Advice for a new guy

dpjarvis · 02-13-2014, 05:45 PM

Hi everyone.
So I'm going to be buying this game for the first time starting with the OOTP15 version.

I've been playing sims since I was a kid.
My favorite was the Statis Pro Baseball game put out by Avalon Hill...that game brought me from childhood into my teenage years.

Since then I've played a series of video games and all sorts of Fantasy Baseball that started with the old mail order days out of the back of The Sporting News.

I even went as far one day to track down how to get ahold of Dan Okrent and gave him a call one day just to shoot the breeze about starting and managing Rotisserie leagues. He was gracious enough 1) to take my call and 2) spent 30 minutes talking with a kid he didn't know from Adam about Fantasy Baseball in its infancy. True story

My early career was in sports journalism but switched over to IT at a young age. So I've built a career in data analysis and processing.
I'm also a member a newer member of SABR.

So to sum it all up, I'm a stats junkie and lover of the game in all of its forms. As you all probably experienced OOTP is very appealing to me.
So I'd like to ask you all for some sage advice.
Given some of my background and weighed against your experiences with OOTP. What suggestions would you have for a newbie to the game?
The online leagues sound like my eventual landing spot, but I don't want to be that new GM dragging the league down. Are there better places to cut my teeth so to speak?

Thanks all!!

Bluenoser · 02-13-2014, 06:02 PM

Quick answer - create a small fictional league and dive in. Get to know the game. I'd say you're quite knowledgeable when it comes to baseball, so start small, learn the different features of managing/GM'ing and general looking after of your organization.

I also strongly recommend doing what most newbies to the game don't do - Click on every menu and every option to see what it does and look at all the different reports, etc etc. This game is deep, very deep. If you don't explore it, you'll miss out on a lot of great features.

Post questions here as you go - tons of helpful people on these boards.

AND - while you're waiting download the Demo of 14 and play around a bit to get a feel for the game and it's nuances.

Happy OOTPing and welcome aboard.

dpjarvis · 02-13-2014, 06:19 PM

There are lots of mods out there ...which I love that about the game. I'm sure most are really up to each individual...but are there some out there that are popular that are more user interface related or game mechanics related that folks like or recommend?

dward1 · 02-13-2014, 06:53 PM

I agree with BlueNoser: start a fictional league (local, global, national all up to you) and start playing. the options are numerous but pretty self-explanatory. the most fun I have in OOTP is draping narratives to fit the incredible stats and simulations it generates and this is much easier and more fun in fictional leagues. once you play around for a year or two you will get a good feel for whether you want to manage each game batter by batter or playing as GM or maybe just playing as commissioner and watching and "covering" the league like a journalist before jumping in and taking over a struggling franchise. I love playing massive worlds where there are hundreds of teams and lots of different leagues all across the globe and then taking control of one team in a small part of the world but some people like playing 8 team leagues in England. part of the fun is finding out which way suits you the best.

the important differences in gameplay mechanics are the accuracy of your scouts (if you play with scouting on) and what the AI evaluates players by. search the archives for threads talking about pro and con of these approaches. as far as user interface goes, there are tons of great logo sets you can find here or on OOTPmods.com. having the real MLB logos if you play with real players or having some sort of created logo (not the defaults) if you play fictional is a small thing with huge results. it makes the game feel much more real if you add logos

goalieump413 · 02-14-2014, 01:10 AM

Since you're already fluent in Sabermetrics, and your background in sports simming sounds solid, I'll offer this perspective...
It's all about the interface. This game is so deep, rich, and detailed that anyone with a passion for baseball, sports gaming, and numbers will eventually hurtle towards its event horizon and buy a copy.

Take some time to familiarize yourself with where things are, what things do, and how best to navigate the daily stuff.
Read the online manual to help familiarize yourself with the simulation specific terminology. It will help you understand the game mechanics, and how to interpret each term.
Post any and all kinds of questions in this forum, and read the other forums as well. The membership is serious about this game, and has always been helpful to me.
Start simple, leaving many of the daily responsibilities to the manager/minor league managers, etc if you want to just go in as the GM.
Play around with a simple league and go nuts, trading, promoting/demoting/etc. to get a feel for it.
Play around with the rosters, moving guys around to see how they react.
Finally, it may appear daunting at first, depending on your sports sim history, but the learning curve can also be short, so keep at it.

TGH-Adfabre · 02-14-2014, 09:43 AM

Quote:

The online leagues sound like my eventual landing spot, but I don't want to be that new GM dragging the league down. Are there better places to cut my teeth so to speak?

I did not start playing solo until I owned the game for about 4 versions. If you know baseball as much as the average fan and can make the export commitments (usually about 3 a week) you can jump right in. This is my favorite part of the game.

byzeil · 02-14-2014, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TGH-Adfabre

I did not start playing solo until I owned the game for about 4 versions. If you know baseball as much as the average fan and can make the export commitments (usually about 3 a week) you can jump right in. This is my favorite part of the game.

I agree here. I am the Commissioner of an online league (tMBU) and we have no issues bringing in someone new to OOTP, we are glad to help. The biggest issue we have had, with both newbies and vets, is their commitment to the league. They join sounding like a good addition and all gung-ho then quickly realize they can't/don't want to live up to the commitment and drop out quickly. The time involved doesn't have to be huge, it is all dependent on how much you want to micromanage, but you really do have to keep up with the sim schedule. We sim 3x a week inseason and 5x during the offseason.

Inactivity is the bane to online leagues not lack of experience.

Pasells · 02-14-2014, 12:41 PM

How much time do you feel it takes, on average, to manage a team effectively?

I don't travel as much as I use to for work but I usually have a couple hours each day at the end of the day where I read articles online, surf web, listen to music, and just relax. LOVED OOTP 4 and 5 but had to stop due to work requirements and just so much travel.

byzeil · 02-14-2014, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pasells

How much time do you feel it takes, on average, to manage a team effectively?

I don't travel as much as I use to for work but I usually have a couple hours each day at the end of the day where I read articles online, surf web, listen to music, and just relax. LOVED OOTP 4 and 5 but had to stop due to work requirements and just so much travel.

You say you have a couple hours at the end of each day? You should be able to handle it with plenty of time for the rest of your leisure activities.....unless your like me

and can get lost for hours upon hours in your single A lineups

Really depends how much you want to micromanage. Generally sim to sim during the season there isn't a whole lot to do. See how things are going, check for injuries/slumps, make some changes. You can just manage your top prospects in your minors or you could manage everyone, up to you. There is more time involved in prepping for the ammy and rule 5 drafts. How much do you want to trade?

I'd say basic managing your team can be from minutes per sim to 30 minutes or much more if you want. I don't find it time consuming but you can get lost in it and I have spent many many hours more often than I want to admit.

Not sure that answered your question since it depends a lot on you and how you want to play. You just have to be willing to stick with it on a routine basis to make your time in an online league worth it for you and the rest of the league.

dpjarvis · 02-14-2014, 04:36 PM

Thanks guys...great stuff. So I guess I'll pick up OOTP 14 since and not wait for '15. I've read some of the threads and being a noob, I think thats probably the most economical way to get acclimated. Then I can pull the trigger on 15 later this year after the first patches are done...it does sound like a significant upgrade in user experience so I'm looking forward to it...but maybe I can get a few seasons under my belt with fictional and real sims. Thanks again!!!

02-13-2014, 05:45 PM	#1
dpjarvis Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Pleasant Ridge, Michigan Posts: 33	Advice for a new guy Hi everyone. So I'm going to be buying this game for the first time starting with the OOTP15 version. I've been playing sims since I was a kid. My favorite was the Statis Pro Baseball game put out by Avalon Hill...that game brought me from childhood into my teenage years. Since then I've played a series of video games and all sorts of Fantasy Baseball that started with the old mail order days out of the back of The Sporting News. I even went as far one day to track down how to get ahold of Dan Okrent and gave him a call one day just to shoot the breeze about starting and managing Rotisserie leagues. He was gracious enough 1) to take my call and 2) spent 30 minutes talking with a kid he didn't know from Adam about Fantasy Baseball in its infancy. True story My early career was in sports journalism but switched over to IT at a young age. So I've built a career in data analysis and processing. I'm also a member a newer member of SABR. So to sum it all up, I'm a stats junkie and lover of the game in all of its forms. As you all probably experienced OOTP is very appealing to me. So I'd like to ask you all for some sage advice. Given some of my background and weighed against your experiences with OOTP. What suggestions would you have for a newbie to the game? The online leagues sound like my eventual landing spot, but I don't want to be that new GM dragging the league down. Are there better places to cut my teeth so to speak? Thanks all!!

02-13-2014, 06:02 PM	#2
Bluenoser Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: In The Moment Posts: 13,684	Quick answer - create a small fictional league and dive in. Get to know the game. I'd say you're quite knowledgeable when it comes to baseball, so start small, learn the different features of managing/GM'ing and general looking after of your organization. I also strongly recommend doing what most newbies to the game don't do - Click on every menu and every option to see what it does and look at all the different reports, etc etc. This game is deep, very deep. If you don't explore it, you'll miss out on a lot of great features. Post questions here as you go - tons of helpful people on these boards. AND - while you're waiting download the Demo of 14 and play around a bit to get a feel for the game and it's nuances. Happy OOTPing and welcome aboard. Last edited by Bluenoser; 02-13-2014 at 06:04 PM.

02-13-2014, 06:19 PM	#3
dpjarvis Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Pleasant Ridge, Michigan Posts: 33	Mods There are lots of mods out there ...which I love that about the game. I'm sure most are really up to each individual...but are there some out there that are popular that are more user interface related or game mechanics related that folks like or recommend?

02-14-2014, 01:10 AM	#5
goalieump413 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 765	Since you're already fluent in Sabermetrics, and your background in sports simming sounds solid, I'll offer this perspective... It's all about the interface. This game is so deep, rich, and detailed that anyone with a passion for baseball, sports gaming, and numbers will eventually hurtle towards its event horizon and buy a copy. Take some time to familiarize yourself with where things are, what things do, and how best to navigate the daily stuff. Read the online manual to help familiarize yourself with the simulation specific terminology. It will help you understand the game mechanics, and how to interpret each term. Post any and all kinds of questions in this forum, and read the other forums as well. The membership is serious about this game, and has always been helpful to me. Start simple, leaving many of the daily responsibilities to the manager/minor league managers, etc if you want to just go in as the GM. Play around with a simple league and go nuts, trading, promoting/demoting/etc. to get a feel for it. Play around with the rosters, moving guys around to see how they react. Finally, it may appear daunting at first, depending on your sports sim history, but the learning curve can also be short, so keep at it.

02-14-2014, 12:41 PM	#8
Pasells Bat Boy Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 2	Time How much time do you feel it takes, on average, to manage a team effectively? I don't travel as much as I use to for work but I usually have a couple hours each day at the end of the day where I read articles online, surf web, listen to music, and just relax. LOVED OOTP 4 and 5 but had to stop due to work requirements and just so much travel.

02-13-2014, 06:53 PM	#4
dward1 All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 929	I agree with BlueNoser: start a fictional league (local, global, national all up to you) and start playing. the options are numerous but pretty self-explanatory. the most fun I have in OOTP is draping narratives to fit the incredible stats and simulations it generates and this is much easier and more fun in fictional leagues. once you play around for a year or two you will get a good feel for whether you want to manage each game batter by batter or playing as GM or maybe just playing as commissioner and watching and "covering" the league like a journalist before jumping in and taking over a struggling franchise. I love playing massive worlds where there are hundreds of teams and lots of different leagues all across the globe and then taking control of one team in a small part of the world but some people like playing 8 team leagues in England. part of the fun is finding out which way suits you the best. the important differences in gameplay mechanics are the accuracy of your scouts (if you play with scouting on) and what the AI evaluates players by. search the archives for threads talking about pro and con of these approaches. as far as user interface goes, there are tons of great logo sets you can find here or on OOTPmods.com. having the real MLB logos if you play with real players or having some sort of created logo (not the defaults) if you play fictional is a small thing with huge results. it makes the game feel much more real if you add logos

02-14-2014, 04:36 PM	#10
dpjarvis Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Pleasant Ridge, Michigan Posts: 33	Thanks Thanks guys...great stuff. So I guess I'll pick up OOTP 14 since and not wait for '15. I've read some of the threads and being a noob, I think thats probably the most economical way to get acclimated. Then I can pull the trigger on 15 later this year after the first patches are done...it does sound like a significant upgrade in user experience so I'm looking forward to it...but maybe I can get a few seasons under my belt with fictional and real sims. Thanks again!!!