Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

[RogerDodger]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

Call me old-fashioned at 32 yrs old but I hate even reading the paragraph you typed lol. Gamers worrying about what game-mode is getting complained about the most through Twitter/social media. I just believe that, since we are consumers of this product, we shouldn't have to go to Twitter to beg for a better game mode. Just my 2 cents

To be honest you’re right, it’s daft that we’re using social media to gauge and somehow rank the concerns of gamers but that’s an indictment of where we’re at today. Made worse by the fact that developers seem to take their feedback from what they see and read on there.

[SaundCo87]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

To be honest you’re right, it’s daft that we’re using social media to gauge and somehow rank the concerns of gamers but that’s an indictment of where we’re at today. Made worse by the fact that developers seem to take their feedback from what they see and read on there.

100% agree. Sign of the times I guess.

[Therebelyell626]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

Interesting hypothesis but completely contradicted by the fact that the ratio of Madden and FIFA Ultimate team posts on Twitter and content on YouTube is far outweigh those for their respective franchise modes. If the dissatisfied were more vocal and persistent as you claim then the same would apply but it doesn’t. In fact, I’ve seen countless efforts to energise and mobilise passionate franchise mode players of Madden to push for a greater social media presence and it hasn’t happened and their frustrations probably far outweigh ours.

And your assertions with respect to that Twitter poll are at best disingenuous.

Not to mention all Dolenz would have to do is take a trip over to the shownation and see that 99% of the posts are people bitching about DD. In fact DD posts outnumber franchise posts a thousand to one, and most are negative. Franchise guys are not nearly as negative as the ultimate team crowd. It cracks me up that people are seriously taking a shame on you approach because we are aggravated that for a fifth year in row we are stuck with a mode that has been the virtually the same. Then they act like we should be happy they even threw us a new feature (if you can even call it a feature) that if you have even played the mode at all in the last theee years, you would know will probably break the game (real player salaries).

[bravesfan1984]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

It always makes me scratch my head on why there is such an emphasis on social media feedback. Maybe I'm wrong in my thinking, but your true hardcore gamers are the ones, you know, actually spending their time playing your game....not the ones trolling on social media about your game. Personally, playing my games leaves me next to nil time to be on social media. I guess I'm just old school

Sent from my SM-G965U using Operation Sports mobile app

[Cycloniac]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

The only thing encouraging about this interview is the reminder that Livingston and the SDS team still read threads on OS.

I was an Xbox lifer and bought a PS4 mainly because I wanted to enjoy MLB The Show. I wasn't playing The Show when developers were participating on these forums regularly, so I don't know what that feels like. This article just makes me wish for times like that.

Maybe then I would be more motivated to believe franchise will receive an overhaul. I'm curious why--since this interview was specifically for OS--neither developer went into more detail about under the hood improvements to franchise. Millennium mentioned the SDS team makes franchise AI tweaks every cycle in his recap stream.

Why not use this interview as an opportunity to talk about that?

[bravesfan1984]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

The only thing encouraging about this interview is the reminder that Livingston and the SDS team still read threads on OS.

I was an Xbox lifer and bought a PS4 mainly because I wanted to enjoy MLB The Show. I wasn't playing The Show when developers were participating on these forums regularly, so I don't know what that feels like. This article just makes me wish for times like that.

Maybe then I would be more motivated to believe franchise will receive an overhaul. I'm curious why--since this interview was specifically for OS--neither developer went into more detail about under the hood improvements to franchise. Millennium mentioned the SDS team makes franchise AI tweaks every cycle in his recap stream.

Why not use this interview as an opportunity to talk about that?

Simple, there were no under the hood improvements. That's how I see it. This would have been the perfect opportunity to showcase them.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Operation Sports mobile app

[Impetuous65]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

Talk about peeing on legs...what a load of______

You just had multiple streams to talk about and compartmentalize Road to the Show, and you will have 2 diamond dynasty streams.

Stop it SDS you make me want to wish bad things on this game for the blatant BS.

[kehlis]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

It always makes me scratch my head on why there is such an emphasis on social media feedback. Maybe I'm wrong in my thinking, but your true hardcore gamers are the ones, you know, actually spending their time playing your game....not the ones trolling on social media about your game. Personally, playing my games leaves me next to nil time to be on social media. I guess I'm just old school

Sent from my SM-G965U using Operation Sports mobile app

Maybe I'm missing something but how would they receive feedback without social media?

Keep in mind, OS is very much a form of social media.

I can't think of a medium where they could listen to us that wouldn't be deemed to be some form of social media.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

I appreciate Nick and he also seems like a likable guy. Someone that is very knowledgeable about baseball in general (even if he roots for the incorrect Chicago team) and able to explain things really clearly. I also really respect his willingness to go from the frying pan into the fire so to speak, knowing full well this article invites yet another wave of eyerolling, disagreement, and general "nah uh" from the peanut gallery. Respect!

That being said...


1) You can't divide a game into modes and when one isn't getting as much love, then say it's not fair for us to "compartmentalize" the game. 100%. Cop. Out. Maybe you do envision a "game without borders," but that isn't how it plays. There are modes. You can only use these modes to do very definite things.

2) To say the studio is not "money driven" is misleading at best. Maybe the devs themselves as individuals couldn't care less about profit and aren't constantly focused on the cash register cha-chinging every time someone clicks on DD, but the company they work for certainly is. To insinuate that monetary considerations don't play a central role in how the game gets developed is something I'd expect someone named Polyanna to come up with, not Nick. It just is not true.

3) To say they listen to all types of gamers (instead of just telemetry or the squeaky-ist voice streamers with the largest followings) is interesting because they've added virtually none of our huge, long wish lists that pop up several times per cycle on Operation Sports. Don't listen to me? Fine, I probably don't deserve it especially since I didn't buy last year. But, what about the hundreds of other guys that have the same gripes and mostly the same list? If they really listened to OS (and twitter...and other places), they'd already know how they were falling short here. The simple fact that Nick got trotted out to address this perception is pretty interesting evidence.

4) We have the 'but RTTS is bigger' justification. Ah, yes. We franchise mode players are wee and insignificant. Haven't heard that one before. Fine. RTTS can get the sun, moon, and stars for all I care. Just make sure franchise gets more than one minor thing per cycle that probably hasn't been implemented well is all I'm asking. I really don't think that's unreasonable to ask from a AAA simulation sports title.


Unfortunately, this article reads like someone making excuses at the behest of corporate higher-ups to placate a lot of very mad people that are commenting on twitter feeds with pitchforks at the ready. Let's call a spade a spade here. The whole "the almost nothing we added to the mode you like is actually quite a lot of something argument" needs to die. It's insulting and easily falsifiable.

[Mercury112491]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

I can’t believe there’s even more to be said on this subject.


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[bravesfan1984]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

Maybe I'm missing something but how would they receive feedback without social media?

Keep in mind, OS is very much a form of social media.

I can't think of a medium where they could listen to us that wouldn't be deemed to be some form of social media.

My reference to social media was meant as twitter and Facebook...my bad for not clarifying that in my post. There was a time when we had video games and no 'twitter, FB' yet they still got feedback.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Operation Sports mobile app

[kehlis]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

My reference to social media was meant as twitter and Facebook...my bad for not clarifying that in my post. There was a time when we had video games and no 'twitter, FB' yet they still got feedback.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Operation Sports mobile app

Fair enough, but they still get feedback from here in addition to all platforms. I don't think the sword to fall on is claiming they only read twitter or Facebook.

I can’t believe there’s even more to be said on this subject.


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

Why's that?

[TheWarmWind]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

I'm sorry Nick but you would have been better off staying quite on this one.

There mere fact that can claim to be in touch with the OS community and then turn around and say franchise needs to be more appealing to casual players shows how out of touch you are with the OS community. Don't make claims you can't back up.

You say you have a long list of things that you want to improve in franchise, but you're too afraid to say anything specific. I get it, you don't want to make a commitment in case it can't be kept, and if this were 3 years ago I would have given you the benefit of the doubt. But after 3 years of lip service for franchise, I cannot take that claim on faith any longer. I need something tangible before that faith is restored.

This whole situation reeks of peddling to the new consumer while selling falsehoods to the faithful. This whole interview conjures nothing but negative emotions in me.

The cherry on top of the FU sundae though was calling Franchise just a piece of a bigger picture. We don't want or need your empty platitudes.

[moTIGS]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

Being in touch with the OS community doesn't mean agreeing with everything they want or catering to every one of their desires.

[CujoMatty]

Re: Franchise Mode is Piece of a Bigger Picture Says San Diego Studios

Somebody already quoted this but i'm doing it again because it honestly blows my mind.

"According to two of the more senior designers working on the game, the goal is to present a user experience in a more holistic package rather than staging each mode on its own island.

“We are challenging ourselves not to compartmentalize the way we talk about MLB The Show,” said Nick Livingston, lead game designer on MLB The Show 19. “We want to understand the gamer, the person we’re trying to serve.”"

Why? SDS is overthinking things if this is the direction they are headed. You don't need to reinvent how we play. You really don't. Just give us depth and customization. NBA 2k does it.

I'm not the hugest NBA 2K fan but it's hard to argue against that they put out the most feature rich sports game in existence. I can buy that game and get a years worth out of only playing MyLeague. An online gamer can get a years worth out of online modes. MyCareer easily offers a years worth of content. MyGM could be the only thing you played all year and you still wouldn't feel ripped off.


NBA 2K proves every year not only that you can have success having each mode on it's own island but that it actually makes the most sense. I can then play however I want to play. Why does SDS seem to have this desire to convert RTTS and DD users to Franchise and vice versa? It just doesn't need to be that complicated.