Road to Release 2012 - Part 2

Sebastian Palkowski · 04-01-2012, 02:58 PM

Welcome to part two of the Road to Release for iOOTP Baseball 2012. The major league season is now underway with the conclusion of the 2012 Season Opener games in Japan, and as we anticipate the start of the rest of the schedule, let’s revisit iOOTP 2012. Before we dive in, you should know that the game was submitted to Apple last Monday, March 26, with a requested release date of April 5.

Last time, I ended with an in-game screenshot:

As some of you correctly noted, we added Balls & Strikes information on top of the screen. That wasn’t just for cosmetic reasons because this year, you can play out your games in Pitch by Pitch mode! You can still choose At Bat mode, as in last year’s version, but now you’ll be able to take more control over your team with the game on the line in the late innings.

Imagine this scenario: Bottom of the 9th inning, the game is tied with no outs and you need to win to make it to the Playoffs. Your first batter reaches on an infield single and now it’s time for some small ball. Should you work the count and call for a Steal or maybe a Hit & Run? This year you have full control over what happens on both sides: on defense you can call for Pitch-Outs, bring your Infield in to defend against a run scoring, or walk the next batter to set up a possible double play.

As always, the result of each at-bat is presented with exciting Play by Play from our text database that has ten thousands of lines.

You decide which mode you want to use and this year you can alter all options any time during a game, so you can start in At Bat mode and switch to Pitch-By-Pitch when you want.

If you look closely on the above screenshot, you will notice another new feature in this year’s version: by popular demand, we added the Infield & Outfield alignment information to the Field View. Now you always know how to react to certain situations.

One more new feature for the In-Game mode is the ability to quick sim to certain innings (on the iPad you can chose every inning, but on the iPhone and iPod touch we only had space for two innings). That way you can quickly jump into the important parts of a game if you wish.

More Editing Options: Names, DH, Finances

In the last article, I showed you the new history screens in the 2012 edition, so now it’s time for a few more new features.

One thing we heard over and over again was that people want the ability to edit league names.

As you can see, we added it for this year. Now you can edit the league name and the names of both sub-leagues, plus the corresponding abbreviations. Additionally, on the iPad you can name all divisions as you like. But that’s not all: maybe you’re an old school baseball fan and don't like the Designated Hitter rule. Now you can choose whether to use the DH. It’s a lot of fun to play the 2012 rosters with DH disabled in the AL and watch the pitchers hit for their money.

One more option we added to the league creation screen is the ability to turn off league finances. If you want to concentrate on the baseball part of the game and don't care about contracts, signings or team budgets, just turn them off.

All these edit functions are available in all three game modes, so you can use them not only for the 2012 game start but in your fictional setups and historical leagues too.

And speaking of historical seasons: Like last year, we’ll release the game with 3 free historical leagues. This year, our forum members voted for 1995, 1969 and 1924.

1995 was the year after the strike wiped out the 1994 season, and it started late, with the Braves beating the Indians in a thrilling six-game championship.
1969 was not only the year the two leagues split into two divisions each and added league championships series to the playoffs, but it was also the season the Miracle Mets knocked off the heavily-favored Orioles.
1924 saw the Washington Senators beat the New York Giants in thrilling fashion in the championship, winning in extra innings in game seven to secure their first title.

Additionally, you can buy any other season from 1901 to 2011 as an In-App Purchase for $0.99 a season or in bundles of 10 seasons for $4.99. And we have great news for everyone who bought seasons and bundles last year: you can transfer them from the 2011 version to the new version, so you don't have to buy them twice! Even better, we added the original schedules to all historical seasons, so of course you get those too. Especially in early historical seasons, it’s fun to disable finances to get a better feeling for the early years.

But back to the modern times and a few more details about the game for people who don't know OOTP. One task for you as GM is to trade for other players. You can put your own player on the trading block and wait for offers or you can actively search for possible targets. Then it’s time for negotiations with the other team.

Especially with the trading deadline around the corner, it becomes a busy time as you try to land that last piece for a successful playoff run without giving up to many prospects.

But that’s not all: Your own players want to sign new contracts too, so you have to decide if you want to give your aging star player a long-term contract or try to lowball him.

But don't play too hard if you really want to sign a player to a new contract or you’ll see this:

That's it for part two. Part three will go into more details for fictional leagues and the new features we added in that mode, plus more information about drafting, fantasy drafts, offseason, Game Center, and all the little things we added.

By the way, just today someone asked on our board if it is possible to rename Playoff round names. It isn't because to be honest, I never thought about it. I will add that in one of the updates we will release after the game comes out, so if you have ideas or wishes, just ask here or come to our forum, where we’ll be happy to talk about it.

Ktulu · 04-01-2012, 04:07 PM

Speaking of updates, last year if you updated the game any custom logos would be overwritten. Is there anyway to keep the modded logos when you update?

bwburke94 · 04-01-2012, 04:39 PM

This APPEARS to be legit, but you never know considering it's April 1.

jjp9727 · 04-01-2012, 06:35 PM

I'd love to see a history/log of your previous moves (trades, FA signings, extensions, ect) from the current and past years. Any chance this could make it's way into an update? Also, an unrelated question, does a players morale affect their performance? If not, that would be a great feature to have too.

sfnate · 04-02-2012, 12:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebastian Palkowski

By the way, just today someone asked on our board if it is possible to rename Playoff round names. It isn't because to be honest, I never thought about it. I will add that in one of the updates we will release after the game comes out, so if you have ideas or wishes, just ask here or come to our forum, where we’ll be happy to talk about it.

Thanks, Sebastian. This kind of consideration and responsiveness is a big part of what makes OOTP the best sports sim, by a long stretch.

SwedeMet · 04-03-2012, 05:50 AM

This looks great, can't wait for the new game to be released so the Mets at least can have some glory in 2012.

Sebastian Palkowski · 04-04-2012, 11:43 AM

For the transaction history report:

We have to be careful how much data we add. We have to store it and since Apple released iCloud they take a good look at the data that gets stored. So yes, I would love to add it but with Apple involved it is not that easy to do.

For the logo stuff:

Thats the way Apple handles updates. Please consider that it is not allowed to change anything inside the App (we as developer are not allowed to do it and for you as user it is the same) so for legal reasons that is a topic I can't comment on, sorry.

Sebastian Palkowski · 04-04-2012, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SwedeMet

This looks great, can't wait for the new game to be released so the Mets at least can have some glory in 2012.

For me it is the same with the Red Sox. If our predictions come true (player rating wise) it will be a tough year for Boston.

sfnate · 04-04-2012, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebastian Palkowski

For the transaction history report:

We have to be careful how much data we add. We have to store it and since Apple released iCloud they take a good look at the data that gets stored. So yes, I would love to add it but with Apple involved it is not that easy to do.

Going from how you replied in the "Feature request: transaction details in Player Histories" thread, it does appear, from the screenshots, that the transaction details will be in the Player History report, yes?

When you say you "would love to add it but with Apple involved it is not that easy to do," are you referring to something else?

Go Tribe · 04-04-2012, 01:15 PM

Two things...

1. obvious bug in the game that Cabrera not only caught the relay throw but successfully applied a tag!

2. Just got an ipad so haven't played this version, if you play out 1995, does it progress to 1996 or does the game end after the world series?

3. oh a third one - if you play 2012, i assume you progress through the years and prospects are created and able to be drafted?

thanks - looking forward to getting it tomorrow.

sfnate · 04-04-2012, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Go Tribe

thanks - looking forward to getting it tomorrow.

This raises a question: is 4/5 the actual release date, or the submit to Apple review date?

I've always heard that Apple is notorious for never committing to a specific release date for apps under review...

Sebastian Palkowski · 04-04-2012, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Go Tribe

Just got an ipad so haven't played this version, if you play out 1995, does it progress to 1996 or does the game end after the world series?

It will progress to 1996 but with fictional rookies.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Go Tribe

oh a third one - if you play 2012, i assume you progress through the years and prospects are created and able to be drafted?

Thats right, you can play as many seasons as you want, just like in the PC version.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Go Tribe

thanks - looking forward to getting it tomorrow.

I hope you like it. It is a fun little toy to play with if the PC version is not available. I remember last year someone mentioned that he plays the game at his workplace (not that we support this

) and others talked about using it in the bathroom, but that was just way to much information ...

Sebastian Palkowski · 04-04-2012, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sfnate

This raises a question: is 4/5 the actual release date, or the submit to Apple review date?

I've always heard that Apple is notorious for never committing to a specific release date for apps under review...

4/5 is the actual release day as the App was submitted to Apple 2 weeks ago and already got reviewed. Thats the reason why the game has no Opening Day roster (it is updated through 3/25, the day before we submitted) but we will submit an update 2-3 days after release to correct it (the update will be released the moment Apple is done reviewing it).

sfnate · 04-04-2012, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebastian Palkowski

4/5 is the actual release day

04-01-2012, 02:58 PM	#1
Sebastian Palkowski Developer Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hamburg, Germany Posts: 5,406	Road to Release 2012 - Part 2 Welcome to part two of the Road to Release for iOOTP Baseball 2012. The major league season is now underway with the conclusion of the 2012 Season Opener games in Japan, and as we anticipate the start of the rest of the schedule, let’s revisit iOOTP 2012. Before we dive in, you should know that the game was submitted to Apple last Monday, March 26, with a requested release date of April 5. Last time, I ended with an in-game screenshot: As some of you correctly noted, we added Balls & Strikes information on top of the screen. That wasn’t just for cosmetic reasons because this year, you can play out your games in Pitch by Pitch mode! You can still choose At Bat mode, as in last year’s version, but now you’ll be able to take more control over your team with the game on the line in the late innings. Imagine this scenario: Bottom of the 9th inning, the game is tied with no outs and you need to win to make it to the Playoffs. Your first batter reaches on an infield single and now it’s time for some small ball. Should you work the count and call for a Steal or maybe a Hit & Run? This year you have full control over what happens on both sides: on defense you can call for Pitch-Outs, bring your Infield in to defend against a run scoring, or walk the next batter to set up a possible double play. As always, the result of each at-bat is presented with exciting Play by Play from our text database that has ten thousands of lines. You decide which mode you want to use and this year you can alter all options any time during a game, so you can start in At Bat mode and switch to Pitch-By-Pitch when you want. If you look closely on the above screenshot, you will notice another new feature in this year’s version: by popular demand, we added the Infield & Outfield alignment information to the Field View. Now you always know how to react to certain situations. One more new feature for the In-Game mode is the ability to quick sim to certain innings (on the iPad you can chose every inning, but on the iPhone and iPod touch we only had space for two innings). That way you can quickly jump into the important parts of a game if you wish. More Editing Options: Names, DH, Finances In the last article, I showed you the new history screens in the 2012 edition, so now it’s time for a few more new features. One thing we heard over and over again was that people want the ability to edit league names. As you can see, we added it for this year. Now you can edit the league name and the names of both sub-leagues, plus the corresponding abbreviations. Additionally, on the iPad you can name all divisions as you like. But that’s not all: maybe you’re an old school baseball fan and don't like the Designated Hitter rule. Now you can choose whether to use the DH. It’s a lot of fun to play the 2012 rosters with DH disabled in the AL and watch the pitchers hit for their money. One more option we added to the league creation screen is the ability to turn off league finances. If you want to concentrate on the baseball part of the game and don't care about contracts, signings or team budgets, just turn them off. All these edit functions are available in all three game modes, so you can use them not only for the 2012 game start but in your fictional setups and historical leagues too. And speaking of historical seasons: Like last year, we’ll release the game with 3 free historical leagues. This year, our forum members voted for 1995, 1969 and 1924. 1995 was the year after the strike wiped out the 1994 season, and it started late, with the Braves beating the Indians in a thrilling six-game championship. 1969 was not only the year the two leagues split into two divisions each and added league championships series to the playoffs, but it was also the season the Miracle Mets knocked off the heavily-favored Orioles. 1924 saw the Washington Senators beat the New York Giants in thrilling fashion in the championship, winning in extra innings in game seven to secure their first title. Additionally, you can buy any other season from 1901 to 2011 as an In-App Purchase for $0.99 a season or in bundles of 10 seasons for $4.99. And we have great news for everyone who bought seasons and bundles last year: you can transfer them from the 2011 version to the new version, so you don't have to buy them twice! Even better, we added the original schedules to all historical seasons, so of course you get those too. Especially in early historical seasons, it’s fun to disable finances to get a better feeling for the early years. But back to the modern times and a few more details about the game for people who don't know OOTP. One task for you as GM is to trade for other players. You can put your own player on the trading block and wait for offers or you can actively search for possible targets. Then it’s time for negotiations with the other team. Especially with the trading deadline around the corner, it becomes a busy time as you try to land that last piece for a successful playoff run without giving up to many prospects. But that’s not all: Your own players want to sign new contracts too, so you have to decide if you want to give your aging star player a long-term contract or try to lowball him. But don't play too hard if you really want to sign a player to a new contract or you’ll see this: That's it for part two. Part three will go into more details for fictional leagues and the new features we added in that mode, plus more information about drafting, fantasy drafts, offseason, Game Center, and all the little things we added. By the way, just today someone asked on our board if it is possible to rename Playoff round names. It isn't because to be honest, I never thought about it. I will add that in one of the updates we will release after the game comes out, so if you have ideas or wishes, just ask here or come to our forum, where we’ll be happy to talk about it. __________________ Buy Franchise Hockey Manager

04-01-2012, 04:07 PM	#2
Ktulu Hall Of Famer Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: BC Posts: 4,506	Speaking of updates, last year if you updated the game any custom logos would be overwritten. Is there anyway to keep the modded logos when you update? __________________ "The ice is getting even more thinner, my friend!"

04-01-2012, 06:35 PM	#4
jjp9727 Bat Boy Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 3	Moves history I'd love to see a history/log of your previous moves (trades, FA signings, extensions, ect) from the current and past years. Any chance this could make it's way into an update? Also, an unrelated question, does a players morale affect their performance? If not, that would be a great feature to have too.

04-04-2012, 11:43 AM	#7
Sebastian Palkowski Developer Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hamburg, Germany Posts: 5,406	For the transaction history report: We have to be careful how much data we add. We have to store it and since Apple released iCloud they take a good look at the data that gets stored. So yes, I would love to add it but with Apple involved it is not that easy to do. For the logo stuff: Thats the way Apple handles updates. Please consider that it is not allowed to change anything inside the App (we as developer are not allowed to do it and for you as user it is the same) so for legal reasons that is a topic I can't comment on, sorry. __________________ Buy Franchise Hockey Manager

04-01-2012, 04:39 PM	#3
bwburke94 Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Belchertown, MA, USA Posts: 4,507	This APPEARS to be legit, but you never know considering it's April 1.

04-03-2012, 05:50 AM	#6
SwedeMet Bat Boy Join Date: Jul 2011 Posts: 11	This looks great, can't wait for the new game to be released so the Mets at least can have some glory in 2012.

04-04-2012, 01:15 PM	#10
Go Tribe All Star Starter Join Date: Dec 2001 Posts: 1,534 Infractions: 1/0 (0)	Two things... 1. obvious bug in the game that Cabrera not only caught the relay throw but successfully applied a tag! 2. Just got an ipad so haven't played this version, if you play out 1995, does it progress to 1996 or does the game end after the world series? 3. oh a third one - if you play 2012, i assume you progress through the years and prospects are created and able to be drafted? thanks - looking forward to getting it tomorrow.