Transcript of Chat with Jim 1/24/2003

[primelord]

Here is the transcript from tonights chat session. For everyone that had feature request questions Jim covered them all with the first question. He is currently collecting feature requests and encourages you to keep sending them in through e-mail, but he didn't want to comment on individual requests because he hasn't decided what will or won't go in the next patch yet.

Enjoy. :)

[PrimeLord] what is your plan for the addition of features to fof4?

[JimG] I plan to put out an update this summer, either a 4.0c or a 4.1, depending on how much changes. ...
[JimG] People have been sending suggestions through email. When it comes time to design the update, I'll take everything I've received into account.
[JimG] I appreciate the suggestions I've received so far. Please keep them coming.

[B][PrimeLord] When will FOF4 be available for download and how much will it cost?[/B]

[JimG] When the next update is done, I'll create the downloadable version at that time. I haven't made any final cost decisions yet, though the $29.95 price point seems to be a good one for the TCY download.

[B][PrimeLord] With a new product in the works, and a planned summer update, what do you see in the future for TCY?[/B]

[JimG] I haven't decided that yet. I don't intend to abandon TCY. It needs a play-calling interface, and so I'd really like to write TCY2 some day. But it won't come in 2003.

[B][PrimeLord] Since we will need so long for the downloadable version does that mean that there are plenty of CD Rom versions still available for purchase?[/B]

[JimG] Yes. Inventory is still at about 25%. If I run out, then I'll try to get the downloadable version together before 4.0c.

[B][PrimeLord] any thought at somepoint of making like an historic fof series with 70's/80's teams/rules?[/B]

[JimG] I haven't really thought about going in that direction. That would require heavy dependence on past rosters, and I could not get away with going without real player names. Especially given my relationship with EA, I do not want to offend the NFLPA by using names without permission. And obtaining permission is not something I could remotely afford given the potential sales for a text-based simulation.

[B][PrimeLord] Would you care to elaborate on what your next sim will be?[/B]

[JimG] I will be moving into a new sport (not that trampoline-full-contact-basketball event on TNN). At this time, I'm not prepared to discuss any details.

[B][PrimeLord] Seeing what fellow text-simmer Risto Remes has done with EHM, is there any thought on joining with a reputable text-sim company like SI Games?[/B]

[JimG] If the right opportunity came up, I would love to work with a company that has experience with this type of game. Marc Vaughan and SI Games have invaluable experience. If there was interest on their part, and a plan that could benefit both sides, I'd listen to anything and everything they have to say.

[B][PrimeLord] Are there any plans for updating schedules for TCY for this upcoming season at any point down the road?[/B]

[JimG] I will probably do exactly what I did last year, and update the schedules late this summer. I will probably not make any changes to the code, aside from fixing a couple of minor bugs that have been reported in recent months.

[B][PrimeLord] Any thought to allowing for multiplayer? Even if just hotseat mode for a few players?[/B]

[JimG] TCY just isn't a good candidate for a multi-player game at this time. That's something I could consider if there's ever a TCY2.

[B][PrimeLord] Will it (the new game in development) be along the lines of FOF? i.e. will you assume a GM/HEad coaching role or a team of some sport?[/B]

[JimG] Yes. The role will be the same. I'm hoping to focus much more on the financial end, at least in design. But it will still primarily be a coach/GM field simulation.

[B][PrimeLord] what feature(s) of FOF4 had to be left out that you most wished had made it in to the game?[/B]

[JimG] The last feature to be cut was a profile assistant for use with the game plan. One of the beta testers made a good case for it, but there just wasn't time. It's high on the list for 4.0c/4.1. Time will determine whether it makes it in this summer.

[B][PrimeLord] What about MP for FOF or in the least allowing for multiple team rosters to be adjusted for online leagues?[/B]

[JimG] That's a very large feature that would be under heavy consideration for future versions of the game.

[B][PrimeLord] since there was a lot of controversy after the release of fof4 can you tell a little bit more about the beta team?[/B]

[JimG] I hadn't heard about any controversy. I had three people - all past customers - test the beta version for a period of about three weeks.

[B][PrimeLord] How do you become a beta tester?[/B]

[JimG] These are people who have contributed a lot to discussions about the game. I'm very happy with how they performed, so they'll be invited back with future games. At this time, I don't see needing more than three, but if I do, it's not something people would apply for.

[B][PrimeLord] would you consider using a subscription based beta testing program ala Puresim which seemed to be a huge success?[/B]

[JimG] No, that's not something I'd consider. Just too risky.

[B][PrimeLord] There has been some talk about a combined TCY/FOF sim and just how great it would be. Considering that the intertwining of the colligate & professional levels in a given sport has never been accomplished is this a challenge that you would be interested in looking into and if so would it be something that someone could look forward to in the near future or a more distant project?[/B]

[JimG] Both TCY and FOF are pressing the limits of how much information can be kept in the memory of today's computers. Combining them is not technically feasible at this stage. This is something that could be revisited a few years down the road, but at this point, we're not even close.

[B][PrimeLord] In past FOF versions, when viewing the Season Awards, the winners were linked to their player cards (click on their name and their card came up). It always helped me measure how my players stacked up to the All-Pro's at their position. Why does FOF4 not follow this format anymore? Is there any chance of this changing to allow for this?[/B]

[JimG] Beause the season awards are now available for every past season, there isn't a player record to link to any more. Also, information that would lead to existing links isn't kept in the awards array. So, no, this can't be done with FOF4 without fairly radical changes.

[B][PrimeLord] The play-by-play contains extra information in some cases (e.g. who made a block, who defended a pass, who
pressured the QB). In others, though, we miss out on helpful information (e.g. which player committed a penalty, how deep a dropped or incomplete pass was thrown, whether a QB left the pocket on a pass). Were things like this left out to reduce clutter, or does the game engine not actually generate this sort of information?[/B]

[JimG] The pass play distance was left out to reduce clutter. The game does not decide who committed the penalty. That's based on a team-wide discipline rating and the percentage of plays that penalty was called in NFL games.

[B][PrimeLord] Why aren't team HOF included in FOF4?[/B]

[JimG] I didn't transfer that feature because it seemed redundant.

[B][PrimeLord] What feature in FOF4 are you most happy with?[/B]

[JimG] The record-keeping, allowing the inclusion of basic statistics for every player and every game, was by far the most technically difficult addition to the game. I also like the way the play-calling turned out. I never really used the play-calling interface from FOF2, but this new version often gets me into the game.

[B][PrimeLord] I must be confused on what type of memory would be needed for a combined TCY/FOF since a game like OOTP has the pros and 3 levels of minor leagues that it simulates games for. Could you please elaborate for us nontechnical folks?[/B]

[JimG] Without knowing how much room OOTP uses for player records, I couldn't comment on OOTP. In order to keep game simulation fast, FOF and TCY keep everything that could be accessed during game play in memory. TCY, especially, is storing hundreds of variables for more than 10,000 players at any one time. That's pushing on the memory limits for today's computers.

[B][PrimeLord] You had mentioned that your next game will be a bit more financially based. Will it allow for selling arena naming rights, similar to todays professional sports?[/B]

[JimG] The design isn't yet down to that level of detail, but that's certainly something that would be in line with what I hope to accomplish with the game.

[B][PrimeLord] Is there any chance of a player editor for TCY in the future? Even if it is just editing the name?[/B]

[JimG] Given the way the player names are stored, there's no way to edit names in TCY. And not much point to a player editor that can't edit names.

[B][PrimeLord] There has been some concern that penalties on kickoffs are not being marked off correctly. Can you confirm if this is a bug?[/B]

[JimG] I checked a lot of them when working on 4.0a, but I'll look into it again when I'm back in the code if someone could send me an example.

[B][PrimeLord] Is there a reason that in this version we don't have the actual pick a player was, if drafted in the 1st round anymore like 1st round (1), etc. etc...?[/B]

[JimG] The old game used to display the pick number for players drafted in the first round. I changed that to show which team made the pick and the year of the pick for FOF4. The only reason that was eliminated was just for real estate reasons on the player screen.

[B][PrimeLord] The current hall of fame setup is favored heavily towards offensive skill positions, defense and offensive linemen are not represented. Would you consider looking into this?[/B]

[JimG] I'll look into anything that people report to me, so, yes, I'll look into HOF position distribution when I'm next in the code.

[B][PrimeLord] When scouting my opponent prior to each game (my favorite new feature), I will often see a player in the lineup who is also listed as "Out" on the injury list in the bottom right corner. Sometimes it subs properly, sometimes not. Is this a bug, or am I missing something?[/B]

[JimG] The scouting report is based on the lineup the team used in the previous game, but injury updates are current. Hopefully, it always subs properly, but the report is not intended to guess what the team will do for the upcoming game.

[B][PrimeLord] Is there a reason that only players in certain positions have a score for special teams?[/B]

[JimG] Certain positions, mainly quarterback, don't play special teams.

[B][PrimeLord] Is there a possibilty to keep individual stats for retired players?[/B]

[JimG] There isn't, because the player records are so large that if they're not removed (with the exception of the HOFers) at retirement, the game would run out of memory in later seasons.

[B][PrimeLord] Without going into features, are you ever going change the focus of injuries to individual players or are we stuck with the coach rating for the entire team? Also will size ever factor into a player's liklihood of getting injured?[/B]

[JimG] As with all potential new features, that's something that could be considered when it comes time to update the game.

[B][PrimeLord] There has been some concern that FOF4 is easy to master for many players can you please comment on that claim for those who don't yet own the game and are concerned with the claim?[/B]

[JimG] I don't think the game is that easy to master, but since it has been out, in various forms, for more than four years, some have found ways to exploit the AI. As always, when I'm in the code, I'm looking to strengthen the AI so that teams build rosters as well as those who have experience playing the game.
[JimG] So, with FOF4, I rewrote the contract demand AI so that it better reflects the reality of professional football. With 4.0a, I rewrote how teams interpret scouting reports. And there will be more improvements in the future.

[B][PrimeLord] Is the fact that players get fired from bad teams within 1-3 years of taking them over (despite success on the playing field) a bug? If so, will it be fixed?[/B]

[JimG] Firing is based far more on financial performance than on-field performance, so if a player is making drastic spending changes without bringing in the fans and improving loyalty, he is in trouble. As always, though, I'm interested in specifics, and invite anyone who suspects a bug to send a report through email.

[B][PrimeLord] Have any VIP's (players, coaches, GMs, owners, etc.) bought any version of FOF? (no need to name names - a yes or no is fine)[/B]

[JimG] Yes. And yes, obviously I won't name names.

[B][PrimeLord] Will future versions of FOF allow for expansion teams? And will there be the ability to have variable league sizes?[/B]

[JimG] That's too large a feature to consider for FOF4. Without a doubt, variable league size is the toughest new feature to add to a game, because it requires dynamic scheduling. When the NFL changed the scheduling algorithm for this season, including both fixed games and games based on rank within division, it increased the complexity of the schedule by a factor of 12. That's why the small amount of expansion from FOF1 days was not translated into th

[B][PrimeLord] Is there a chance of adding HTML-export report files in this version or in your future projects?[/B]

[JimG] People have been sending suggestions through email. When it comes time to design the update, I'll take everything I've received into account. I appreciate the suggestions I've received so far. Please keep them coming.

[B][PrimeLord] Have sales with FOF gone up with each addition?[/B]

[JimG] I don't have access to EA's sales figures, but I don't think FOF2002 exceeded 2001, and I think 2001 was less than FOF2. Since I'm competing against all those past versions, my guess is that FOF4 is probably doing about as well as FOF2001 did, but I have no information about that.

[B][PrimeLord] How many estimated hours of research did it take for TCY, and then FOF4?[/B]

[JimG] That's hard to estimate. I'm always playing with spreadsheets or writing little perl file-parsers during times that I'm not programming.

[B][PrimeLord] Do you play many other text sims and if so, do they have any influences on new features in your games?[/B]

[JimG] To be honest, I haven't played any other sports games since I started work on FOF1. The original Baseball Mogul had quite an impact.

[B][PrimeLord] Any chance for Linux verions of future games for the 5 or 6 that may actually prefer that? ;)[/B]

[JimG] I've heard from one very dedicated customer that he got the game working through an emulation tool of some sort - long since forgotten the details. If Linux ever overtakes Windows, certainly I'll put some time into it.

[B][PrimeLord] What advice would you give to someone wnating to get into the game development business?[/B]

[JimG] The best advice I could give is not to take financial risks. It's very hard to estimate what can be made. I'd also advise people to design thoroughly before they start programming. That will keep you motivated and disciplined, because it's hard to stay focused over a process that will take many months. Finally, ...
[JimG] and I know that it's not politically correct to say this these days, but the best advice I received when starting out was from a former editor of Computer Gaming World, who told me to "design the game you want to play." It's been almost five years now, and I'm only now beginning to see all the reasons why that's good advice.

[B][PrimeLord] Do you still play fof games or has your knowledge of the AI/innerworkings spoiled ot for you?[/B]

[JimG] I play them differently than I did at first. I've been too busy with sales and ramping up on the new game to get into the involved careers I used to play. Since the AI doesn't cheat, my knowledge of it really doesn't affect how I play.

[B][PrimeLord] Do you play any sports? if so what is your favorite to play and if not what is your most favorite to watch?[/B]

[JimG] I play softball and basketball whenever the opportunity arises, and used to be a semi-competitive tennis player. I enjoy watching baseball, football and hockey mostly, though I don't watch hockey until the season begins in April.

[B][PrimeLord] Has anyone approached you professionally about your college ranking system on your site?[/B]

[JimG] No. There are people who do this full-time, and much better than I do. Jeff Sagarin being first on most lists.

[B][PrimeLord] Bucs or Raiders?[/B]

[JimG] Bucs. Gruden knows their strengths and weaknesses backward and forward, and Derrick Brooks is the perfect player to mess with Charlie Garner.

[couriers]

Reserving comment on the actual chat topics I just wanted to once again say thank you to Primelord for doing such an excellent job. The entire event ran smoothly and without his help it would not have gone over as well as it had. I only wish that the actual chat itself looked as pretty as his version here in this thread. ;)

[Dutch]

1. My guess is that Front Office Hockey is next....with 3 or 4 lines vs. 1 in Basketball, it would be more in depth and Baseball would have a lot of competition, while it's apparent to me that if Jim did make Baseball it would be superior statistically over any other attempts so far.

2. Glad to hear that FOF4.1 is a possibility a long with a minor update to TCY.

3. Jim's picking the Bucs...I knew he was pretty smart.

[Honolulu Blue]

Thumbs up for Jim, primelord, and all those who participated in the chat. Jim seemed to be in fine form and not the terse, defensive, taciturn self that shows up occasionally for these things.

I'm surprised he gave solid answers to the "third rail" subjects (multiplayer, the beta team, sales, the next game, ease of winning).

For multiplayer, it seems he's gone from "no no, never never, uh uh uh" to "um... maybe". I'm sure we'll hear a lot more about this the next two years or more.

New wild guesses: about 4,000 sold for both FOF2001 and FOF4.

Hockey seems to be as good a guess as any. It's a coach/GM team sport with finances that are important. Most importantly, there's not a lot of competition.

"Exploit the AI", my buttocks. I know that in my particular case, I go out of my way NOT to exploit it. And I'm sure I'm not alone. He does have a point when he mentions that it's been out for 4+ years. The basic principles (draft well + sign a few key free agents = win) haven't changed much from FOF Classic. He says he'll keep working on it, and I encourage him to do so.

And I'm glad that two of my questions were asked and answered. On the first (getting fired after taking over a bad team), Jim seems to think that that is the way the game should work, and is not a bug. I'll try to convince him otherwise.

On the other (VIP purchases), that had been a burning question of mine for some time, and I wish I had asked it earlier. I had always suspected that it was true. It's fun for me to speculate about which teams have GMs who would be good at the game, and which ones would get soundly trounced.

[cthomer5000]

I must say I was disappointed that one of the specific features I was looking for wasn't commented on, since I just wanted to know whether it could be classified as basically impossiible, or pretty easy to implement.

Overall, I think Jim provided great insight on some stuff, but basically dodged the usual bullets on some others.

It would really be nice If we could make these chats fairly regular, like once a month. Or at least have some sort of regular occurence of him responded to questions collected by primelord.

[Draft Dodger]

I'm more and more starting to think that the next game he's doing is baseball.

[MylesKnight]

I agree with having these types of chat sessions more often. Heck, even if Jim weren't around to do it, I think it would be fun for FOFC'ers to just get together say once a month and discuss the Solecismic Games, strategies, questions, concerns and anything else that comes to mind.

Chatting with a few of my fellow FOFC'ers last night after PrimeLord opened up the forum to everyone was pretty neat.

Let's do it again soon. :)

[Draft Dodger]

shouldn't this be stickied for a couple of days?

[moore4807]

If this occurred on 11/24/03 as indicated by Primelord...
How'd they know who's playing for the 2004 Super Bowl????
:eek: :D :eek: :D :eek: :) :) :)

[couriers]

Hey Primelord. That would be

01/24/03

[The_herd]

Originally posted by Draft Dodger
I'm more and more starting to think that the next game he's doing is baseball.

That is the exact same thing I was thinking as I read the transcript. When he started saying it would focus more on the financial end, my first thought was baseball.

And is anyone else praying that Marc Vaugh and Jim can work something out that would benifit both sides?

[Darkiller]

We had a great time chating last night !
thanks to Prime for putting this up and thanks to Jim for his time.


Was great to meet Bragg and Courriers as well :)

[Draft Dodger]

Originally posted by The_herd
That is the exact same thing I was thinking as I read the transcript. When he started saying it would focus more on the financial end, my first thought was baseball.

And is anyone else praying that Marc Vaugh and Jim can work something out that would benifit both sides?

notice also that the last sim game (besides FOF) that he's played was baseball mogul, and the first sport he mentioned that he enjoys watching is baseball.

[cthomer5000]

Originally posted by Draft Dodger
notice also that the last sim game (besides FOF) that he's played was baseball mogul, and the first sport he mentioned that he enjoys watching is baseball.

Exactly. Combine that with the fact that he talked very positively about SI games. That means:

1. He'd be open to future collaboration
2. He's MUCH less likely to be working on a hockey sim with EHM coming out through them (he'd be nuts to go head-to-head)
3. He's said basketball was pretty low on his priorities before.


All signs point to baseball. Which is disappointing to me, since I'm really only interested in football games.

[GrantDawg]

Originally posted by The_herd


And is anyone else praying that Marc Vaugh and Jim can work something out that would benifit both sides?


Yes. Yes! Yes! Yes!

Marc, are you listening? A football game the caliber of CM would be THE game.

Not likely to happen though. SI is more interested in international games, so basketball would be the natural progression. Football has limited appeal outside the States.

[Hands to the Face]

I'm a little disappointed that Jim didn't confront more of the AI concerns head-on in his answer about the game's degree of difficulty. His answer implies that AI exploitation is the problem when it could be argued that AI roster management contributes much more to its "no mas" reply to stiff human competition.

I don't think that AI exploitation is the result of four year's worth of players poking and prodding the game for weak spots. The poor AI GMs were apparent almost from the beginning, making avoiding "exploitation" nearly impossible, since, with each passing game year, computer teams' rosters crumble on their own, regardless of how skilled the human competition may be. Nonetheless, always good to hear Jim's take and to get a look under FOF's hood.

The next game just has to be baseball. . .

[MylesKnight]

Look for a Solecismic Curling Game by early '04..

[superbama]

Originally posted by The_herd


And is anyone else praying that Marc Vaugh and Jim can work something out that would benifit both sides?

Would Jim be willing to put his knowledge into the CM3 interface?

[McSweeny]

if it is in fact baseball, the market is for baseball sims is going to be very interesting. I kind of hope it is baseball. It would be interesting to see how OOTP and PureSim react.

And i wonder if a Jim-SI Games baseball game is too much to hope for :)

[Airhog]

Well there are several possible sports sims.

1. Baseball - Seems like an obvious choice, but there is decent competition with at least 3 different text sims.

2. Hockey - This is a pretty legitimate choice, but I dont think its going to be the game. Especially with EHM joining up with Marc. It ought to be a really great game.

3. Basketball - This is another strong contender. I dont think it will be college basketball. Especially since Pro basketball only has one text sim in the market.

4. Other Sports - There are some other sports that jim could be working on, like tennis, or even something non-sports like a polictical simulator.

My vote though goes for Pro Basketball

[JonInMiddleGA]

Thanks, as always to Jim, Primelord & everyone else who made this chat happen.

After reading the transcript, one thing keeps jumping out at me

[JimG] To be honest, I haven't played any other sports games since I started work on FOF1. The original Baseball Mogul had quite an impact.

I hope the first thing Jim does before writing a single line of code for the next game (whatever it is) is to sit down & play the living hell out of the CM series until he knows it inside & out.

There's too much to be learned from how they've done things for it not to be extremely valuable.

[Anrhydeddu]

Originally posted by JonInMiddleGA
I hope the first thing Jim does before writing a single line of code for the next game (whatever it is) is to sit down & play the living hell out of the CM series until he knows it inside & out.

There's too much to be learned from how they've done things for it not to be extremely valuable.

I agree completely. It seems, to me, that the only "game" he knows now is Diamond Minds, which he tried to turn FOF into. I also think he needs to experience CM, and OOTP and TDCB to some extent, to understand how customers want to play games like these and the attraction of the features and immersion that they offer. With those, I would suspect he would pick up on how the simulation part (AI, field simulation models, etc.) can be the engine but the gamey features (e.g., font office, customization, true player personalities, constant feedback to the gamer, flexibility and options galore, etc.) can be the hook.

[SackAttack]

Originally posted by GrantDawg
Yes. Yes! Yes! Yes!

Marc, are you listening? A football game the caliber of CM would be THE game.

I suspect Marc would say that's redundant. :D

[Tarkus]

There was one huge thing that I think should have been pushed more.

[PrimeLord] since there was a lot of controversy after the release of fof4 can you tell a little bit more about the beta team?

[JimG] I hadn't heard about any controversy. I had three people - all past customers - test the beta version for a period of about three weeks.

[PrimeLord] How do you become a beta tester?

[JimG] These are people who have contributed a lot to discussions about the game. I'm very happy with how they performed, so they'll be invited back with future games. At this time, I don't see needing more than three, but if I do, it's not something people would apply for.

:D :D :D :D :D :D

He's kidding right? All this did was convince me he's totally clueless about beta testing, and that there is no way I'm buying another one of his games until after the second or third patch.

Tarkus

[Subby]

What about MP for FOF or in the least allowing for multiple team rosters to be adjusted for online leagues?

That's a very large feature that would be under heavy consideration for future versions of the game.
<img src="http://www.thefobl.com/forums/images/smilies/woot.gif">

[jander]

Originally posted by primelord


[JimG] I will be moving into a new sport (not that trampoline-full-contact-basketball event on TNN). At this time, I'm not prepared to discuss any details.

[B][PrimeLord] You had mentioned that your next game will be a bit more financially based. Will it allow for selling arena naming rights, similar to todays professional sports?

These quotes make me kind of wonder.....speaks about arenas? also says "new" sport (which I am thinking is not "new" for him, but new in general with the comment about the slam ball comment).

My guess....possibly an Arena Football sim game? I think it would be a good idea, with the sport growing and this would be the only game of it's kind (I am pretty sure AFL fans would buy it up in a second as they have been waiting for an Arena Football game). Who knows, maybe could even get approval from the league to use the team and player names....

The other thoughts on basketball or hockey could work too with the arena comment.

[Tarkus]

Originally posted by jander
My guess....possibly an Arena Football sim game? I think it would be a good idea, with the sport growing and this would be the only game of it's kind (I am pretty sure AFL fans would buy it up in a second as they have been waiting for an Arena Football game). Who knows, maybe could even get approval from the league to use the team and player names....
Umm, no. :p

Tarkus

[sabotai]

I agree with Tarkus. If Jim wasn't aware about concerns about the beta-testing, then he's obviously not paying attention.

[Easy Mac]

I'd say .400's beta testing was far worse, and they supposedly had about 20 or so.

[Dutch]

I wonder if Jim has ever mentioned being a fan of Auto-racing.

Big financials involved at different levels.
Working deals for different leagues at different circuits.
Advertising
Hire and fire drivers and teams

And something that hasn't been touched upon in a while. And there is a whole slew of fanatical race fans out there in the F1 world, CART world, IRL and NASCAR world that would be itching to sink some cash into one that's done well.

You never know, but something to think about anyway. I would certainly be very interested in such a product.

[sabotai]

Easy, Joe S released TDCB knowing that it had bugs. I wouldn't fault the beta testing, I'd fault Joe. And Joe has taken full responsibility for it too. He said it was his mistake.

It seems to me that Jim had either no idea that his game had bugs, or knew and is trying to cover up his ass.

[Anrhydeddu]

You guys must have missed it. The #1 most requested game update or feature for FOF4, by far, is for NFL Europe. Funny he didn't mention that in the chat.

[Easy Mac]

sab...

if you read what jim said, he didn't put any blame on the beta team either. he knew there were bugs and fixed them, just like Joe S.

[TLK]

Originally posted by Dutch
I wonder if Jim has ever mentioned being a fan of Auto-racing.

Big financials involved at different levels.
Working deals for different leagues at different circuits.
Advertising
Hire and fire drivers and teams

And something that hasn't been touched upon in a while. And there is a whole slew of fanatical race fans out there in the F1 world, CART world, IRL and NASCAR world that would be itching to sink some cash into one that's done well.

You never know, but something to think about anyway. I would certainly be very interested in such a product.

I wanted to ask this at the chat, but didn't. We've had a discussion about this on here before. It is a really untapped sim... IMHO.

TLK

[cthomer5000]

1I think auto racing is a farily reasonable guess. Of the "major" sports, I do really think baseball is the only possibility, but outside the non-standard major sports auto-racing has a legtimite shot. Particularly because of all the financial elements that are involved there with sponsorships, money spent on crews, research into improving the cars, etc...

2.Beta-testing. My jaw dropped wide-open when seeing Jim admit he had a. only used 3 beta testers and b. says he sees no reason to change the way things were done for the next game. Whether he was aware of it or not, there were significant issues with the game that were easily discovered on day 1 of play.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by Draft Dodger
I'm more and more starting to think that the next game he's doing is baseball. Same.

[primelord]

Originally posted by Anrhydeddu
You guys must have missed it. The #1 most requested game update or feature for FOF4, by far, is for NFL Europe. Funny he didn't mention that in the chat.

:rolleyes:

Why do you find that funny? The question didn't come up so why would he have mentioned it?

[Buzzbee]

First there was this:
(PrimeLord) Would you care to elaborate on what your next sim will be?

(JimG) I will be moving into a new sport (not that trampoline-full-contact-basketball event on TNN). At this time, I'm not prepared to discuss any details.

And later with:

(PrimeLord) You had mentioned that your next game will be a bit more financially based. Will it allow for selling arena naming rights, similar to todays professional sports?

(JimG) The design isn't yet down to that level of detail, but that's certainly something that would be in line with what I hope to accomplish with the game.

And lastly:

(PrimeLord) Will it (the new game in development) be along the lines of FOF? i.e. will you assume a GM/HEad coaching role or a team of some sport?

(JimG) Yes. The role will be the same. I'm hoping to focus much more on the financial end, at least in design. But it will still primarily be a coach/GM field simulation.

Now for my interpretations. It will definitely be a sport sim. He says so - I will be moving into a newsport). Selling naming rights for stadiums/arenas/fields would lead me to believe it will be a PRO sport, not college. But the most intriguing (sp?) thing he said is his last comment - "But it will still primarily be a coach/GM field simulation." I don't know if I am focusing on the words field simulation to much, but that makes me wonder. It is possible that he meant field simulation in a generic, genre encompassing manner. In other words using the term field simulation somewhat interchangeably with the term text sim. OR, it could have been quite literal. That the simulation will involve a field. Not a court or rink, but a field. If that is the case, then I would imagine baseball would be the logical choice.

To me it seems that there is SO much there that would draw Jim to baseball. The sheer stat aspect of the game. The fact that the stats are so readily available. The fact that the action in a baseball game lends itself very well to a text sim - pitch then result, pitch then result - as opposed to a more free flowing soccer/hockey/basketball type of sim. The fact that Jim has stated that he enjoys baseball. The aspect of financials and that Jim said he enjoys watching baseball. My guess is that the things that have prevented him from doing this before are

1) Need to follow up with FOF series for business reasons. TCY was a natural complement to FOF and the partnership with EA allowed him to do this rather than spend time on FOF2001/2002. Baseball got pushed aside because of the business need to continue the FOF series.

2) The existing competition made it a less attractive market than sticking with football.

3) A baseball simulation would probably be a very large project. Jim needed to build his business financially to the point where he could afford to go a long period of time without a new product so that he could develop a baseball game.

With the release of FOF4, and with the trickle/stream of additional sales of TCY that the partnership with Rivals.com possibly generated, Jim is probably in a position to do the extensive research required to move into a new genre. His football series has become somewhat mature in that the base of the game doesn't need any major tweaking and the things that are left are fine tuning and feature addtion.

The thing that makes me believe it will be baseball is the following comment:

Finally, ...and I know that it's not politically correct to say this these days, but the best advice I received when starting out was from a former editor of Computer Gaming World, who told me to "design the game you want to play." It's been almost five years now, and I'm only now beginning to see all the reasons why that's good advice.

I think his statement to "design the game you want to play" coupled with his admitted enjoyment of baseball suggests that a baseball game would be one that he would most want to play, and therefore is driving what game he develops next.

Sorry for the lengthy post, but I had a lot to say. Of course it is just my $0.02. :)

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by Buzzbee
First there was this:


And later with:



And lastly:



Now for my interpretations. It will definitely be a sport sim. He says so - I will be moving into a newsport). Selling naming rights for stadiums/arenas/fields would lead me to believe it will be a PRO sport, not college. But the most intriguing (sp?) thing he said is his last comment - "But it will still primarily be a coach/GM field simulation." I don't know if I am focusing on the words field simulation to much, but that makes me wonder. It is possible that he meant field simulation in a generic, genre encompassing manner. In other words using the term field simulation somewhat interchangeably with the term text sim. OR, it could have been quite literal. That the simulation will involve a field. Not a court or rink, but a field. If that is the case, then I would imagine baseball would be the logical choice.

To me it seems that there is SO much there that would draw Jim to baseball. The sheer stat aspect of the game. The fact that the stats are so readily available. The fact that the action in a baseball game lends itself very well to a text sim - pitch then result, pitch then result - as opposed to a more free flowing soccer/hockey/basketball type of sim. The fact that Jim has stated that he enjoys baseball. The aspect of financials and that Jim said he enjoys watching baseball. My guess is that the things that have prevented him from doing this before are

1) Need to follow up with FOF series for business reasons. TCY was a natural complement to FOF and the partnership with EA allowed him to do this rather than spend time on FOF2001/2002. Baseball got pushed aside because of the business need to continue the FOF series.

2) The existing competition made it a less attractive market than sticking with football.

3) A baseball simulation would probably be a very large project. Jim needed to build his business financially to the point where he could afford to go a long period of time without a new product so that he could develop a baseball game.

With the release of FOF4, and with the trickle/stream of additional sales of TCY that the partnership with Rivals.com possibly generated, Jim is probably in a position to do the extensive research required to move into a new genre. His football series has become somewhat mature in that the base of the game doesn't need any major tweaking and the things that are left are fine tuning and feature addtion.

The thing that makes me believe it will be baseball is the following comment:



I think his statement to "design the game you want to play" coupled with his admitted enjoyment of baseball suggests that a baseball game would be one that he would most want to play, and therefore is driving what game he develops next.

Sorry for the lengthy post, but I had a lot to say. Of course it is just my $0.02. :) Yeah! What BuzzBee said! ;)




Actually, I queued on the "on-field" comment as well.

[Bee]

I think you are reading too much into the mention of the GM field simulation comment. I read that as saying the field of being a GM (as in what field of work are you in?).

The strongest argument IMO for a baseball sim is probaby your last point, the one about "designing a game you want to play". From previous comments, I think Jim likes baseball and hockey the most of all sports and perhaps baseball the most.

Based on that I would make baseball the most likely game, hockey a close second. I also am intrigued with the idea of his going in a different direction and going with a racing sim. I don't expect that is likely, but I wouldn't be shocked if that were the case. Basketball doesn't seem likely, but is still an outside possibility.

So my breakdown would be like this:

1. Baseball - 50% chance
2. Hockey - 35% chance
3. Racing - 10 % chance
4. Basketball - 4% chance
5. Something else - 1% chance

[Easy Mac]

I just like the fact Jim almost put in the profile assistant for the game plan. Seems the only reason its not in is due to time constraints, but that he may want to add in the patch.

Man, if that could come with pre-done percentages, like west-coast, cover-2, all that stuff, that would help immensly and give the game some more personality.

[jamesUMD]

I asked about eight questions during the chat and got some decent replies. I really wish he would have addressed some added features that he was thinking about come the next patch. I was also a bit dissapointed regarding my question as to why only certain positions have special teams scores. The reply that Qb's do not play special team's, seemed IMO, arrogant. I know Qb's don't play special teams but what about the other positions that don't have the score. I thought the chat was a step in the right direction. Hopefully, in the future Jim will choose to answer some issues (difficulty), and handle some of the tougher questions.

[Ksyrup]

Originally posted by cthomer5000
2.Beta-testing. My jaw dropped wide-open when seeing Jim admit he had a. only used 3 beta testers and b. says he sees no reason to change the way things were done for the next game. Whether he was aware of it or not, there were significant issues with the game that were easily discovered on day 1 of play.

My take on this is that his comments about how he hadn't heard of any controversy were either (a) genuine, if he has not bothered to come to the board and read the posts; or (b) purposeful, as a subtle dig at this community for thinking we are the only ones who purchase his games. I'm not sure which.

[panerd]

Boxing? It seems like Jim really puts an emphasis on training in both of his games. Imagine taking a kid from the streets of Harlem to a federal penitentiary in Indiana.

[Anthony]

Jim can't afford to take sublte digs at this community. he still has 25% of his product unsold.

i still don't get the mystery invovled. SIGames and .400 are in the business of making text-based sports sims and we've known about their upcoming release schedule for many months now.

this is silly. don't give me that jibber-jabber about "it's his business, he can run it any way he wants". it's nonsense. in the grand scheme of things his game and company are a pebble in the desert of life. this is a joke. i rather something be overhyped if this is the alternative.

[Easy Mac]

Originally posted by Hell Atlantic
Jim can't afford to take sublte digs at this community. he still has 25% of his product unsold.

i still don't get the mystery invovled. SIGames and .400 are in the business of making text-based sports sims and we've known about their upcoming release schedule for many months now.

this is silly. don't give me that jibber-jabber about "it's his business, he can run it any way he wants". it's nonsense. in the grand scheme of things his game and company are a pebble in the desert of life. this is a joke. i rather something be overhyped if this is the alternative.

And we see what happens when .400 releases a game on its announced date, its far shittier than FOF4. And SI have pushed CM back, at least they know better than to rush things.

I don't know about you, but I'd rather have a game that works than a game that is all hype. Speaking of which why do you even bother, you don't play the games anyway, and I'd venture to say you haven't played FOF4. So how about you try the alternative instead of overhyped games, you might actually be surprised it works.

[Easy Mac]

and to James:

Only O-lineman and D-lineman do not have scores for special teams. I have no idea whether they are on special teams (besides punts and field goals which i would assume would use their pass rushing/blocking skills and whatnot, i mean like regular kick returns, where I think the special team ratings most apply) in real life or in the game, but every applicable player has a special teams rating (whether special teams or punt/kick returns). Hope this helps, though you may be able to shed light on the lineman on special teams.

[Bee]

Originally posted by panerd
Boxing? It seems like Jim really puts an emphasis on training in both of his games. Imagine taking a kid from the streets of Harlem to a federal penitentiary in Indiana.

In seriousness, I would love a boxing game from Jim, but I love the sport but I'm sure I'm in the minority here. Front Office Boxing would be an instant purchase for me, no question.

Edit:

I just read this post again. It somewhat resembles English, I need to start having my tech writer to review my posts. :D

[couriers]

Originally posted by Bee
In seriousness, I would love a boxing game from Jim, but I love the sport but I'm sure I'm in the minority here. Front Office Boxing would be an instant purchase for me, no question.

Same here.

[jamesUMD]

Easy Mac,
Point taken! I guess my issue is more that I got the impression that Jim was answering the easy questions and avoiding the topics of real substance like the beta testing, missing features, and AI, and I misdirected my focus. The discussion felt, to me at least, more like a politician trying not to implicate himself, rather than open discussion where issues could be broached. Just my opinion, and if anyone disagrees, that's fine!

Couriers,
How's the weather down there. I have been looking at flight to Florida and Ft. Lauderdale had some of the cheaper flights. My girlfriend and I were flying down next week sometime. Also is there alot to do? Any info would be appreciated. We are both in our 20's if it helps?

[panerd]

Originally posted by Bee
In seriousness, I would love a boxing game from Jim, but I love the sport but I'm sure I'm in the minority here. Front Office Boxing would be an instant purchase for me, no question.

Edit:

I just read this post again. It somewhat resembles English, I need to start having my tech writer to review my posts. :D

I agree, I was actually quite serious about the boxing game. I do think that Jim would need some sort of graphics for the actual fight. I wouldn't care about being able to control my boxer, or even being able to do anything during the fight, but I can't imagine a text recap of the fight boding well for sales.

"Boxer one throws a left hook and connects. Boxer two misses with a jab..."

I just don't know about that. But the training, promoting, and rankings would be something that it seems like Jim would thrive at. (Plus it would be really cool if in jim's intepretation there is a lot of the underworld stuff. Like real boxing!)

[MizzouRah]

I would love for Jim to tackle hockey. I know EHM/SI have one coming out, but that is the ONE text sim I am missing.

Funny how my favorite sport isn't played on my pc, I have it on my ps2, but that isn't the same.


Todd

[moore4807]

I played a text based hockey sim years ago - it was a homebuild loosely based on Strat-o-matic Hockey but using paper and pen with D & D hydra dice 01-99 and homemade graphs for each player.

BTW NHL Hockey rink is 200 X 85

13' behind net / 60' goal line to blue line / 54' center ice area
game board was made - end line to blue line was 12 (6ft long) X 17 (5' wide) boxes for the ends of the ice! Center Ice was 9 ( 6' long) X 17 (5'wide) boxes. For the math wiz's, yes we gave away a foot of the end boards but even reducing the gameboard to inches the gameboard was 15 X 7 feet !!!! This went on a garage wall in my friends house courtesy of his dad... colored magnets with players numbers written on them acted as markers.



For example Craig MacTavish (Edm) carried the puck out of his own zone (B-skater moves 4 boxes per turn), Ken Linseman (Phi) (b skater also) moved to intercept him and the ended up in the same box at the end of the turn. now the median number is 50 offense low numbers / defense high numbers. MacTavish is a +7 skater/puckhandler, Linseman is a +5 defender. The dice is rolled and say 37 is rolled - MacTavish has a +2 on Linseman for this play result is 39. The chart reads 01-05 Penalty on Defense player, 6-15 Event (puck out of play, def player falls down), 16-25 Player moves thru zone but is slowed to half speed for next turn. 26-45 player retains control moving thru zone (moves to next turn) 46-50 Player moves thru zone but loses control of puck.
MacTavish retains puck and rolls next turn with Linseman in hot pursuit!!!
Then there are 10 turns per minute ( 6 secs per turn) and each player on the ice longer than 1 minute loses 10 pts per roll and one speed (box) per turn - once the player got to the bench it took 5 min rest to recharge player to 100% condition - each min less got 10 % penalty.

Game was tracked on paper and was stat heaven!!! Thinking about it today on computer would be really cool - but will wait for EHM to see what they offer first - ROOTING for Jim to do it - but have bad feeling it will be Baseball sim first
Just my $.02 cents

[couriers]

Originally posted by jamesUMD
Couriers,
How's the weather down there. I have been looking at flight to Florida and Ft. Lauderdale had some of the cheaper flights. My girlfriend and I were flying down next week sometime. Also is there alot to do? Any info would be appreciated. We are both in our 20's if it helps?

Just saw this :)

I'll send you a PM so the thread won't go off topic.

[Chas in Cinti]

Man I hope it's baseball... I just haven't found "the one" for that sport... tried OOTP, tried BBM.... Loved Diamond Mind, but hated the fact that it was one and done season...

Oh man let this happen!

Regards,
Chas

[NYFAN]

I think baseball is going to be it. Racing though would have potential (even though I can't stand watching or following it or anything like that, just a good text based game).

If you think about baseball though, you could create a financial masterpiece which is what he's going for. He would take it a full 2 steps past OOTP in the way you would market, run stadiums, tickets, all levels of the game. Your minor leagues would probably drain your finances (although you'd try and get them as close to breaking even as possible) while your major leagues obviously benefited from the minors, and compensated by bringing in the money. I think that if done correctly, Jim could nail baseball in about 2 versions that could blow OOTP out of the water. Also, the fact that the playcalling is so simple, I think it would be easy for him to incorporate it into the game in a V1 instead of having to wait a bit like he did in fof if memory serves me correctly. In many ways, having OOTP and other baseball games out there will make it a lot easier for him to learn from their mistakes, and have a much more visual vision of the game.

[Swaggs]

I think the brightest point of this chat was that Jim seemed more accessible and open to suggestions than in the past.

[Blackadar]

This chat is a month and a half old. Isn't it time to un-sticky this?