OOTP 7 Development update

[endgame]

Originally Posted by D Love

Any idea whether OOTP7 will include Catobase-like features (i.e., will Catobase have to be redone by someone come OOTP7 or will the in-game features make such a task moot)?

With the myriad data available in Catobase, I'm eager to hear what the OOTP7 capabilities will be in comparison. Looking forward to the answer to this one -- even if it's when I get the game and find out then.

This progress report and exchange with Markus has been excellent.

[cknox0723]

Dying to know; will there still be a character limit on nicknames?

(Yes. I have my reasons.)

[BKL]

I am hoping OOTP7 will be compatible with the latest Windows XPS Service Pack 2 and also the latest DirectX, so we can listen to sound.

[Le Grande Orange]

First off, I want to say thanks Markus for answering all the questions being asked. It's great to get an inside, first-hand look at what's in the future for the game.

Originally Posted by Markus Heinsohn

There is an average attendance option

Excellent! Between that, multiple leagues, and a split-season format, alot of what I could wish for is going to be in the game... I'm a happy camper!

Originally Posted by Markus Heinsohn

1) The logos remain at 150*150, and they will use a way better scaling algorythm when displayed smaller, so things will look a lot better

Well, that's a good start. Any chance I can at least convince you to put the team logos at full size on a few more of the game's screens at least?

Question: So, will we be able to have League 1 with Leagues A, B, and C as minor leagues and then League 2 with Leagues C and D as their minors?

Originally Posted by Markus Heinsohn

Not quite, league C can only be a minor league to League 1 or 2, not for both...

This raises a few questions, which also involve the affiliation suggestions I made earlier. How would something like the current MLB/minor league system work in the game?

1) Do all the teams in a minor league have to be affiliates with the major league clubs in one major league only? In the real minors teams from both the NL and AL might have affiliates in the same minor league - it sounds like you're saying that can't happen in the game.

2) If a minor league can have its own size and alignment, then what happens if the minor league has more clubs in it than there are clubs in the associated major league? Does that mean one or more of the major league clubs will have two affiliates in that minor league? Or would the extra minor league clubs end up acting as non-affiliated, independent entities?

I'm thinking of something like the mid-1960s here, where the AAA minors had 20 teams, the same as MLB. But while MLB was split into a 10 team AL and a 10 team NL, in the AAA it was a 12 club PCL and an 8 club IL. Can the game handle something like that?

[Bald Eagles]

Originally Posted by Markus Heinsohn

OOTP 6 -> League equals your game world
OOTP 7 -> League is just that, ONE league inside your game world. Like in real life... Japanese League, Winter Leagues, MLB... all are leagues within the world and interacting with each other.

1) How would the rosters for the Arizona Fall League and Winter Leagues work? Usually the MLB sends its best prospects and whoever else wants/needs work down to play and get better.

2) Can the winner of the MLB World Series play the winner of the Japanese championship and so on? Would there be a possibility of a World Cup format that Selig is proposing?

Thanks for the updates, it's greatly appreciated.

[Bald Eagles]

Originally Posted by Muppetus Galacticus

First thing I thought of after reading this update (well first after, "Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!") was hopefully importing my European Baseball League (or creating afresh if need be, I can survive either way personally) and seeing how it interacts in a world alongside MLB. And THEN having regional leagues in individual nations perhaps acting as the Euro teams afilliates - have I got this right?

YES!!! I can resurrect my EBL league, which I left in v5. I would love to have German names on the Berlin team and English names from London, etc.

[Bald Eagles]

Originally Posted by eriqjaffe

Here's one - will the in-game schedule generator be able to recognize an inter-league "rival" (assuming it can generate a schedule with inter-league games, that is)? IRL, the Yankees always have 2 series against the Mets, the White Sox always have 2 series against the Cubs...yet in my White Sox solo dynasty, I have yet to face the Cubs, except in the initial 2004 season...and I don't feel like going in and editing the schedule by hand.

I would love to see this as an option on the team setup screen. Have an item for league-rival and inter-league rival. The league-rival would be the nemesis, usually in the same division. Examples are the Cubs-Cardinals and the Yankees-Red Sox series. Games of this porportion are usually promotion days of themselves and are a huge attendence draw. The inter-league rivalries are just as Eriq states - White Sox-Cubs, Yankees-Mets, etc. These would of course be editable, in case the team moves.

Eriq - In my solo league, my Cubs swept the White Sox in the 2012 World Championship. In the same league, other championships went to Oakland over San Francisco and San Francisco over Oakland about four years later. Ironically, in my last season, Boston defeated St. Louis, four games to two.

[Bald Eagles]

Originally Posted by treedom

Will we be able to run a league in commish mode, that is without running a team?

Could there be an option for the commish to approve trades ala the Sammy Sosa trade of this past week? Especially if either there's a certain amount of money at stake (either the differences in salary or the total amount of salary moved), or if there's more than one team involved (if this gets in, which I hope it does)).

[Bald Eagles]

Originally Posted by Markus Heinsohn

Yes, that is an option. Each manager, scout, GM in OOTP 7 will have their own abilities and style of managing... some prefer speed to power, or OBP to AVG, or youth to veterans. So basically, since computer controlled teams have GMs and managers, you have different team personalities

YES!!!! Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!!

[Bald Eagles]

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

1) Do all the teams in a minor league have to be affiliates with the major league clubs in one major league only? In the real minors teams from both the NL and AL might have affiliates in the same minor league - it sounds like you're saying that can't happen in the game.

2) If a minor league can have its own size and alignment, then what happens if the minor league has more clubs in it than there are clubs in the associated major league? Does that mean one or more of the major league clubs will have two affiliates in that minor league? Or would the extra minor league clubs end up acting as non-affiliated, independent entities?

I'm thinking of something like the mid-1960s here, where the AAA minors had 20 teams, the same as MLB. But while MLB was split into a 10 team AL and a 10 team NL, in the AAA it was a 12 club PCL and an 8 club IL. Can the game handle something like that?

Will the minor league teams be able to switch parent MLB affiliates, or are they stuck with the associated team once the league begins? The A-level Peoria (Illinois) Chiefs recently switched their affiliation from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Chicago Cubs. The team didn't change leagues, just MLB affiliation. This change affected other clubs as the team the Cubs left to replace with the Chiefs went to Toronto.

[Bald Eagles]

10 pages of comments and not ONE about Spring Training?!?! What's with you people?

So what's the news on ST? Will we be able to play out games? Please say yes!!

[BlitzburghBucco]

Would there be any chance of advanced stadium features? Such as different amount of seats in certain sections, and then having different ticket prices for each section, e.g., $15 box seats, and $5 bleacher seats? (Kind of like the ticket pricing found in Madden's Owner Mode).

[Kemp]

Originally Posted by BlitzburghBucco

Would there be any chance of advanced stadium features? Such as different amount of seats in certain sections, and then having different ticket prices for each section, e.g., $15 box seats, and $5 bleacher seats? (Kind of like the ticket pricing found in Madden's Owner Mode).

Not to root against you, but I really hope the financial model gets SIMPLIFIED. I like free agency and contract negotiation but I hate ticket prices, tv contracts, promotional days, etc. At least, I hope this all becomes an option.

If it were up to me, revenue would be one number (and a function of record and market size).

If OOTP continues to "develop" the financial model, I'll likely just turn it off and handle free agency outside of the game.

[Melo]

great news, great answers, great thread

Thanks Markus

[Malleus Dei]

Originally Posted by Kemp

If OOTP continues to "develop" the financial model, I'll likely just turn it off and handle free agency outside of the game.

Now that OOTP AI-controlled players will sign free agents when financials are off, you don't even have to do that. Just turn financials off and have at it.

[Malleus Dei]

Originally Posted by Bald Eagles

10 pages of comments and not ONE about Spring Training?!?! What's with you people?

We think it's boring, trivial, and should be skippable?

[Kemp]

Originally Posted by Malleus Dei

Now that OOTP AI-controlled players will sign free agents when financials are off, you don't even have to do that. Just turn financials off and have at it.

My understanding is that it's just first come, first serve for FA's and that doesn't quite cut it for me. It's not a big deal, I'd probably just have a manual free agent "draft" outside of OOTP and then go back into the game and assign players to teams.

I just don't really get why people would want to see complex financials in a baseball sim. Ticket pricing? Concessions? Marketing? Blech. If I wanted to mess around with those things in my spare time, I'd get a second job!

I would be happy with a 2 dimensional model (market size and fan interest based on record) generating one revenue figure. Maybe have one other factor in there which was fixed (media contract?) so people could make adjustments when they wanted.

[BigCity]

Originally Posted by Kemp

My understanding is that it's just first come, first serve for FA's and that doesn't quite cut it for me. It's not a big deal, I'd probably just have a manual free agent "draft" outside of OOTP and then go back into the game and assign players to teams.

I just don't really get why people would want to see complex financials in a baseball sim. Ticket pricing? Concessions? Marketing? Blech. If I wanted to mess around with those things in my spare time, I'd get a second job!

I would be happy with a 2 dimensional model (market size and fan interest based on record) generating one revenue figure. Maybe have one other factor in there which was fixed (media contract?) so people could make adjustments when they wanted.

Agreed. There's a point where the dynamics of the details overshadow the game. Then again, as long as I can turn off what I want, I'm not bothered that the options are there.

[DaveHorn]

Originally Posted by Kemp

I just don't really get why people would want to see complex financials in a baseball sim. Ticket pricing? Concessions? Marketing? Blech. If I wanted to mess around with those things in my spare time, I'd get a second job!

LOL - I couldn't imagine playing without financials...boring! Good thing the game can be many things to many people!

[Eugene Church]

I'm with Le Grande Orange.

He posted this in an earlier post about graphics:

" Any chance I can at least convince you to put the team logos at full size on a few more of the game's screens at least?"

Please make the logo section on the Main Game Screen 150x150 so it will look good there.

In fact make all of the logo sections 150x150...you don't have to change the lineup comparison because of the space requirements.