'Pro Evo 08 was rushed', admits developer

While Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 has proven a major commercial success, the title was less well received by the media and now its developer has admitted he considered delaying its release.

Speaking to PSM3 magazine, legendary Japanese developer Shingo Takatsuka said: "PES 2008 is far, far from what we wanted.

"In fact, we thought about delaying it but different factors meant we had to release it. As a developer, we've worked the same way since the days of the SNES. We're simply not set up for multi-platform development."

After revealing that his team is now working on Pro Evolution Soccer 2009, Takatsuka has said all the media criticism has been taken on board while developing the next game: "PES 2009 is in development, but after hearing the criticism, we'll be taking it back to the drawing board. It might not be next year, but it will be soon.”