Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

[mkharsh33]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Another reason is that in '17 you couldn't do this...

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iuF8S3B9Ra0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Unfortunately, 95% of those types of plays end up as wild pitches and free bases. I'm tinkering with the pitcher CONSISTENCY slider (raising it up a bit more than most slider creators here have it) as it seems to impact the number of those plays - which then can be offset by other pitching sliders to compensate. But yeah, that's a cool play / video!

[BigOscar]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

If you want to play offline and gameplay is what you're all about then 100% yes. If online, then unfortunately it's a bit of a mess. If you're looking for genuine improvement in the game modes, then again you'll be disappointed.

But if you want to play something like franchise mode and were happy enough with the mode last year but just wanted much more realistic gameplay, then definitely go for it as it's come on leaps and bounds in that regard (but definitely change the fielders speed and reactions as A+S said as they are way off on default yet bafflingly haven't been changed in all the slider adjustments)

[countryboy]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Unfortunately, 95% of those types of plays end up as wild pitches and free bases. I'm tinkering with the pitcher CONSISTENCY slider (raising it up a bit more than most slider creators here have it) as it seems to impact the number of those plays - which then can be offset by other pitching sliders to compensate. But yeah, that's a cool play / video!

Not for me they haven't. I've had wild pitches and guys be able to advance on balls in the dirt, but no where near the rate of 95%.

Most of the time on pitches that bounce in the dirt like that and are corralled by the catcher the runner doesn't attempt to advance. When they do, depending on who is running and who is the catcher, they are safe or thrown out probably at a 50/50 clip.

[mkharsh33]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Not for me they haven't. I've had wild pitches and guys be able to advance on balls in the dirt, but no where near the rate of 95%.

Most of the time on pitches that bounce in the dirt like that and are corralled by the catcher the runner doesn't attempt to advance. When they do, depending on who is running and who is the catcher, they are safe or thrown out probably at a 50/50 clip.

To make my pitching harder, I am user Meter - Legend - with the slider at 0. If I don't do this, I NEVER walk anyone (the other pitching modes don't appeal to me). So I should have prefaced my comments. I'm not attacking the game, just an observation that when there are runners on base, 95% of the time the ball skips away from the catcher and runners advance. I'm not making that up... But still, a great game.

[countryboy]

Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

To make my pitching harder, I am user Meter - Legend - with the slider at 0. If I don't do this, I NEVER walk anyone (the other pitching modes don't appeal to me). So I should have prefaced my comments. I'm not attacking the game, just an observation that when there are runners on base, 95% of the time the ball skips away from the catcher and runners advance. I'm not making that up... But still, a great game.

Wasn’t suggesting you were, just providing my experience

I use meter pitching as well playing on Legend

Default sliders


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[underdog13]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

In terms of gameplay only? Yes 100% not a single doubt about it.

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[underdog13]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Another reason is that in '17 you couldn't do this...

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iuF8S3B9Ra0" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

That was the sexiest thing I've ever seen lmao. 17 is so annoying in that regard

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[NolanRyansSnowmonkey]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Not for me they haven't. I've had wild pitches and guys be able to advance on balls in the dirt, but no where near the rate of 95%.

Most of the time on pitches that bounce in the dirt like that and are corralled by the catcher the runner doesn't attempt to advance. When they do, depending on who is running and who is the catcher, they are safe or thrown out probably at a 50/50 clip.

It may not be 95% (it can seem like 95% though) but his point stands. Most of the time the runners do advance. Its definitely a huge problem with this game (one of the very few). And the only way to curb it is to not throw pitches in the dirt with runners on. This cuts down on what you can do as a pitcher but we have to live with it.

Catcher blocking attributes dont fix it either. Its just one of those video game things we have to try to work around. Just stay out of the dirt with runners on.

[countryboy]

Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

It may not be 95% (it can seem like 95% though) but his point stands. Most of the time the runners do advance. Its definitely a huge problem with this game (one of the very few). And the only way to curb it is to not throw pitches in the dirt with runners on. This cuts down on what you can do as a pitcher but we have to live with it.



Catcher blocking attributes dont fix it either. Its just one of those video game things we have to try to work around. Just stay out of the dirt with runners on.

I didn’t say he was wrong or his point was invalid, just shared my experience.

I don’t view it as a problem. I throw pitches down in the zone with runners on unless I have a pitcher who is struggling with control.

Yes at times I make a bad pitch and runners advance or I throw a wild pitch but it’s nothing overblown nor an issue for me.

More often than not the pitch is corralled and runners stay put


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[NolanRyansSnowmonkey]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

I didn’t say he was wrong or his point was invalid, just shared my experience.

I don’t view it as a problem. I throw pitches down in the zone with runners on unless I have a pitcher who is struggling with control.

Yes at times I make a bad pitch and runners advance or I throw a wild pitch but it’s nothing overblown nor an issue for me.

More often than not the pitch is corralled and runners stay put

I get that, but should be able to bounce a pitch on purpose, throw a change up in the dirt with two strikes to get a strikeout even with runners on, having faith in the catcher to block it. That is pretty much not an option in this game.

Im referring to when pitches are actually in the dirt. Not when i purposely have to avoid the dirt at all costs.

I tested this a while back with multiple pitchers, with runners on base, and not on base.

With runners on 1st or 2nd base, i logged 107 pitches that were in the dirt. Of those 107 pitches, only 45% were blocked and no runners attempted to advance. On 55% of pitches in the dirt, the runners attempted to advance. This is entirely way way too high.

Of those runners attempting to advance, 95% were successful.

With a runner on 3rd, i logged 100 pitches in the dirt. 53% were corralled enough to keep the runner from attempting to advance. 47% of the time they attempted to score. Only 5% were tagged out.

Another item of note, is that it is virtually impossible to get anything by the catcher with no runners on. 100% of balls in the dirt were caught clean (not just blocked) with no runners on - until there was a 3-ball count. On a 3-ball count, 88% of balls in the dirt were at least dropped or skipped by the catcher. (Not a WP).

I do the same thing as you, just dont throw pitches in the dirt if possible, so wild pitches are not an issue for me either. But it takes away a big portion of your arsenal to not be able to throw down out of the zone against tough hitters with two strikes. But it is what it is until they fix it.

I also pitch with consistency at 1 on Legend, using both meter and analog.

[tessl]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Yes 18 is better than 17 in terms of the game on the field - in manage mode.

I don't "joystick" the game so I have no idea in the other modes but in manage mode it is better.

[countryboy]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

I get that, but should be able to bounce a pitch on purpose, throw a change up in the dirt with two strikes to get a strikeout even with runners on, having faith in the catcher to block it. That is pretty much not an option in this game.



Im referring to when pitches are actually in the dirt. Not when i purposely have to avoid the dirt at all costs.



I tested this a while back with multiple pitchers, with runners on base, and not on base.



With runners on 1st or 2nd base, i logged 107 pitches that were in the dirt. Of those 107 pitches, only 45% were blocked and no runners attempted to advance. On 55% of pitches in the dirt, the runners attempted to advance. This is entirely way way too high.



Of those runners attempting to advance, 95% were successful.



With a runner on 3rd, i logged 100 pitches in the dirt. 53% were corralled enough to keep the runner from attempting to advance. 47% of the time they attempted to score. Only 5% were tagged out.



Another item of note, is that it is virtually impossible to get anything by the catcher with no runners on. 100% of balls in the dirt were caught clean (not just blocked) with no runners on - until there was a 3-ball count. On a 3-ball count, 88% of balls in the dirt were at least dropped or skipped by the catcher. (Not a WP).



I do the same thing as you, just dont throw pitches in the dirt if possible, so wild pitches are not an issue for me either. But it takes away a big portion of your arsenal to not be able to throw down out of the zone against tough hitters with two strikes. But it is what it is until they fix it.



I also pitch with consistency at 1 on Legend, using both meter and analog.

That’s what I’m saying though is I’ll bounce pitches in the dirt with 2 strikes and runners on with a pitcher who has good command that day.

The only thing that takes away any of my pitching arsenal is pitching command. If I have a pitcher with good command that day, I have no worries throwing a pitch in the dirt to get a strikeout with runners on.

You and MKharsh both have pitching consistency lowered on Legend pitching, maybe that is why our experiences are different


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[mkharsh33]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

That’s what I’m saying though is I’ll bounce pitches in the dirt with 2 strikes and runners on with a pitcher who has good command that day.

The only thing that takes away any of my pitching arsenal is pitching command. If I have a pitcher with good command that day, I have no worries throwing a pitch in the dirt to get a strikeout with runners on.

You and MKharsh both have pitching consistency lowered on Legend pitching, maybe that is why our experiences are different


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Just to respond to the emphasized part above...

I have ACCURACY down to 0 - BUT, I have CONSISTENCY at SEVEN. And I'm still seeing balls do what he noted above - scooting away from the pitcher. If you read the slider explanations, and if I understand them correctly - the accuracy slider should affect the meter speed only - the consistency slider is the one that should have more of an impact on passed balls / wild pitches / craziness of the pitches themselves. Now, I get they are inner-connected, but still - I really don't think this is as much of a pitching issues as it is a CATCHERS issue. But again, and not to beat a dead horse, I really would hope this gets patched. Seems like a simple fix where a happy medium can be found. We all have different experiences, but I'm starting to wonder if you have a relative on their dev team. (I kid!!!)

[NolanRyansSnowmonkey]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

That’s what I’m saying though is I’ll bounce pitches in the dirt with 2 strikes and runners on with a pitcher who has good command that day.

The only thing that takes away any of my pitching arsenal is pitching command. If I have a pitcher with good command that day, I have no worries throwing a pitch in the dirt to get a strikeout with runners on.

You and MKharsh both have pitching consistency lowered on Legend pitching, maybe that is why our experiences are different


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I didn't keep these numbers because after a while it was obvious that it wasn't worth it, but i did the same test with both control and consistency at 10. I stopped well before 100 pitches because the results were clear.

Once the ball was in the dirt, the results were exactly what i was experiencing with consistency at 1.

I also edited catcher block to 100 with no noticeable change.

I also edited Cole Hamels to 99 attributes across the board just to test it, with human control and consistency sliders both at 10. I was determined to find what was causing this. There was zero noticeable change between this, and a sub-par pitcher with Human consistency at 1. Balls in the dirt become wild pitches at a high rate. It has nothing to do with the pitcher or the catcher, its simply a flaw in the game that ive accepted but i am hopeful it eventually gets fixed. Not holding my breath though.

The only thing control and consistency at 10 did was make me hit my spots easier. It kept me from accidentally throwing it in the dirt if i didn't want to. I can achieve the same thing with consistency at 1, by choosing my locations wisely. This is why i do not see an unrealistic amount of wild pitches. The only difference is i can't hit my exact spot almost every time, and i walk hitters on accident. But balls in the dirt behave the same no matter the slider settings or attributes.

[countryboy]

Re: Is '18 worth it over '17 in terms of gameplay?

Well I’m not sure why the difference in experience then.

I can’t imagine carryover from ‘16 would matter but who knows

Hope something is done to better your all’s experience


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