FOR someone who spent their university years locked in battle on the pitches of Pro Evolution Soccer, the football series' return as a tour-de-force of the sports game genre was a welcome surprise.

In recent years PES has been somewhat pummelled by its more detailed, more refined counterpart in Fifa, which I admit lead to a change in allegiance from this gamer.

Examining in recent times has been a bit like comparing Heinz beans to a supermarket brand - you know you're getting something similar, but just not as good.

And when a wise man tells you 'don't scrimp on beans', I suppose the same logic can be used for computer games, and the rebirth of PES 2015 means scrimping you certainly ain't.

My favourite versions of PES were around during degree studies in 2006 and 2007, and time spent making a dream team from four sides.

Ending up with a forward line of Adriano, Andriy Shevchenko, Michael Owen and Thierry Henry, was enough to give an opponent the willies.

Cue outrageous thunderbolts from a plethora of impossible angles, and I-need-to-score-from-the-halfway-line sated bliss.

While the latest edition of PES retains that intoxicating element of raw fun, the devil of its return to form is very much in the detail.

In game one of my trial run, as Real Madrid (who else?), after Gareth Bale drops a shoulder, beats three men, lays a one two with Cristiano Ronaldo, who glances over his shoulder before playing a 'no look' return which Bale gleefully curls past Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer, the slick precision of the artificial intelligence hits home.

And it's not even the realisation the AI outstrips Fifa 2015, because there are many other elements PES supersedes its biggest rival.

Playing the computer, sometimes a dull experience, is improved by intelligent attacks; targeting a slow defender, or overworked midfielder on a yellow card, while charging around with your finger on sprint will quickly wear even speedster’s out - a variety of tactics is required.

Elsewhere, myClub, a rival to Fifa's Ultimate Team, feels a bit clunkier in design, but the challenge of building a team of no-hopers into title-winners is a fun one.

You also gain credits from completing matches, meaning the bone-crunching annoyance of mid-game cancellation is less likely.

Drop in accredited tournaments like the Champion's League, and vastly improved online play, and Konami is this season's clear winner.