2K5 pitch speed vs real life/game difficulty {multi-topic)

[baa7]

I was watching Roger Clemens pitch game 1 of the WS on my laptop while playing MLB 2K5, when it occurred to me his pitches in real life were moving a lot faster than they do in the game. So I loaded up a game with Clemens pitching and, sure enough, with the Pitch Speed slider @ 40 – which is where I play – his fastballs were coming in around the speed of real life changeups.

So I bumped the slider up to 100. But even at 100, the game cannot replicate the speed of a Clemens fastball. It’s close – just a fraction of a second slower than in real life, but slightly slower nonetheless than Clemens actually pitches. Keep in mind here I’ve lowered all my pitchers’ individual Pitch Speeds, so Clemens in my game throws 93-95 mph, just as he really does.

Anyway, it got me thinking. First, it was a blast trying to hit (not hit, is more like it) his pitches with the Pitch Speed slider @ 100 (I play with Batter Contact @ 15). But obviously that would get old fast, all those whiffs. So I looked at the pitchers in the game, and I see tons of them are all rated in the 70’s. So I’m thinking that:

1. Playing with the Pitch Speed slider @ 100 would be ‘real’ – and keep in mind how people on these sports video sites are always moaning about ‘sim’.

2. Adjust and widen the ratings ‘spread’ of the many pitchers in the game: very few rated in the 90’s; a handful rated in the 80’s; some quality relievers etc. rated in the 70’s; a ‘second tier’ of pitchers all rated in the 60’s and 50’s; and average to below average pitchers rated 40 and below.

Imagine the new and different experience this would provide. After sweating out facing Clemens all game, the CPU manager sticks in his reliever, whose pitches are NOTICEABLY easier to read and therefore hit. Same thing with having to face a 90-rated starter in one game of a series, and then a 70-rated guy the next game. Yet with the Pitch Speed @ 100, you’d still have to keep your head in the game on every pitch, because even an 86 mph fastball, looks fast.

[baa7]

Re: 2K5 pitch speed vs real life/game difficulty {multi-topic)

For those interested: I tried an experiment. I kept Clemens as is (rated 97 in my game) and edited Roy Oswalt: I lowered his individual Pitch Control and Movement ratings for each pitch by 50%, which left him rated around 70. Then I fired up a Houston vs Astros game, Clemens vs Oswalt. I batted against Clemens first, then switched controllers and batted against Oswalt. Pitch Speed slider @ 100; Batter Contact @ 15.

Clemens vs me batting was no contest, although I did get a single and fouled off a couple. Oswalt vs me batting was somewhat easier for sure. His fastballs didn’t have much break, so I could read those pretty easy even though they were coming in hot. What killed me was his 12-6 curve. Even though I had lowered the Movement rating to 40 or so, there was still so much break on the pitch that I just couldn’t hit it.

So I edited Oswalt some more: I lowered his 12-6 curve Movement to 10 and dropped his Average, Doubles and Homeruns ratings until he was rated a 45. Then I fired up another game. Clemens vs me: whiff-whiff-whiff. Now it’s me vs Oswalt. First pitch, he throws me his 12-6 curve: home run! Two batters later, a double.

So I feel I’m on to something kind of exciting here. Something to note, and I spotted this a while back with knuckleballs. The effect that lowering the Movement rating has on pitches is quite different depending on the type of pitch. To get a fastball to come in flat and lose its effectiveness, only requires dropping the Movement rating into, say, the 50 range. But with a knuckleball and obviously some curve balls, the Movement rating would have to be lowered way down before any real change in movement and effectiveness is noticeable. Just something that would have to be tested and charted before editing pitchers.