My solution to the passing game

[phily915]

For those that have played Tiger Woods 2012, you'll be able to picture this better than those who have not. But imagine your QB dropping back for a pass, you find the open receiver [x-button], you press 'x'. In the past, if you tap it's a lob, if you hold it's a laser.
The TW 2012 idea comes in after you pick the receiver you want to throw to. In TW12, you can aim your next shot at the green, but depending on how accurate your golfer is, there is a circle that denotes the margin of error with your swing. So just because you hit it nearly perfect, the ball may still land 5 feet from the hole because it wasn't a perfect swing.
My idea focuses the passing game on this idea. Imagine Andrew Luck dropping back for a pass, he launches a bomb down the sideline. Instead of a tiny circle showing where the ball will land, this circle may be very large to very small denoting how accurate the passer may be. Within this accuracy circle, an x will denote where the ball will hit the field (so the ball may not land directly in the center!) This,I believe, would take away from EA making your receiver just randomly drop a perfect pass for the sake of %'s. With this accuracy circle, the ball may be overthrown or underthrown depending on how accurate you made the throw!
To determine the accuracy within the accuracy circle, the instant you hit the x-button to throw to a particular receiver, a small meter will appear (preferably in a spot on the screen your eyes naturally would go to - i.e. above the receiver you're throwing to). This meter would be similar to the putting meter in TW12 but would be horizontal and would have to move quickly in order for the flow of the game to be preserved.
In this meter would be 2 green accuracy areas (that will be small blocks or large blocks depending on how accurate the qb is). The green block closest to the left of the meter with be for an accurate lob pass (which corrrelates with a tapping of the x-button), whereas, the green block closest to the right of the meter will be for an accurate rifle pass. (for the visual, it would be similar to the NBA games of the past with the shooting meter - if that helps).
I feel like this idea helps to alleviate some of the problems with random dropped passes for no reason. There would finally be realistic overthrows, underthrows, throws over the wrong shoulder, etc. But, WOULD BE VERY GRATIFYING FOR THE PASS THAT WAS DROPPED ON A DIME IN YOUR WR HANDS!! Also, for longer passes the accuracy circle would be larger compared with shorter passes, since wind would be a factor and your qb's ability to lead WR's would all need to be taken into account for these long passes.

That's all I have really thought out, please feel free to add on to this idea, change somethings, and/or bash it completely!!

[bruinkid626]

What if you get sacked while using that meter? Or does it appear after the ball is thrown?

[Dr Death]

I understand what the OP is saying and I also fall into the category of not having played TW Golf... but rather than get all complicated w/ passing meters, why don't they fix touch and trajectory passing first? Why is it only a lob or a bullet pass?

When my X WR is 18 yards from the line of scrimmage and a LB'er is 7 yards from the line, and I hit up on the lead pass button and softly touch the corresponding WR's button, that is a T-O-U-C-H pass and no way in hell should a LBer be able to leap up and bat that pass down. Or a DT, as happens way too often in '11.

With improved zone defenses in '12, if the Leaping Linebacker/Defensive Line crap is in the game, it is going to be a serious buzz kill.

[phily915]

the meter i have in mind would appear as soon as you chose your receiver. so ultimately that would start the qb's throwing motion (pulling the ball back). The meter for accuracy will be moving very quickly [say in the time your qb pulls the ball back and goes to release). By the time he releases the ball, you would have already determined whether it will be a lob or a rifle pass. This, in effect, will not result in taking a sack unless you were going to get sacked anyways, since you couldn't decide on a WR to though to. If you accidently do not click to on the accuracy meter to through the ball, a pump fake of some sort will take place forcing the qb to have to scramble or throw the ball away....hope this helps

[canes21]

Are you saying it keeps the lob and bullet pass as the only two types?

I'd like to build on this and instead have a horizontal bar show up when you press the button. Then what happens is you are able to hold it in and make the bar build towards the right. The further you go to the right, the more of a bullet it becomes. Completely fill the bar and it is a very hard throw. Just tap the button and not move the bar any and its the lob. Do it half way, a touch like pass. This way you could throw those in between passes with a little variety in there. Maybe have a zone that is the suggested zone and the better the QB, the more accurate the bar is in telling you what to throw. A terrible QB may have it suggest a bullet pass when that is probably the worst idea.

[phily915]

i totally agree with that dr death. i do agree meter take some things away from the game and make it a little more complex. but as a gamer i feel like that put me more in control of the games actions. Where as if there wasn't a meter, i feel EA's AI could screw me when i've done everything right.

With this meter and accuracy circle it would be up to EA to reconstruct the ball trajectories to be more realistic so a super human LB can't jump 60 inches to snag the ball out the air

[phily915]

i agree canes21, as long as it is quick enough to make the qb's throwing mechanics look realistic and doesn't take away from any of the animation speeds

[sparkdawg777]

Or what about a meter like FIFA, if you hold it too long it will be inaccurate, you could still lead the receiver with the left stick. That way you can't just hold down a button and it rifles it in, it will take more skill. Just an idea.


EDIT: And just like in FIFA you have the option to have the meter on or off in the game, it will be over the QBs head and appears when you choose a receiver just like a shot in FIFA it will be green to red from left to right.