Anyone here loking foraward to the spring release of OOTP 2006?

[PSUColonel]

Just wondering how many folks think this one might be a good product.

[MrBug708]

I believe so...

[Lathum]

i think so as well. The last one got us throught the long drive from Texas to NJ

[FBPro]

Yep, I concur as well.

[sovereignstar]

Will there be a manual for this game?

[Young Drachma]

I'll surely check it out. NHL EHM once I got the hang of it, still has my attention in a way that no other text sim has. And I love hockey, but not as much in terms of management as I do baseball.

So that bodes well for this, given that I liked OOTP 6 pretty well.

[Marc Duffy]

Will there be a manual for this game?

Yep

[Marc Duffy]

Advert alert :: if you are thinking about buying the game, there is a 10% saving promotion running till the end of Feb on pre-orders.

www.ootpbaseball2006.com/buy.php

[Bee]

Although I've bought several versions of OOTP in the past, it never really impressed me like FM/CM did. I think the upcoming version is the most interested I've been in a baseball game release.

[Marc Vaughan]

Yes ;)

[Ramzavail]

I am about the buy it with the discount, I've been meaning to.

[miked]

Seeing as how Markus never completely finished v6 or 6.5 or 6.51a or whatever, I'll probably wait and see how OOTP:whatever is. There are just so many times I'm willing to give a developer money product unseen when they frequently don't deliver.

[sovereignstar]

Yep

Oh, that's clutch.

[SelzShoes]

This will be the first OOTP product in a long time I will not buy. Not that I think it will be a poor design or game, but because of the horrifically incompetent way the OOTP Board is moderated. That place shows the worst face possible for the company.

[Eaglesfan27]

Seeing as how Markus never completely finished v6 or 6.5 or 6.51a or whatever, I'll probably wait and see how OOTP:whatever is. There are just so many times I'm willing to give a developer money product unseen when they frequently don't deliver.
Ditto. I'll wait and read some reviews on here.

[Cuckoo]

Agreed. I've certainly received my money's worth out of OOTP as far as time played and enjoyable experience, but it does still gnaw on me slightly that all things weren't delivered as advertised.

I'd say the odds that I buy it are high, especially since I'm in a OOTP MP league, but I don't see myself putting up the money without seeing the product first this time.

All of that said, I have high hopes. But I'm just a hopeful kind of guy. :)

[sovereignstar]

This will be the first OOTP product in a long time I will not buy. Not that I think it will be a poor design or game, but because of the horrifically incompetent way the OOTP Board is moderated. That place shows the worst face possible for the company.

Could you elaborate some more on that? I check the boards over there like 3 or 4 times a year.

[Marc Duffy]

This will be the first OOTP product in a long time I will not buy. Not that I think it will be a poor design or game, but because of the horrifically incompetent way the OOTP Board is moderated. That place shows the worst face possible for the company.

It's a shame you wont give a game a go because of a forum really

[Swaggs]

I'm really hopeful that this will be a great single player game.

[Schmidty]

I just hope we can convert old OOTP online leagues to OOTP 2006. I would hate to have to keep/play OOTP 6.5 forever because a conversion isn't possible. That could spell the death-knell of awesome leagues like the RWBL.

[stevew]

I have zero expectations for this, so if its good, i will be really suprised.

[SelzShoes]

It's a shame you wont give a game a go because of a forum really
Well, like it or not the Mods, especially if they carry Administrator/OOTP Developments under their name are reps of the company. And when that Mod tells you that the only way he can think of to end the harassment you are receiving is for the harassers to get tired of it; and after you leave the boards because you are tired of being harassed, you find out the Mods have given your e-mail (which is not part of your public profile) to the very people you’ve been complaining about so they can continue harassing you—well, it doesn’t speak well of the company.

Why should I purchase a product from a company that tells me, I’m not as valued a customer as others?

You all should be greatful for a Mods as evenhanded and fair as Skydog.

[Schmidty]

Well, like it or not the Mods, especially if they carry Administrator/OOTP Developments under their name are reps of the company. And when that Mod tells you that the only way he can think of to end the harassment you are receiving is for the harassers to get tired of it; and after you leave the boards because you are tired of being harassed, you find out the Mods have given your e-mail (which is not part of your public profile) to the very people you’ve been complaining about so they can continue harassing you—well, it doesn’t speak well of the company.

Why should I purchase a product from a company that tells me, I’m not as valued a customer as others?

You all should be greatful for a Mods as evenhanded and fair as Skydog.

No offense, but having a victim's-mentality (as it appears you have) probably didn't help your case.

[AgustusM]

I am sure I will buy it, but I am skeptical about if it can capture my imagination the way OOTP v3-5 did.

Once we got to v6 I felt the game started to slip a bit and the commitment to fixing issues, fulfilling promises, etc wained quite a bit from the early years when it seemed OOTP was really on top of it.

IMO - OOTP jumped the shark a bit with the .400 merger and subsequent fiasco and has never quite got back to its glory days of versions 3-5.

yes, I still buy it because it is cheap and I want to check it out, but in the old days OOTP was something I played almost every day and now it is a once in awhile thing.

Also I am very concerned that this latest merger might kill the greatest thing that OOTP ever did IMO and that is the ability to change anything, anytime, anywhere. If I am playing a solo league and notice something out of whack at any time it is simple as can be to change it, even mid-game. EA, Grey Dog, Solesemic, and the one SI product I tried (hockey) all either restrict editing, require a third party utility or it is "coming in the next release."

For me in my solo leagues, I like to be in control of the entire universe and OOTP is the only sports text sim that ever got this right in my opinion.

[SelzShoes]

No offense, but having a victim's-mentality (as it appears you have) probably didn't help your case.
I can see your point and how the post came across--I'll conceed that point to you. But, I don't think I've been to the OOTP board since August and I'm STILL getting e-mails from two of the asshats . . .

Am I a victim--no. I saw a situation I didn't like and left; but my leaving wasn't enough apparently. So, I'll not buy any OOTP/SI product and encourage others to do the same. Will it have an impact? Probably not, but I'll feel better.

[bbor]

I can see your point and how the post came across--I'll conceed that point to you. But, I don't think I've been to the OOTP board since August and I'm STILL getting e-mails from two of the asshats . . .

Am I a victim--no. I saw a situation I didn't like and left; but my leaving wasn't enough apparently. So, I'll not buy any OOTP/SI product and encourage others to do the same. Will it have an impact? Probably not, but I'll feel better.

HEHEHEHEHEEH

He said Asshat:D

[Ben E Lou]

I can see your point and how the post came across--I'll conceed that point to you. But, I don't think I've been to the OOTP board since August and I'm STILL getting e-mails from two of the asshats . . .

Am I a victim--no. I saw a situation I didn't like and left; but my leaving wasn't enough apparently. So, I'll not buy any OOTP/SI product and encourage others to do the same. Will it have an impact? Probably not, but I'll feel better.Dude, what the heck happened that people are e-mailing you about something 5 months ago??? :confused:

[dervack]

Seeing as how Markus never completely finished v6 or 6.5 or 6.51a or whatever, I'll probably wait and see how OOTP:whatever is. There are just so many times I'm willing to give a developer money product unseen when they frequently don't deliver.
What he said.

[SelzShoes]

Dude, what the heck happened that people are e-mailing you about something 5 months ago??? :confused:
All I know is at one point I said OT regulars need to follow the forum rules outside of OT--and that set a group of OTers off. Check over my post at OOTP--Seth70Liz76 was my screenname there--I don't think there is anything more than that. Heck, 90-95% of my post came in the dynasty forum. If anyone knows of anything else, I'd love to know.

[MizzouRah]

It's probably me, but I really don't care for SI's game interface. EHM is so darn confusing for me to navigate around and figure out what needs to be done. I loved OOTP's interface.

Like I said, I'm sure it's me, but if OOTP is that hard to navigate, I doubt I'll get it for the first time since v2.

I do think it would be neat to find talent in a different league somewhere in the world though and sign them to your team.

[Draft Dodger]

You all should be greatful for a Mods as evenhanded and fair as Skydog.

how does THIS slip by without comment?

[FBPro]

Well, like it or not the Mods, especially if they carry Administrator/OOTP Developments under their name are reps of the company. And when that Mod tells you that the only way he can think of to end the harassment you are receiving is for the harassers to get tired of it; and after you leave the boards because you are tired of being harassed, you find out the Mods have given your e-mail (which is not part of your public profile) to the very people you’ve been complaining about so they can continue harassing you—well, it doesn’t speak well of the company.

Why should I purchase a product from a company that tells me, I’m not as valued a customer as others?

You all should be greatful for a Mods as evenhanded and fair as Skydog.
Geez, and you know for a fact that your email addy was passed on so that the harassing could continue? ? ? I can think of a bunch of senarios where your email could be passed on to "the enemy" without the people doing it even knowing why or even possibly under the impression that they are doing good.

Hate that you have had this experience but hope I never mod a board where you're a member........ :confused:

[sovereignstar]

how does THIS slip by without comment?

I dunno. Someone get banned? ;)

[Draft Dodger]

to be fair to SelzShoes (and SkyDog too, I guess) - the moderation over there does have some pretty significant issues with consistency at times.

not that that would stop me from buying the game, of course. ymmv.

[Icy]

I preordered it the first day it was announced, not for the discount but because i don't mind to expend money supporting products/companies that i like, in fact i have bought all the text sims in the market in the past years, even for sports that i don't follow.

I think SIgames is the reference in text sims, specially because the role playing and players personalities. CM Italia in like 1995 was my first text sim experience. I have played all their games since then, and it was at SI boards where i discovered FOFC boards and FOF/TCY a few years ago. I feel like i'm in debt with them regarding my gamming experience. OOTP 6 is also an awesome game imho, i enjoy it a lot both playing solo and in the online DKBL that i co-commish so i have double reason to wait excited for it. What if it ends being a crap game? well i would have lost some €, it's not that i won't be able to feed my familly because that, i have bought really crap games in the past anyway, but i tend to trust developers that surprissed me once, it can always happen again.

About their boards, well i haven't ever had any problem or been banned at any board, every board has stupids and nice guys, i just read what i want and ignore what i don't, but i don't find that board that bad. I use it to find info about ootp and i get it, that is what i wanted, to enjoy chatting i have FOFC, with it's own nice guys, weird characters and assholes too.

Btw, just made a search for CM Italia to be sure about the release date, it looked too far from now, i have been playing text sims for over 12 years and i'm just 30. I found this about the CM/FM series, nice historical info.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Championship_Manager

[Galaril]

Nope. This franchise jumped the shark with the addition of leagues from Madagascar or wherever.

[Marc Duffy]

Also I am very concerned that this latest merger might kill the greatest thing that OOTP ever did IMO and that is the ability to change anything, anytime, anywhere. If I am playing a solo league and notice something out of whack at any time it is simple as can be to change it, even mid-game. EA, Grey Dog, Solesemic, and the one SI product I tried (hockey) all either restrict editing, require a third party utility or it is "coming in the next release."

For me in my solo leagues, I like to be in control of the entire universe and OOTP is the only sports text sim that ever got this right in my opinion.

That continues with this version.

OOTP Baseball 2006 will be as customizable as every other OOTP release and in doing so it's not comparable with anything else SI has to offer currently

[SackAttack]

Advert alert :: if you are thinking about buying the game, there is a 10% saving promotion running till the end of Feb on pre-orders.

www.ootpbaseball2006.com/buy.php

For what it's worth, the last pre-order came just as my bills for Christmas gifts were mounting up. In other words, I didn't have the money to ante up at 20% off.

10% off now just feels kinda like a slap in the face, truthfully. "Here's a discount that may not be well-timed for everybody, now here's a discount for the rest of you because while we value you as customers, we don't value you quite as much as the people who COULD give us their money a month ago as opposed to now."

I would've preordered at 20% off had it been when I had the money. At 10%, I'm just inclined to sit back and wait for a general consensus about the game to roll in before.

FWIW, I feel that way about sliding discounts in general, not just where SI and this game are involved.

[yabanci]

I hadn't been, but after playing FM2006 I am now looking forward to the new OOTP.

I thought OOTP4 was good, relative to what was out there at the time (Baseball Mogul). But from there I don't think Markus was up to the task of really advancing the game. He kept adding new things that never quite worked and never fixed the problems and general sloppiness of the game.

FM is very professional software and I'm hoping the professionalism and attention to detail will rub off on Markus. Then again, I don't know how much the SI guys are involved in developing the game. If it's just Markus' outfit being sold through SI, then I fully expect another disappointment.

In any event, I don't trust them enough to preorder the game. I'll wait to see the reviews and try the demo.

[astrosfan64]

Although I've bought several versions of OOTP in the past, it never really impressed me like FM/CM did. I think the upcoming version is the most interested I've been in a baseball game release.

Agreed 100%

[astrosfan64]

It's probably me, but I really don't care for SI's game interface. EHM is so darn confusing for me to navigate around and figure out what needs to be done. I loved OOTP's interface.

Like I said, I'm sure it's me, but if OOTP is that hard to navigate, I doubt I'll get it for the first time since v2.

I do think it would be neat to find talent in a different league somewhere in the world though and sign them to your team.

It is you :). I love the SI Games interface. Well I love the football manager interface. Best interface out of any text based sim. At least in my opinion. EHM interface isn't so great though.

[lighthousekeeper]

My hope:
...is that as a result of the merger, the best aspects of both SI and the prior OOTP series are combined. The best aspects of SI are:

1. they are one of the few text sims that aren't a 1 man operation, so they can achieve great depth (as exhibited by personality modeling, 1 million leagues modeled, etc...) and a solid engine that you have confidence has been thoroughly tested by paid employees.
2. because they have a global fan base, they have learned to genericize or make configurable certain elements of the game so as to allow the game to realistically mimic the variety of leagues throughout the world.

The best aspects of OOTP are:
1. As mentioned previously, the game is open and editable.
2. Great stat-keeping, both through the Almanac and Cato exports. You can have a 100 year old league and have stats available for any major leaguer that ever played.
3. Ability to sim 1 day or 1 year relatively painlessly
4. Markus (imho) while maybe not satisfying all baseball purists, has been able to capture that certain something that makes playing the game fun
5. multiplayer league support (and if one person whines "where's h2h", i swear to god...!)

So the result would be a game that is being advertised, that builds on the current OOTP, but expands to allow for global leagues and has an underlying engine that you can confidence in has been thoroughly tested

My fear:

..is that as a result of the merger, OOTP takes on some of the worst aspects of SI/FM.

The worst aspects of FM series are:
1. Horrible history/stat tracking/reordbook keeping in FM. This has been defended as "a soccer thing, you wouldn't understand", and I hope that's just it. But I don't want to lose 1 iota of almanacing or stat browsing capabilities in OOTP.
2. Closed/inflexible system. Maybe I don't fully understand the capabilities of the FM series, but I just don't think FM is as open as OOTP when it comes to being able to dissect the datafile structure and create 3rd party exporters (ala Cato). And some things seem "locked down" once a FM league has started.
3. Can't just sim 1 year in FM. Sure FM is extremely engrossing and you'd feel like you're letting your team down if you do this, but it doesn't seem like you can just click one button and then come back in an hour to see how the season went.
4. Multiplayer in FM?


(Please don't take this as an FM bash - I love the game [having purchases 3 versions over the years] and it is wonderful for what it does.) I'm optimistic that the next ootp will be as advertised and be what I am hoping for and that my fears are unfounded.

[Eaglesfan27]

4. Multiplayer in FM?


(Please don't take this as an FM bash - I love the game [having purchases 3 versions over the years] and it is wonderful for what it does.) I'm optimistic that the next ootp will be as advertised and be what I am hoping for and that my fears are unfounded.

I agree with most of your post, but MP in FM is great IMO. It is the only text sim that I know of where H2H play actually works. I had a great time playing against Axxon in a career about a year ago.

[lighthousekeeper]

I agree with most of your post, but MP in FM is great IMO. It is the only text sim that I know of where H2H play actually works. I had a great time playing against Axxon in a career about a year ago.
ok sorry then - that was just my ignorance about mp in fm. i had just made the assumption since i didn't notice many fm leagues around (not that I looked).

[cody8200]

I pre-ordered the day it was announced. I can't wait!

[Deattribution]

Not a purchase for me, ITP was the worse support I've ever received for any game I've purchased (online).

OOTP5 was fun, but OOTP6 was kind of like - it was really going to be good but..... Though, really, I promise, 6.5 makes it something special... oh wait... well really, this time, I mean it, buy OOTP2006 (or whatever it's called)..

No thanks :)

[Buccaneer]

OOTP5 is fun, but OOTP6 was kind of like - but didn't grab hold...and 2006 will be too much like a FM game. I do hope it sells well and it is highly acclaimed.

[Marc Duffy]

OOTP5 is fun, but OOTP6 was kind of like - but didn't grab hold...and 2006 will be too much like a FM game. I do hope it sells well and it is highly acclaimed.

At least try the demo and decide then?

[Drake]

I've purchased each OOTP edition since v2, and I just pre-ordered last night. I have my own criticisms of OOTP in general, but honestly, I keep buying because it is, in my opinion, the premier career baseball simulation on the market. Puresim has never grabbed me, and I just never felt immersed in the Baseball Mogul series. YMMV, of course, but until something better comes along, I'll keep buying.

My only hope is that the new engine coding does something to fix a dev system that seems completely and utterly random -- but I can even live with that given that I tend to sim a year at a time. It could be that OOTP appeals to me because of the *way* I play it rather than what it is as a complete product, but in any event, I'm excited about what the SI acquisition means for this title.

[riz]

My hope:
3. Can't just sim 1 year in FM. Sure FM is extremely engrossing and you'd feel like you're letting your team down if you do this, but it doesn't seem like you can just click one button and then come back in an hour to see how the season went.


You can actually. Just like in NHL EHM, you can leave the control of your team to your assistant manager (that is, if you are controlling a team at all) and leave the game on holiday with a selected date to come back. Then one click at "Go on Vacation" and you can leave the game ticking away. Depending on the number of leagues you have setup in the game and your system specs, time to run a full year varies (I'm just setting up a quick test with just NHL on my testbox for the afternoon) but I'm fairly sure that with a decent system and a limited amount of leagues, an hour for one season can be achieved. Sure enough, it'll never be something like "one click to sim a season in 30 seconds" because of the depth and detail involved, but as a concept the functionality is there.

This is how we run most of our soak tests btw. Currently my long term soak test on 2.1.3 patch is kicking in year 2205 as it has been running on holiday for some time now.

[Ksyrup]

OOTP5 is fun, but OOTP6 was kind of like - but didn't grab hold...and 2006 will be too much like a FM game. I do hope it sells well and it is highly acclaimed.
I think this is where I sit with the game. I enjoyed several of the previous versions of OOTP, even with their obvious limitations, but the last version, despite the idea that the game had improved, just didn't do it for me at all. And I really cannot get a good feel for the FM/EHM style of game. I thought it was just because FM is soccer, but I like hockey and was completely confused/turned off by the interface and the general feel of the game. I don't know why. I'll probably try the OOTP demo, though. And once I get baseball fever, I may end up buying it just because. But I don't see myself getting much of a return on the purchase.

[Marc Vaughan]

2. Closed/inflexible system. Maybe I don't fully understand the capabilities of the FM series, but I just don't think FM is as open as OOTP when it comes to being able to dissect the datafile structure and create 3rd party exporters (ala Cato). And some things seem "locked down" once a FM league has started.
We generally release our game database format so people can create their own tools to 'meddle' with the game as they see fit and also supply a pre-game database editor for the same reason.

With regards to changing league formats in FM its somewhat more complicated than OOTP traditionally because of the myriad of weird and wonderful ways which soccer leagues operate - this doesn't inherantly lend itself to customisation by users ... although it is something we're looking into.

3. Can't just sim 1 year in FM. Sure FM is extremely engrossing and you'd feel like you're letting your team down if you do this, but it doesn't seem like you can just click one button and then come back in an hour to see how the season went.
You can do this via. "going on holiday" as Marc Duffy indicated.

4. Multiplayer in FM?
Its present but done in a more 'Quake' style than OOTP - ie. you and your league mates are all online together playing rather than posting results etc. online.

I do like the online league side of OOTP though and its one of the things I'm hoping we can learn from Markus is how to improve this in our other titles for those people who prefer the OOTP way of playing online...

[Fouts]

For what it's worth, the last pre-order came just as my bills for Christmas gifts were mounting up. In other words, I didn't have the money to ante up at 20% off.

10% off now just feels kinda like a slap in the face, truthfully. "Here's a discount that may not be well-timed for everybody, now here's a discount for the rest of you because while we value you as customers, we don't value you quite as much as the people who COULD give us their money a month ago as opposed to now."

I would've preordered at 20% off had it been when I had the money. At 10%, I'm just inclined to sit back and wait for a general consensus about the game to roll in before.

FWIW, I feel that way about sliding discounts in general, not just where SI and this game are involved.

I'll be paying full price, when the game is available. I've pre-ordered too many times only to find out the game is pushed back another 3-6 months. (I don't think this will happen with OOTP 2006, but it's still my policy.)

[dervack]

I'm waiting for a demo before I even think about purchasing. As much as everyone hates that it keeps being brought up, the lack of H2H in 6 and the subsequent promises of it going to be in there eventually really soured me on the OOTP series and Markus. I will DL the demo and give it a shot, but as far as pre-ordering? Never again. My money will stay with me until I have the game and am happy with it.

[Ramzavail]

Its present but done in a more 'Quake' style than OOTP - ie. you and your league mates are all online together playing rather than posting results etc. online.

I do like the online league side of OOTP though and its one of the things I'm hoping we can learn from Markus is how to improve this in our other titles for those people who prefer the OOTP way of playing online...

Does anybody know where Marcus has detailed the online portion of the game? I'd like to read that.

[biological warrior]

How about the sim engine? Any ideas on how fast it will be?

[Icy]

Does anybody know where Marcus has detailed the online portion of the game? I'd like to read that.Related talk:

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/showthread.php?t=110058&highlight=online+league

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/showthread.php?t=109739&highlight=online+league

[Icy]

How about the sim engine? Any ideas on how fast it will be?From Markus in the OOTP2006 blog:

Simulation Speed

The game engine is faster than the one in OOTP 6! Honestly! Just an example: Simulating an OOTPBM 2006 season, with a standard modern day baseball world setup (17 leagues, 210 Teams, almost 8800 players and 11636 games!), including writing boxscores of every big-league game to disk, took 2 minutes and 25 seconds on my PC.

Now you think, that’s a very fast PC. Yes, it is a very fast system, to be honest. And the final version will be a bit slower because the complete AI is not yet implemented. However, simulating an OOTP 6.5 season with 30 teams, including simulating minor league games, took exactly 9 minutes and 7 seconds!

So, despite the fact that the game had to simulate almost three times as many games, and had to handle AI for twice as many teams, and had to take care of aging and developing three times as many players, OOTPBM 2006 was more than three times faster than OOTP 6.5! That’s what a 100% rewrite and benefiting from the SI code-base does for you, folks!



Link to the whole read:
http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/blogs.php?news=view&id=7

[Icy]

Dola:

Damn i'm already a fanboy!

[Buccaneer]

At least try the demo and decide then?
Yes, if you can tell me that creating and playing a historical league (with the Lahman database) is fully supported and offers a fairly realistic simulation by era, as well as quasi-random player development of the imported players? Historical leagues with Lahman is the only way I have ever played OOTP.

[Marc Duffy]

Creating and playing a historical league (with the Lahman database) is fully supported and offers what we hope is fairly realistic simulation by era.

One of our testers has been looking at the Lahman database import and potentially looking at any improvements we can make to our in-game code to make things more realistic.

I'm not up-to-speed on the player development side of things in-game so apologies.

[Izulde]

I haven't pre-ordered yet... Why I don't know, since I've been working on putting together background for a dynasty involving it... but I'm sure I'll get it eventually.

[GrantDawg]

I'm trying to pre-order, but it says the discount code is expired. It is the one just posted 1-19 and says it won't run out until the 28th.

[Marc Duffy]

That should be fixed now.

http://www.elicense.com/sigames/ with code OOTPBM10-2RTMBFFAIR will get you the discount.

[GrantDawg]

That should be fixed now.

http://www.elicense.com/sigames/ with code OOTPBM10-2RTMBFFAIR will get you the discount.

Thank you. Purchased.

[KWhit]

This games sounds great so far. I like the idea of having multiple leagues in one universe. I think an excellent application of that would be to have 2 leagues (any more than that would probably be too much) in a totally fictional universe. One league would be the primary, high-prestige league, and the other would be the red-headed stepchild. There would be a relagation system so that the top team in the second-tier league would move up and replace a team that has been performing poorly. I'm not sure how player attributes would need to be weighted to keep competitive balance, but it sure would be fun if it worked out!

[Ksyrup]

This games sounds great so far. I like the idea of having multiple leagues in one universe. I think an excellent application of that would be to have 2 leagues (any more than that would probably be too much) in a totally fictional universe. One league would be the primary, high-prestige league, and the other would be the red-headed stepchild. There would be a relagation system so that the top team in the second-tier league would move up and replace a team that has been performing poorly. I'm not sure how player attributes would need to be weighted to keep competitive balance, but it sure would be fun if it worked out!
See, I totally disagree. This is the kind of soccer stuff I'd hate to see implemented in a baseball game, even if it is for a totally customizable league. I have zero interest in it and would hate to see developer time put toward something I would never want to use.

[KWhit]

See, I totally disagree. This is the kind of soccer stuff I'd hate to see implemented in a baseball game, even if it is for a totally customizable league. I have zero interest in it and would hate to see developer time put toward something I would never want to use.
Different strokes...

The possibility of relegation is the one (and only) real intriguing thing about soccer leagues to me. I don't follow soccer at all and don't really understand it, but the idea that a league can basically say, "You suck! Go away until you get your shit together!" is awesome to me.

And I'm not talking about having Markus spend time on coding to make this an option that would happen automatically. It sounds like most of the code for this would have to exist anyway for his vision of creating a custom baseball universe. The movement of teams between leagues might be the exception to this, but I'm thinking that perhaps the import/export team functionality might handle it.

[Buccaneer]

See, I totally disagree. This is the kind of soccer stuff I'd hate to see implemented in a baseball game, even if it is for a totally customizable league. I have zero interest in it and would hate to see developer time put toward something I would never want to use.
I also agree with your disagreement. Any time spent coding the AI to manage and run other leagues take away time from improving the AI management of the primary league. One of the quirks of OOTP that I just ignore in order to happily play a career is how the mismanage their rosters in terms of releases/trades/in-season FA. In reviewing a month's worth of league transactions, I would love to see each of them making sense instead of reading it like the comic pages. If such improvements/near-perfection would shift priorities away from secondary leagues (beyond the minor league system for the majors) and eventually scrap them, all the better. For those that want to play a Japanese Baseball League, there is no reason one cannot customize the current league to do that (just like I customize the current league to make it look like 1951).

[miked]

Reading the BBSC interview with Markus hasn't really raised my hopes all that much. We'll see though...

[Bee]

Any time spent coding the AI to manage and run other leagues take away time from improving the AI management of the primary league.

That's true for a one man operation like most text sims, but I don't think it applies for an operation like SI Games. When you can assign 20 people to a project IMO you don't want a bunch of them tinkering with the same thing. If anyone else was developing the game, I'd agree with you and kyjelly though.

[Ksyrup]

Different strokes...

The possibility of relegation is the one (and only) real intriguing thing about soccer leagues to me. I don't follow soccer at all and don't really understand it, but the idea that a league can basically say, "You suck! Go away until you get your shit together!" is awesome to me.

And I'm not talking about having Markus spend time on coding to make this an option that would happen automatically. It sounds like most of the code for this would have to exist anyway for his vision of creating a custom baseball universe. The movement of teams between leagues might be the exception to this, but I'm thinking that perhaps the import/export team functionality might handle it.
Definitely different strokes. One of the best things about baseball, and really all of our major sports leagues, is the continuity of the leagues, which builds history. Baseball, of course, above all has benefitted from this. The idea that, looking back in history, the Phillies might have been in the league from 1900 until, say, 1922, then "relegated" to a minor league because they sucked for 50 years, then brought back in the 70s - and having that scenario repeated amongst a variety of teams, some of whom would be flashes in the pan - is a concept I find hard to even type about, let alone imagine happening.

It actually makes me sick to my stomach to think about, because that history is what makes the league so special. There's nothing special about a league's history containing upwards of 100 different teams over the course of time. The ebb and flow of the best teams and worst teams over a particular period of time is what makes the game interesting from a global view, not just what's happening right now, on the field.

[Marc Duffy]

That's true for a one man operation like most text sims, but I don't think it applies for an operation like SI Games. When you can assign 20 people to a project IMO you don't want a bunch of them tinkering with the same thing. If anyone else was developing the game, I'd agree with you and kyjelly though.

OOTP is still pretty much a one man operation with Markus leading up the coding backed by Andreas. What the guys now have is our expertise (and man-power should it be needed), our codebase and platform layers. This hopefully means Markus can concentrate on the game

[Bee]

OOTP is still pretty much a one man operation with Markus leading up the coding backed by Andreas. What the guys now have is our expertise (and man-power should it be needed), our codebase and platform layers. This hopefully means Markus can concentrate on the game

Ok then, I agree with Kyjelly and Bucc. :D

[yabanci]

OOTP is still pretty much a one man operation with Markus leading up the coding backed by Andreas. What the guys now have is our expertise (and man-power should it be needed), our codebase and platform layers. This hopefully means Markus can concentrate on the game

so much for looking foward to this game...

[Jonathan Ezarik]

Definitely different strokes. One of the best things about baseball, and really all of our major sports leagues, is the continuity of the leagues, which builds history. Baseball, of course, above all has benefitted from this. The idea that, looking back in history, the Phillies might have been in the league from 1900 until, say, 1922, then "relegated" to a minor league because they sucked for 50 years, then brought back in the 70s - and having that scenario repeated amongst a variety of teams, some of whom would be flashes in the pan - is a concept I find hard to even type about, let alone imagine happening.

It actually makes me sick to my stomach to think about, because that history is what makes the league so special. There's nothing special about a league's history containing upwards of 100 different teams over the course of time. The ebb and flow of the best teams and worst teams over a particular period of time is what makes the game interesting from a global view, not just what's happening right now, on the field.

Which baseball league are you looking at? When the AL and NL were two separate leagues? Or how about the Negro Leagues? And how does today's MLB look like the same league from 50 years ago, or even 10?

Who cares about the league's history? It's the history of the teams that's important. If that means that some of the Phillies' history is spent in the minors, then that makes their history richer because they had to fight to get back to the top league.

I would love it if teams got relegated from the Major Leagues. And I'm saying this as a fan of the Pirates. I know that if relegation ever became a reality, the Bucs would be instant picks to make the drop. But you know what? I'd be fine with that. At least that would give all fans something to watch and keep track of as the season progresses.

It's the beginning of February and I can tell you that the Pirates have absolutely no chance of winning the World Series. If they make the playoffs it will be a miracle. What are we hoping for in Pittsburgh this season? .500. That's it. Sound exciting? Is it any surprise that when the Steelers start training camp that everyone drops the Bucs? Throw in some relegation drama and that changes. Suddenly every game is important, especially those in September.

Look at the drama it causes in soccer. Last year in the EPL, Chelsea ran away with the title. No drama there, but there was plenty at the other end of the table. It wasn't until the final Sunday that everyone's fate was sealed. The elation of West Brom's supporters at the end of their game was an incredible thing to see. Conversely, when your team makes the drop it's a horrible thing to watch (says the Leeds fan), but it makes you cherish the moments your team had while it was in the top league.

I know this will never happen in American sports, but it would add a lot of drama for every team (instead of the whole "Who gets the top draft pick" crap).

[Anthony]

I do like the online league side of OOTP though and its one of the things I'm hoping we can learn from Markus is how to improve this in our other titles for those people who prefer the OOTP way of playing online...


very wise of you.

[AgustusM]

That continues with this version.

OOTP Baseball 2006 will be as customizable as every other OOTP release and in doing so it's not comparable with anything else SI has to offer currently

Great News - thanks Mark

[stevew]

How about ootp for PSP. That could be cool.

[AgustusM]

It's probably me, but I really don't care for SI's game interface. EHM is so darn confusing for me to navigate around and figure out what needs to be done. I loved OOTP's interface.

Like I said, I'm sure it's me, but if OOTP is that hard to navigate, I doubt I'll get it for the first time since v2.

I do think it would be neat to find talent in a different league somewhere in the world though and sign them to your team.

I agree wholeheartedly on the interface - I always felt OOTP had the best interface around. I never played FM because frankly I would rather watch paint dry then have anything to do with soccer. But I did buy EHM and liked some portions of it. Though I did prefer the OOTP interface.

the expansions of leagues beyond MLB and the "normal" minor leagues that support it, I just don't get. Perhaps I am just an ignorant American - but I simply don't care about baseball outside of the major leagues, and will never play the other. Perhaps there is a large group of consumers I am un-aware of that want to play this style and if so, hey more power to yah.

[Young Drachma]

EHM was totally different for me and despite the fact that I love hockey, it's not like baseball for me. Consider how immersive EHM is and how much I enjoyed it, I can't WAIT to see what they do with OOTP. If nothing else, it'll be better than it was before.

So...we'll see. I'm ready for it to get here all ready.

[DaddyTorgo]

can someone who hangs out over there explain to me what this "markus took his ball and went home" thing is all about?

[PSUColonel]

can someone who hangs out over there explain to me what this "markus took his ball and went home" thing is all about?


It wasn't Markus...that was a misprint on my part. It was Marc Vaughn who did this. He didn't like the way manyof the people there were posting regarding a release date (they were pressuring him)and he decided as a result the rest of us will no longer get to read any blogs or see any screenshots at least until a more firm release date is given. So in essence all are being "punished" by SI for badgering Marc. Now in Marc's defense I will admit many of the posts were very obnoxious, but as to warrant this and punish the rest of us? So I "called it as I saw it" over on the OOTP boards, and of course it has the fanboys there just going nuts.

[Blade6119]

It wasn't Markus...that was a misprint on my part. It was Marc Vaughn who did this. He didn't like the way manyof the people there were posting regarding a release date (they were pressuring him)and he decided as a result the rest of us will no longer get to read any blogs or see any screenshots at least until a more firm release date is given. So in essence all are being "punished" by SI for badgering Marc. Now in Marc's defense I will admit many of the posts were very obnoxious, but as to warrant this and punish the rest of us? So I "called it as I saw it" over on the OOTP boards, and of course it has the fanboys there just going nuts.
I dont mind the move at all. They were hindering SI's ability to make their games and deal with any real issues that needed attention. By doing this, they send a message that endlessly annoying them wont get them to suddenly release the game. Jim has done the exact same thing. People always bug him and speculate, so he responds by telling us nothing. At least the SI guys know what type of game is coming. :p

[DaddyTorgo]

well a lot of those OOTP fanboys can be quite fanboyish and obnoxious, so i can understand how Marc could "take his ball and go home." especially with his entire family except for him being sick right now and everything else on his plate.

plus I think OOTP is a victim of a lot of hype and expectation right now since the merger with SI. a lot of the American SI fans are excited to see what SI can do with OOTP, and a lot of the OOTP fanboys are (i think...my read) upset about the merger because they feel like Markus has lost control, or the GUI is going to be so radically changed, or i dunno...whatever else they feel like is gonna be lost.


so yeah I can see how Marc could get fed up with the constant "release date...release date" babble, and all the hype and excitement and vitriol over every single little screenshot.

and hey it doesn't bother me, because it's not like the lack of blogs or screenies is going to delay the game. we're still going to get it when we get it. no big deal.

[PSUColonel]

I dont mind the move at all. They were hindering SI's ability to make their games and deal with any real issues that needed attention. By doing this, they send a message that endlessly annoying them wont get them to suddenly release the game. Jim has done the exact same thing. People always bug him and speculate, so he responds by telling us nothing. At least the SI guys know what type of game is coming. :p


yes, but now those of us who have been patient are being "punished" for no reason. Not good public relations in my opinon.

[DaddyTorgo]

whoops my b...bumped the wrong thread. sorry guys

[stevew]

Developers should learn by now not to do a pre-order on a game. It just pisses people off, cause then they think cause they've spent their 25 dollars it gives them a reason to bitch. The OOTP board is full of obnoxious assclowns i have noticed.

[Young Drachma]

I think that the game went from being indie to going major label. People are gonna be irate, others are gonna be annoyed, but in the grand scheme of things, it'll be a good game. I am looking forward to seeing how it turns out. I hate that I pre-ordered it, but at the same time, I'm glad 'cuz it means I'll get it as soon as its out and I've never been able to do that before and with it being under SI and given how much EHM has been cool for me as a newb to that, I think that it can't be a bad thing seeing as I bought OOTP5 and OOTP6 and they weren't even remotely as engrossing for me, despite how much I LOVE baseball.

[Blade6119]

yes, but now those of us who have been patient are being "punished" for no reason. Not good public relations in my opinon.
What good is it going to do if they did tell you? Instead of working on the game until its polished and ready, by setting a release date they are locked in and will likely have to cut features they wanted to add. Did the release of BBCF and other buggy as anything games not bother you 1 bit? Id rather wait 3 extra months and have a solid game then push and push and then ask why the game isnt polished enough. Maybe thats just me, but i dont think your being punished in not knowing when they plan to release it. Is jim punishing us by not telling us his release date and game? They just dont want to lock themselves in to certain things before they are certain. If they dont release screenshots, who does that hurt? No one...

SI has made top notch games for years, and after how well they handles EHM im sure OOTP will go well too...they have earned the benefit of the doubt from me, so i dont see this punishment in them taking their time to finish the game.

[PSUColonel]

What good is it going to do if they did tell you? Instead of working on the game until its polished and ready, by setting a release date they are locked in and will likely have to cut features they wanted to add. Did the release of BBCF and other buggy as anything games not bother you 1 bit? Id rather wait 3 extra months and have a solid game then push and push and then ask why the game isnt polished enough. Maybe thats just me, but i dont think your being punished in not knowing when they plan to release it. Is jim punishing us by not telling us his release date and game? They just dont want to lock themselves in to certain things before they are certain. If they dont release screenshots, who does that hurt? No one...

SI has made top notch games for years, and after how well they handles EHM im sure OOTP will go well too...they have earned the benefit of the doubt from me, so i dont see this punishment in them taking their time to finish the game.


I think you and many others aren't hearing what I am saying. I don't care about the release date really. I want SI to release OOTP when they feel it is ready to go. I am more upset at the way the company handled things in the face of a few obnoxious posters(and I'm sure now as a result I'm considered one) It was nice to get updates on features and such as the game was being produced. But now, the powers that be have sort of "pulled up the rug" on those of us who have been patient, and just liked hearing about new features and what the game is going to be like. I don't see wy so many feel this is a bad position on my part????

[ScottVib]

Since Marc posted that, there have been three new screenshots (posted 2 days after his final post in the public forum):

http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/screenshots.php?view=all&m=03&y=2006&PHPSESSID=4df266b01891cb4da261a9ca8383d8b5

[PSUColonel]

Since Marc posted that, there have been three new screenshots (posted 2 days after his final post in the public forum):

http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/screenshots.php?view=all&m=03&y=2006&PHPSESSID=4df266b01891cb4da261a9ca8383d8b5


True, and they were posted by Markus..not that it matters. But wat you just said illustrates my point. "Marc's final post???" Why on earth is someone who's sole job is PR and promotion making a final post in the first place???? We may have a few screenshots, but it seems to me the blogs I enjoyed very much may very well be extinct.

[MJ4H]

I am exactly the opposite of some of you. One of the reasons I'm looking forward to this game so much is the non-MLB parts. I dislike the MLB greatly, but really like baseball a lot. I'm very excited to get to play with the non-MLB leagues in the game and create my own. I am also in favor of trying new things like the promotion and relegation.

I totally understand why some would be against this type of stuff, but there are other things out there besides MLB, and there are people out there that like baseball and don't give a squirt about MLB. Not many of us, I'm sure, and I don't for a SECOND pretend there are enough of us to create a market for it in this country, but I think overall the product will be much better than OOTP6 (which I enjoy a lot with fictional teams and players only).

[ScottVib]

True, and they were posted by Markus..not that it matters. But wat you just said illustrates my point. "Marc's final post???" Why on earth is someone who's sole job is PR and promotion making a final post in the first place???? We may have a few screenshots, but it seems to me the blogs I enjoyed very much may very well be extinct.

Marc was the source of only two of the blogs the rest were written by Markus and the testers. As you can imagine they've been a bit busy lately ;) .

I feel very confident that you haven't seen the last of the blogs.

[PSUColonel]

Here was his final post:

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/showpost.php?p=1560939&postcount=209

[Swaggs]

It wasn't Markus...that was a misprint on my part. It was Marc Vaughn who did this. He didn't like the way manyof the people there were posting regarding a release date (they were pressuring him)and he decided as a result the rest of us will no longer get to read any blogs or see any screenshots at least until a more firm release date is given. So in essence all are being "punished" by SI for badgering Marc. Now in Marc's defense I will admit many of the posts were very obnoxious, but as to warrant this and punish the rest of us? So I "called it as I saw it" over on the OOTP boards, and of course it has the fanboys there just going nuts.

Look's like Marc Duffy, not Marc Vaughn to me.

[sovereignstar]

Could the morons whose usernames rhyme with TSUInfernal go back to the OOTP boards?

[PSUColonel]

Look's like Marc Duffy, not Marc Vaughn to me.


Yup..my mistake...way too many Marc(k)s over at SI. Tough to keep track of.

[lighthousekeeper]

I'm impressed that they have a banner ad for the game at http://www.baseball-reference.com/



This must also mean that it will be coming out before long.

[ScottVib]

New In Game screen shots:

Broadcast Screen (http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/graphics//images/164.jpg)

Webcast Screen (http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/graphics//images/172.jpg)

Pre-Game Screen (http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/graphics//images/168.jpg)

In Game Substitution Screen (http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com/graphics//images/170.jpg)

[Marc Vaughan]

My personal favourite is the webcast screen - very cool in action imho ...

[MizzouRah]

Ah sheeshh..... getting re-interested in this one again. Thanks for those shots!!

[lighthousekeeper]

it's so freaky seeing ootp in fm's clothing, but it lookin good.

[sovereignstar]

Date of birth, age, height, and weight on the pre-game screen?

Okay.

[lighthousekeeper]

Date of birth, age, height, and weight on the pre-game screen?

Okay.


yeah it's weird, but markus is probably just gunning for the record for 'Most Information Displayed on 1 Screen. Ever.'

[Fouts]

My personal favourite is the webcast screen - very cool in action imho ...

By webcast, do you mean that screen of information will be updated while the commish sims? If so, at what speed will this happen?

[Anthony]

yeah it's weird, but markus is probably just gunning for the record for 'Most Information Displayed on 1 Screen. Ever.'

woooooah...little bit too much info. with my short attention span i don't have the desire to look at all those stats. still, this game is moving quickly up my "to-get" list.

[cuervo72]

By webcast, do you mean that screen of information will be updated while the commish sims? If so, at what speed will this happen?

My guess would be that it's just an alternative to watching the action in "broadcast" mode...akin to "watching" a game on ESPN's GameCast applet.

[Young Drachma]

The webcast is a cool feature. I just want them to go ahead and release it. lol..stop teasing us, damnit. lol

[MizzouRah]

Has anyone watched the "new" ESPN gamecast? WOW, that would be great in a text sim.

[Fouts]

My guess would be that it's just an alternative to watching the action in "broadcast" mode...akin to "watching" a game on ESPN's GameCast applet.

Ok, thanks. I was thinking webcast had something to do with the internet. I suppose not. I do enjoy playing out my games, so this may be cool.