OOTP20

[Johnny93g]

So OOTP20 got released today. I haven't purchased it, and have no plans to get it at the moment unless this thread changes my mind.

I'm curious about your thoughts on it so far. On the ootp boards, a very civil thread about being a tad disappointed in the game got locked very quickly, so i doubt that's the place to get any actual constructive thoughts on the new game.

So ya, first impressions.....

[QuikSand]

I've been pretty comfy with my "every few years" approach with OOTP. Will watch here for signs that I'm missing something big.

Snappier facegen and seven-level minor leagues from Bolivia probably won't do it.

[RainMaker]

I haven't had a ton of time playing it but a few things I noticed:

1) Animations are way better. Like I actually enjoy watching the game play out. There are a few quirks like not hitting cutoff guys and an infielder holding on to the ball too long that looks awkward. But it is so far ahead of where it was last year.

2) The AI has definitely improved. Both in-game and with team/roster management. Was surprised to see them keep a top prospect down to get another year of control.

3) The AI takes contracts (especially bad ones) much more seriously. Like they are willing to unload a bad contract for absolutely nothing. It might be a little overboard in fact but nice to see I can't just trade Jason Heyward to a team whenever I want. My only gripe is I'd like to see teams near the deadline look to add higher priced players. They still seem to be financially conservative (although maybe that's realistic).


So outside of the huge animation upgrades, I think most of the major changes are under the hood. Not sure if that's worth $40 to you, but I'm happy so far. It's the best AI they've had yet.

[Young Drachma]

I was thinking about getting it because it's really the only game I play anymore besides FBCB/pro and Cities Skylines, but also because every year I keep thinking that'll be the year the game draws me back in and that never really works outside of a few weeks or something.

But hey, everyone loves Perfect Team apparently.

Rainmaker's observations are good to know.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Johnny93g

so i doubt that's the place to get any actual constructive thoughts on the new game.

Death, taxes, and that sycophants-only zone.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I haven't had a ton of time playing it but a few things I noticed:

1) Animations are way better. Like I actually enjoy watching the game play out. There are a few quirks like not hitting cutoff guys and an infielder holding on to the ball too long that looks awkward. But it is so far ahead of where it was last year.

2) The AI has definitely improved. Both in-game and with team/roster management. Was surprised to see them keep a top prospect down to get another year of control.

3) The AI takes contracts (especially bad ones) much more seriously. Like they are willing to unload a bad contract for absolutely nothing. It might be a little overboard in fact but nice to see I can't just trade Jason Heyward to a team whenever I want. My only gripe is I'd like to see teams near the deadline look to add higher priced players. They still seem to be financially conservative (although maybe that's realistic).


So outside of the huge animation upgrades, I think most of the major changes are under the hood. Not sure if that's worth $40 to you, but I'm happy so far. It's the best AI they've had yet.

I'd say this is a pretty good summation. The new feature list was kind of disappointing as the live update thing isn't something I'm concerned about.

That said, one of the first things I do is create myself in a universe and watch how my career plays out. The minor league progression seems to be improved. Having the AI set up an organization doesn't turn the whole system into a clusterfuck. The virtual me had a logical minor league progression, and maybe even a little frustration as I felt as they left me down in the minors too long!

Haven't really dove into some of the other stuff. Haven't played with the opener/follower stuff yet.

[spleen1015]

OOTP20 - Front Office Football Central

[frnk55]

I've bought everyone of them and last years I didn't care for and won't be buying this years.
I'm just a week to week simmer.

[Atocep]

After buying but not really playing for a few years I really enjoyed 19. If the changes are mostly under the hood, as RainMaker is describing, I'm sure I'll enjoy this one. Farm systems and handling of prospects have been my primary gripe for some time.

[RainMaker]

My one AI gripe is that it doesn't factor in team control as much as I'd like. For instance, if I have a good starting pitcher with 4 years of control left, he should be more valuable than a slightly better pitcher who will be a free agent at the end of the year.

Now this is on the standard trade setting so maybe if I favor prospects more, it will change that. Or turn difficulty to hard.

Regardless, the trading AI is much better this year.

[RainMaker]

Also I'd add that the expansion stuff is a mess. Don't bother unless they patch it. They don't take position into account. Just draft the best player and end up drafting a ton of relievers.

[Sweed]

I've only had time to tinker with the Monday beta over the week and have played one game on today's release version.

I'd say the majority of improvements this year are under the hood and that's fine by me. Of course they now get the "I don't see much difference from v19 complaints

As Markus said before release the 3d parks did not change much in favor of adding better player movement. They have only added some of the motion captures they created with more to come in patches. The new player movement is a nice improvement. They are adding exit velocity in an upcoming patch that when coupled with how the ball now comes off the bat (more screaming line drives) may interest some.

Other than color schemes the gui hasn't changed much. Fine by me as I think it works well as is.

The AI has been worked on as Rainmaker notes.

One of my favorite things is FA compensation has been upgraded to last years new rules so no longer automatically lose a first round pick to sign a FA. Add in qualifying offers are now limited to "one time only" (like real life) for a player and your FA list will not be populated with players that don't get signed due to not being worth a compensation pick.

You aren't going to load up v20 and say "wow, look at all these shiny new toys" other than player animations. You will have to play the game to see most of the improvements. For years many have said don't add bells and whistles just fix AI holes, roster management, etc. and the masses will beat a path to your door. It looks like they've tried that and are met with "I'm disappointed with the feature list". Go figure.

[SirFozzie]

Kinda worried about team control for seasons and how that plays in.

tried a 2019 season, and Sale wouldn't resign with the red sox. Since I had plenty of pitching behind him (signed Kuchel and Kimbrel because well, it's not my Luxury tax money being spent), I offered him mid-season, and the Cubs offered Bryant for him. Straight up. I obviously took it.

Sale: $15 million for one season, and was demanding $45 million (that was what's in his demand column, he wouldn't even talk with me because he clashed with Cora)

Bryant: Making 12.9 Million in 2018 and has two years of control afterwards ($15.9 million in 2020 (his arbitration award, I've simmed up to 2020) and estimated $16.7 million in 2021

Sale ended up spurning the Cubs (who were putrid) to sign a four year, $95.2 million with the Angels.

So I ended up trading five months of Sale for three years of Bryant, plus the chance to try to resign him early.

[Young Drachma]

Debating whether to wait until the next sale. I'm not sure how much use I'll get out of the game from the outset, tho I have played the recent versions a bit more. It's the setup that always takes a while for me to get going on, then I run out of steam when it's time to play it. But I would like to tinker around a bit with the improvements.

[SirFozzie]

Holy shit, random PT pack. (the 1,000 coin one)

my first BLUE card

Mariano Rivera. 96 Overall.

Let's see if I can shoot the moon in the auction house

[SirFozzie]

Moon successfully shot.

Looks like only one had sold previously (the Median, highest and 7 day average for Rivera was 29,999).

So, I decided for shits and giggles to list it for a RIDICULOUS price

35,000 starting price.
105,000 Buy it Now.

Guess who just logged in 9 hours after earning it and has nearly 100,000 PT Points in his account? <----- *they take 10% of the price as auction house cut, so.. 94,500)

That's something like $60 in real world money (75,000 is $50)

[kcchief19]

I had a gift card just sitting there and decided to take the plunge. I've been in the same camp as Quik, an update every few years is fine by me.

Overall the game seems improved yet familiar to me. The UI is sharper, overall more user friendly. I'm starting with an historical league, and the Challenge Mode setting is solid thus far, with the trade engine and statistical engine improved. It doesn't feel like there have been many drastic changes since the last version I picked up 2-3 years ago. The 3D model is the most significant, but it's still not quite as good as Micro League Baseball from 1985.

I'm assuming most of the development in recent years has gone into the Perfect Team nonsense, in which I have next to zero interest.

[kcchief19]

I'm too lazy to upload an image, but I did get a classic OOTP headline in my news feed:

Long-time Coach, Dick, Calls it a Career

[Young Drachma]

Baseball season making me want to get this, because while I think the whole thing is ridiculous and they never spend enough time emphasizing the stuff that matters -- especially with fewer of us on beta -- it's the only game I really buy new anymore and if I wait until mid-season, I'll even have less time to tinker with it.

[RainMaker]

If you use custom teams or want to spruce up expansion, this guy has put together an incredible amount of logos, jerseys, caps. Probably the best I've seen and there are hundreds.

My Fictional Sets, Part 2 - OOTP Developments Forums

[MizzouRah]

The 3D has really improved in my opinion. I can only hope the new FOF will have something like this eventually.

[Capital]

I used to play OOTP frequently but now hasn't since 2017 version, so it's nice to see some of the AI clearly being worked.

I do play a lot of mobile collectible card games and the perfect teams seems along those lines. Anyone playing and enjoying Perfect Team before I decide to jump in?

[SirFozzie]

I like it.. it's different.. (I played 19 as well)

edit: I hit lightning in a bottle with that Rivera pull, but I found in 19 the thrill of slow building a team rather than opening packs was more fun, trying to find a good player cheap on the AH that fit on my style of play. With 20, because I got lucky, I had nearly 100,000 points, and where you can get a gold player for usually around 1-5K, that meant I skipped a LOT of the team building process.

[Young Drachma]

I took the plunge, will for real dive in over the weekend.

[21C]

I like Perfect Team because it suits my style of play. I only spend about 10 minutes on it each day and even then I don't always remember to log in daily. For me, it's like being in an online league where I don't have to manage finances or the minors. I can half-ass it and still enjoy it.

I've been playing the 19 version and only made it to the silver league even with a demotion during that time. It is a bit like running a lower tier soccer team. I've only been using the Perfect Points that I earn in game.

[bhlloy]

Originally Posted by Young Drachma

Baseball season making me want to get this, because while I think the whole thing is ridiculous and they never spend enough time emphasizing the stuff that matters -- especially with fewer of us on beta -- it's the only game I really buy new anymore and if I wait until mid-season, I'll even have less time to tinker with it.

I got the bug a few weeks ago and wanted to see if anybody had put together a new roster for 19 and looks like the mod community has really died over the last few years. Ironically (and I’m not suggesting this is in any way intentional or celebrates) that’s probably a good thing for Markus, I really only want to play a few seasons with an up to date roster and I’m sure I’ll end up dropping the 40 bucks on it in the next couple months.

[Young Drachma]

Yeah, the mod community grew up and also, with the game having official licenses, I bet there's way less incentive to bother adding uniforms and things. So yeah, OOTP gets to be EA in that way by releasing new rosters and stuff and folks buying just for that.

[Capital]

I think I'm taking the plunge this weekend - primarily for the Perfect Team aspect. I'll let you know what I think and thanks for the replies thus far.

[Johnny93g]

Well after reading all these comments, and looking over on their boards, i won't be getting it anytime soon. I have zero desire to play Perfect Team, and don't understand the appeal. Infact, it's mind boggling to me people actually spend money on it, but I guess to each their own!

[Fidatelo]

I just picked it up, I haven't purchased OOTP in well over 5 years (probably closer to 10) so I think it's time.

Question: is there supposed to be sound when you start it up or navigate the menus? It's just totally silent. Seems crazy. I haven't started a game yet to see if I get crowd noise or anything.

[spleen1015]

I think there are sounds when you play out a game, but there are no sounds when you are navigating rosters, standings, etc.

[EagleFan]

Yes, sounds during the game. Just not in the menus.

[Fidatelo]

ah ok. Strange choice, feels 'flat' without sounds. Oh well, it's just glorified Excel anyways

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Young Drachma

Yeah, the mod community grew up and also, with the game having official licenses, I bet there's way less incentive to bother adding uniforms and things. So yeah, OOTP gets to be EA in that way by releasing new rosters and stuff and folks buying just for that.

Plus they have "live" rosters now so you can start a new franchise today with updated rosters/moves/contracts and games that have already played. Basically you're picking up from where the current MLB is.

If you have a game in progress you can still get updated ratings that change depending on how the player is playing in RL.

I love the feature.

[EagleFan]

Not sure how this perfect team thing works yet; just started it for the first time. Did get an Ichiro rookie card in my starter packs so that is good I guess.

[Capital]

Just started Perfect Team Sunday night and only got a gold 89 Justin Verlander as an elite player.

For those that have played PT before, I take it that the cards/players do not age or that stats change? Or do they change and eventually retire out. I ask because the players do have an age attached to them based (played on the timeframe of the baseball card).

This does seem interesting, at least right now, and also seems perfect for a mobile game (although much less info would have to be displayed).

[Bobble]

This year, I think PT Active players (not historic all-stars or anything) are supposed to change some amount with the player's performance. They won't ever retire, get injured, or anything like that, though. If you have a guy, you'll have him forever.

[Capital]

That's good to know - thanks for the reply.

I guess if you get cards that will never play on your team, you just sell them for whatever points you could get. I can't image anyone would buy a 53 player in the auction so I guess 5 pts is better than nothing. Am I seeing this correctly, any other way to do it?

[spleen1015]

Originally Posted by Capital

That's good to know - thanks for the reply.

I guess if you get cards that will never play on your team, you just sell them for whatever points you could get. I can't image anyone would buy a 53 player in the auction so I guess 5 pts is better than nothing. Am I seeing this correctly, any other way to do it?

That's pretty much it. There will be some players that are valuable. For example, there was a 69 Ichiro in OOTP19 that was very useful.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by Capital

That's good to know - thanks for the reply.

I guess if you get cards that will never play on your team, you just sell them for whatever points you could get. I can't image anyone would buy a 53 player in the auction so I guess 5 pts is better than nothing. Am I seeing this correctly, any other way to do it?

If you want to build your team quicker the more effective way is through the auction.

I played this a lot when it game out Dec/Jan but I am over it. Opening packs you basically just get the same players over and over and over and over. Its addicting until the point you realize its a complete waste of time and never want to play it again

And I cant figure out how people get the Honus Wagner cards without having to put a fortune into it. The best non current player I ever opened was Tommy Davis. I had to purchase 70 dollars in points to afford 20-30k players when I was addicted. My guess is I opened 500+ packs.

Its also annoying that the most of old time players play such awful defense they really dont help you win.

[Bobble]

Originally Posted by Capital

That's good to know - thanks for the reply.

I guess if you get cards that will never play on your team, you just sell them for whatever points you could get. I can't image anyone would buy a 53 player in the auction so I guess 5 pts is better than nothing. Am I seeing this correctly, any other way to do it?

They do intend to come out with rewards for making sets. Not fully sure what's intended but if you, say, have a full set of Cincinnati Reds including the 53-rated dudes, you get something. Presumably, a free card pack. So, there's one reason not to ditch every low rating card you have.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by Capital

Just started Perfect Team Sunday night and only got a gold 89 Justin Verlander as an elite player.

For those that have played PT before, I take it that the cards/players do not age or that stats change? Or do they change and eventually retire out. I ask because the players do have an age attached to them based (played on the timeframe of the baseball card).

This does seem interesting, at least right now, and also seems perfect for a mobile game (although much less info would have to be displayed).

Seems to me if there's an MLB player where you want more "info" displayed, it would be Verlander...

[Schmidty]

It’s been 3 versions since the last one I bought, so I’ll pick this up.

I’m really hoping to get into a good, competitive multiplayer league again.

[Poli]

I've been itching to pick this up. It's been about 8 years for me.

[MizzouRah]

I imported my v19 league into XX, in my 10th year with the Cardinals. I've been to 7 playoffs but only 1 WS and lost in 5 games to the Red Sox. When I started, I deleted all the history, went with 26 player rosters (13P/13H) and got rid of the DH in the AL. I also have a July 31st hard trade deadline (no waiver trades) and roster expansion in Sept is only 28 players. I also created the "Lou Brock" custom award for the player in each league with the most stolen bases.

I signed Harper to a stupid deal in 2019 and although he's been great during the season, he's horrible in the playoffs. He has a player option in 2028 and I hope he exercises it. His 10yr/47M deal has handcuffed the crap out of me and I still get pissed at myself for signing him for that much and that long.

I'm in the 2027 playoffs with a great hitting team but a my SP is lacking a true #1. We finish in the WC and beat Miami on the road to move on to the NLDS against Milwaukee. We win the first 2 games in Milwaukee and lose the next 2 at home. Game 5 and we get their stud #1 SP who we managed 2 runs against in Game 1. We rough him up and go on to win 8-3. The cool thing is.. I have this SP who I claimed off waivers early in the season and even though his ratings are average and he's been hurt a lot, he actually went 12-5 for me this season and typically gives me 5 strong innings before he's exhausted. (I love these little stories)

Up next is Washington who beat Colorado 7-6 in 12 innings to take the series 3-2. I was watching that game while playing my game and every time Colorado would go up, Washington would tie it in the bottom half of the inning.

Toronto is playing the Chicago White Sox in the ALCS, both teams have never been to an ALCS before.

[EagleFan]

Anyone have an issue with purchased cards not showing up in your reserve? I just did two purchase now in the auction house and the players aren't showing up on my team. The points were deducted and they show up in my list of transactions but the players are nowhere to be found.

[JPhillips]

You have to go to the player activation page through the roster management screen. It's a dumb setup, but that's the way it works.

[EagleFan]

Thank you.

[Capital]

The Perfect Team has been fun - I've only launched 1 team so far but you do get access to 3 teams. I'll probably start them over the weekend.

However, it does take a while to earn PT points if you aren't buying them, which I am not.

[spleen1015]

Originally Posted by Capital

The Perfect Team has been fun - I've only launched 1 team so far but you do get access to 3 teams. I'll probably start them over the weekend.

However, it does take a while to earn PT points if you aren't buying them, which I am not.

I feel a greater sense of accomplishment playing strictly F2P.