OOTP 6: Worth it?

[rexallllsc]

Is OOTP 6 worth it and playable enough to buy...if I already have 5?

[Leonidas]

I'm loving V6 so far. I like the ratings better, the roster rules are much, much better. And there are little nuances that have improved with the new game engine. The biggest thing I noticed is the pitch count actually seems to matter now. In V5 if a batter was 0-2 it really didn't matter. He was just as likely to get a hit as in the first pitch. Now when a batter has two strikes I notice a much greater likelihood to strikeout, as is true IRL. If you like to play the games out yourself, and take day-to-day control (micromanage the team) then you should get the game. If all you are interested in is simming season to season then it won't mean as much to you.

[Leonidas]

BTW, sorry I forgot to mention, but I find the game very playable. I have had zero crahses and the biggest bug I have found is you can't get the game to pinch run for your DH. Otherwise it plays very well compared to V5.

[EagleFan]

Originally Posted by Leonidas

Now when a batter has two strikes I notice a much greater likelihood to strikeout, as is true IRL.

Yeah, I've noticed that pattern in real life too, not many strikeouts when batters don't have 2 strikes.

[McSweeny]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

Yeah, I've noticed that pattern in real life too, not many strikeouts when batters don't have 2 strikes.

damn! beat me to it

[Leonidas]

Allright, thanks for the somewhat deserved smartass comments guys. But one of my OOTP pet peaves was that guys would go 0-2 in the count and it never mattered, they would still get hits all the time. Doesn't happen like that in V6.

[MizzouRah]

I'm speeding my dynasty up so I can convert to v6. I have everything ready to go, except for the stadiums.


Todd

[Cringer]

I am loving V6, after owning V5. Like Leonidas said, there are little nuances, not just in the engine, that have made it better. I also find myself now playing some games, mostly playoffs, which i never did before and i am loving it now. The roster changes, ie. 40 man and Rule 5 i enjoy very much. Didn't think i would find those that big of a deal but i have. Personally the ratings system seems to "feel" different to me then before, maybe because it's been so long since i played V5 i don't know.

[MizzouRah]

What rating #'s are you guys using? 1-100 like SD or something lower?


Todd

[Cringer]

i use 1-20 for everything....

[Leonidas]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

What rating #'s are you guys using? 1-100 like SD or something lower?


Todd

I use the 1-10 scale. It's very close to the original V5 scale (with about a one point inflation). I think a lot of the hardcore OOTP guys are using the 100 point scale (and bitching about it too) but that is to much like a computer sim for my blood. Too clase to the "real" values. I like the real life leeway the 10 point scale allows. Frankly, I don't want it pinpointed like the 100 point scale.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Leonidas

I use the 1-10 scale. It's very close to the original V5 scale (with about a one point inflation). I think a lot of the hardcore OOTP guys are using the 100 point scale (and bitching about it too) but that is to much like a computer sim for my blood. Too clase to the "real" values. I like the real life leeway the 10 point scale allows. Frankly, I don't want it pinpointed like the 100 point scale.

I was thinking of staying with the 1-10 system I use in v5. At first I thought about 1-100, but I'm not sure if I want that much info.


Todd

[rexallllsc]

Originally Posted by Leonidas

I use the 1-10 scale. It's very close to the original V5 scale (with about a one point inflation). I think a lot of the hardcore OOTP guys are using the 100 point scale (and bitching about it too) but that is to much like a computer sim for my blood. Too clase to the "real" values. I like the real life leeway the 10 point scale allows. Frankly, I don't want it pinpointed like the 100 point scale.

agreed

[akw4572]

i started a brand new fictional league and used 1-100. After a few years, i am turning ratings off and going stats only.

[HornedFrog Purple]

I am enjoying this one more than OOTP5.

I am playing without ratings and going by stats only and it has been a fun challenge. Some of the new additions like the waiver wire and rule V draft have added something and the engine which I always had complaints about is more solid and consistant in my opinion.

Now just fix the spelling errors in the news section which have been there since 4 and I'll be happy.

[Scholes]

I like 1-20 simply because that's what CM uses, and I can identify with that quicker.

[fantastic flying froggies]

I'll dampen the mood of this thread somewhat.

I've fired OOTP6 3 times now, have started different leagues and I just can't seem to get in the game somehow. I couldn't really say why, but I start a league, start simming some games and then my interest just seems to fizzle. And I find myself turning back to FOF or TCY.
Maybe it's just that baseball doesn't interest me anymore.

Also, last version I'd played was OOTP 3, and really despite what everybody else says, I really don't see that much difference between the 2.

Anyway, the game is probably very good, but it's just not doing anything for me.
Maybe I'll pick it up again in a month or so and really get in to it big time, who knows ?
In the meantime, I wish I'd bought FBCB instead...

[andy m]

Originally Posted by fantastic flying froggies

I'll dampen the mood of this thread somewhat.

I've fired OOTP6 3 times now, have started different leagues and I just can't seem to get in the game somehow. I couldn't really say why, but I start a league, start simming some games and then my interest just seems to fizzle.

ding ding ding. me too. there's no flair in OOTP6, it's just so dry and uninspired. :o

then again, i did specifically buy it for multiplayer (which will probably as strong as ever), so i shouldn't complain too much.

[MizzouRah]

A few things that help my immersion in ootp. MODS!

Get Ankit's MVP 2004 stadiums, DD's facepack, my MLB.com logos , CBL's roster that includes HOF and Career + Team leaders, Cato's reporter utility, Shub's ESPN skin and anything else you can think of.


Todd

[fantastic flying froggies]

Todd, do you have links ? I don't think they made the reference list yet, have they ?

[Ksyrup]

I don't use any mods excepts the scheduler and (if I'm not playing a ficitional league) Ankit's DB, and I love the game. *shrug*

I think one of the problems with immersion in any baseball game is that the season is so long, there's a natural conflict between wanting to get "immersed" in your league, which means taking the time to get to know players/teams by watching the season unfold, and wanting to sim a bunch of seasons. With football, 16 games isn't that much of a time investment, compared to 150-162 games for baseball. I find myself going through the league history file that has the top 5 in the big categories quite a bit, as well as looking at the various lists on the Almanac page, and picking out individuals who interest me, as well as picking out various Almanac years and going through teams.

One problem I've noticed with the league history file, though, is the formatting of the standings. Horrid. It's nearly completely useless to me, all run together.

[andy m]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I think one of the problems with immersion in any baseball game is that the season is so long

i'm not sure this applies up for me, because in championship manager 03/04 it takes many hours to play a season and i have no trouble with the immersion there.

[Ksyrup]

Soccer has seasons? I thought it was just a bunch of friendlies and selling guys for cash back and forth between teams with weird and/or unpronouncable names.

[Marmel]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

A few things that help my immersion in ootp. MODS!

Get Ankit's MVP 2004 stadiums, DD's facepack, my MLB.com logos , CBL's roster that includes HOF and Career + Team leaders, Cato's reporter utility, Shub's ESPN skin and anything else you can think of.


Todd

With all due respect to the creators of these add-ons. Should a good game, priced at 35 bucks, need so many add ons to make it playable?

Anyhow, I have finally gotten some enjoyment out of ootp6 by messing with the aging options in the game. I used real rosters, make players develope quickly, and age slowly. Pujols is your all time HR and Hits lead at age 44. That got boring after a while too though.

[FBPro]

Originally Posted by Marmel

With all due respect to the creators of these add-ons. Should a good game, priced at 35 bucks, need so many add ons to make it playable?

Anyhow, I have finally gotten some enjoyment out of ootp6 by messing with the aging options in the game. I used real rosters, make players develope quickly, and age slowly. Pujols is your all time HR and Hits lead at age 44. That got boring after a while too though.

I've never heard of any threats to the health and family of the folks making the add-ons which makes me believe that they made the add-ons of their own free will. I think that they have made the game better but it is very playable and enjoyable without them.

[FBPro]

Dola,

I also think it is nice of the developer (of any game not just OOTP) to allow for customization in areas like this, it gives some who want to be able to the ability to give the game "their own look" or for those who don't they don't have to.

[miked]

Yeah...what they said. It is very playable for $35, but Markus understands there will be lots of people that want their own graphics, skins, rosters, etc. So the ability is there to do whatever you want. None of these add-ons really affect the "playability" of the game more so than your level of immersion. If he made a set file that had all logos, rosters, etc. that couldn't be modified, those boards would crash with bitching.

[Daimyo]

How is difficult is the upgrade path for an online league? It seems like a lot of the additions are really nice, but for an existing league with 13+ seasons of history don't the changes really screw with player valuation, etc?

[FBPro]

The way I see it is there will be some adjustments to be made but if your league want to move forward with the series then you probably just need to take the plunge.

[yabanci]

Originally Posted by fantastic flying froggies

I'll dampen the mood of this thread somewhat.

I've fired OOTP6 3 times now, have started different leagues and I just can't seem to get in the game somehow. I couldn't really say why, but I start a league, start simming some games and then my interest just seems to fizzle. And I find myself turning back to FOF or TCY.
Maybe it's just that baseball doesn't interest me anymore.

Also, last version I'd played was OOTP 3, and really despite what everybody else says, I really don't see that much difference between the 2.

Anyway, the game is probably very good, but it's just not doing anything for me.
Maybe I'll pick it up again in a month or so and really get in to it big time, who knows ?
In the meantime, I wish I'd bought FBCB instead...

This sums up my experience too. I'm can't get into it one bit. I've tried starting up a real players/real rosters league, and real players fantasy draft league, and a fictional league, but none of them interest me in the least. I think I might go back to playing Diamond Mind Baseball, even though it's not a career sim.

[FBPro]

Originally Posted by yabanci

This sums up my experience too. I'm can't get into it one bit. I've tried starting up a real players/real rosters league, and real players fantasy draft league, and a fictional league, but none of them interest me in the least. I think I might go back to playing Diamond Mind Baseball, even though it's not a career sim.

Ugh.....to each his own.

[Capital]

I'm using the 2-8 scale since that is what real MLB scouts use.

[miked]

Originally Posted by Daimyo

How is difficult is the upgrade path for an online league? It seems like a lot of the additions are really nice, but for an existing league with 13+ seasons of history don't the changes really screw with player valuation, etc?

Absolutely. The new version really juices the talents to a huge degree. We were running a league and the Average talent of the top 500 pitchers was almost 86 (out of 100). If you sim a fictional v6 league for 20 years, the average is about 65 or so. It's alot of work checking and editing the CSVs, but well worth it if you want solid drafts and stats for the next 10-15 seasons. There are lots of posts on this topic on the boards...and even fanboys see the problems .

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Marmel

With all due respect to the creators of these add-ons. Should a good game, priced at 35 bucks, need so many add ons to make it playable?

Anyhow, I have finally gotten some enjoyment out of ootp6 by messing with the aging options in the game. I used real rosters, make players develope quickly, and age slowly. Pujols is your all time HR and Hits lead at age 44. That got boring after a while too though.

Marms, I've come to the conclusion that most text games benefit from user add-ons. I would rather programmers spend time on AI than fancy logos or real rosters. Just my opinion of course.

Here are some links for you all:

My logo set: http://www.ootpdownloadcenter.com/Fi...LB%20Logos.zip

CBL Rosters 2.0: http://www.baseballmaelstrom.com/cbl_version_2.zip (includes career records, HOF, etc.)

Shub's ESPN Skin: http://www.shub.net/downloads/OOTP6_ESPN_Skin.zip

Ankit's MVP 2004 stadiums: http://www.ootpdownloadcenter.com/Fi...20Stadiums.zip (these need additional fixing, check the thread here) http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...threadid=60570

DD's facepack: http://driscoll-carignan.com/ootp/downloads/regular.zip (currently down)

Cato has yet to come out with his v6 reporter, but I think he's close.


Todd

[bamcgee]

As more of a casual fan of OOTP, I don't think there's much difference between v.5 and v.6. I've also had trouble getting "immersed" in the game. I started three leagues, made a little headway in each, and now I've set it aside (perhaps permanently) for a new CM 03/04 career.

[rexallllsc]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Marms, I've come to the conclusion that most text games benefit from user add-ons. I would rather programmers spend time on AI than fancy logos or real rosters. Just my opinion of course.

Here are some links for you all:

My logo set: http://www.ootpdownloadcenter.com/Fi...LB%20Logos.zip

CBL Rosters 2.0: http://www.baseballmaelstrom.com/cbl_version_2.zip (includes career records, HOF, etc.)

Shub's ESPN Skin: http://www.shub.net/downloads/OOTP6_ESPN_Skin.zip

Ankit's MVP 2004 stadiums: http://www.ootpdownloadcenter.com/Fi...20Stadiums.zip (these need additional fixing, check the thread here) http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...threadid=60570

DD's facepack: http://driscoll-carignan.com/ootp/downloads/regular.zip (currently down)

Cato has yet to come out with his v6 reporter, but I think he's close.


Todd

Thanks for these links!

[BigPitt]

You have to believe in Dips.

I SURE don't so I didn't buy for the first time.(have 1-5)
Yea , I know you can use the old engine.Then why buy the new game?
Seems like there is more problem with trades and financials than in v5.

[rexallllsc]

I believe in DIPS, but I don't like all of the reports of the weak financials/AI.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by rexallllsc

Thanks for these links!

Anytime!


Todd

[MizzouRah]

(ootp5 at the moment)

...but this is why I love ootp...


Lance Berkman of the Houston Astros is about to win the triple crown for the first time since 1967, the last NL League player did it in 1937.

Right now (136 games into the season):

Batting average: 0.395 (next closest 0.378)
Homeruns: 53 (nest closest 45)
Runs batted in: 133 (next closest 119)


*Of course Albert Pujols is out for the year *

[Philliesfan980]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

(ootp5 at the moment)

...but this is why I love ootp...


Lance Berkman of the Houston Astros is about to win the triple crown for the first time since 1967, the last NL League player did it in 1937.

Right now (136 games into the season):

Batting average: 0.395 (next closest 0.378)
Homeruns: 53 (nest closest 45)
Runs batted in: 133 (next closest 119)


*Of course Albert Pujols is out for the year *

Any reason why you're not playing with ootp6?

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Philliesfan980

Any reason why you're not playing with ootp6?

Edit: I should of had a frownie face next to Pujols.


I'm waiting for this season to finish, then I'll import into ootp6. I started an ootp5 dynasty awhile back and really want to keep it going.

I could have done it already I guess, but Markus said the best time to import is right before you hit 'continue to next season'.

V6 is ready to go though. Patched up, skin installed, league logo updated... just waiting to be used.

Todd

[Ryche]

After several abortive league startups, I finally got myself immersed in the game last night. I'm playing manager mode, running Arizona using real players. Loving Johnson and Webb at the top of my rotation, but tearing my hair out after them. I think the biggest difference for me in this league is I'm actually managing about half the games, so the team is feeling like more than just numbers.

Really looking forward to jumping into an online league. This is the first version I've had since 2 or 3 and the only real fun I got out of those versions was playing in an online league. Version 6 is like a brand new game for me by comparison. The new details in roster management require a bit more advanced thought. No more just dropping a veteran to AAA when you need his spot on the roster.

[Francis_Cole]

Soccer has seasons? I thought it was just a bunch of friendlies and selling guys for cash back and forth between teams with weird and/or unpronouncable names

come on, the names arn't that hard to pronounce

[QuikSand]

Thanks for all the input so far.

I'm in an interesting spot. In a moment of weakness, I pre-ordered OOTP6, so it's already paid for. I'm still trying to decide whether the game is "worth it" with the "it" being justthe time and effort invested in ginning up the game and getting started.

So far, I have yet to download it. I'm not wild about starting up a game with these weaknesses in the financial and AI sides.

I reckon I'll wait for another patch or two and some good word from people I trust.

[MizzouRah]

Finished my ootp5 first season, imported it into v6 and now that I'm familar with the new additions to the game, I'm happy thus far. In fact, I really didn't think the import would be as thorough as it was. The only thing I had to do was convert the field corrdinates to v6, which took two button presses.

I love the roster enhancements, the rule 5 draft, and a few other little additions over v5. The AI also seems really improved thus far. I couldn't sign many free agents becuase the computer teams would outbid me by far.. at least on the top 4-8 players in FA. My team appears a bit shakey this year and I hoping the challege has improved, which so far.. has.

I loved version 5, but 6 has been a nice improvement, imo. Some say it wasn't that big of an upgrade, but so far I disagree. It appears to me Markus spent alot of time on the real MLB roster rules and it adds a tenfold challege to the game for the solo player. I play/sim pretty slow, so this post is in 'Beta' form.

I forgot to add: for new users, $34.95 is good price, and for those of us who paid $25.95, a steal. Plus, the community has really come up with some nice mods for the game, which adds so much for the way I play.


Todd

[MizzouRah]

dola,

I also LOVE being able to pause on a game on the out of town scoreboard and watch the game as mine is being played. I can see this coming in handy when I'm close in the divisional race. Nice.


Todd

[MizzouRah]

Sure, make me dola x2.

My favorite feature I just noticed tonight?

Looking at Tampa Bay's roster to see if I can spot an young fast LF, I notice when I click on LF, it shows all the players who have a rating at that position. Are you kidding me?

Excellent!


Todd

[Godzilla Blitz]

On closer inspection, the financial system doesn't make a hell of a lot of sense and still feels a lot like that of OOTP3. However, by manually tweaking the tv contracts (only once, and at the beginning of your game) I think you can create leagues with unbalanced power structures (or balanced, or whatever you want). I've been running tests over the weekend and they seem to be working well enough.

I haven't seen enough to judge the many aspects of the AI, but based on what little I've seen so far, it doesn't seem to be making horrible mistakes in roster management and trading. The AI that governs the stocking draft at the beginning of a league was bad, but that only happens once and is not a game breaker, IMHO. The in-game roster management by the AI seems mediocre but not braindead. I usually watch games hands off and let the AI handle decisions, but I couldn't take the pinch hitting/pitching changes the AI was making, so I jumped in and started handling those. Not sure if this will give me too much of an advantage over the AI. Baserunning, stealing, bunting, etc., seems to be working well enough. Haven't seen enough of trading to comment extensively, other than I have noticed AI teams trading to shore up weaknesses. I did get one trade offer which seemed to be stacked in my favor (a mediocre starter from me in exchange for a great 19-year old prospect and a poor hitting firstbaseman locked into an expensive three-year deal), but this wasn't out of the question horrible, and a lot depends on how the 19-year-old turns out. I'm having trouble clearing wavers with mediocre players, and the AI seems active so far.

Given the tremendous number of options for customizing the parameters of the game, It think there are most likely settings for anyone playing solo to make the game difficult. However, I'm still on the fence as to whether you'll have to neuter so many functions of the game by house rules (e.g., no trading, no free agent signings, no ratings) that the game would no longer provide enough interesting, fun decisions. In short, while you might be able to make the game difficult, I'm on the fence as to whether you can make it challenging and rewarding. So far, though, I'm fairly optimistic that it can be done.

I can say that I'm enjoying the game tremendously (a hell of lot more than OOTP3, which I couldn't get into). I've played about ten hours total (seven playing, three messing with some test leagues), and I'm very excited about the game.

[Ksyrup]

I actually got to spend some quality time with the game this weekend, and decided to create a "what if?" league - I "restarted" the Federal League in 1918, taking the original teams and adding 16 more, breaking the league into 2 separate leagues, 2 division each, 6 teams in each division, using all real teams from the period 1902 through 1930 that I researched on the net. I hunted down some logos, threw shorty's fictional facepack in there, set up all the teams...and then the frustration started with the league totals.

I have no clue what the two buttons below the league totals are supposed to do; I just know they don't work worth a shit. I just wanted to play a Dead-Era league out of the box, and the default league totals didn't do it for me, hitting the recalculate button (the first one) didn't do it, and neither did the recalculate for historical accuracy button (the second one). In fact, they kept making it worse. One restart, I had guys hitting well over .400 with the league leaders in HRs hitting about 1 a game, and ERA's in the 10's.

I tried taking the 1914 league totals for the real Federal League, multiplying them by 3 (since I had 3 times the number of teams), and using those. Big mistake. I'm still not sure what the league totals in the game represent; all I know is if you want to increase something, you lower the number, and vice versa. Any resemblance to actual league totals went out the window with my attempt at using real league totals.

So, instead of a weekend actually playing the game (or simming some history), I spent the entire time trying to configure and reconfigure the league totals. At 11pm last night, I finally got it to where I wasn't completely unhappy with the results, so I got to sim 3 seasons. Three freaking seasons for about 7 hours worth of time spent. That blows. I even thought that after the first simmedseason, hitting the recalculate button so that it took the previous season's stats into account would do something for me...but no. I ended up having to restore the league back to 1918 to rectify that huge mistake.

Someone needs to come up with a set of league totals that are somewhat workable for a fictional league (as opposed to importing real players, as I understand they generate completely different types of players, so the numbers would be different) that starts in the various historical periods. I love OOTP, but even that was a test of my patience. I'm not sure I'll ever want to try that again.