Originally Posted by Cole
I can give an assessment, although full disclosure, I actually haven't played FOF 8 (but did play many hours of FOF 7).
The new version of DDSPF is a HUGE improvement. They've added a lot of cool stuff this year that helps with immersion, and most notable is player faces which for me is a big one (I have a hard time getting immersed with default no player photos). It's not quite on the same level of Facegen (just a set number of faces that rotate with a set number of hairstyles), but it provides a pretty good variety.
Overall I think the game has always had a much cleaner and better UI than FOF and been more user friendly. I would say that's the case in the new version as well.
There's also more flexibility in DDSPF in terms of league structures and setups (you aren't just stuck with an NFL-style 32-team league for example). Off the top of my head I think there are league options and structures for 6 to 72 team leagues in DDSPF. It's not nearly as customizable as say OOTP, as the league structures are locked ... so you aren't able to edit division sizes, or most notably for me, playoff format or how many teams get in. That's what actually makes some of the smaller league sizes basically unplayable for me - I would like to run a smaller league like say 12 or 16 teams, but I don't have 8 teams to make the playoffs, which as noted isn't customizable.
Statistical output is reasonable in DDSPF, albeit I believe lacking behind FOF. That being said you won't see anything too ridiculous or outlandish, so it seems to have made good strides there too.
I think both have a reasonable financial model, although FOF's is more robust and in-depth.
There's also new stuff in DDSPF about being able to make custom plays. I honestly haven't even touched this, but if that's your thing it might be pretty cool. I know FOF 8 introduced a lot of new gameplanning things, but again, haven't played it, so I'm unable to say how they compare, but DDSPF does have a lot of options to micromanage things (creating plays, creating playbooks, creating different packages and sets, etc) if that's your style.
DDSPF also has a better in-game display than FOF... with their 2D display. It's by no means perfect, and in fact does have some peculiarities to it at times, but it's still a more visually appealing game display if you are someone who enjoys playing out your games.
I think that's about it. Hope that helps.
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