FOF2004 worth it if I still play FOF4

[CleBrownsfan]

I still play FOF4 often and I'm asking you guys if you think it's worth upgrading to FOF2004 if I wont play in a multi-player league?

Thanks for the advise in advance...

[Bee]

yes. It's relatively cheap and there's definitely enough improvements IMO to warrant purchase even if you don't play multiplayer.

[albionmoonlight]

I concur. It is a worthwhile upgrade from FOF4 as a SP game.

[WussGawd]

Yes. Well worth it. I wasn't all that fired up by FOF4, but I've been playing FOF2004 constantly SP.

[CleBrownsfan]

Thanks for the advise... looks like I'll be getting it ;) even though I have to many damn games to play already!!!!

[grdawg]

I agree Wuss, I barely played FOF4, now I am up all hours of the night playing FOF4K, definetly worth upgrading.

[Franklinnoble]

My opinion - based on a lot of FOF4 play (huh huh... I said "foreplay") and limited FOF2k4 play....

1. The AI is better
2. The salary cap is harder to manage
3. The contract hold out feature is kinda cool
4. Finding talent in the draft is more difficult - frustratingly so, actually. Maybe too difficult.
5. The "lock player" feature in the depth chart doesn't work as well as I'd hoped. Seems like if you set the global options to automatic, this can get over-ridden. Might have happened to me due to injury - not really sure - but I'm disappointed in this, because this was the feature that I bought the game for. I was hoping to be able to lock in a few starters and sim the season automatically, but it seems like I still have to mess with the depth chart from week-to-week.
6. Staff hiring is more complicated with coordinators and such. I'm not sure if I like it yet or not - seems like there's limited mobility of offensive and defensive coordinators, which sort of defeats the whole point of having them.
7. Haven't tried multiplayer yet, but from what I've read, it doesn't seem very easy or intuitive to manage and participate in - it almost looks like it was bolted on as an afterthought, and not really made as a core component of the game. Either way, it looks like too much of a pain in the ass for people with limited gaming time to play with.
8. It's slower. The draft used to fly by if set on the highest speed - now it takes at least twice as long. Game simming doesn't seem much different - but I haven't sat around to watch it and observe yet, either.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
8. It's slower. The draft used to fly by if set on the highest speed - now it takes at least twice as long. Game simming doesn't seem much different - but I haven't sat around to watch it and observe yet, either. Draft is slower than FOF4 (which is probably a good thing). Sim speed of games is a little faster though, at least for me.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by SkyDog
Draft is slower than FOF4 (which is probably a good thing). Sim speed of games is a little faster though, at least for me.

This is probably due to a greater degree of analysis being done by the AI, so, yeah, it's a good thing. Still, I had gotten used to having very little time to wait between picks - so it was noticable.

[Deattribution]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
My opinion - based on a lot of FOF4 play (huh huh... I said "foreplay") and limited FOF2k4 play....


5. The "lock player" feature in the depth chart doesn't work as well as I'd hoped. Seems like if you set the global options to automatic, this can get over-ridden. Might have happened to me due to injury - not really sure - but I'm disappointed in this, because this was the feature that I bought the game for. I was hoping to be able to lock in a few starters and sim the season automatically, but it seems like I still have to mess with the depth chart from week-to-week.



This is correct, it only locks for the recommend feature on the screen, but not for the scouts making depht chart changes in global options... which defeats the purpose of the feature for me. If I'm gonna turn off scout making depht chart changes then I could manually make the changes I needed like I already have to do everytime someone gets injured.

[Maple Leafs]

Somewhat off-topic, but since we're picking on the depth chart lock:

Does anyone else find it strange that if you lock a guy into a position and then hit "recommend", that same guy might be placed in the backup spot to the position you just locked him into?

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by Deattribution
This is correct, it only locks for the recommend feature on the screen, but not for the scouts making depht chart changes in global options... which defeats the purpose of the feature for me. If I'm gonna turn off scout making depht chart changes then I could manually make the changes I needed like I already have to do everytime someone gets injured.

Nice to know it's not just me. I wonder if this is something fixable with a future patch.

[yabanci]

I would say you should upgrade. The changes to the draft alone make it worth it IMO.

[John Galt]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
Nice to know it's not just me. I wonder if this is something fixable with a future patch.

Yes and no was the answer I got from Jim. Yes, it is doable, but it would alter the saved game format. I told him to keep it in mind if he makes any other changes that require a saved game change, but that doesn't look like it is going to happen. It annoys me too.

[Deattribution]

Originally posted by John Galt
Yes and no was the answer I got from Jim. Yes, it is doable, but it would alter the saved game format. I told him to keep it in mind if he makes any other changes that require a saved game change, but that doesn't look like it is going to happen. It annoys me too.

I think that probably annoys me more then the fact that it doesn't work how I thought it would. I know plenty of people do not want to lose there saved games but getting too concerned with backwards capability will only hurt the game in the long run.


If I have to wait for FOF6 to get what I thought was already in FOF5, I probably just won't bother. That goes with anything, not just this change.

[VPI97]

I play FOF 4 religiously, but I haven't seen anything that compels me to switch to FOF 2004 and scrap what I have with FOF 4.

Edit - Everytime I think I'll give FOF 2004 a go, I look around and see something like this. (http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=18352)

[Bee]

Your making a big mistake IMO. The improvement over FOF4 is pretty significant and I think the vast majority of those who played both would agree.

[Samdari]

I agree the improvement is significant.

I too, am disappointed with the way the lock player feature works. I thought I would be able to lock a few players I wanted developed as starters and sim a season. That said, the way the feature works is still an improvement over FOF4, just a tiny one instead of the huge leap we were expecting it to be.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by Samdari
That said, the way the feature works is still an improvement over FOF4, just a tiny one instead of the huge leap we were expecting it to be. Well, as with many features, the impact of this one depends on how you play the game. It is a huge leap for the way I play the game. (Sim a game, guys gets injured, adjust active/inactive, use recommend button for depth chart changes, rinse repeat). This is a BIG deal for keeping those young guys in as starters when you use the "recommend" button on at least one of the depth chart screens, if not all four, virtually every week, as I do.