Padrecast: MLB 2K9 Feature List (Pasta Padre)

[Blzer]

I don't really know what Chase was talking about when it came to influencing hitting.

The way I see influencing hitting, it has to do with how the player is swinging, and nothing more. If you want to influence a fly ball, you are going to uppercut your swing. If you want to influence a ground ball, you are going to chop down on the ball. If you make perfect contact (meaning not over or under the ball), you will hit what you wanted to hit. The pitch height is irrelevant. The only way that pitch height matters is how often a player normally is able to get under a low pitch or above a high pitch, which isn't often.

The other difference is a player's normal approach to that pitch given the timing, meaning to get a pitch at the knees, your bat must go down to get that from your shoulders, or wherever your hands begin prior to the swing. If you time it correctly, you should get the bat hitting its absolute minimum on the "swinging plane" and you should be able to produce a line drive. Same goes with a high pitch (though the top of the zone should be no higher than the belly button, so you shouldn't be chasing higher pitches anyway).

I'll make a small table showing what should happen in the result of a normal, uppercut, or chopped swing in relevance to how your bat meets with the ball (over/under, dead-on, etc.). This is assuming you've met with the ball at the right time, so the height of the pitch should be completely irrelevant:




So you see, I think the way that he said it was more on the lines of: "If you influence a fly ball on a high pitch, you'll have greater success." On a rare occasion, this is correct; though we must keep in mind that normally a hitter drops his hands to the pitch first, so on the point of coming back up for a high pitch, it will normally result in a pop up. If you know where that sucker is coming beforehand, then you have a shot at a nice fly ball, if not a home run. But the truth is, you're influencing it by changing your bat angle on contact, by uppercutting your swing. Just keep that in mind. Now I'm not saying that this is how 2K will do it (or how SCEA does it), but IMO this is how it should be done. Zone hitting and timing takes care of the rest... where you place your bat on the ball.

Oh, and MVP didn't use zone hitting. They used a timed system with influencing your hits just like 2K7. Just something else I picked up on that I thought might have needed some addressing.



EDIT: And just for clarification, it was Chase who said that he was 95% sure meatballs would be gone from the game.

[Scottdau]

Good job guy. Chase you need to be nicer to Brian. Also, just becasue you don't like something doesn't mean someone doesn't like it. Any ways good job. I am curious apart this game. Also, especially because Tim is the cover boy!

[ChaseB]

Blzer, the only big point I was trying to make was that people on the forums were worried about balance issues if they used the influence aspect and were able to hit fly balls in situations they wouldn't normally be able to.

And you're right about MVP, I was just thinking it was zone at the time because I was thinking about the 9 hot and cold zones each batter had.

PS, I said 95% meatballs weren't in -- or if they are -- they certainly won't mean HRs on most occasions.

[ChaseB]

Quote: Originally Posted by Scottdau

Good job guy. Chase you need to be nicer to Brian. Also, just becasue you don't like something doesn't mean someone doesn't like it. Any ways good job. I am curious apart this game. Also, especially because Tim is the cover boy!

I won't be nicer to Brian, he's an evil, evil child. And, obviously, if I don't like something that doesn't mean someone else doesn't like it. But it's not like I'm going to add that caveat in after everything I don't like.

[Blzer]

Quote: Originally Posted by ChaseB

Blzer, the only big point I was trying to make was that people on the forums were worried about balance issues if they used the influence aspect and were able to hit fly balls in situations they wouldn't normally be able to.

Ah ha, gotcha. Guess I just didn't want people to be misinformed on how, IMO, the influence aspect should be implemented in the game. I wasn't trying to call you out, it wasn't even really about targeting your "being incorrect" or anything as much as it was trying to explain to everybody what it really means to "influence your hits."

Quote:

And you're right about MVP, I was just thinking it was zone at the time because I was thinking about the 9 hot and cold zones each batter had.

To be fair, you hit the ball with more authority when you aim outside with an outside pitch and inside/inside pitch. That was just the problem with how MVP's system worked, though... home runs didn't really happen on low pitches, which they should be able to. Instead they only did with high pitches.

Anyway, on my chart, the only three hit types that really can result in home runs are the level swing (both right on the ball and slightly underneath) and an uppercut swing, right on the ball. The most common is the level swing, being slightly underneath the ball. The ball has backspin and carries through the air better. In that regard, a game like 2K7 or MVP should have had most home runs come from no type of fly ball influence, but rather a default, level swing where you generate just enough lift under the ball. Trying the other approach is much more costly, resulting in too many balls being skied rather than launched.

[JohnDoe8865]

Just listened. Very happy to hear "meatballs" should be gone. You better have good sources Becotte! *shakes fist*

[Scottdau]

Quote: Originally Posted by ChaseB

I won't be nicer to Brian, he's an evil, evil child. And, obviously, if I don't like something that doesn't mean someone else doesn't like it. But it's not like I'm going to add that caveat in after everything I don't like.

You are a mean young man. Did you not get enough hugs from your dad growing up? All joking aside you did a good job.

[boomhauertjs]

You guys made a good point in saying that 2k really should be showing lots of videos, getting the demo out early, etc. to help regain the trust of their customer base. 2k's usually not very good at doing these things, so it will be interesting to see how they market 2k9.

I remember reading after 2k7 that MLB was contemplating getting out of their exclusive contract with 2k. If 2k9 bombs, I wonder if MLB will try to get out of the contract.