FHM 2 Impressions

[djskek]

Everyone who knows me knows that I'm Hockey crazy .But I keep OTTP on tenterhooks.

Can one in FHM2 the team or players Budget edit yourself? In FHM1 was not possible.

[Penfold75]

Originally Posted by Ferrisrox

Also odd you would come into an "impressions" forum to share the impressions you don't have cause you don't own the game...

Hey dude I just saw Elvis and he was riding a purple and pink unicorn and he told me his first impressions of FHM3. I told him I hadn't played it yet but he said he was going to wait before buying it and read reviews by Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy and Jim Morrison.

[krownroyal83]

It goes without saying that this game is miles ahead of FHM 14. I'm in love with the game engine. The statistical output is very accurate in almost every way which is the most important part of any sim game. This game has almost everything you would need in a hockey sim game minus a league trade center screen, team needs page and a league cap page where it shows each teams cap hit and how much cap space they have. These things are must haves and need to be added in my opinion.

The UI as very pretty and while it can be a little confusing for new people not familiar with Ootp baseball to navigate, it quickly becomes easy to find your way around. The sim speed is fast. At least faster then another hockey sim that i will not mention There are many things to like about this game and i think long term this game has the potential to be the run away best hockey sim on the market.

Now to the bad. There are plenty of bugs and inaccuracies is this game. The trade engine is currently not up to par. Neither is how AI gm handles most situations such as cap management. One last thing that really needs to be fixed is there is latency when hoovering over a players game. The info box does not appear as quickly as it should and other aspects of the game are slow in their response time. Could be a matter of my computer being slow but i don't believe it to be the case.

Keep in mind that this is only my opinion and luckily these things can and should be fined tuned in the future. We are still in the infancy with this game so we can't expect a perfect game right away. A game as complicated as this takes years and years to get right. Anyway, anyone on the fence of buying this game i would recommend buying it for sure. It's far from perfect but you are get your monies worth and it should only improve.

[Germaniac]

Originally Posted by Sebastian Palkowski

It was technically not possible to just give a discount to existing FHM 2014 user so our next best option was to give it to everybody (which includes them). IMO better to give something good to everyone then give nothing to the loyal fans.

Anyhow, maybe you join FHM at some point, would be nice to have more players from Germany here. We have big plans with FHM in Germany and the more feedback we get, the better.

Well, I don't want to go to deep into this, but in Germany we say "Wo ein Wille ist ist auch ein Weg", and there would have been options, especially for those who supported the game by buying the game when we were in beta back in March 2013 ...

Anyway, thanks to Rich Tiger Fan I found how many players I can keep on my roster in the NHL-sim, but where do I find how many foreign players I can have in my DEL-sim ?? And from where do I get "non-foreign" players ? After all, I used "AI setup organization", and that's where I ended up.

And this leads me to the impression that - unfortunately - not much has changed as far as game-playing has changed.

I have no idea about what to do to continue this sim, and I'm not even at the start of the regular season

[Penfold75]

Originally Posted by Germaniac

Anyway, thanks to Rich Tiger Fan I found how many players I can keep on my roster in the NHL-sim, but where do I find how many foreign players I can have in my DEL-sim ?? And from where do I get "non-foreign" players ? After all, I used "AI setup organization", and that's where I ended up.

And this leads me to the impression that - unfortunately - not much has changed as far as game-playing has changed.

If you used AI setup organization then the AI can only work with the players you have on your roster at that point and if you have too many foreign players then that is the error you will get. To get more 'non foreign' players you will need to sign some German players.

As for your point about not much changing as far as game-playing then have you actually tried much of the game as a hell of a lot has changed about this game. The game has very little if any resemblance to FHM2014.

[Germaniac]

Originally Posted by Penfold75

If you used AI setup organization then the AI can only work with the players you have on your roster at that point and if you have too many foreign players then that is the error you will get. To get more 'non foreign' players you will need to sign some German players.

Well, how many are "some" ?? If I sign 5, will that be enough ? Do I have to sign 10 to be able to play my first pre-season game ?? Do I have to do some Google-research to find out how many (German) players I have to sign ??

Remember, I didn't change anything - I created the league and when the error message appeared I ran the AI setup and ended up with that

[pucku33]

Positives:

Game engine is improved.
Rosters are better.
UI looks more slick.
Editing is easier.
CPU trades aren't quite as bad.

Negatives:

Spelling errors: "Hi-sticking" etc.
New-line code is seen a few times "/n" on the end of pbp lines.
Multiple instances of goals scored in the 1st second of the game.
Franchise player(s) on the trade block in first season (Kane, etc).
Limited league editing in the first year.
Same player has appeared on the same line (saw a hall-mcdavid-hall line).
Players referenced on pbp are not listed as on-ice at the time.
Fighting results in both teams listed as a powerplay opportunity.
penalty in 3v3 shows a result of a 5-4 powerplay.
Some UI features are difficult to find (player search, league trading block..etc)

Overall, game is an improvement but honestly anything would be an improvement over the first release. It's obvious work was put into this game and I think the community appreciates it. Personally, I have a high standard and while this game is improved and seems on the right track.. small mistakes are still present and seems some testers fell asleep at the wheel and no one really paid much attention to detail.

I look forward to a more polished game in the future. Kudos on the slow improvements currently implemented.

[JeffR]

Originally Posted by pucku33

Spelling errors: "Hi-sticking" etc.

Should be fixed in the first patch.

New-line code is seen a few times "/n" on the end of pbp lines.

Working on that, it's sporadic enough that we haven't been able to figure out what produces it. Thought it may have been something with the use of an ellipsis at the end of a commentary line, but that was proven wrong.

Multiple instances of goals scored in the 1st second of the game.

Looks like a pair of errors with timing of events in the new engine, faceoff resolution isn't taking enough time off the clock and long-range shots aren't accounting for puck travel time well enough and may have an issue with reporting their time relative to when the goal is noted. Still, the chance of scoring on a non-empty net from outside the blueline is pretty remote, so this should be coming up very rarely.

Franchise player(s) on the trade block in first season (Kane, etc).
Limited league editing in the first year.
Same player has appeared on the same line (saw a hall-mcdavid-hall line).
Players referenced on pbp are not listed as on-ice at the time.
Fighting results in both teams listed as a powerplay opportunity.
penalty in 3v3 shows a result of a 5-4 powerplay.

Some of these are known and on the list to fix, others we'll check on.

small mistakes are still present and seems some testers fell asleep at the wheel and no one really paid much attention to detail.

That's uncalled for. It's a very large, very complex game. The testers, all volunteers, put in a lot of work, some of them for months on end. There will be things that still get missed, given the scale, and things they found that we can't fix quickly or had to defer behind higher-priority issues. That's not on them.

[shawa666]

Ok, after about 5-6 hours of play here are my toughts.

It's actually playable. It's a huge improvement over FHM1 (I didn't touch 14, because I tought that it was lipstick on a pig). EHM still has the better game, but you're getting there.

Yes, I know, you can have custom games, which doesn't exist on EHM. That's great. That's exactly why I keep buying OOTP year after year after year, and I could go on ad nauseam, but you get the point. I'd be content with the single league + 1 farm and 1 junior league associated. But then I'd have to use the presets and it'd be set in stone until I'd get bored with the save.

The quickstart game has lots of depth and it sims fast enough. However, the financial numbers I can get my hands on don't really make sense. There's gaping holes everywhere. For example, on the quickstat's NHL, the average team budget (Is is the player salary budget? the overall operations budget? Dunno.) is barely above the cap floor. If this number represents the actual main squad's player salary budget, then it should be at the midpoint between the cap floor and ceiling., since that is how the actual cap is calculated, according to the current CBA.

It's also missing international play and the right affiliations at the canadian Major Junior level.

Like i said it's a huge improvement over the first version. But The Quickstart can't compete with EHM's accuracy, and the custom side of the game, on it own, isn't worth the money I spent on the game.

[Johnny93g]

Originally Posted by Ferrisrox

This complaint always baffles me. If it was two AI teams doing that, you have a legit complaint, but it's a human controlled team trying to exploit the AI. If you don't like that - and it appears you don't - there's a very simple solution: Don't try to exploit the AI. Problem solved.

You know what bugs me, when i read about a trade that seems like a complete rip off, that gamed the AI, that people seen proud of. I know it doesn't matter to anyone but me, and i get how minute it is too everyone else, but like you, it still bugs me, so i posted about it.

You know what else bugs me, ignoring a trade that seems completely illogical, instead of attempting to bring some attention that maybe the trade logic in the game could use some improvement in a specific area.

Last thing that bugs me. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems hoping they magically go away.

[ffp7175]

Love the game


Wish we had the option to play with no finances or player salaries
and enjoy game without worrying about contracts


Will we have that option in this version or a future version


thanks

[Sebastian Palkowski]

Keep calm guys. It is totally right to post about possible bad trades so we can use that info to tweak the AI. I also understand the point about "not taking advantage of the AI", thats something I force myself to avoid in other games as well.

Originally Posted by Johnny93g

You know what bugs me, when i read about a trade that seems like a complete rip off, that gamed the AI, that people seen proud of. I know it doesn't matter to anyone but me, and i get how minute it is too everyone else, but like you, it still bugs me, so i posted about it.

You know what else bugs me, ignoring a trade that seems completely illogical, instead of attempting to bring some attention that maybe the trade logic in the game could use some improvement in a specific area.

Last thing that bugs me. Closing your eyes and ignoring problems hoping they magically go away.

[beezer2434]

I've logged a bunch hours now and have really enjoyed it. It is very addicting!

Aside from the match engine, my favorite thing about FHM2 is the facegen, it really adds to the experience.

The only thing that stands out to me is the AI needs a little adjustment when salary dumping, and the trades need a little adjusting as well. But that should not stop anyone from purchasing it. I cant wait to see what future patches bring. And im dying to see what future versions of FHM holds as well!

Great job to the OOTP staff and all the testers!

[Bigby Wolf]

Many, many significant improvements over the initial game. So many changes have been made and almost all of them have led to a drastically improved - and most importantly - FUN game to play!

Sure, there are some glitches that still need to be ironed out but I have faith that these guys will continue to work tirelessly, on improving the game.

And for the haters out there, I recently re-played ootp 3 and ootp 4, perfection takes time. Perfection takes time.

Kudos to the development team for busting their asses to bring me (and the rest of us) a very enjoyable game.

Cheers.

[seven]

I've just played around for a brief time, playing out a couple of games, which is the major point of interest to me. I've posted a couple of minor points on the bugs thread, but this version of the game is a major improvement over the original. All of us who supported the original game should feel greatly rewarded by what the OOTP folks have produced this time around!

[MizzouRah]

Well done.. I'll be picking this one up tonight!

[fredreed]

When you compare EHM to FHM2 there's no comparison and this is why.
1. In FHM2 there's an editor already available no editor yet for EHM what a waste to put out EHM without the editor.
2. FHM2 User interface is much more easier to use then in EHM.
3. FHM2 doesn't have any major bugs like EHM still has in It. EHM is also till in early access mode not FHM2. The devs have taken their time in properly developing It and squashing those bugs not so with Sigames EHM.
4. FHM2 fully supports mods not so with EHM. EHM does have some support for mods but not as easy like with FHM2.
In my opinion and I have both FHM2 and EHM I would FHM2 a rating 10/10 and EHM a rating of 1/10 1 being the worst.
I don't think that EHM will ever be ready for primetime like FHM2 is.
Also in my opinion stay away from EHM and go with FHM2. Unless sigames improves EHM by including the editor It will be a big failure and to me EHM is already a big failure . But with FHM2 It's far better and It's easier to play and very easy to edit and add players and teams.

[dmacgreg37]

Originally Posted by fredreed

When you compare EHM to FHM2 there's no comparison and this is why.
1. In FHM2 there's an editor already available no editor yet for EHM what a waste to put out EHM without the editor.
2. FHM2 User interface is much more easier to use then in EHM.
3. FHM2 doesn't have any major bugs like EHM still has in It. EHM is also till in early access mode not FHM2. The devs have taken their time in properly developing It and squashing those bugs not so with Sigames EHM.
4. FHM2 fully supports mods not so with EHM. EHM does have some support for mods but not as easy like with FHM2.
In my opinion and I have both FHM2 and EHM I would FHM2 a rating 10/10 and EHM a rating of 1/10 1 being the worst.
I don't think that EHM will ever be ready for primetime like FHM2 is.
Also in my opinion stay away from EHM and go with FHM2. Unless sigames improves EHM by including the editor It will be a big failure and to me EHM is already a big failure . But with FHM2 It's far better and It's easier to play and very easy to edit and add players and teams.

I would point out that the mods here, including the developers, have asked the people be respectful of both games. You may want to take that into account.

2nd, I would have to disagree on several points. The EHM UI is significantly more comfortable to me, meaning this is definitely a preference issue.

As for bugs, both games have them (hint - all games do).

The editor part is correct.

Neither game is a 10/10 at this point in my eyes. Both are in that 6-7.5 range, with improvements coming, hopefully to each.

[Sebastian Palkowski]

Yes, please write respectfully about both games. Even if you find one game better then the other, no point in slamming the other title.

Thanks, and a happy weekend to everyone!

[gekkoguy82]

Thanks to Sebastian, Jeff, Cole, Malte, and ALL of the folks involved with making FHM2. It's a huge step forward for the franchise, and I applaud you for your efforts. Thank you for hanging in there these past couple years, for applying lessons learned from previous mistakes and listening to CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, while weathering the unnecessary storm of pointless negativity unleashed by a vocal minority. Were I in your positions, I'm not sure I would have felt like continuing to pursue this game. Nobody deserves that kind of crap in their daily lives. Life is hard enough on it's own, without dealing with hardship at your workplace. Top shelf games and simulations aren't crafted out of thin air and in pristine condition, and sometimes it takes some trial and error. How many times through NHL history have we seen top talent needing several seasons honing their game in the minors before finally making it to the pinnacle of their profession? Coaches, scouts, and commentators are always clucking on about so and so who hasn't met their perceived potential, only to have that player turn up their performance at just the right moment. Kudos and keep up the great work, all of you. The future (and present!) is bright indeed.