Just had a Top 5 Lamest win over the CPU

[Cardot]

I find it completely baffling that after developing football video games for a quarter of a century, EA still hasn't taught the CPU basic clock management. The game has hundreds of plays with endless adjustment and strategies. Yet the AI doesn't know when to use time outs in the most basic and fundamental situations.

I recently wrapped up a season in the Belk bowl. It was a great back and forth game. With the contest tied at 24, the CPU was driving late. Eventually they got down inside the 5, and after spending all my time outs, I actually tried to let them score a TD....it didn't work. After a 3rd down stop with less than :25 left, the CPU had the chance to let the clock wind all the way down, call the TO, kick the FG and go home victorious. But wait...what?.....they all of a sudden call time out with :18? What??? FG is good. Then of course they kick it deep, leave me a huge hole on the left side and I run it all the way back for the classic "Um, yeah ugh, ....that was awesome..I guess?" moment.

[dso122783]

Did you see the end of the first half of the Holiday Bowl just now? Talk about poor clock management. I get your point, but if what Todd Graham and the Sun Devils just did before half time happened in somebody's dynasty game, there would have been a thread about how dumb and unrealistic the CPU is.

[SpartyParty11]

I've had worse in several games. Several times I scored late in games, then the CPU gets a first down, then wastes the clock until there's like 5 seconds (they also had at least 1 timeout) and they run a short pass play to end the game. They could have easily ran down the field or something. But the CPU was dumb and wasted the clock. i've won several games that way

[Cardot]

If EA had coded some randomness that would create an occasional CPU clock management gaffe, I would be down with it. But that is not the case here. Pretty much every other game the CPU makes foolish decisions that at minimum grant me an extra possession.

[XXstormmXX]

Quote: Originally Posted by Cardot

I find it completely baffling that after developing football video games for a quarter of a century, EA still hasn't taught the CPU basic clock management. The game has hundreds of plays with endless adjustment and strategies. Yet the AI doesn't know when to use time outs in the most basic and fundamental situations. I recently wrapped up a season in the Belk bowl. It was a great back and forth game. With the contest tied at 24, the CPU was driving late. Eventually they got down inside the 5, and after spending all my time outs, I actually tried to let them score a TD....it didn't work. After a 3rd down stop with less than :25 left, the CPU had the chance to let the clock wind all the way down, call the TO, kick the FG and go home victorious. But wait...what?.....they all of a sudden call time out with :18? What??? FG is good. Then of course they kick it deep, leave me a huge hole on the left side and I run it all the way back for the classic "Um, yeah ugh, ....that was awesome..I guess?" moment.

The computer also forgets what your bad at defending. In a dynasty game, Georgia was down by two with two seconds left on the one yardline. They were killing us on the ground but instead of running it they pass and Murray throws a pick six as time expires.

[canesfins]

The opposite happened to me, held them to 4th down with 30 seconds left. They came out in FG formation but they let the clock hit 0:00 game over.

[Cardot]

Quote: Originally Posted by canesfins

The opposite happened to me, held them to 4th down with 30 seconds left. They came out in FG formation but they let the clock hit 0:00 game over.

Did the CPU have any time outs left? I wonder if there is logic that if they have a TO, they immediately call it. And if not, they line up for the kick and in that situation they use the proper logic to allow the clock to run down?

[canesfins]

Quote: Originally Posted by Cardot

Did the CPU have any time outs left? I wonder if there is logic that if they have a TO, they immediately call it. And if not, they line up for the kick and in that situation they use the proper logic to allow the clock to run down?

I honestly do not remember if they had a TO left or not. But since they had the lead if I had to guess they did have at least 1 TO left.

It's probably one of those things that just happens randomly like a lot of problems in the game.