That was a really good read. The part I liked the most was about increasing the hit types.
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In last year's game, we weren't getting enough of the hit types we usually see in baseball," Little, the game's senior producer, tells me. The designers wanted to introduce more of these kinds of outcomes—early swings on outside pitches that actually pull the ball, inside-out swings and the like—but wanted to be sure they happened with the appropriate frequency. So Little and his lead engineer built this tool, which simulates the outcomes in bulk and helps them refine the game's physics. Little clicks a button and, with a whooshing sound effect, the screen becomes a spray of arcs, like a fireworks finale caught in mid-explosion. A pitch outside still strongly goes to the opposite field, but with the better contact rating, more go to the center of the diamond and some even to left field. |
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I really felt that was the one poor direction 2K11 went in last year. The hitting system was far too rigid - every outside pitch was hit to the opposite field. It seems they are tweaking that and this is an area where I have to see how the demo plays. I want the absurd number of opposite field HRs toned down. The vast majority of HRs in baseball are pulled - there is no disputing this - and it's completely the opposite in 2K11.
What I don't quite understand is why the contact rating has to be higher to pull an outside pitch. Power guys will creep/cheat in to pull those outside pitches for HRs. That's why chin music was invented - to keep them more honest. I know the ability to move the batter around the box has been removed from baseball games for quite some time but I can't help but think we need a subtle addition to this area to allow a little more strategy and prevent users from just pitching outside all day long. Currently the only penalty the game has for pitching outside is allowing a crazy number of opposite field HRs.
I'd love to have an option where a user could select "cheat outside" and allow the user to shift his batter's strike zone over 1/2 a zone or a full zone to get more outside coverage but remove a little inside plate coverage. That would force the user to pitch inside more. Either way, I really grew to dislike last year's hitting model and it's the biggest detriment to me buying 2K12. It still sounds too rigid though.