What I miss most from OOTP6.5/6/5/4/etc

[zonk84]

Don't get me wrong...

The new features in 2006/2007/ootp8 are just too great to pass up, so I can't ever see myself going back - and I'll certain be purchsing oop9 as soon as its out.

I've gotten hours upon hours of great play from ootp - but the newest iterations drive me crazy in regards to how I construct my leagues.

I like to play strict "MLB shells" -- that is, real team names, real minor league structure, real parks, etc. Sometimes I use real rosters/players, but more often than not -- I prefer to play with fictional players.

In the pre-2006 world, this was INCREDIBLY easy to do. I was simply able to swap a few dat files, and voila... no need to retype nearly 200 team names, awards, parks, etc.

However, the newer versions -- despite having the 'template'/quickstart options -- make this MUCH harder to do.

Minor tweaks - enabling foreign FAs, for example -- cannot be done with quickstarts if they QS isn't built that way. Templates fall somewhere in the middle - I cannot seem to use external rosters (i.e., from a QS, for example).

Essentially, what I would absolutely, positively LOVE is the ability to separate the "shell" of a game, from the players/coaches. An easy option to store all my league setup rules, team names, market sizes, parks -- everything except the coaches and players. I'd love to be able to use my "shell" - then just have 3 options:

1)regenerate fictional players/coaches into this shell, AND assign automatically to teams (no draft necessary... taking over an existing team).

2)regenerate fictional players/coaches into this shell - with initial draft

3)import rosters into my shell from a matching source (be it another league with the same structure or from Lahman).... generally speaking, the only reason I play with "real players" is in order to have the history and player stats - if there was an option for ficitonal players to be generated with a 'history' - so much the better.

Maybe I've got really weird tastes in playing or maybe there's an easier way to do this and I just don't know what it is (despite extensive experimentation, manual reading, and board searches)....

... but it's just incredibly frustrating that, with all the available setup options, templates, and QS -- there just seems to be no way to re-use a "skeleton" with fresh guts!

[pressure]

I could be wrong about this, but I think that you can load a quickstart, and then under league options release all players from all teams, then delete all free agents, and finally fill all teams with fictional players (also generate a extra couple of hundred for your free agent pool, so when people get released/ injured etc... you don't get roster errors.
I'll check into this more throughly later, but I'm pretty sure it's possible.

[DerekT]

You will all laugh, but I what I really miss is seeing the whos hot and cold in the lineup screen. I mean sure we can still see who is hot and cold, but I liked it better when you could see the players stats during the streak vs just seeing a block of ice or fire beside the player's name.

[mikev]

Small file sizes.

That's about it, though

[lencombs]

Originally Posted by zonk84

Don't get me wrong...





I like to play strict "MLB shells" -- that is, real team names, real minor league structure, real parks, etc. Sometimes I use real rosters/players, but more often than not -- I prefer to play with fictional players.

That's exactly how I play, but always fictional players.

... but it's just incredibly frustrating that, with all the available setup options, templates, and QS -- there just seems to be no way to re-use a "skeleton" with fresh guts!

pretty sure you can go into League Setups> functions> then under Templates in lower left, Save this World as Template. Then start a new game with your saved template and grenerate fictional players to fill all teams, or import players.

I tinker with the game a couple days and set up the universe the way I like it, then play it until a new OOTP comes out, so may be talking out of my hindside here.

As for 6.5 vs OOTP7 features I miss, the break into game when a milestone is about to happen, or someone has a no-hitter entering the 9th, may hit for the cycle etc.
All time leader boards, and single game/career record boards, sortable by team and league.

[tchalifour]

Rookie records, where art thou? Also, having records being broken put in the player history is sorely missed.

The milestone tracker was a gem (and no, I am not buying OOTP8 - I'll wait thank you).

I miss being able to tell the minor leaguers what position they need to learn. In 2007 I just hope they are focusing on one position, and I go and find out they've been DHing or something ridiculous!

[84Hammy]

Originally Posted by zonk84

I like to play strict "MLB shells" -- that is, real team names, real minor league structure, real parks, etc. Sometimes I use real rosters/players, but more often than not -- I prefer to play with fictional players.

In the pre-2006 world, this was INCREDIBLY easy to do. I was simply able to swap a few dat files, and voila... no need to retype nearly 200 team names, awards, parks, etc.

However, the newer versions -- despite having the 'template'/quickstart options -- make this MUCH harder to do.

Minor tweaks - enabling foreign FAs, for example -- cannot be done with quickstarts if they QS isn't built that way. Templates fall somewhere in the middle - I cannot seem to use external rosters (i.e., from a QS, for example).

Essentially, what I would absolutely, positively LOVE is the ability to separate the "shell" of a game, from the players/coaches. An easy option to store all my league setup rules, team names, market sizes, parks -- everything except the coaches and players. I'd love to be able to use my "shell" - then just have 3 options:

I play this way too, but I don't bother with a lot of the same details. I would be happy with a fictional league that started in 1901 with real team, logos, and stadium. I wish I had the savy to create this...

[Greenbo1]

I can't say I miss it as I'm playing both games in online leagues but I miss the simplicity of the game. 2007 interface, while better than that POS 2006, is still very cumbersome and is just way too much overload. Still can't stand the whole "spreadsheet" file of the interface and it seems that it takes two to three more clicks to do basic things. I believe 2007 is geared more to the solo player than the online player.

[remangiii]

The interface!

[whizkid1950]

I feel goofy for saying this but I miss the old Spring Training.

I would say the interface, but I'm tired of mentioning it. The "complicated-is-better" crowd have seized the day around here

[Solonor]

Originally Posted by tchalifour

Rookie records, where art thou? Also, having records being broken put in the player history is sorely missed.

The milestone tracker was a gem (and no, I am not buying OOTP8 - I'll wait thank you).

I miss being able to tell the minor leaguers what position they need to learn. In 2007 I just hope they are focusing on one position, and I go and find out they've been DHing or something ridiculous!

Amen to all the above!

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by remangiii

The interface!

"!!!!!!!!!

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by Solonor

Amen to all the above!

And an amen to the amen!

[skywalkr2]

Am I the only one who misses being able to setup special giveaways at home games and/or retro uni day?

[The Wolf]

Could be.

[1998 Yankees]

Originally Posted by skywalkr2

Am I the only one who misses being able to setup special giveaways at home games and/or retro uni day?

Yes! (J/k)

[zekester91]

I miss that human Managers had thier games on the top of the schedule, it's sooooo much fun to have to slowly scroll through 75 games to try and find my teams game.

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by zekester91

I miss that human Managers had thier games on the top of the schedule, it's sooooo much fun to have to slowly scroll through 75 games to try and find my teams game.

Good point!

[J.HenryWaugh]

Originally Posted by lencombs

As for 6.5 vs OOTP7 features I miss, the break into game when a milestone is about to happen, or someone has a no-hitter entering the 9th, may hit for the cycle etc.
All time leader boards, and single game/career record boards, sortable by team and league.

Amen, brother. I too liked that feature (the game break-in when a milestone is possible). In fact, when I read that OOTP 8 had added a milestone watch, I was really hoping this was back. How tough could it be to put it back in anyway?

[ctorg]

I miss having milestones, including things like first hit (and the pitcher it was off of) show up in player histories.