Room for improvement in 3 areas

Bud Cochrane · 12-02-2021, 02:18 PM

As a baseball fan since 1946, I’ve devised dice-baseball games since childhood, I’ve played APBA, Stratomatic, and have been playing OOTP since version 9, and have purchased most subsequent versions, now including OOTP 22. I salute you for all the expertise and effort you’ve put into the greatest baseball sim game ever. However, there are three areas where I believe OOTP falls short.

THE SOUNDS OF THE GAME. This is one area in which OOTP not only has not improved since OOTP 9 - it has regressed significantly..The crowd noises of OOTP 9, while far from perfect, at least sounded as if there was a ballgame going on. There were realistic, clearly audible calls of “Safe” or “Out” or “Strike three” from the umpires - and the crowd was more reactive - a lot more reactive - to the action on the field. Now, with OOTP 22, there may be mild, subdued cheers for a HR or a caught fly ball, but otherwise, the sound is almost non-existent except for a low-key, unconvincing monotone of crowd-murmur. And at the end of a game, when you’d expect groans and boos for a loss and cheers for a win, there’s nothing, absolutely nothing. Sounds are as important as visuals - they make the in-game experience far more immersive and exciting. You’ve put extraordinary effort into animation, and there are some very nice touches, e.g. the on-field celebration after a walk-off win. But too often the animated action is confusing and ambiguous (Was that a ground ball or a low line drive?) and the eye must go to the PBP to find out what’s going on. I know you’ll continue to improve the visual side of the game; I just wish you’d put comparable effort into the audible side.

BALLPARKS. I’ve looked at YouTube tutorials on how to add historical and fictional ballparks, but I'm 82 years old and a computer-dumbbell, and I’ll be damned if I know how to do it. It may be simple for younger, computer-savvy fans, but it’s Greek to me. Why must one go through this byzantine process? If OOTP can include every team logo in the history of baseball, why in the world can’t the game also include historical ballparks and a selection of fictional parks?

MANAGERS, COACHES AND UMPIRES. When playing historical seasons, why are we given fictional managers and coaches? All these names, plus those of umpires, are knowable and should be incorporated into the play-by-play, e.g. “Pitching coach Clyde Sukeforth is visiting the mound,” “Manager Burt Shotton is lifting Erv Palica and bringing in Dan Bankhead to relieve,” “Enos Slaughter is jawing with home-plate umpire Beans Reardon and is being tossed from the game!” If Stratomatic was able to do this 15 years ago, surely OOTP can do it now. (In Stratomatic, you had to enter the umps' names manually, but even I can do that!)

Again, thank you for the best baseball game in the world.

pstrickert · 12-02-2021, 02:40 PM

Good suggestions!

Pelican · 12-02-2021, 07:06 PM

Agreed. The sound files could use work, and could be better synched with the game events. And yeah, the stadium mods are easy to download but are laborious to install in the proper folder for actual use in the game. All solid idea.

Also great to hear from a fellow veteran of APBA and Strat-O-Magic baseball. I started with Strat cards and dice in 1967 and soon “graduated” to APBA. By the 1990’s was hooked on the APBA DOS and Windows computer games. It was a great education. OOTP combines the best aspects of each, in a complete game environment. Right now I am replaying my first APBA season - 1966 cards - on OOTP GO. Same players, same strategy, only now with trades, salary and contract issues, financials, robust AI opponent.

RchW · 12-02-2021, 07:38 PM

Good suggestions. I have trouble with parks too.

thehef · 12-02-2021, 07:54 PM

Agree, good suggestions!

Regarding this one...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bud Cochrane

MANAGERS, COACHES AND UMPIRES. When playing historical seasons, why are we given fictional managers and coaches? All these names, plus those of umpires, are knowable and should be incorporated into the play-by-play, e.g. “Pitching coach Clyde Sukeforth is visiting the mound,” “Manager Burt Shotton is lifting Erv Palica and bringing in Dan Bankhead to relieve,” “Enos Slaughter is jawing with home-plate umpire Beans Reardon and is being tossed from the game!” If Stratomatic was able to do this 15 years ago, surely OOTP can do it now.

It's interesting to note that when you start a historical game, OOTP imports the historically correct manager name and will reference it in Game Recaps. For example, "We played really great today," said Dodger skipper Walter Alston. But once that manager changes in real life, OOTP is aware of that change because then OOTP will, in game recaps, replace "Walter Alston" with an awkward blank space.

So, my point is that I believe that the ability for OOTP to fix this is would not be a herculean endeavor; rather, it's probably just a tweak to what the game is already doing. And I'll also note that this has officially been requested (by me) previously, and I will be bringing this to the attention of the OOTP team again in the near future... (Adding pitching coaches and other coaches might be a different story, maybe for down the road. But baby steps

)

Thanks again, Bud!

BURNS81 · 12-09-2021, 12:49 PM

NO WAY! nooooo WAY ;-)

I been hearing that man in my dreams since I was 28 years old. I’m 41 now. Please update the sounds…I beg of you.

fredbeene · 03-08-2022, 10:08 PM

agree on all

eauhomme · 03-17-2022, 04:39 AM

Make a selection of well-developed major and minor league fictional ballparks. A MLB expansion team playing in a boring, generic ballpark isn't good. Neither is a minor league where all the ballparks are identical. 15 different minor league parks, each with different looks but still rather simple, randomly assigned to each minor league team in a league, would be a vast improvement. I don't care that Everett and Modesto may use the same ballpark because they're in a different league, but when Everett and Spokane do, it gets monotonous--especially so when all High A-West teams play in the same park.

Since they mention mound visits, why not add notification when the AI opponent visits the mound? In games where bullpen warmup is required, announce when the AI opponent is warming up someone. Adds to realism and gives you an insight to the other team's perception of their pitcher's performance and fatigue level.

jeffw3000 · 03-19-2022, 11:11 AM

Agreed on all. I especially agree on the sounds and historical coaches.

I agree the sounds have been hardly touched in more recent versions.

I have wanted historical coaches and managers for sometime. With all the available resources these days, eg. Baseball Reference, etc., just does not seem like it would be that difficult.

I started on APBA as well in 1976, and have played various games since. APBA Broadcast Blast still today was the best radio type broadcast I have heard in a game today. It was just like listening on radio.

12-02-2021, 02:18 PM	#1
Bud Cochrane Bat Boy Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Toronto Posts: 5	Room for improvement in 3 areas As a baseball fan since 1946, I’ve devised dice-baseball games since childhood, I’ve played APBA, Stratomatic, and have been playing OOTP since version 9, and have purchased most subsequent versions, now including OOTP 22. I salute you for all the expertise and effort you’ve put into the greatest baseball sim game ever. However, there are three areas where I believe OOTP falls short. THE SOUNDS OF THE GAME. This is one area in which OOTP not only has not improved since OOTP 9 - it has regressed significantly..The crowd noises of OOTP 9, while far from perfect, at least sounded as if there was a ballgame going on. There were realistic, clearly audible calls of “Safe” or “Out” or “Strike three” from the umpires - and the crowd was more reactive - a lot more reactive - to the action on the field. Now, with OOTP 22, there may be mild, subdued cheers for a HR or a caught fly ball, but otherwise, the sound is almost non-existent except for a low-key, unconvincing monotone of crowd-murmur. And at the end of a game, when you’d expect groans and boos for a loss and cheers for a win, there’s nothing, absolutely nothing. Sounds are as important as visuals - they make the in-game experience far more immersive and exciting. You’ve put extraordinary effort into animation, and there are some very nice touches, e.g. the on-field celebration after a walk-off win. But too often the animated action is confusing and ambiguous (Was that a ground ball or a low line drive?) and the eye must go to the PBP to find out what’s going on. I know you’ll continue to improve the visual side of the game; I just wish you’d put comparable effort into the audible side. BALLPARKS. I’ve looked at YouTube tutorials on how to add historical and fictional ballparks, but I'm 82 years old and a computer-dumbbell, and I’ll be damned if I know how to do it. It may be simple for younger, computer-savvy fans, but it’s Greek to me. Why must one go through this byzantine process? If OOTP can include every team logo in the history of baseball, why in the world can’t the game also include historical ballparks and a selection of fictional parks? MANAGERS, COACHES AND UMPIRES. When playing historical seasons, why are we given fictional managers and coaches? All these names, plus those of umpires, are knowable and should be incorporated into the play-by-play, e.g. “Pitching coach Clyde Sukeforth is visiting the mound,” “Manager Burt Shotton is lifting Erv Palica and bringing in Dan Bankhead to relieve,” “Enos Slaughter is jawing with home-plate umpire Beans Reardon and is being tossed from the game!” If Stratomatic was able to do this 15 years ago, surely OOTP can do it now. (In Stratomatic, you had to enter the umps' names manually, but even I can do that!) Again, thank you for the best baseball game in the world. Last edited by Bud Cochrane; 12-03-2021 at 08:38 AM.

12-02-2021, 07:06 PM	#3
Pelican Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2021 Location: Wilmington, Delaware Posts: 3,187	Suggestions Agreed. The sound files could use work, and could be better synched with the game events. And yeah, the stadium mods are easy to download but are laborious to install in the proper folder for actual use in the game. All solid idea. Also great to hear from a fellow veteran of APBA and Strat-O-Magic baseball. I started with Strat cards and dice in 1967 and soon “graduated” to APBA. By the 1990’s was hooked on the APBA DOS and Windows computer games. It was a great education. OOTP combines the best aspects of each, in a complete game environment. Right now I am replaying my first APBA season - 1966 cards - on OOTP GO. Same players, same strategy, only now with trades, salary and contract issues, financials, robust AI opponent.

12-02-2021, 07:38 PM	#4
RchW Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Toronto ON by way of Glasgow UK Posts: 15,629	Good suggestions. I have trouble with parks too. __________________ Cheers RichW If you’re looking for a good cause to donate money to please consider a Donation to Parkinson’s Canada. It may help me have a better future and if not me, someone else. Thanks. “Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition …There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.” Frank Wilhoit

12-09-2021, 12:49 PM	#6
BURNS81 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 187	NO WAY! nooooo WAY ;-) I been hearing that man in my dreams since I was 28 years old. I’m 41 now. Please update the sounds…I beg of you. Last edited by BURNS81; 12-09-2021 at 12:50 PM.

03-17-2022, 04:39 AM	#8
eauhomme Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jan 2022 Posts: 129	Make a selection of well-developed major and minor league fictional ballparks. A MLB expansion team playing in a boring, generic ballpark isn't good. Neither is a minor league where all the ballparks are identical. 15 different minor league parks, each with different looks but still rather simple, randomly assigned to each minor league team in a league, would be a vast improvement. I don't care that Everett and Modesto may use the same ballpark because they're in a different league, but when Everett and Spokane do, it gets monotonous--especially so when all High A-West teams play in the same park. Since they mention mound visits, why not add notification when the AI opponent visits the mound? In games where bullpen warmup is required, announce when the AI opponent is warming up someone. Adds to realism and gives you an insight to the other team's perception of their pitcher's performance and fatigue level. Last edited by eauhomme; 03-17-2022 at 04:40 AM.

12-02-2021, 02:40 PM	#2
pstrickert Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 17,002	Good suggestions!

03-08-2022, 10:08 PM	#7
fredbeene All Star Starter Join Date: Aug 2016 Posts: 1,668	agree on all

03-19-2022, 11:11 AM	#9
jeffw3000 Major Leagues Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 317	Agreed on all. I especially agree on the sounds and historical coaches. I agree the sounds have been hardly touched in more recent versions. I have wanted historical coaches and managers for sometime. With all the available resources these days, eg. Baseball Reference, etc., just does not seem like it would be that difficult. I started on APBA as well in 1976, and have played various games since. APBA Broadcast Blast still today was the best radio type broadcast I have heard in a game today. It was just like listening on radio.