Veteran Level play and Slider talk

[cable guy]

This thread is for those of us playing, and what we are experiencing, on Veteran level. For one I do not see a comeback code. But on default level, I do give up 12-15 hits a game.

Anyway what sliders did any of you adjust or are you playing on default. If on default I need pitching tips or something.

Currently I have CPU Contact, Solid Hits and Timing at 4. Power I bumped up to 7. I give up 10-12 hits a game now. How low can i go in their sliders?

[choadler]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I use psycho's sliders. He ups user pitching control and consistency by one each I believe. Perhaps try that to see if it cuts down on the hits.

In my first series against Houston they hit .235 against me. Thought maybe pitching was going to be too easy. Next series the Brewers lit me up hitting .356 for the 3 game set. Mostly against my bullpen. Marshall, Gaudin (Lilly sprained an ankle in pregames) and Zambrano did pretty well. Middle relievers got smacked around however.

[cable guy]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I use psycho's sliders. He ups user pitching control and consistency by one each I believe. Perhaps try that to see if it cuts down on the hits.

In my first series against Houston they hit .235 against me. Thought maybe pitching was going to be too easy. Next series the Brewers lit me up hitting .356 for the 3 game set. Mostly against my bullpen. Marshall, Gaudin (Lilly sprained an ankle in pregames) and Zambrano did pretty well. Middle relievers got smacked around however.

I may try that if i keep getting smacked around.

but i am on veteran, so i dont want to put the cpu at too much of a disadvatage. I actually just have to hit the meter better.

right now i am at cpu contact, timing, and solid hits at 4. With power back at 5. I had it up to 7.

[BravesandDRays]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I too knocked down the CPU hitting attributes a few notches, mainly to increase strikeouts, which has worked quite well without making the cpu an impotent hitting squad.

[cable guy]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I too knocked down the CPU hitting attributes a few notches, mainly to increase strikeouts, which has worked quite well without making the cpu an impotent hitting squad.

How low did you go?

[BravesandDRays]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

How low did you go?

Just 1-2 clicks down on cpu batting stats. I've been pleased with the results. I give up 4-5 runs a game which is very realistic. I have been pitching better lately (as in user skill) so I might go back to default if i start to get shut them down even more.

[RogueHominid]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I finally swallowed my pride and tried Veteran, and I was extremely pleased with how the game played on that setting.

I started on HOF, but I just couldn't get a read on pitches. I went down to AS and followed Blzer's global sliders with pbz06's pitching sliders. I had some good games, but I was still feeling like I needed to tweak more than I wanted to in order to get the right setting for my skill level.

So after 50 or so games on AS, I went down to Veteran and gave it a run with everything at default except reliver stamina (HUM & CPU) and CPU strike frequency. These two sliders I put at zero. The results were fantastic.

In the lab game I ran, I took BOS to LAA, Penny vs. Lackey. At higher difficulty levels, many were having to tweak consistency and some had to lower pitch speed as well. That worked okay for me, but I still struck out too much, even when I was concentrating, and there were a fair number of beaned batters and wild pitches.

In my lab game, Lackey threw 89 pitches through 6 innings, 61% of which were strikes. Penny through 90 through 6, 64% of which were strikes. The pitch counts and at-bats were great. I had a few 8-9 pitch at-bats, one walk (would have had two more had I not chased a high FB on one AB and gotten beaned on ball 4 on another), and while I was pitching I walked two (unintentionally) and gave up 3 runs. The CPU hit 2 HR and 2 2B.

What I liked most about the level is that the CPU didn't puss out--their offense hit, and Lackey was able to find a rhythm after a rough first couple of innings to retire 6 straight. It felt very well balanced.

I noticed a few very small differences in tuning from All Star, which made it the perfect setting for me on default. Pitch speed, timing, and fouls are all just a hair more in the user's favor on Veteran, and the result is great if you're a thoughtful and focused player but don't necessarily have the best reflexes in the world. There were a handful of sliders and changes that I would have whiffed completely at on All Star, but was able to foul off or make weak contact with on Veteran. The translation statistically was less strikeouts, a couple of extended at-bats, and more dribblers, which is exactly what I needed.

On Veteran, there's no need to mess with consistency sliders--the CPU misses wide enough on default to be able to take several balls without ever thinking of swinging. And the speed is just right for those with average reflexes to be able to read the break but still not have tons of extra time. I still struck out 6 times, but the balance felt very good and the at-bats were very enjoyable.

[Bahnzo]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I've only had the game for just over a week, and while I started on All-Star, I've been playing on Veteran exclusively now...and loving it. I've been playing games and recording stats and coming very close to having a slider set that provides a statistically accurate game, while being fun as well.

HERE is a link to what I did with 2K8 last year in regards to stats, and I'm currently doing the same with MLB09 The Show now. The stats averages so far are very close to the real thing...pretty cool IMO.

One question I have for people that have played All-Star level a lot and then have come to Veteran: Which level do you feel the AI plays a more realistic game at? I'm happy with Vet for the most part, but I'm still seeing some things that are off (CPU swinging too much is one) that I'm wondering if All-star would improve on.

I'll post some of the stats that I've collected here with The Show eventually, still waiting to get a larger sample size before I do.

[cable guy]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

Autumn Wind and Bahnzo... is there a big difference between All-Star and Veteran, and do you think you guys will mess with the sliders?

I had to put the cpu hitting down because I was giving up way too many hits.

[RogueHominid]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

Autumn Wind and Bahnzo... is there a big difference between All-Star and Veteran, and do you think you guys will mess with the sliders?

I had to put the cpu hitting down because I was giving up way too many hits.

The differences are real, but not overdone and not cheap. Pitches come out just a tad slower and are easier to read. You have a little more grace with timing and swinging to foul pitches off. But you can still strike out plenty, get dominated by good pitchers, etc. User pitching can still go either way, depending on the day, but it is a bit easier to get strikeouts (say, the difference between 5-6 on AS and 7-8 on Veteran) if you mix your pitches well and have good stuff that day. CPU pitching and hitting are both balanced.

For me, I find that the game feels very natural and well-tuned for my skill level with everything at default except CPU strike percentage, which I put at 0. At this setting, pitchers will throw between 50-65% strikes, depending on the pitcher and the day. That's my favorite part about it--there's proper balance to both user and CPU pitch counts.

The only other thing I'm doing is lowering reliever stamina to 0. That's just my preference.

[pbz06]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

Autumn Wind and Bahnzo... is there a big difference between All-Star and Veteran, and do you think you guys will mess with the sliders?

I had to put the cpu hitting down because I was giving up way too many hits.

From what I noticed, the CPU offense is very similar between the two difficulties. I think the bigger and more noticeable difference is the way the CPU pitches and the User's offense.

I tend to give up the same 4-5 runs on AS and Veteran (with the occasional blowout and the occasional low scoring game), but I feel I have a better chance to put up the same amount of runs on Veteran. On All-Star, I have to really be on my game to even have a chance of scoring.

I'm still back and forth between Veteran and AS though...I think I'm going to try Veteran a bit longer until I get more comfortable offensively. I also tend to hit homeruns better on Veteran.

[RogueHominid]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

From what I noticed, the CPU offense is very similar between the two difficulties. I think the bigger and more noticeable difference is the way the CPU pitches and the User's offense.

I tend to give up the same 4-5 runs on AS and Veteran (with the occasional blowout and the occasional low scoring game), but I feel I have a better chance to put up the same amount of runs on Veteran. On All-Star, I have to really be on my game to even have a chance of scoring.

I'm still back and forth between Veteran and AS though...I think I'm going to try Veteran a bit longer until I get more comfortable offensively. I also tend to hit homeruns better on Veteran.

Agreed. I had a couple of good offensive games and also got hammered while pitching, so I ran a test game with CIN @ ATL, Volquez vs. Lowe. I tore Lowe up in my previous game using the Phils, but this game he shut me out through 7 innings, allowing just 4 hits. He did give up 4 walks, but nothing else. It was refreshing to see that the CPU could pitch very well on Veteran and that I could pitch well too. Volquez through 8 scoreless innings.

The biggest difference for me wasn't BA or HR, but BB and K. I struck out 3X vs. Lowe and walked 6X for the game. And the pitch counts were great. When Lowe found his groove, he went from 55% strikes to 63%, not from 67% to 77% like I was seeing on AS and HOF.

[Bahnzo]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

Autumn Wind and Bahnzo... is there a big difference between All-Star and Veteran, and do you think you guys will mess with the sliders?

I had to put the cpu hitting down because I was giving up way too many hits.

I would defer to others when it comes to the difference between the two. Like I said, I've only had the game for a week and have played almost entirely on Veteran.

But I have been messing with the sliders and have been able to get pretty accurate results as far as the AI goes. They swing and take pitches at a rate comparable to MLB averages, and pitch very well too. But even on Vet, my hitting is somewhat dismal....it's improving tho, but I'm still having problems with breaking stuff. It's coming around, but slowly.

What a great game!

[cable guy]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

I would defer to others when it comes to the difference between the two. Like I said, I've only had the game for a week and have played almost entirely on Veteran.

But I have been messing with the sliders and have been able to get pretty accurate results as far as the AI goes. They swing and take pitches at a rate comparable to MLB averages, and pitch very well too. But even on Vet, my hitting is somewhat dismal....it's improving tho, but I'm still having problems with breaking stuff. It's coming around, but slowly.

What a great game!

I am still tinkering with the sliders.

I slowed the pitch spped to 0 and what a difference it has made for me. I played on default speed last year, but hitting is harder this year. I could not react in time to pitches in which I did not guess correctly.

[gman2774]

Re: Veteran Level play and Slider talk

What about fielder speed and reaction on Veteran? Have you made any adjustments to those two sliders? I've seen a lot of All-Star/HOF slider sets that have speed to 0 (all the way to the left) and reaction at default or greater? Are these adjustments necessary on veteran? Thanks!!