Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked

[RaychelSnr]

Carlos Hernandez checks in today with an article discussing an issue he believes is a huge problem for football games today: the passing game. Hernandez offers up what he believes is wrong and also talks about what can be done to fix the problem. Check out his thoughts and be sure to add your own in his article Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked.

"The pocket is one of the most pressured areas of a playing field in all sports. The pocket requires a near uncanny ability to maintain both rushed patience and concentrated hastiness, both skill sets which separate the able from the unable. It only takes a matter of seconds, but within that time quarterbacks are expected to make decisions quickly and immediately react to their surroundings. Yet, despite the pocket's pressing nature, passing has somewhat become an afterthought in football video gaming. A requirement of the sport that has received fewer updates and improvements than running, catching, or defensive skill sets. It has become the dribbling of football video games."

[ofdman]

MAN! This was a GREAT article! And I COMPLETELY AGREE! i was talking to a friend of mine just a couple of days ago about this very same topic! And your idea is rock solid and I would LOVE to see this implemented.

[ScottD413]

I like your idea, but I don't think it would work. In NFL2k5 they had the first person football thing and it was REALLY hard to see your recievers.

[labguy]

I think you are right about the fact the passing game needs re-worked. I am just not sure if your solution would work. Granted it would probably be the most realistic solution, but I am not sure if that means it is the best for a video game. I think doing something with the WR icons might work best. For a QB with less awarness maybe only letting him see a couple of icons for the first couple of seconds and then adding available WR icons as the play progresses. So it would simulate him needing extra time to scan the field. So if you have a nice OL a rookie QB might be able to have some extra time and be successful at QB. If you had a QB and a poor OL then the shortcomings of the QB would be magnified. Also the opponent could kind of tell which side of the field the QB was looking at so he could read his "eyes". But if the safety gambled to jump an underneath route and the QB had enough time that the extra icons popped up he could be out of position to cover that backside post pattern. Anyhow that is just a thought. I can't claim total credit for the idea I gathered pieces of it from other threads and added a couple of my own touches on it as well.

[JBucc]

Re: Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked

Backbreaker (if it actually comes out) is doing this with close up cameras, for the QB and other positions. I'm not sure how they're going to do the progression thing though.

[Other Guy]

Re: Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked

I like your idea, but I don't think it would work. In NFL2k5 they had the first person football thing and it was REALLY hard to see your recievers.

Yea, that's the same thought I had when reading the article. I sounded a lot like FPF.

I think it could work if it wasn't taken to the extreme like FPF. Let's say after the snap, the camera zoomed in about halfway. Not all the way down to FPShooter level, but a lot closer than Madden classic. What should happen is, that it should zoom in on half of the field. If your primary receiver is on the right, then the camera would zoom down and in on the right side of the field. What you would see is the field from the center over to the right sideline. This way you see you primary guy and maybe a 2nd WR or TE. If nobody is open, you could flick the right stick to the left, and now the screen would shift over to the left side of the field.

Carlos makes great points about seeing too much of the field. As a QB, I should never be able to see both CB's at the same time when they're on opposite sides of the field. He has a good idea. I think it would work great if it was toned down a little bit.

[Likwidkewl]

You solution sounds a lot like Front Page Sports Football. How about this? Keep the letter icons and let the QB focus on a specific receiver by pressing the corresponding button once then again if he wants to throw to him. That way you wouldn't have to go through each progression to get to another receiver.

[CMH]

Re: Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked

Yea, that's the same thought I had when reading the article. I sounded a lot like FPF.

I think it could work if it wasn't taken to the extreme like FPF. Let's say after the snap, the camera zoomed in about halfway. Not all the way down to FPShooter level, but a lot closer than Madden classic. What should happen is, that it should zoom in on half of the field. If your primary receiver is on the right, then the camera would zoom down and in on the right side of the field. What you would see is the field from the center over to the right sideline. This way you see you primary guy and maybe a 2nd WR or TE. If nobody is open, you could flick the right stick to the left, and now the screen would shift over to the left side of the field.

Carlos makes great points about seeing too much of the field. As a QB, I should never be able to see both CB's at the same time when they're on opposite sides of the field. He has a good idea. I think it would work great if it was toned down a little bit.

Oh, goodness no with first-person football. That would be bad. I agree that is not the solution.

But, I think you pretty much understood where I was coming from with the suggestion. As I mentioned, it would need a few tweaks here and there. I do not think it should be an extreme over the shoulder shot. It really should not even be like Splinter Cell or a similar third-person shooter. But, something close to that with a bit more zoom-out and a slightly higher angle so you can look over the line, now maybe that's where it needs to be. Of course, if you give the user the option to mess with the zoom level and camera angle then you can make sure it pleases all gamers.

Either way, as I mentioned in the article, it is not about my little idea. It is mostly about needing to upgrade the passing game. It seems to have been ignored over the years and as it is right now, it does not simulate football very well.

[Vast]

Your solution would work great for superstar mode, or a camera option. but impossible to play multiplayer that way.

[sois]

Re: Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked

I always though a "double button press" mechanic would work well to simulate good/bad QB play. Remember how kickoff's used to be in the 90's? One press for the start of the kick, one to stop in the "sweet spot".

If you nailed it, the kick would be perfect. If you were off, the kick would miss. I think this could work for QB's. Good ones will have slower meters or wider sweet spots. The meter would go crazy fast while scrambling, unless QB has good "Throw on the Run" rating.

Maybe you could anchor the speed of the meter with a very faint heartbeat before the snap. That way you could estimate the speed of the meter.

The only problem with this is it will have to be fast no matter what. You can't take a whole second to pass the ball. Maybe a matrix style slowdown? Also, you will have to build another lob/bullet mechanic.

[El Greazy 1]

Your solution is a great idea but it would fail miserably to implement. With FPF in NFL2K5, it was nearly impossible to see the field or any actions going on. So you say to pull back the POV to about a 3rd person, low cam, that would work great but it would still be quite cumbersome. Imagine having to flick sticks left &right on the Right Analog, while still having to move your QB with the Left Analog THEN having to press a button corresponding to the player, well, then what you just described IS the Vision Cone just from a different perspective and that failed miserabley, as well. Then comes in the whole jumbled mess of trying to play multiplayer with such a POV.

In real life football (yes, played outside) QBs are not taught to look at their players but the defenders and the progression they're taking on the field post snap. This is the same lesson that should be taught to video game ballers. When you "stare down your receivers" in real life every secondary player will eat you alive but their is no way to implement this in a game as of yet successfully (Vision Cone).

The writer of this article clearly knows nothing of real football and QB play. As a QB you are supposed to know the routes your players are running and what you are supposed to do is follow your progressions and checkdowns knowing where your players will be and at what times. The QB has two ways to read the play: by offense or defense. Offense incluces going through his progressionion by player: 1st route, 2nd route, dump off, or goes progression by route (can be a combo of all the following): deep, mid, short. Defensive progressions/reads go by coverage: LB's (zone or man), then Safeties (zone or man) and then, if time holds, CBs (zone or man).

Yes there does need to be a way to simulate pocket pressure and the urgency of the game, but only if it can be implemented with real-life football tactics. EA has tried and failed miserably. 2K tried (as an afterthought) and failed. Backbreaker will be the next to step up to the plate.

[XCalmLikeABombX]

Re: Video Game Passing Needs to be Reworked

I think it is really hard to simulate the pressure on the qb when his vision is limited to a certain line to a reciever (in a fps type view). I understand what the author or article is saying, I just think that in essence many people want to play a game of football like they are watching a game on tv, and have control of the game. I think thats why there are so many complaints about so few camera angles.

I have been playing video game football since the very first Madden football on sega genesis (ok I'll date myself and say first one was the blocky atart football for 2600.) I feel that it is all about getting every aspect of the game tweaked just right, or allowing users to tweak settings to make it "right" for them. I would love this years Madden without all the glitches. You hear of so many speaking of ESPN NFL2k5, and I think the reason that this game is respected so much, that while it wasn't perfect it came so close to getting it right.

I am not sold on a first person view, and it still being an entertaining game. Just my 2 cents.

[Smokez4DAyz]

football is not just passing with a qb, so i cant follow. furthermore, l cant see the action at the line of scrimmage, i cant decide where to go with ball. its the same thing real qbs do, they watch the safety, and make the read. Focusing on one target, is a real and video game no-no. You have to quickly read your options and fire the ball. a game that restricts view is a game that will have cheesers hangin on the end of your cameras view and sacking you because you cant see or switch to another target until the camera switches??? Nah buddy, this idea is not that deep in thought. why the special camera for qbs, how about for cbs, or lbs, or rbs, or dline? thats for superstar mode buddy, not co-op play.

[Stroehms]

How about a zoom in camera version of the 09 camera and you throw using the right stick. Like if the receiver is running right, throw it slightly right and if you throw slightly left by accident, he'll either try to catch the ball thrown behind him, it's picked off or incomplete. Of course thats just my rough sketch....let me know what you think.

[doublerballa20]

i feel like madden 09 is def a good start....when the camera turns so you cna see all of ure WRs its a different exp for everyone i almost feel like it has crouched down so i have to kinda anticipate when a WR will hit an open spot or if the WR has a step on an opposing player