Wish List - Think Big!

joefromchicago · 12-05-2013, 02:08 PM

OOTP has been greenlighted for Steam, which apparently means that thousands of gamers will be buying OOTP for the first time. Cash will be pouring into OOTPD's coffers, which means that Markus & Co. will be investing all of that extra money into R&D for even more improvements in OOTP. This is, in other words, not the time to tinker around the edges of the product. "Make no small plans!" as the architect Daniel Burnham once said.

So where should all of that extra Steam-powered moolah go? Here are some of the previously unattainable improvements I'd like to see:

1. Re-think park factors: Right now, parks have only an abstract and limited effect on the game. Parks are rated on how far they deviate from the mean in terms of batting average, doubles, triples, and home runs. Distances and wall heights are listed, but they have no bearing on the game (and foul territory isn't considered at all). That's not terribly interesting, and it doesn't capture the idiosyncratic elements of ballparks and their effects. Right-handed batters may have a 22% better chance to hit a home run at Fenway Park than at an "average" ballpark, but that really doesn't explain why it's so much easier for right-handers to hit it out of the park. And if I want to move the Green Monster ten feet back, I have no idea how that would change the numbers (not only for homers but also for doubles and triples). There should, in other words, be a direct correlation between ballpark configuration and game play. If a batter hits a fly ball 370 feet to left-center, it should matter whether he's in Wrigley Field or in Yankee Stadium. This is especially important for fictional leagues, where there's no real-world data to determine how much, for instance, the Duluth Superdome's short right-field wall affects the game.

2. Independent minor leagues that actually work: Right now, the minor-league model is based on developing talent through farm teams that are owned by major-league teams. That, however, is not how the minor leagues always operated, and it's not even the case today that all minor leagues are run that way. OOTP allows the user to set up independent minor leagues, with teams unaffiliated with any major-league club, but in my experience these never really work. In the past, independent minor-league clubs made money by selling talent to the majors, but the OOTP AI refuses to offer any money for minor leaguers. It will, occasionally, offer to trade for minor-league talent, but that seldom happened in real life. In order to recreate the way that major league teams acquired players in the era before farm systems, OOTP needs to re-think its minor-league model.

Those are just two major changes I'd like to see. Any other BIG changes that need to be made?

joefromchicago · 12-08-2013, 11:14 AM

Another change that shouldn't be considered big, but apparently is so difficult that it has resisted improvement for years: nicknames. It's baffling that the names database can be updated in an existing game, but nicknames can't. So we're stuck with nineteenth-century monikers like "Death to Flying Things" and "Orator" being applied to players in the twenty-first century. Really, can you imagine a deaf player today being nicknamed "Dummy?"

And gamers should also have the option of turning off nicknames. Some eras just had more (and better) nicknames than others. Modern players have rather lame nicknames, if they have any at all (Miguel Cabrera's nickname is "Miggy" - gee, how long did they have to work on that one?). The last really good nickname was probably Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd, and he retired in 1991.

The Game · 12-08-2013, 11:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joefromchicago

And gamers should also have the option of turning off nicknames. Some eras just had more (and better) nicknames than others. Modern players have rather lame nicknames, if they have any at all (Miguel Cabrera's nickname is "Miggy" - gee, how long did they have to work on that one?). The last really good nickname was probably Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd, and he retired in 1991.

Big Hurt, Tank, the multiple Cuban Missiles. El Duque. Would like to be able to turn it off in some leagues and have more. I nicknamed a SP on my Capitals team "40" Now there are 3 more 40's in the entire league.

joefromchicago · 12-08-2013, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Game

I nicknamed a SP on my Capitals team "40" Now there are 3 more 40's in the entire league.

That's another problem with nicknames. You can add nicknames by creating them in-game, but you can't remove any. Once a nickname is added, it's there forever. You may want to create a unique nickname for a player, but the game will apply it randomly to other players thereafter. So, for instance, you might get a player on the Tigers named Jose Valdez who is nicknamed "the Yankee Clipper."

And that reminds me of another point: there should be a nickname database for each language ID. "Big Papi" or "El Duque" just don't work with a guy named Larry Smith or Chung-wa Kim. And foreign leagues should have nicknames based on the local language.

OOTP does such a good job with names, it's really mystifying why it has done such a botched job with nicknames.

Gil Thorp · 12-08-2013, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joefromchicago

So where should all of that extra Steam-powered moolah go?

Maybe a little bit to Markus and other employees?

Marinersfan51 · 12-08-2013, 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joefromchicago

So we're stuck with nineteenth-century monikers like "Death to Flying Things" and "Orator" being applied to players in the twenty-first century. Really, can you imagine a deaf player today being nicknamed "Dummy?"

Death to Flying Things was/is Franklin Gutierrez's nickname, so it is a modern nickname. Sorry, I just had to point that out, I completely agree with you about nicknames.

joefromchicago · 12-09-2013, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marinersfan51

Death to Flying Things was/is Franklin Gutierrez's nickname, so it is a modern nickname. Sorry, I just had to point that out, I completely agree with you about nicknames.

I was unaware of that. Still, I think that's less a nickname than an ironic post-modern comment on semiotics. Or something like that.

pjh5165 · 12-09-2013, 11:51 AM

I have a 5 man rotation that includes 4 guys nicknamed Stump, Quack, The Tank, and Bingo.

I would really like to see a checkbox to turn nicknames off.

Ceej · 12-09-2013, 02:49 PM

More park-specific gameplay has been my #1 thing since I got on board with OOTP. Parts of the park with low fences could have the occasional reference to balls hopping the fence for an automatic double, as well as the potential for home-run robbing catches. High walls could have more frequent references to balls hitting directly off of them, and should produce many more fly ball homers than line drive homers, except for the real tape measure blast kind of line drives.

joefromchicago · 12-09-2013, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pjh5165

I have a 5 man rotation that includes 4 guys nicknamed Stump, Quack, The Tank, and Bingo.

If Jim Abbott pitched in the nineteenth century, his nickname would probably have been "Stump" ("One Arm" was already taken).

Matt Arnold · 12-10-2013, 05:53 PM

Personally, I kind of like the crazy nicknames. I find when drafting players, or dealing for them, a player with a wacky nickname can make the difference. I find almost all of them off the wall hilarious, that it keeps me entertained.

blasek0 · 12-10-2013, 06:08 PM

An improvement to the filter system currently used, specifically a system where we can apply multiple saved filters at once, preferably in an and/or fashion. For example, I have a filter that shows players with contact/eye/power potential of 50+, and a second filter that only shows players with OF range + arm ratings of 50+. Applying both filters at once using AND would then limit the filtered pool to only players who meet both criteria, whereas an OR filter would show any players who meet either set of criteria.

A rework to the financial system. Individual player salary caps, like the NBA uses, would also be interesting to play with. Where does Bryce Harper sign if he's capped at 250/10? This would probably need to go with a contract AI upgrade.

Snarf054 · 12-13-2013, 12:13 PM

I just started playing but I would like to see split squad games in spring training. You have a 40 man active roster let us use it to the fullest.

SandMan · 12-13-2013, 12:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marinersfan51

Death to Flying Things was/is Franklin Gutierrez's nickname, so it is a modern nickname. Sorry, I just had to point that out, I completely agree with you about nicknames.

Not totally a modern nick name. Bob Ferguson had this as his nick name in the 1870's-1890's.

joefromchicago · 12-13-2013, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snarf054

I just started playing but I would like to see split squad games in spring training. You have a 40 man active roster let us use it to the fullest.

Spring training definitely needs some love from the developers. Making it so that ST takes place in Arizona and/or Florida or some other warm place would be an excellent start.

SandMan · 12-13-2013, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UWHabs

Personally, I kind of like the crazy nicknames. I find when drafting players, or dealing for them, a player with a wacky nickname can make the difference. I find almost all of them off the wall hilarious, that it keeps me entertained.

Most of time I like the nicknames, but it bothers me when I get something like "Big Pete" for a player that has a name of something like "John". I wish there was an option in the player profile that would allow you to reset the nickname without forcing you to go into the editor.

The Game · 12-13-2013, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joefromchicago

Spring training definitely needs some love from the developers. Making it so that ST takes place in Arizona and/or Florida or some other warm place would be an excellent start.

Joe They fixed that in 14. ST games are 70 degrees and in the ST park. I use a desert park from the MLB The Show parks.

rpriske · 12-13-2013, 03:01 PM

If we are talking about Spring Training, what I would really like to see is Non-Roster Invites.

joefromchicago · 12-13-2013, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Game

Joe They fixed that in 14. ST games are 70 degrees and in the ST park. I use a desert park from the MLB The Show parks.

Thanks for that. I haven't run a league yet in v.14 - doing a lot of noodling around, experimenting with some ideas instead.

blasek0 · 12-13-2013, 06:40 PM

Also, mentioned elsewhere, and I know OOTPD is aware of it, but fix free agent compensation under the 2012 CBA rules.

12-08-2013, 11:14 AM	#2
joefromchicago Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 3,630	Another change that shouldn't be considered big, but apparently is so difficult that it has resisted improvement for years: nicknames. It's baffling that the names database can be updated in an existing game, but nicknames can't. So we're stuck with nineteenth-century monikers like "Death to Flying Things" and "Orator" being applied to players in the twenty-first century. Really, can you imagine a deaf player today being nicknamed "Dummy?" And gamers should also have the option of turning off nicknames. Some eras just had more (and better) nicknames than others. Modern players have rather lame nicknames, if they have any at all (Miguel Cabrera's nickname is "Miggy" - gee, how long did they have to work on that one?). The last really good nickname was probably Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd, and he retired in 1991. __________________ American-Ethnic (and Canadian) Namesets Historical Minor League Schedules 1870s City/Team Nickname Randomizers "It's Usually Sunny in Philadelphia" weather mod

12-05-2013, 02:08 PM	#1
joefromchicago Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 3,630	Wish List - Think Big! OOTP has been greenlighted for Steam, which apparently means that thousands of gamers will be buying OOTP for the first time. Cash will be pouring into OOTPD's coffers, which means that Markus & Co. will be investing all of that extra money into R&D for even more improvements in OOTP. This is, in other words, not the time to tinker around the edges of the product. "Make no small plans!" as the architect Daniel Burnham once said. So where should all of that extra Steam-powered moolah go? Here are some of the previously unattainable improvements I'd like to see: 1. Re-think park factors: Right now, parks have only an abstract and limited effect on the game. Parks are rated on how far they deviate from the mean in terms of batting average, doubles, triples, and home runs. Distances and wall heights are listed, but they have no bearing on the game (and foul territory isn't considered at all). That's not terribly interesting, and it doesn't capture the idiosyncratic elements of ballparks and their effects. Right-handed batters may have a 22% better chance to hit a home run at Fenway Park than at an "average" ballpark, but that really doesn't explain why it's so much easier for right-handers to hit it out of the park. And if I want to move the Green Monster ten feet back, I have no idea how that would change the numbers (not only for homers but also for doubles and triples). There should, in other words, be a direct correlation between ballpark configuration and game play. If a batter hits a fly ball 370 feet to left-center, it should matter whether he's in Wrigley Field or in Yankee Stadium. This is especially important for fictional leagues, where there's no real-world data to determine how much, for instance, the Duluth Superdome's short right-field wall affects the game. 2. Independent minor leagues that actually work: Right now, the minor-league model is based on developing talent through farm teams that are owned by major-league teams. That, however, is not how the minor leagues always operated, and it's not even the case today that all minor leagues are run that way. OOTP allows the user to set up independent minor leagues, with teams unaffiliated with any major-league club, but in my experience these never really work. In the past, independent minor-league clubs made money by selling talent to the majors, but the OOTP AI refuses to offer any money for minor leaguers. It will, occasionally, offer to trade for minor-league talent, but that seldom happened in real life. In order to recreate the way that major league teams acquired players in the era before farm systems, OOTP needs to re-think its minor-league model. Those are just two major changes I'd like to see. Any other BIG changes that need to be made? __________________ American-Ethnic (and Canadian) Namesets Historical Minor League Schedules 1870s City/Team Nickname Randomizers "It's Usually Sunny in Philadelphia" weather mod

12-09-2013, 11:51 AM	#8
pjh5165 Major Leagues Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Philadelphia Posts: 410	I have a 5 man rotation that includes 4 guys nicknamed Stump, Quack, The Tank, and Bingo. I would really like to see a checkbox to turn nicknames off.

12-09-2013, 02:49 PM	#9
Ceej Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 190	More park-specific gameplay has been my #1 thing since I got on board with OOTP. Parts of the park with low fences could have the occasional reference to balls hopping the fence for an automatic double, as well as the potential for home-run robbing catches. High walls could have more frequent references to balls hitting directly off of them, and should produce many more fly ball homers than line drive homers, except for the real tape measure blast kind of line drives.

12-10-2013, 05:53 PM	#11
Matt Arnold OOTP Developer Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Here and there Posts: 14,145	Personally, I kind of like the crazy nicknames. I find when drafting players, or dealing for them, a player with a wacky nickname can make the difference. I find almost all of them off the wall hilarious, that it keeps me entertained.

12-10-2013, 06:08 PM	#12
blasek0 Major Leagues Join Date: Nov 2012 Posts: 345	An improvement to the filter system currently used, specifically a system where we can apply multiple saved filters at once, preferably in an and/or fashion. For example, I have a filter that shows players with contact/eye/power potential of 50+, and a second filter that only shows players with OF range + arm ratings of 50+. Applying both filters at once using AND would then limit the filtered pool to only players who meet both criteria, whereas an OR filter would show any players who meet either set of criteria. A rework to the financial system. Individual player salary caps, like the NBA uses, would also be interesting to play with. Where does Bryce Harper sign if he's capped at 250/10? This would probably need to go with a contract AI upgrade.

12-13-2013, 12:13 PM	#13
Snarf054 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 127	I just started playing but I would like to see split squad games in spring training. You have a 40 man active roster let us use it to the fullest.

12-13-2013, 03:01 PM	#18
rpriske Hall Of Famer Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Spencerville, ON, Canada Posts: 23,988 Blog Entries: 1	If we are talking about Spring Training, what I would really like to see is Non-Roster Invites.

12-13-2013, 06:40 PM	#20
blasek0 Major Leagues Join Date: Nov 2012 Posts: 345	Also, mentioned elsewhere, and I know OOTPD is aware of it, but fix free agent compensation under the 2012 CBA rules.