Sporr's Ideas for OOTP7

[sporr]

I've posted this elsewhere, but maybe it will generate some discussion here.

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With OOTP6, the franchise is approaching a point of near perfection for me. There is so much customizability that everyone can adjust or tweak the game to be the way they want it to be for the most part.

However, there are still some areas that need some attention in the future to take the game to the next level.

Extension Negotiation - A thorn in the side of some, a minor inconvenience to others. This is one area of the series that always seems to feel more "gamey" than realistic. It gets the job done and allows for a certain number of free agents to test the market, but not in a way that is believable at this point.

To be more user-friendly and add ot the immersion in the OOTP universe, there should be real negotiation with every player. At the very least, loyal players should sign for less than those of "Average" loyalty. Players shouldn't keep the team in the dark no matter what. If a player really doesn't want to re-sign, he should say so. Those who are willing to negotiate should give the team a counteroffer and negotiation should proceed until the team and player reach an agreement or they can't agree and the player walks. Players should eventually have organization preferences and stick to them and this should affect the extension process as well. True that some players may have a price at which they would sign regardless of loyalties, but some may not want to sign no matter what the offer.

Improved Spring Training - Spring Training is a weak point right now. Ideally, it should be used to tweak players before the season begins. There should be ST games that give a glimpse as to how some players are doing. It should help the user determine who will make the active roster. It isn't a place to turn a contact hitter into a homerun monster.

Expanded DB size for additional stats - As much as this game is focused on stats, there are still some areas in which its lacking in this department. To me, many of these can be fixed with an expanded database size. I realize that this may increase the size of the game, but I think many are willing to pay this price. I also realize that it could cause incompatibilities with existing leagues, but surely there is some way to convert these however difficult it may be. Catobase is a good example of what can already be done with OOTP output.

Here are some stats that should be tracked. It's surprising to some that a few of these aren't already tracked or in the game while some of the other stat types are more for completeness:

- More career stats tracked (HRA, etc.)
- Career situational stats
- Playoff stats tracked by round
- Unlimited career minor league/playoff stats tracked
- Career All-Star game stats
- Career stats vs. team
- More team stats tracked and viewable/sortable on League Leaders screen
- Stats split for mid-season trades
- many more...

More robust scheduling system - The game should create plausible schedules based on options selected by the user. In addition, the game should support double-headers and rainouts. This includes more playoff options and allowing the user to designate exactly which teams make the playoffs (hand-picked at playoff time if the user so chooses) as well as who is playing who and what the series lengths are.

Even more customization and maneuverability within the game - Anything that a 3rd party utility does now should be done from within the game. A commish should be able to freely move players between rosters, drop players, trade after the deadline, stick players on any roster status they want, negate injuries, "develop" players easily, manipulate/ add draft picks, edit career stats, hand-pick all-stars and award winners, edit individual game stats, etc.

Now all of this is my personal opinion on stuff that I would like to see. The game is quite remarkable already and with some of these additions in future versions, it could be even better.

[Bobbuttons]

Good ideas.

[Dan Theman]

I like them, especially the counteroffer in free agency - I don't know how well the AI would handle it, but it's still a good idea.

As for the expanded DB for stats, someone had once mentioned the possiblity of customizing the output - if you want it showing hit batsmen, then it can show you hit batsmen, etc., and I thought that was likewise a great idea.

[MrHaroldG]

This includes more playoff options and allowing the user to designate exactly which teams make the playoffs (hand-picked at playoff time if the user so chooses) as well as who is playing who and what the series lengths are.

Not to mention the "expanded playoffs" listed at the very bottom of the first post of this thread.

[Skipaway]

You forgot the bereavement list!!!!

[Night2000]

Very good ideas that would definitely make this game better.
They are also things that are long past due.

[LivnLegend]

Good job sporr

[bostonbaseball86]

I really like the career stats vs. teams part.. also.. maybe something where a player with no championship and/or getting old may want to play for a team near his hometown? probly not possible.. but.. figured I'd toss it out there..
Roger Clemens?
or want to play for a contender? Carlm Malone, Ray Bourque? yea.. they don't play baseball

[Another Mike D]

How about "no trade clauses" and other contract nuances. I can always deal some vet to any team for spects, but we know IRL alot of guys control who they can be traded to. (Maybe not a lot, but a bunch).

[draven085]

I couldn't agree more about Spring Training. The current system needs to be reworked.

[Eumel]

Quote:
This includes more playoff options and allowing the user to designate exactly which teams make the playoffs (hand-picked at playoff time if the user so chooses) as well as who is playing who and what the series lengths are.



I agree wholeheartedly. The tie-breaker system has always been suboptimal. It would be a great addition to allow the player to take care of this manually.


And please don't orientate yourself on CM so much, Markus and company. Baseball and football (soccer for you Americans) need different approaches. The lastest CM I played (CM4) was ruined because they aimed too high and produced bugs with no end. Safety first, I say.

[Dan Theman]

Originally posted by Eumel
Safety first, I say.

LOL - excellent.