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Old 07-09-2009, 05:02 PM   #1 (permalink)
VARoadstter
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Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Raleigh, NC
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This Week in Baseball (TWiB)

I am all about ideas that promote immersion into sims. To that effect, I humbly suggest that devs consider adding a weekly (natch) TWIB segment. A lot of the raw material is already there (with the game creating stories about player of the week, etc) but could use something to help synthesize it into a more cohesive backstory. Here's what I would like a TWIB segment to look like:

Headlines
This section should cover major events as they occurred in the past week (Opening Day, Drafts, All-Star Game, Major Milestone pursuit/achievement, MVP Race/Results)

The Week in Review
Highlights specific games from the previous week that are important due to an in game achievement (no-hitter, come from behind win, division games between top post-season contenders), major injuries, trades, managerial firings, and the like.

Down on the Farm
Rather than having to switch leagues to go and read the news from the minors (and feeder leagues), add a segment to the TWIB report that looks at the backstory from the minor league perspective: who's called up, who's headed down, which team's farm system is loaded with top talent, etc.

Weekly Power Rankings
Include the Power Rankings with an emphasis on the weekly change in position.

Looking Forward to Next Week
Highlight the games between contending clubs in the upcoming week - particularly division matchups. Breakdown the matchups (a little more than the advance scouting reports provided) to get a sense of how the teams will compete in upcoming games. Give the human GM a reason to want to watch the PbP of a game other than their own team, that sort of thing.


Now, all of this could be seen as simply reorganizing the news reports that are currently generated - and to some degree that is true. I'm really trying to get a little more, though. By bringing the news together and analyzing it as a whole rather than as individual news items, the story of a season would emerge. There would be a plot to follow rather than just a list of facts. There would be drama in the reporting rather than just recounting events.
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