Love it BUT...

[GeneralMakaveli]

I love the game but why is there not a good draft class editor and why is Hester not 100 on KR/PR?

If there is an editor can some one point me in the right direction.

Last thing is there any website template to set up a league?

Thanks every one.

[RedKingGold]

There is/was a draft class editor included with a previous version of the game, but it is not included in FOF2K7. In all likeliehood, a draft class editor might be re-released if a sequel to The College Years is made.

Also, most ratings vary from the start of every new game (especially if the X-Factor option is turned on). Kick and punt return ratings are no different and each time you start a game, Hester will have different ratings in each category.

As for the last question, I can't really help you there. I know that general consensus is that the in-game created HTML is deficient and most FOF MP commissioners create their own websites using various different formats. They might be able to help you out with that question more than I.

[Ben E Lou]

I love the game but why is there not a good draft class editor and why is Hester not 100 on KR/PR?

I don't agree with the ratings for (insert player name here). Why did you give him a poor rating for (insert category name here)? The core ratings are hidden in Front Office Football. Your scouts provide their own estimates of the value of each player. These may not be accurate, depending on the strengths and weaknesses of that scouting staff. So the first thing you should do is check the ratings for your scouting staff.


In addition, whenever you start a new game of Front Office Football, a portion of the ratings are randomly generated. This percentage is about 5-10 percent for established veterans and up to 50 percent for rookies. This is done to maximize the replay value of the game. What's the fun of knowing that Peyton Manning will always be a superstar every time you play?



A Random Start to Each Game

Let's face it. There's not a lot of information about players who don't have extensive professional experience. How should David Carr perform in Houston? How should players with only a couple of games worth of part-time experience perform?

All other games on the market try and make an educated guess. Front Office Football is no different - except for one additional X-factor. Sure, I gave Carr a set of ratings. After two or three years, he will perform in a manner consistent with other quarterbacks selected first in the draft. Most of the time, at least.

That's where the X-factor comes into play. It's based on the number of games the player has started at the professional level and his years of experience. For instance, the average quarterback has started 37 games in a 5.5-year career. So the X-factor for a quarterback with 22 games in two seasons is about 50. Carr's X-factor is 0.

That X-factor determines the random element that changes the core ratings each time you start a new game. When the X-factor is 0, the core ratings can vary by up to 50 percent from the assigned rating. When the X-factor is 100, which it is for about one-third of the players in the league, the core ratings only vary by up to 10 percent.

The net result? Front Office Football generates a new universe every time you start a new game. Most of the time, Carr will be a decent quarterback. A good percentage of the time, he'll be outstanding. And some of the time, he'll be fairly mediocre. The established players will perform pretty much as they did in the past, but there will still be some variety.

You'll have to rely heavily on your scouting staff to determine whether or not a player is worth drafting. You'll have access to your scouts from every screen you can make a personnel decision from. They'll know more than general reputation allows.

This allows for a more challenging game and greater replay value. What's the fun of a game where you know that Carr will be a huge success? Or a game where you know that linebacker Takeo Spikes is always an undervalued superstar, so your first move in guaranteeing a 12-win season is acquiring him in a hugely unbalanced trade?

That's how the X-factor brings additional realism to Front Office Football without sacrificing the integrity of the simulation.


There are the details, but the short answer is that FOF isn't really intended to be a "replay sim." I suspect that most of the long-timers use fictional players pretty much exclusively when starting a new career.

[GeneralMakaveli]

Thanks every one that explains my play stat? So why would you not include a Draft class creator that would make this game so much better then it already is. Right now it sucks when I added in some ones custom draft class and the next year he retires because he is 70 lol (Walter Payton).

[Synovia]

I love the game but why is there not a good draft class editor and why is Hester not 100 on KR/PR?

Well, for one thing, theres an X factor. Every time you load a file, things load a little different.

For two, while he has huge touchdown numbers, his yards per return (kickoff) are good but not great (Cribbs, Washington, etc are all better), he fumbles a TON, and a large part of his touchdowns comes from playing in an elite special teams unit.


hes a great returner, but shouldn't be even close to 100/100. I'd say 70/80 range.

[stevew]

I hope there will be more ratings for things like special teams etc in a new version. Maybe a rating for big play returning, as well as consistant returns and ball handling, etc. I'd also love to be able to change a guy's main position to KR and designate an alternate position. At least for my personal record keeping in career mode. Plus gunner, long snapper, kickoff artist.