Heisman difficulty level.

[thekodinator]

wow, i'm really excited about being able to use custom sliders in online dynasty.

my friends and I played in an OD 2 years ago ( we didnt buy ncaa 10, but that's another story for another day), and while it was really fun, there were some stats and other things that I didn't like about playing on the default heisman level.

[jmik58]

Quote: Originally Posted by Deegeezy

I just can't agree with this statement.

Playmaker has already pointed (along with other people) that EA has admitted that Heisman is NOT an accurate representation of realistic gameplay. It is an "arcade" mode that is meant to be an extra challenge.

Varsity gives you the best feel of ratings separation between players and teams.

But then again, everyone can't be convinced and I'm fine with that. It's all about enjoying the game the way you do. That's the beauty of being a consumer.

[rudyjuly2]

Quote: Originally Posted by Deegeezy

That doesn't happen to everyone that plays on Heisman. Never understood why people seem to have to need to brush everyone with the same broad stroke. There are no perfect set of sliders or a perfect difficulty level...each of us has our own set of flaws and things we are strong at. For some, Heisman gives them the best football sim possible.

I completely agree with the bolded part. I've never understood people that claim they have the perfect slider set or perfect roster edits (this is not a shot at Playmakers - you see this with 90% of the posts in the slider forums). A perfect difficulty setting and slider set only exists for one person - the person who made them. And often that person ends up tweaking that slider set soon after.

There is nothing wrong with someone playing on Varsity. Nothing wrong with Heisman either. Heisman doesn't cheat as bad some people say it does. I've played games on all three difficulty levels and I would say AA is the most balanced in terms of ratings. On default Varsity your 80 rated OL can beat an 80 rated DL most of the time. On default Heisman the exact opposite is true. But sliders can fix that in both cases. For NCAA 09 the cpu QBs were brain dead on all levels other than Heisman so I had to play there. Of course low rated cpu QBs were too good on Heisman at times. Every difficulty has strengths and weaknesses.

[Deegeezy]

Quote: Originally Posted by jmik58

Playmaker has already pointed (along with other people) that EA has admitted that Heisman is NOT an accurate representation of realistic gameplay. It is an "arcade" mode that is meant to be an extra challenge. Varsity gives you the best feel of ratings separation between players and teams. But then again, everyone can't be convinced and I'm fine with that. It's all about enjoying the game the way you do. That's the beauty of being a consumer.

Not the best source IMO. I've seen a ton of things EA believes is realistic when it really isn't. That argument doesn't hold much weight for me. The mode is definitely playable and a great simulation if you're able to keep up with the chess match, know when to be conservative & when to be aggressive, treat every play call with care, etc.

[Deegeezy]

Quote: Originally Posted by Playmakers

Well I think it all depends on your preference..... For example Deegeezy can't play on Varsity level because to him it will feel like he's cheating the CPU. I can't say that he's right or wrong because that's his preference and to him the way heisman level provides the ultimate competition is realistic and sim style.... My beliefe is different.....I believe that with tweaked sliders varsity level can be modified to play just as equal but with a sense of fairness in regards to player "A" being better than player "B" and you can see it and feel it on the field. I want to feel seperation amongst the teams and players and that is what Varsity level did last year....... Now Deegeezy also said he has to really focus on play calling on heisman level...well I agree with that but I disagree a team with a C or D rated defense should be able to put the clamps down on Texas even if the Longhorns aren't having their best play calling day. Just because it's heisman level you shouldn't have to be so tensed when calling plays because the defense is going to always know what play your running.....regardless if their players have poor PLAY RECOGNITION RATINGS or high ratings. That is the KEY for me.....on Varsity level I was able to run trick plays and utilize my entire playbook not 6-8 plays just to get by from game to game. I don't get a sense on Varsity level even with CPU PASS COVERAGE at 100 last year that they knew every play i was running ahead of time. I could throw deep and complete passes if my WR was in Man coverage and got a step on the DB without safety help over the top. On Heisman level based on my experience that deep route is open very rarely takes the big plays out of the game because the DB's on Heisman don't bite on anything and the Safety is always going to be where he is suppose to be 99% of the time on Heisman Now again yes it's challenging but I don't want that type of challenge in all my games using Texas. I want to blow people out and I want to run my entire playbook....it doesn't mean every play is going to work but on Varsity level last year there were opportunities from week to week depending on the defense you faced and how they were rated you could get away with plays that most people abandon on Heisman level. It's kinda hard to explain if you didn't play on Varsity level last year.....but I have a huge slider thread and most of the post you read will tell you the type of game play expierence that witnessed last year. Now there were few a posters who HATED the sliders but the majority I think mostly because they went in with open mind to the level started to really enjoy the flexibility in the game from matchup to matchup..... If i want intense matchups every week where i have to play my best ball than I'll play Madden 11 this year because I expect that from Pro teams....not from every college matchup week to week Now having said all that keep in mind this year we are being intruduced to the new Game Speed level.....now that addition along with the New Game Tuners could actually be ground breaking and make Heisman level more manageable than it was in years past. Those two additions alone could actually once and for all take away the speed cheats we've seen over the years on Heisman level.

I think you're SUPPOSED to be tensed with every play call. You really think coaches in real life are just "wingin' it" when calling plays on Saturday? Every play call is a calculated gamble, on both sides of the ball. Heisman gives me that feeling.

Something else I like about Heisman, is that you have to make quick decisions in the passing game and actually find the open man. I feel like AA and varsity is too easy in that regard, too many open targets on each play.

People that have read my dynasty reports over the years ALWAYS are in awe by the realistic win-loss and stat results in my games and are shocked when I tell them what my settings are.

Heck, even on this demo I am getting my best, most challenging games when playing on Heisman. When playing with Miami at Ohio State or with Oklahoma versus Texas, I have to really make calculated moves and one or two mistakes will kill me. That is how it is supposed to be.

And believe it or not, upsets happen in real life where inferior teams beat elite teams. It happens because of things such as bad play-calling, bad QB decision making, untimely turnovers, and the elite team taking things too lightly. But since it doesnt happen every week in college football, it gets deemed as "unrealistic" when it happens on the game. I love the feeling of having to treat every game with care.

Believe it or not, but it takes effort for those good teams to blow out the bad teams.

[Bootzilla]

Quote: Originally Posted by jmik58

Playmaker has already pointed (along with other people) that EA has admitted that Heisman is NOT an accurate representation of realistic gameplay. It is an "arcade" mode that is meant to be an extra challenge. Varsity gives you the best feel of ratings separation between players and teams. But then again, everyone can't be convinced and I'm fine with that. It's all about enjoying the game the way you do. That's the beauty of being a consumer.

How does Varsity give you the best feel for ratings separation between players and teams when you can take a 1star team and easily defeat a 5star team? Or blow out an evenly matched team by 70 points?

As always, for me, the game (and Madden as well) seem to play best in my opinion somewhere between all-american and heisman.

Offensively, I can do anything on Heisman that I can on all-american. Difference? I have to play smarter. My stick skills aren't great but, I know how to read safeties, throw in passing windows, call a smart game, etc. Play outside of those parameters and you'll lose. If you're up 21 points and there's not a lot of time left the cpu is going to try to strip the ball. Wouldn't you if you were down 21? Play conservatively and you'll catch the cpu being over aggressive and often get a big play.

I agree that there is for whatever reason more animations on varsity in the demo. I accidentally didn't move up the difficulty and all of the sudden the right stick is super responsive vs. virtually non responsive on higher levels. That's a problem. Bigger problem though is I scored on one play drives and was a cross between Tecmo bowl Bo Jackson and Sega Genesis Barry Sanders.

[Shawnj86]

I only play on all american. because heisman cheats

[Deegeezy]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bootzilla

As always, for me, the game (and Madden as well) seem to play best in my opinion somewhere between all-american and heisman. Offensively, I can do anything on Heisman that I can on all-american. Difference? I have to play smarter. My stick skills aren't great but, I know how to read safeties, throw in passing windows, call a smart game, etc. Play outside of those parameters and you'll lose. If you're up 21 points and there's not a lot of time left the cpu is going to try to strip the ball. Wouldn't you if you were down 21? Play conservatively and you'll catch the cpu being over aggressive and often get a big play.

This.

17 point lead, 3rd quarter, 3rd and 8 from your own 40-yard line...What do I do? HB Draw, cover the ball up because they'll be going for the strip & punt it away (just like a lot of coaches would). I feel like I am calling a real game when I am on Heisman.