Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

I agree that what you mentioned is important, however, when the main new user complaint is that it's easy to get lost I feel that it's important to address that in a way that isn't throwing the the literal manual at them. Additionally, not every OOTP user will use the OOTP Dev Forums or the OS Forums so having something in the game that it's less of a sink or swim. This isn't saying to remove features to make them less complex, not at all.

It's my opinion that the user should be presented with "here's a tour that lets you know what you can do as you click around and discover things" rather than having to flip through pages of the manual as you go along. Alternatively, maybe it's as simple as a startup prompt that's "new to baseball? click here for a tutorial mode that's an interactive manual" type of thing. This way, it still leaves the door open for what you described.

Slightly off-topic:
In this day and age where 5,000 (slight exaggeration) things are competing for our attention and mental bandwidth every minute and where software is more user-hostile and development-hostile than ever before I feel that we should return to the software like Hypercard where you can do amazing things but even a child can pick it up. That doesn't mean that it has any less features but instead that anyone can pick it up, not just experts. If any of this sounds familiar it's because I've been thinking about a certain off-site post on this topic for a few days now.

I'll begin by just stating that we will probably just disagree on this topic. Nothing wrong with that.

That said, I think OOTP is perfect the way it is and I would hate to see any sort of push for universal accessibility or for more casual players to start calling the shots (kinda like what happened with Diamond Dynasty mode totally hijacking The Show). My philosophy is if this game isn't someone's cup of tea and they don't have the desire to invest themselves into learning, then so be it. More accurately, they should be so excited to play a game like this that learning the ropes doesn't even feel like work--it's actually fun. The guy who doesn't know anything about baseball, or that guy who follows football and basketball, but not baseball, or that guy who doesn't really want to play a text-based sim style game in the first place--this one isn't for them. It never will be. This is our game--the baseball nut's game. We don't need to stretch OOTP's already thin development team to insert countless tutorials and hand-holding while worrying about what Joe Schmoe the non-baseball fan (who will lose interest at the drop of a hat or when Madden comes out anyway) thinks is easy enough to pick up and play.

Maybe there are 5,000 things competing for our mental bandwidth. There probably are. You are totally right. But, everyone doesn't need to chase down every single possible thing of the 5,000 and force themselves on it. There are things I don't enjoy and things I am just plain bad at--I don't go around with the attitude that these things should be made easier and more enjoyable for me. I just do something else. For the casual who doesn't want a learning experience, they should just stay away. For the casual that is willing to learn and grow and doesn't need instantaneous gratification, then welcome aboard. And know that you won't become a guru overnight.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

I think if the player is familiar with baseball - basically just jump in and test your opinions and see what sticks. That's pretty much OOTP. You think you should promote until the prospect sucks at a level? Try it and see how he responds. You want to bat the pitcher 7th? Try it and see. Not sure what to do? Ask your manager or bench coach and see what they do.

I understand the sentiment and don't disagree that it would be nice to have in-game guides to help the players, but it's hard to give them that but not having them be "this is how the game 'should' play"...because OOTP will do stuff that will defy those guides...and it won't take long.

Yeah, I think a lot of new players get in trouble thinking there is a "correct way" to play the game. They don't realize this is more of a sandbox game. It's your sandbox so do what you want with it. Certain types of noobs seem to always want to double check everything first according to a rubric that doesn't really exist rather than dive in and move some sand around.

[kamackeris76]

Re: Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

Yeah, I think a lot of new players get in trouble thinking there is a "correct way" to play the game. They don't realize this is more of a sandbox game. It's your sandbox so do what you want with it. Certain types of noobs seem to always want to double check everything first according to a rubric that doesn't really exist rather than dive in and move some sand around.

i think this is probably me

[Eh-Red]

Re: Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

no offence WaitTIlNextYear but this game is very hard to come at from my point of view being a Baseball and management sim fan from the UK. Just some tips like when you hover the mouse over certain stats what they actually mean ...things like that. i WANT to learn it and play it but from someone like me it is very hard to get started. had i been brought up on the sport like i am with Football (soccer) then yes it would be a lot easier to get started. you would probably have a similar experience playing Football Manager*

I usually suggest for people to try the mobile version (MLB Manager) first if they want to try OOTP but don't have a high knowledge of baseball. It isn't nearly as good as the main game but it is way less complex and it is only 5 or 6 bucks.

[badflounder]

Hey Kamackeris, feel free to reach out to me anytime you have questions or even if you want to chat off-line about OOTP.  I remember starting out with Football Manager back in the day and being pretty overwhelmed.  I understood the game, but the level of detail in FM was a lot to deal with at first.  I didn't get into football/soccer until the 2006 World Cup....growing up in the US it just wasn't appealing to me as a kid for some reason.....but I got the bug big time in 2006 and I've been watching the game ever since.  The world cup is my favorite sporting event.  I'm an Arsenal supporter mainly because my local club (Colorado Rapids) is owned by the same owner and they have a loose affiliation.  Also, to be fair, because I used to play as them a lot in PES back in the days of Henry.  LOL.  Anyway, my favorite sport is baseball, which I know like the back of my hand.  I am happy to help another fan learn more about the game, and the wonderful OOTP game.  Cheers.

[lek]

Re: Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

Its funny because I love the idea of this game and really want to love it but just don't. I am not sure why. I bought the 2017 version the 2016 version and a bunch of previous ones. Each time I tell myself how much I love baseball and how deep the game is. But then I get bogged down. I try to play day to day and I keep getting news stories that are irrelevant to me, or trade offers that do not make sense, or some roster thing that is irritating to fix or some financial issue that I have to go through twenty screen to till I can move on. Then I try to sim a bunch but it just seems like the same method each time; trade established players for prospects, sign international players (with like 30 emails to do it), finish with a terrible record to draft high then rinse and repeat. Sign some players in off season two or three and then win a bunch. I seem to spend most of my time deleting emails. I end up just getting tired and giving up.

Just my thoughts and was wondering if anyone feels similar? All this being said at some point I will probably buy 19. I love baseball and want to love this game. Who knows maybe this time it will stick.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: Out of the Park Baseball 19 Review: Another Achievement for the Series

Not sure if it'll help you enjoy the game more, but you can change your email settings. If you don't like getting certain types of messages you can un-check those types.