OK, with some time set aside, I'm finally taking a crack at playing OOTP 2007. I've decided to follow the recommendations in Rasnell's
easy-to-follow thread and walk in the footsteps of my favorite manager, Whitey Herzog.
I've downloaded the Lahman database and put it in it's own folder. Okay, so New Game, Historical League, Path to Database, and we're going with 1980, the year Whitey took over the Cards. Import Complete History? Sure, why not?
Hmmm, this is going to take a while.
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I'll go throw in some laundry.
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Okay, back and it's... still going. Let's see, dishes are done, bills are all paid... I guess I'll go get some lunch.
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Hey, 56%! Nearly there! I wonder what's on TV?
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Maxwell Smart, truly a comic genius. How we doing? 72%. My laptop's fan sounds like turbine engine. Another episode of Get Smart should do it.
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Okay, done! Ah, the league as it was in 1980. Remember the Montreal Expos? Good times. Next step.
Rasnell recommends no minor leagues yet, so I shall go without until I'm comfortable with the setup. Next step.
Recalc player ratings, check. Automatically expand league, okay. Hold expansion draft, sure. Enable automatic import of financial settings... I don't know what that means, but it sounds good. Next step.
Some stuff about player faces and whatnot. Rasnell says ignore this for now, so I will. Next step.
Okay, I put my name in and... what do I do about the birthdate? Should I put in my real birthday? That means I'll be coaching the Cardinals at the age of nine. Hmmm. I'll add twenty years to my fictional manager's birthday.
Select team: The St. Louis Cardinals, baby!
Okay, play in Commissioner Mode... Rasnell says no. I may change that if I make it far enough to save Les Expos. Starting year is already in there. Next step is Start Game. Okay.
Alright, Rasnell says go into the Game Setup and turn off the scouting and coaching system. Done. He says disable injuries. Hmmm. I don't think I'd feel the realism without injuries. I'll do it for now, and when I feel comfortable with the interface, I'll turn them back on.
Everything else he says is up to my preference. Hmm, okay. I set all the Ratings from 1-100 (I like detail) and set it to show ratings past the max. I set the overall/potential from 20-80 instead of stars. 20-80?
Save box scores and game logs... sure. Keep the news logs, injury logs, transaction logs... why not? I've got a big hard drive.
Like Rasnell, I delete players that don't make The Show. Alright, what else? I set the Amateur Draft to November 1st. That it? Can we get started? Let's get started.