Quote:
Originally Posted by The Wolf
OOTP 9 Design Team:
Are you paying attention here?
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I hope they are, but I also hope that the next version won't have a sudden change back to the v6.5 days, interface-wise!
This is a great thread, and I hope that no-one will mind if I weigh in with my my two penn'orth as well.
Firstly, I should say that I haven't played v6.5 since v2006 came out, so my comments on that are based entirely on the screenshots, and my (hazy) recollections. Also, I came to OOTP via SI and Football Manager, so I am very used to the look of the interface.
Standings
Starting with the first screenshots, the standings page, I absolutely agree that it would be great to have the league leaders back. I always spend loads of time on v8's Stats page anyway, but it would be awesome to have the top 3 in each stat readily at hand when you're looking at the standings. That being said, I wouldn't want to standings themselves to go back to the v6.5 presentation. I like having the games played and the magic number (would like the elimination number too, but hey...!). And I like having the whole name of the team, rather than just the city. I know its only minor, but its important to me.
Roster pages
Ok, main roster pages. To be honest, I think this is the area that I have fewest thoughts on the differences. I guess the main thing is that with v8 the information is split over two different tabs. In a way I think this works really well because you can have all the stats, standings and news overview at hand if you want, or you can have the detailed roster breakdowns. Perhaps there is something to be said for having it all together, but its not a major consideration for me.
Also to answer a couple of Jestor's points on this, while there isn't a hot/cold streak table as such, you can see who's hot and who's not from the icons down the left on the roster view. I know its not quite the same, and is probably one of those things that went missing in the new versions that was nice to have about. The other point is on viewing minor affiliates. If you are on the roster view, and then choose your affiliate from the tab in the bottom right, then it will take you to that teams roster, filtered in the same way as you were looking at your team (at least I think it does, someone check, quick!). Plus you can still include all players, or 40-man roster players on the view from the drop down.
Pitching/Lineups
The pitching and lineup screens are probably the ones where in my view v8 has the biggest advantages. Having the width is such a big advantage, it, along with the customizeable views, means that I can have every single bit of info, rating or stat on screen at once. This is massive when I'm setting my pitching staff or lineup. I also disagree about it being easier to have the staff down the right as opposed to across the bottom. I find it pretty much exactly the same wherever it is. There is one thing that annoys me on the pitching view though. Why, oh why does it go spot starter-middle reliever-mop up? Thats not the right order!!! Drives me mad...
Its the same deal on the hitting screens, having the depth chart along with the order is so much better. Especially for stupid people like me that put someone into the starting SS spot, and then immediately forget his name when deciding on the batting order... Two points I do agree on - yes, while its not a particular problem for me, I can see that the red numbers on v8 aren't that easy to read. I also see the point with the lack of contrast between LHP/RHP/DH/non-DH tabs. Making them stand out more certainly couldn't hurt.
Transactions
Then there's the transactions screen. Ok, it is definitely great to have all the boxes on screen at once. No question. But, I like that I can choose what info is displayed in the boxes in v8. I think having different colours for the different boxes definitely should come back, its only a little thing, but it does make it easier, and quicker to move players around. What I would say is that if you can fit more boxes on the screen, then great. But please please please don't do it at the cost of making the font smaller/columns more compact. I am pretty young, with excellent eyesight, but the last thing I want to do after working on a computer all day is to have to squint at the screen trying to figure out whether my AAA third baseman is hitting .261 or .281.
Anyway, thats all pretty much a long way of saying that I prefer the new interface to the old. Sure, there are elements that used to be done better, but in my eyes the changes from v6.5 to v8 are for the most part good ones.
Anyhow...back to work(!)
