hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

[hetfield426]

Hello, everyone!

Another year for the Xbox 360 gamer/baseball fan means another installment of 2K. Though the franchise has had very little improvement over the past few years, I and many of you are too much of suckers for updated rosters at the very least, so here we are.

My set is constantly evolving, mainly because whenever I have a squeeze of free time, I'm running simulation and gameplay tests on my sliders to make sure my results are as optimal as I believe they can be. Feel free to tamper with this set as you see fit, since the idea of these sliders (as well as most) is to achieve realism, and doesn't necessarily factor in difficulty. That's one of the most important things to understand. Whether you're someone who wants to have fun, scoreboard-blasting slugfests or someone who wants to shed blood and tears at some point during the game, simply use this as a base and tweak away. I can't force you to have my kind of fun, but so far these are giving me a great time personally.

Any feedback, compliment or complaint, is welcome and encouraged! Enjoy!

Note: Adjust to these settings from the Legend difficulty. Even though this shouldn't technically matter, I am too superstitious to try adjusting to these settings from anything else, so it feels safest to let you know where exactly I came from to achieve these values.

Changes are marked in RED.

V26.1
Classic Batting/Pitching
Pitcher Fatigue - 50
Injury Frequency - 18

USER BATTING
Batting Contact - 40
Batting Power - 85
Bunt Contact - 55
Bunt Success - 45
Batter Eye Frequency - Off (User Preference)

CPU BATTING
AI Batting Contact - 40
AI Batting Power - 85
AI Bunt Contact - 55
AI Bunt Success - 45

USER PITCHING
Pitch Meter Speed - 100 (User Preference)
Pitch Speed - 100
Pitch Break Influence - 35
Pitcher Composure Influence - 10
Pitcher Control - 20

CPU PITCHING
AI Pitch Speed - 100
AI Pitch Success - 75
AI Strike Zone Tendency - 35
AI Pitch Break Influence - 35
AI Pitcher Composure Influence - 10

USER FIELDING
Throw Accuracy - 45
Gather Error Frequency - 50
Throwing Error Frequency - 55
Outfield Throw Speed - 50
Infield Throw Speed - 45
Outfield Run Speed - 15
Infield Run Speed - 5

CPU FIELDING
AI Gather Error Frequency - 50
AI Throwing Error Frequency - 55
AI Outfield Throw Speed - 50
AI Infield Throw Speed - 45
AI Outfield Run Speed - 15
AI Infield Run Speed - 5

USER RUNNING
Base Runner Speed - 45
Pickoff Success - 55
Catcher Arm Strength - 50
Catcher Arm Accuracy - 40

CPU RUNNING
AI Base Runner Speed - 45
AI Hit'n' Run Tendency - 65
AI Sacrifice Bunt Tendency - 70
AI Squeeze Tendency - 30
AI Base Running Aggression - 65
AI Steal Aggression - 60
AI Catcher Arm Strength - 50
AI Catcher Arm Accuracy - 40

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

It's an interesting concept and I'm sure the 2K community will be more than happy to have another set of sliders to choose from.

I guess my hangup about doing sliders by 50s is the differences in several critical slider categories will just be so large going 0, 50, 100. And since the differences are so large, it's necessary to fine tune, and going by 50s is more of a rough tuning than a fine tune.

For example, some of us who have been testing so far can say that you'll probably hit zero home runs on 0 or 50 for USER power. But on 100, depending on other factors, you'll probably have a home run circus. Another touchy slider is the CPU pitch success, where you go from making solid contact at 75 to weak contact at 80. I think the reason these are graded in 5's is because some of the sliders do have a lot of variation to them and small changes can make a big difference.

That said, a lot of these sliders do have feedback into other, related sliders so there can't be only one "perfect set." In that respect, it'll be interesting if you can find a set that gives decent gameplay/stats going by 50s. I would certainly be interested in playing a game or two with them to check it out.

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

It's an interesting concept and I'm sure the 2K community will be more than happy to have another set of sliders to choose from.

I guess my hangup about doing sliders by 50s is the differences in several critical slider categories will just be so large going 0, 50, 100. And since the differences are so large, it's necessary to fine tune, and going by 50s is more of a rough tuning than a fine tune.

For example, some of us who have been testing so far can say that you'll probably hit zero home runs on 0 or 50 for USER power. But on 100, depending on other factors, you'll probably have a home run circus. Another touchy slider is the CPU pitch success, where you go from making solid contact at 75 to weak contact at 80. I think the reason these are graded in 5's is because some of the sliders do have a lot of variation to them and small changes can make a big difference.

That said, a lot of these sliders do have feedback into other, related sliders so there can't be only one "perfect set." In that respect, it'll be interesting if you can find a set that gives decent gameplay/stats going by 50s. I would certainly be interested in playing a game or two with them to check it out.

Thank you so much for already posting! I do realize that the huge 50 point jumps are an issue if you look at them on paper, but I have a feeling that they will work themselves out just fine. But I am considering implementing 25 and 75 as the other acceptable possible values, if I'm just not able to agree on 0 or 50, or 50 and 100. One thing I'm fairly certain about is that any slider that also exists as a player rating (e.g. pitcher control) should be left untouched, because why would you corrupt the ratings with sliders, that are essentially globalized ratings, and probably wouldn't do anything to make the game more authentic?

Another idea I have is to make the sliders that are for both User and CPU identical, for example, the batting contact and power apply to both User and CPU, and I thus don't see a reason why either side should have an advantage. Similar to this idea, I also think sliders that apply to more than one position (e.g. run speed) should be identical. Why should an outfielder have a higher slider setting than the infield? Just because the outfielder does a bit more running doesn't mean they have different legs. Each fielder has a given speed rating, so I believe that rating should play for itself.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

Thank you so much for already posting! I do realize that the huge 50 point jumps are an issue if you look at them on paper, but I have a feeling that they will work themselves out just fine. But I am considering implementing 25 and 75 as the other acceptable possible values, if I'm just not able to agree on 0 or 50, or 50 and 100. One thing I'm fairly certain about is that any slider that also exists as a player rating (e.g. pitcher control) should be left untouched, because why would you corrupt the ratings with sliders, that are essentially globalized ratings, and probably wouldn't do anything to make the game more authentic?

Another idea I have is to make the sliders that are for both User and CPU identical, for example, the batting contact and power apply to both User and CPU, and I thus don't see a reason why either side should have an advantage. Similar to this idea, I also think sliders that apply to more than one position (e.g. run speed) should be identical. Why should an outfielder have a higher slider setting than the infield? Just because the outfielder does a bit more running doesn't mean they have different legs. Each fielder has a given speed rating, so I believe that rating should play for itself.

I think in theory this sounds good. In practice, the reason why say an IF and OF have different speeds is because they have innately different programmed actions. Outfielders have more ground to cover and don't really have to react to ground balls, so the programmers probably program them differently for animation purposes. So, I think the sliders are really there to correct for differences in programming rather than give one set of fielders an advantage over the others. The whole point of the sliders has been to try and smooth everything out instead of having everything stacked for/against a particular outcome. For example, if you have baserunner speed on 40 and also IF speed on 40, nothing will go through the IF defense, and that is anything but realistic.

With the "pitcher success" slider, it's more about having a good balance of offense vs. pitching. You'd hate it if every game played 1-0 or 15-13 also. So, that's not there to give pitchers an advantage or take it away; it's there to make sure neither side has the upper hand. So, in that sense, I do feel that it makes the game more authentic. It's not really about altering the pitcher's "true" rating or the batters "true" rating (which can be done via editing), it's more about how successful any single encounter between them are (probability)...there are no pure ratings to handle the infinite different matchup scenarios even though some are broadly "good matchup" and some are "bad matchup."

I think if we could start with the premise that factory-set 50 ratings were perfect sim baseball, a lot of this would be true. The reason why the sliders exist in the first place is because that is not the case. Heck, even being graded in 5's might not be enough. For all we know the perfect, anatomically accurate run speed might be 27.43!

I do agree with you though, that I like to have the sliders as even as possible between the CPU/USER, but I'd like to err on the side of disadvantaging the USER if no perfect balance can be struck.

All of this being said, I do not mean to be overly critical and really am just trying to digest your approach. I am very interested to see what you come up with and how it plays. Obviously, the advantage of your approach would be in not having to get into the minutia as much when tuning. So, it's a worthy endeavor certainly.

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

I think in theory this sounds good. In practice, the reason why say an IF and OF have different speeds is because they have innately different programmed actions. Outfielders have more ground to cover and don't really have to react to ground balls, so the programmers probably program them differently for animation purposes. So, I think the sliders are really there to correct for differences in programming rather than give one set of fielders an advantage over the others. The whole point of the sliders has been to try and smooth everything out instead of having everything stacked for/against a particular outcome. For example, if you have baserunner speed on 40 and also IF speed on 40, nothing will go through the IF defense, and that is anything but realistic.

With the "pitcher success" slider, it's more about having a good balance of offense vs. pitching. You'd hate it if every game played 1-0 or 15-13 also. So, that's not there to give pitchers an advantage or take it away; it's there to make sure neither side has the upper hand. So, in that sense, I do feel that it makes the game more authentic. It's not really about altering the pitcher's "true" rating or the batters "true" rating (which can be done via editing), it's more about how successful any single encounter between them are (probability)...there are no pure ratings to handle the infinite different matchup scenarios even though some are broadly "good matchup" and some are "bad matchup."

I think if we could start with the premise that factory-set 50 ratings were perfect sim baseball, a lot of this would be true. The reason why the sliders exist in the first place is because that is not the case. Heck, even being graded in 5's might not be enough. For all we know the perfect, anatomically accurate run speed might be 27.43!

I do agree with you though, that I like to have the sliders as even as possible between the CPU/USER, but I'd like to err on the side of disadvantaging the USER if no perfect balance can be struck.

All of this being said, I do not mean to be overly critical and really am just trying to digest your approach. I am very interested to see what you come up with and how it plays. Obviously, the advantage of your approach would be in not having to get into the minutia as much when tuning. So, it's a worthy endeavor certainly.

No, not at all! I'm glad you're informing me of all this, because I know I have a lot to learn. I just never really saw a whole lot of discussion about WHY the slider makers put the settings where they do. I definitely see your point about the animation, but I still believe that the ratings themselves can take care of probability. After all, the ratings don't indicate what will happen every time. For example, just because Albert Pujols is overall a better hitter than any no-name pitcher doesn't mean he'll go yard every time. Of course, I still have a lot of experimenting to do, and I could be completely wrong about everything, but I do believe that I'll find a way to minimize the sliders' influence on ratings, because I think that's what making realistic gameplay is all about.

[SlowDownTurbo86]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

I don't like this idea personally but more power to ya

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

Alright guys, I'm no longer going in the direction I originally planned, but I have to set aside my preconceived notions about this game if they're not creating the best results. Let me know what you think of V1!

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

Already did a lot more testing today and made several edits, which was reassuring because I ended up being able to move many of the sliders closer to 50 still thinking about not equalizing some of the "universal" settings but I want some feedback first.

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

Alright I'm not entirely sure if people are actually using them, but for anyone who is, I just made a lot of pretty major updates, so do so accordingly. Of course I would love any feedback, from praise to criticism, so I get an idea of what I'm overlooking. I feel better about these settings all the time!

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

I've been getting many excellent games with these. Still waiting on any feedback though!

[Ben003]

Do you use classic or total control hitting/pitching?

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

Do you use classic or total control hitting/pitching?

Total Control Both

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

Hey all, I now have V10 posted. I really feel close to a final set, at least pre-patch, so hope the people trying these out are getting some great gameplay!

[hetfield426]

Re: hetfield's MLB 2K13 Sliders

V11 is up and I feel no more than one or two sets away from finalizing pre-patch!

[Ben003]

These sliders are great! I've had great games with these after a few tweaks to my abilities