Ball Flight?

plugger · 01-10-2015, 07:21 PM

Been lurking the last week or so. Interested in buying this game. There's supposed to be a 3D ball flight but I've seen little or nothing about it in the forum. Nobody is discussing it as far as I can tell. Is there some good information available somewhere?

Charlie Hough · 01-10-2015, 08:05 PM

The 3D ball flight basically does not function properly. This is a feature that is still a work in progress, so it is not really usable in its present state and at least not in the way that most people would expect.

However, the 2D ball flight, which uses 2D ballpark back drops but shows visual indicators of where the ball has been hit, works well and has been in place for a number of years. It's not a 3D rendering, but when you use the play-by-play setting at the right speed, it creates some interesting tension and uncertainty as you manage games and watch results unfold.

If 3D ball flight is a big factor in your purchase, then you may want to wait for OOTP 16, which should hopefully include some huge improvements in this area.

But the game is outstanding otherwise, so I generally recommend that people go ahead and buy it, even if 3D ball flight is a priority. You can still get endless enjoyment out of the product, and your purchase helps support the developer, which is committed to perfecting the 3D ball flight and the graphical elements of the game over time.

jpeters1734 · 01-11-2015, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plugger

Been lurking the last week or so. Interested in buying this game. There's supposed to be a 3D ball flight but I've seen little or nothing about it in the forum. Nobody is discussing it as far as I can tell. Is there some good information available somewhere?

please don't let ball flight dissuade you from purchasing this game, OOTP is incredibly in-depth

Honorable_Pawn · 01-11-2015, 06:58 PM

OOTP is easily the best bang for my buck that I have ever spent. 1,000+ hours per version is typical. The play-by-play is fantastic and building a solid organization is fun and engaging.

The game has only three major drawbacks:

1. AI roster management needs some love. It needlessly wastes too many option years and tends to put high-level prospects that do not need to be protected on the 40-man roster when they have no hope of making the big league club. This has improved slowly over time and is not a major issue unless you are obsessive-compulsive like the rest of us.

2. AI in-game substitutions are occasionally wonky. Many of us play with the DH on in both leagues which mostly solves the problem. You'll see the back-up C with a zero rating at SS playing SS while there is a much better alternative. It doesn't happen a lot but if you comb through every box score like I do you will see it and it is really hard to reconcile. I play DH-only in all of my leagues so I don't see it that often.

3. Bullpen usage is much improved but the AI still struggles with alternating the 8th inning set-up pitchers and keeping at least one rested at all times. It doesn't plan for the next day and doesn't know the upcoming schedule. It tends to keep the SP in too long. It only pulls the SP after the AB when the SP is "Tired" or is getting shelled. You can control pitch counts to prevent this on your team but it is an unfair advantage since the AI does not use pitch counts.

I know that sounds like three very important things that are far more important than 3-D but we all clamored for improved visuals. Either way we are stuck with 3-D gobbling up resource time.

Please don't get me wrong...the AI is not a joke. It seems to understand how to build a contender and seems to know when to rebuild. It just goes about it in odd ways from time to time. A big plus is that AI has gotten much better at trading and at free-agency.

All-in-all it is by far the best baseball simulation out there. There is no 2nd place. It is that much better than anything else out there. I'm a little anal about details so I am often overly critical about the AI.

It's a great game easily worth $100.

plugger · 01-11-2015, 11:04 PM

All good points. I'm pretty interested in the 3D ball flight along with everything else. That's like putting it over the top. When it gets right, the immersion will be fantastic. But I think I'll wait a few months for the new addition and see what it looks like. Hopefully it will be running fine by then.

canadian content · 01-12-2015, 10:59 PM

This is a great game but I think the whole 3D thing is huge mess. I'll be dead before it is ever really functional. The play by play gives the result before the ball takes flight which takes away any suspense that could be created. This really makes very little sense to me.

I think they should scrap 3D, use the ball flight model that Puresim uses and overhaul the SHORT play by play making it so that most plays are resolved within 2 lines of play by play; some plays could have a few extra lines to create suspense.

This is an incredible game, though, and the Puresim game doesn't come close to OOTP in any other factor or category as far as realism and enjoyment goes. If you like long play by play, as someone already pointed out, it's very good. The short play by play is good to move the game along quickly and it's speed is variable (there is an instant setting that gives you instant results). Some of us play games out, some of us sim and some do both.

This game is about so much more than the actual games being played out but it is an aspect of the game that I would love to see improved.

01-10-2015, 07:21 PM	#1
plugger Banned Join Date: Jan 2015 Posts: 2 Infractions: 0/1 (4)	Ball Flight? Been lurking the last week or so. Interested in buying this game. There's supposed to be a 3D ball flight but I've seen little or nothing about it in the forum. Nobody is discussing it as far as I can tell. Is there some good information available somewhere?

01-11-2015, 06:58 PM	#4
Honorable_Pawn Hall Of Famer Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Tampa Bay Posts: 6,407	OOTP is easily the best bang for my buck that I have ever spent. 1,000+ hours per version is typical. The play-by-play is fantastic and building a solid organization is fun and engaging. The game has only three major drawbacks: 1. AI roster management needs some love. It needlessly wastes too many option years and tends to put high-level prospects that do not need to be protected on the 40-man roster when they have no hope of making the big league club. This has improved slowly over time and is not a major issue unless you are obsessive-compulsive like the rest of us. 2. AI in-game substitutions are occasionally wonky. Many of us play with the DH on in both leagues which mostly solves the problem. You'll see the back-up C with a zero rating at SS playing SS while there is a much better alternative. It doesn't happen a lot but if you comb through every box score like I do you will see it and it is really hard to reconcile. I play DH-only in all of my leagues so I don't see it that often. 3. Bullpen usage is much improved but the AI still struggles with alternating the 8th inning set-up pitchers and keeping at least one rested at all times. It doesn't plan for the next day and doesn't know the upcoming schedule. It tends to keep the SP in too long. It only pulls the SP after the AB when the SP is "Tired" or is getting shelled. You can control pitch counts to prevent this on your team but it is an unfair advantage since the AI does not use pitch counts. I know that sounds like three very important things that are far more important than 3-D but we all clamored for improved visuals. Either way we are stuck with 3-D gobbling up resource time. Please don't get me wrong...the AI is not a joke. It seems to understand how to build a contender and seems to know when to rebuild. It just goes about it in odd ways from time to time. A big plus is that AI has gotten much better at trading and at free-agency. All-in-all it is by far the best baseball simulation out there. There is no 2nd place. It is that much better than anything else out there. I'm a little anal about details so I am often overly critical about the AI. It's a great game easily worth $100. __________________ PBA Quickstart for OOTP Background Images Collection All PBA games broadcast live on Steam.

01-10-2015, 08:05 PM	#2
Charlie Hough Hall Of Famer Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 3,625	The 3D ball flight basically does not function properly. This is a feature that is still a work in progress, so it is not really usable in its present state and at least not in the way that most people would expect. However, the 2D ball flight, which uses 2D ballpark back drops but shows visual indicators of where the ball has been hit, works well and has been in place for a number of years. It's not a 3D rendering, but when you use the play-by-play setting at the right speed, it creates some interesting tension and uncertainty as you manage games and watch results unfold. If 3D ball flight is a big factor in your purchase, then you may want to wait for OOTP 16, which should hopefully include some huge improvements in this area. But the game is outstanding otherwise, so I generally recommend that people go ahead and buy it, even if 3D ball flight is a priority. You can still get endless enjoyment out of the product, and your purchase helps support the developer, which is committed to perfecting the 3D ball flight and the graphical elements of the game over time.

01-11-2015, 11:04 PM	#5
plugger Banned Join Date: Jan 2015 Posts: 2 Infractions: 0/1 (4)	All good points. I'm pretty interested in the 3D ball flight along with everything else. That's like putting it over the top. When it gets right, the immersion will be fantastic. But I think I'll wait a few months for the new addition and see what it looks like. Hopefully it will be running fine by then.

01-12-2015, 10:59 PM	#6
canadian content Minors (Triple A) Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 290	This is a great game but I think the whole 3D thing is huge mess. I'll be dead before it is ever really functional. The play by play gives the result before the ball takes flight which takes away any suspense that could be created. This really makes very little sense to me. I think they should scrap 3D, use the ball flight model that Puresim uses and overhaul the SHORT play by play making it so that most plays are resolved within 2 lines of play by play; some plays could have a few extra lines to create suspense. This is an incredible game, though, and the Puresim game doesn't come close to OOTP in any other factor or category as far as realism and enjoyment goes. If you like long play by play, as someone already pointed out, it's very good. The short play by play is good to move the game along quickly and it's speed is variable (there is an instant setting that gives you instant results). Some of us play games out, some of us sim and some do both. This game is about so much more than the actual games being played out but it is an aspect of the game that I would love to see improved.