football season
. The game was re-released a year later to included updated teams and player details for the 1995-96 football season
. Gremlin also released Premier Multi-Edit System; software that allows the user to edit the statistics of football players and teams in Premier Manager 3 to their liking. Premier Manager 3 followed Premier Manager 2
. There is an AGA version of Premier Manager 3 as well as a standard version for all Amigas.
s such as applying for bank loans, organising advertising boards and scheduling stadium improvements. The primary interface is made up of 12 main sections. These are team settings, telephone, fax machine, sponsorship, ground improvements, business case, club finances, transfer market, history, league tables, cup competitions and play the next match. From this interface the player can access all the settings necessary to manage the football club.
When the game starts, the user takes control of a conference league
team of their choice. If the user manages the team poorly and finishes in last position in the league, the team will not be relegated; in real life, a team finishing in the relegation zone would have gone down to what is now Level 7 in the English football league system
at the time, although since 2004 two leagues were added between these leagues and the Conference National. To be successful, the user must not only win football matches, but also manage the finances of the club well. If the player is in too much debt then the player can be fired even if he had good results.
The user can change the club he manages by taking job offers from other clubs at the end of the season or applying for a position at a club where a manager has been fired mid season. The managerial rating of the user affects whether or not this application is successful. Premier Manager 3 can be played by two players, though they have to take turns accessing their teams. In a new feature to the series, the users can attempt to outbid each other. Previously in Premier Manager 2, the second user had the advantage of bidding after the first user.
In 1996, Premier Manager 3 Deluxe was released which included the updated league, team and player statistics for the 1995/96 football season.
or Windows XP
operating systems.
rated the game 85% and noted that the game is difficult enough to challenge even experienced players of management sims. CU Amiga also rated the game 85% and praised the game for the user friendly interface. However the review also criticised how similar the interface and game in general was similar to Premier Manager 2. The review from Amiga Computing
gave the game its "Gold Award" and recommended readers purchase Premier Manager 3. The review also noted how similar the game is to Premier Manager 2, and suggested it may not be worth buying if you already own the previous 2 games in the series. Amiga User International
magazine did not like Premier Manager 3. The review stated that it is too similar to Premier Manager 2 and the improvements were minimal. The review also attacked the method of playing the game is flawed due to not being able to compare tactics against the opposing team's players. The game was also re-released as part of a budget set called Soccer Stars 96, which contained FIFA International Soccer, Kick Off 3
and On the Ball: League Edition. The collection received good reviews in general but it was noted that none of the games, including Premier Manager 3, were as good as more recent football games at the time.
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
platforms. It was released in 1994 by Gremlin Interactive
Gremlin Interactive
Gremlin Interactive was a British software house based in Sheffield and working mostly in the home computer market.- History :...
. The objective of the game is to manage a football club successfully within the top 5 divisions in the English league system
English football league system
The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for association football clubs in England, with six teams from Wales also competing...
, starting from the 1994-95 football season
1994-95 in English football
-Premiership:Blackburn Rovers ended their 81-year wait for the league title thanks to the strike partnership of Alan Shearer and Chris Sutton which scored a total of more than 50 league goals. Manchester United would have made it three league titles in a row if they had been able to turn a 1-1 draw...
. The game was re-released a year later to included updated teams and player details for the 1995-96 football season
1995-96 in English football
- Premiership :Newcastle United were 12 points clear at the top of Manchester United, but Alex Ferguson's relatively young and inexperienced side overhauled them during the second half of the season to win the title....
. Gremlin also released Premier Multi-Edit System; software that allows the user to edit the statistics of football players and teams in Premier Manager 3 to their liking. Premier Manager 3 followed Premier Manager 2
Premier Manager 2
Premier Manager 2 is a football management simulator video game for the Commodore Amiga and DOS platforms. It was released in 1993 by Gremlin Interactive. The objective of the game is to manage a football club successfully within the top five divisions in the English league system...
. There is an AGA version of Premier Manager 3 as well as a standard version for all Amigas.
Gameplay
Premier Manager 3 is a football management video game that puts the player in charge of a football club. The player has to manage not only the team and tactics to win football matches, but also the club's financeFinance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
s such as applying for bank loans, organising advertising boards and scheduling stadium improvements. The primary interface is made up of 12 main sections. These are team settings, telephone, fax machine, sponsorship, ground improvements, business case, club finances, transfer market, history, league tables, cup competitions and play the next match. From this interface the player can access all the settings necessary to manage the football club.
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
team of their choice. If the user manages the team poorly and finishes in last position in the league, the team will not be relegated; in real life, a team finishing in the relegation zone would have gone down to what is now Level 7 in the English football league system
English football league system
The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for association football clubs in England, with six teams from Wales also competing...
at the time, although since 2004 two leagues were added between these leagues and the Conference National. To be successful, the user must not only win football matches, but also manage the finances of the club well. If the player is in too much debt then the player can be fired even if he had good results.
The user can change the club he manages by taking job offers from other clubs at the end of the season or applying for a position at a club where a manager has been fired mid season. The managerial rating of the user affects whether or not this application is successful. Premier Manager 3 can be played by two players, though they have to take turns accessing their teams. In a new feature to the series, the users can attempt to outbid each other. Previously in Premier Manager 2, the second user had the advantage of bidding after the first user.
In 1996, Premier Manager 3 Deluxe was released which included the updated league, team and player statistics for the 1995/96 football season.
Development
The tactics system in Premier Manager 3 was the biggest new development in the game, allowing the user to set tactics for individual players during football matches. The team and player statistics were updated for the release to the 1995/96 football season. Premier Manager 3 was re-released again in April 2004 by the holders of the Premier Manager trademark Zoo Digital. It was released on CD ROM with the warning that it will not run on Windows 2000Windows 2000
Windows 2000 is a line of operating systems produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, business desktops, laptops, and servers. Windows 2000 was released to manufacturing on 15 December 1999 and launched to retail on 17 February 2000. It is the successor to Windows NT 4.0, and is the...
or Windows XP
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
operating systems.
Reception
Critics received Premier Manager 3 well. Amiga FormatAmiga Format
Amiga Format was a British computer magazine for Amiga computers, published by Future Publishing. The magazine lasted 136 issues from 1989 to 2000. The magazine was formed when, in the wake of selling ACE to EMAP, Future split the dual-format title ST/Amiga Format into two separate publications...
rated the game 85% and noted that the game is difficult enough to challenge even experienced players of management sims. CU Amiga also rated the game 85% and praised the game for the user friendly interface. However the review also criticised how similar the interface and game in general was similar to Premier Manager 2. The review from Amiga Computing
Amiga Computing
Amiga Computing was a monthly computer magazine of a serious nature, published by Europress and IDG in both the UK and USA. A total of 117 issues came out. The games section was called Gamer, although later Amiga Action was incorporated into the magazine and became the games section.- External...
gave the game its "Gold Award" and recommended readers purchase Premier Manager 3. The review also noted how similar the game is to Premier Manager 2, and suggested it may not be worth buying if you already own the previous 2 games in the series. Amiga User International
Amiga User International
Amiga User International was a monthly computer magazine published in its later years by AUI Limited, it was the first dedicated Amiga magazine in Europe and in comparison to other Amiga magazines, AUI had a more serious perspective...
magazine did not like Premier Manager 3. The review stated that it is too similar to Premier Manager 2 and the improvements were minimal. The review also attacked the method of playing the game is flawed due to not being able to compare tactics against the opposing team's players. The game was also re-released as part of a budget set called Soccer Stars 96, which contained FIFA International Soccer, Kick Off 3
Kick Off
The Kick Off franchise is a series of football simulation computer games which was highly popular in the early 1990s. The series is renowned for its fast-paced action and delicate ball control scheme....
and On the Ball: League Edition. The collection received good reviews in general but it was noted that none of the games, including Premier Manager 3, were as good as more recent football games at the time.
Multi-Edit System
After the release of Premier Manager 3, Gremlin Interactive developed and released the Premier Multi-Edit System. This was separate software that would allow the user to edit statistics of teams, players, stadia, and other in game details. Players can be swapped from team to team, managers could be changed and the football strips altered. This was so the user could update the game as the seasons progressed. This was further emphasised with the subtitle of the software being "You'll never need another management game ... ever!". As a stand-alone product, the Multi-Edit System was received well and received a rating of 86% from CU Amiga. The Multi-Edit System was bundled with the Premier Manager 3 Deluxe release in 1995.External links
- Premier Manager 3 official website