The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

[TheBrew101]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Here is my commentary on DD (mixed in with my commentary about getting my first perfect game).

I've played The Show a long time and various versions dating back to the PS2. I had once thrown a No Hitter with Shawn Marcum and the Brewers against the Astros on The Show 11..........but today, I got my first Perfect Game with Marco Estrada and the Brewers against the Cardinals on Jackie Robinson day.

It may be cheapened a bit unfortunately due to dynamic difficulty. I'm really enjoying this feature but I do wish it allowed you to start off at a certain level. I'm currently All Star+ for hitting and Veteran+ for pitching (in the past I was always an All Star/All Star player--meter pitching and zone hitting).

Really enjoying this game so far. Played 13 games and have finally kind of gotten to the level I probably should have started out on (I'm 12-2 with the Brewers and my stats are a little too good so far). So really enjoying the dynamic difficulty now that it is catching up to where I should be but debating if I should start over after getting the good start!!!! Almost as bad as slideritis!!! I'm still pitching a little too well I think so maybe I'll give a few more games to see if the numbers do even out before starting over.

Played it with quick count on as well (love this feature). I skipped last year's version as I still enjoyed The Show 12 but decided to upgrade this year and glad I did. Quick counts makes it so much more enjoyable for me.

Great game this year. My only wish is the dynamic difficulty would be allowed to start off at All Star/All Star and then work off of that--that would have save me the dilemma of whether or not to start over (but then maybe I wouldn't have gotten my perfect game).

[jake44np]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

I'm seeing a lack of walks on both sides. Are you guys seeing this? I use classic pitching, and I have a good eye in this game over the years; I usually average a walk every 10 AB's. I think I have 2-3 through 3 games. Granted, I'm still early in the DD game here, but I don't think walks should be that drastically different.

I use meter pitching and I average walking 3 batters a game. On o I walk about 2 times a game.

[jake44np]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

I think the idea of DD (not to be confused with Diamond Dynasty) is great, but I agree with the frustration of having to start over from Rookie+. Having an option to choose the starting difficulty level would have been nice.

An idea to accelerate the initial process before your DD plateaus is to play a very good MLB team against a poor AA team. If the only criteria that the game uses is OPS, then this should help.

Be patient u will move up quickly. It really locks u in the ur skill level after about 10 games.

[daddies3angels]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Love the DD and QC. Only played 5 games and im 4-1. I use Timing hitting and i seem to hit TONS better when i use power button when i have less then 2 strikes. Anytime i have 2 strikes i always use normal contact and im hitting for more OPS which has me almost at Vet+

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

So many Meter users in here. Wow. That's surprising but also very cool to see!

Without veering too far off-topic (honestly, it is on topic if we keep it that way) is it more wild in 14 than it was before? I always had too much accuracy with that interface in years past. Even when missing my spots. How is it this year? Do you think DD will bring you below or above your levels from years past?

[duc748s]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Here is my commentary on DD (mixed in with my commentary about getting my first perfect game).

I've played The Show a long time and various versions dating back to the PS2. I had once thrown a No Hitter with Shawn Marcum and the Brewers against the Astros on The Show 11..........but today, I got my first Perfect Game with Marco Estrada and the Brewers against the Cardinals on Jackie Robinson day.

It may be cheapened a bit unfortunately due to dynamic difficulty. I'm really enjoying this feature but I do wish it allowed you to start off at a certain level. I'm currently All Star+ for hitting and Veteran+ for pitching (in the past I was always an All Star/All Star player--meter pitching and zone hitting).

Really enjoying this game so far. Played 13 games and have finally kind of gotten to the level I probably should have started out on (I'm 12-2 with the Brewers and my stats are a little too good so far). So really enjoying the dynamic difficulty now that it is catching up to where I should be but debating if I should start over after getting the good start!!!! Almost as bad as slideritis!!! I'm still pitching a little too well I think so maybe I'll give a few more games to see if the numbers do even out before starting over.

Played it with quick count on as well (love this feature). I skipped last year's version as I still enjoyed The Show 12 but decided to upgrade this year and glad I did. Quick counts makes it so much more enjoyable for me.

Great game this year. My only wish is the dynamic difficulty would be allowed to start off at All Star/All Star and then work off of that--that would have save me the dilemma of whether or not to start over (but then maybe I wouldn't have gotten my perfect game).

Don't let DD cheapen your perfect game. Even using DD at the start, when it's on Rookie, the CPU is no slouch as they can still generate hits and runs. If it was easy on Rookie the everyone would have Perfect Games all the time.

Overall it seem like the difficulty is a little tougher this year. It's hard to explain, but it feels like (to me) that the game is tougher, even at lower levels, but the gameplay is so much better...smoother and the CPU PCI is varied more? I didn't think tha pitching could be improved much but it feels so much better this year also. I had two Cir crushed for HR's last night. Both were low, one was low outside corner and the other was low inside below the strike zone, never had that happen before LOL

I usually start at AS (with AS sliders) for pitching every year but this year decided to try the DD out and get it ready in time for OSFM rosters to drop before "Officially" starting. I think a lot of others are doing the same, so you can decide if that's the best way to go for you.

[sabig2715]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Is anyone using sliders with the dynamic option, or does this defeat the purpose of the option?

[bcruise]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Is anyone using sliders with the dynamic option, or does this defeat the purpose of the option?

Personally I'd suggest not adjusting the hitting/pitching sliders until you plateau - where you find it difficult to move up OR down in difficulty. I played 10 games at the All-Star difficulty (with varying amounts of progress both ways) which was pretty much enough to tell me I wasn't going anywhere at that point.

Once you find the right level the sliders should come into play more for fine-tuning. Before that it's kind of a waste unless you just want to boost your way up through the lower difficulties quicker IMO. Stuff like errors are probably fine to adjust since they don't impact how the hitting or pitching works.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Is anyone using sliders with the dynamic option, or does this defeat the purpose of the option?

You most certainly can use sliders together with DD! In fact, I really like that about this mode! Fine tuning baby! The 10 Difficulty Levels will help eliminate the need for most people doing major slider overhauls too!

I actually plan on adjusting a couple myself, assuming Errors and SB frequency/success don't start balancing out.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Personally I'd suggest not adjusting the hitting/pitching sliders until you plateau - where you find it difficult to move up OR down in difficulty. I played 10 games at the All-Star difficulty (with varying amounts of progress both ways) which was pretty much enough to tell me I wasn't going anywhere at that point.

Once you find the right level the sliders should come into play more for fine-tuning. Before that it's kind of a waste unless you just want to boost your way up through the lower difficulties quicker IMO. Stuff like errors are probably fine to adjust since they don't impact how the hitting or pitching works.

Agreed.

Adjust sliders before plateauing would be very counter-productive. Forgot to mention that in my post.

[sabig2715]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Good points guys, thanks for the responses.

[RogueHominid]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Yeah, I'm getting a nice variety too. At least on offense. Are you using QC's?

Got shutout in game one last night, put up 9 in game two, and was being no hit thru 5 innings before bed in game three.

Lately I've been testing BB to K ratios with frontline starters so I haven't given up hardly any runs lately. I understand that's probably why but I hope this trend doesn't continue on AS+. Definitely NOT ready for HOF! LOL!

Yup, I use QC too. Trust me, when the pitching gets a little harder, you'll give up both walks and runs on the mound, even with good pitchers. Early in Spring Training, everyone was looking like Kershaw, but 15 games in, I've had some guys really get shelled.

The one thing I'm considering doing slider-wise is bumping the starting pitcher stamina, as the pitch counts in QC are noted to be quite high.

I've used the past couple of Spring Training games to see how deep I could take my starter before he gassed out. I got Griffin through 6 and Gray through 7 so far, but I was REALLY pushing it stamina-wise. I think for the sake of all the good that comes from the mode, we're doing to have to totally abandon realism in the pitch-count department and focus on getting pitchers to pitch the right number of innings.

That's more a QC commentary than a DD one, but it sounds like many of us in this thread are using QC, so it might be a useful reflection. Have others tried to see how far you can take a starter with QC? I'd love to see other data. At default stamina, I cannot imagine a complete game ever being pitched.

[jake44np]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Adjusting the slider while using DD seems like a total contradiction to me. Leave the sliders alone and let the dd lock ur skill level in.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

Yup, I use QC too. Trust me, when the pitching gets a little harder, you'll give up both walks and runs on the mound, even with good pitchers. Early in Spring Training, everyone was looking like Kershaw, but 15 games in, I've had some guys really get shelled.

The one thing I'm considering doing slider-wise is bumping the starting pitcher stamina, as the pitch counts in QC are noted to be quite high.

I've used the past couple of Spring Training games to see how deep I could take my starter before he gassed out. I got Griffin through 6 and Gray through 7 so far, but I was REALLY pushing it stamina-wise. I think for the sake of all the good that comes from the mode, we're doing to have to totally abandon realism in the pitch-count department and focus on getting pitchers to pitch the right number of innings.

That's more a QC commentary than a DD one, but it sounds like many of us in this thread are using QC, so it might be a useful reflection. Have others tried to see how far you can take a starter with QC? I'd love to see other data. At default stamina, I cannot imagine a complete game ever being pitched.

James Sheilds (CPU) threw 189 pitches in a CG shutout against me last night. LOL! Maybe I'm excited about the upcoming patch more than I though I'd be.

Though in reality, the game was treating him more like 115-120 pitches stamina-wise; which considering how fast I was getting out, seems about right where he "would have" been in a non-QC game.

Glad to see meter giving guys good BB numbers this year!

[bcruise]

Re: The Dynamic Difficulty Discussion Thread

I might go back to DD for a bit more diagnosis. There's one problem I'm seeing in my season games - while I am drawing walks, they're taking the place of strikeouts. Right now through 6 games I have 13k's while the 2nd ranked team in that category has like 33. And I didn't K once against Cliff Lee. I know why too - it's the contact swing making it too easy to put the bat on the ball with two strikes. But it's a catch 22 because without that swing I won't get walks - failing to check a ball 4 swing is the #1 reason I don't walk enough, hands down.

I played a HOF game using the contact swing the way I have been and the result was promising - walked 3 times, struck out 6. If I go back to DD and play like this, I will probably get promoted to AS+ or HOF once the K's drop off as they did in the season.

Oh, and BTW....don't worry about not being able to hit for power if you use that swing. In my 5th game I blasted one out of Wrigley with Ruggiano on a contact swing. Square it up and the ball will still fly.