Community Wrap-Up By: 2K Admin Ron | Thursday September 17 2009 Hey all,
This Insight officially wraps up a great past several weeks that featured a wide variety of Insights on NHL 2K10, written by a lot of excited and willing developers. I want to take this time to thank all the developers for coming through and writing an Insight during their extremely busy wrap-up time and in the early stages of recovering from those 18 hour days. Many of the Insights were extremely deep and allowed us to explain game features better than ever before. It’s easy to get behind a product that you are so proud of, and it’s exciting how NHL 2K10 has come through.
Because of the ability to provide more layers of depth and conversation, this is something I would like to do again in the future. Please take the time, if you read a few of our NHL 2K10 Developer Insights, to give feedback to whether you liked the program and what you’d like to see done better next year. This isn’t so much a conversation on overall marketing or timing of things, but rather what I can provide with you community wise, especially in terms of Developer Insights. Any discussion on how we can make this better would be great. I am looking forward to pushing the envelope even more next year!
With that being said, I am working on several new programs that I am sure will take your interest post-NHL Launch. More to come on that soon, including an opportunity to play many of the developers online who wrote these Insights. Until then, go get your copy in stores if you haven’t already, and put in the work. See you on the forums!
Problem lies in the game programming of how the players react. They should do what ever you want them to like in 2K5 and 2K8, but they have a one way direction on how they play, and how they will react. There is time delays that causes other players to get the advantage.
The game play should be open more to the gamer and if you are more talented on the joystick and creative in your mind, with all the great features you give the gamer, then the game will be the way it was ment to be. The best game on ice!
Please try to stay away from controlling the game play, and let the game play be free, like it should.
Hope this helps understand the game and the gamers perspective. Thanks.
You promised more frequent and timely roster updates for NHL2k10 ... you gave us one (Oct. 14) ... you had to "fix" it twice because of careless errors (racial issues and low potential ratings for young players, Nov. 5). then you missed November, you missed December, we're now in Jan. (10th today) and there are 63 players who have played their first NHL game or have been involved in transactions since your last update and you've done nothing ... why should we believe anything we read in these "insight" features???
A conference standings overlay during a game with the Milwaukee Bucks
NBA Today By: Asif Chaudhri | Monday August 17 2009 Hi 2K Sports Fans! I am Asif Chaudhri and I work on all things presentation for NBA 2K10. Let me introduce you to something amazing:
The NBA, the REAL NBA, is in your game and it’s updated every day…
NBA Today is a revolutionary way to experience the NBA 2K game play you love. In the “old days” you’d fire up your basketball game and wind up on a team select screen…try to figure out what matchup you wanted to play and then get going. When it came to commentary, presentation and overlays your game was happening in a vacuum. There was nothing “real” about it. It was a fantasy matchup that had no real-world context and no impact. There was a limited list of subjects the commentators could discuss. They could talk about what was happening in that particular game and they could talk about what happened last season. That was pretty much it.
In NBA 2K10 that’s all changed. NBA Today takes the sport you love, NBA basketball, and the game you love, NBA 2K, and finally puts them in the same “world”. When you start 2K10, your Internet-connected console will reach out and grab all the latest information about what’s happening in the league. After that, you won’t land on the team select screen: instead you’ll go directly to the NBA Today screen which lists the REAL NBA matchups that are actually being played TODAY. Additionally you will see a breakdown of scores from last night’s games, as well as view which players in tonight’s matchups are leading their teams in the various stat categories. Furthermore, while the game is loading you’ll get a quick update on how both teams did in their last games and the stats their key players put up. From the NBA Today Menu, you can access box scores for ALL NBA games that have already been played, division and conference standings, league leader stats, the latest transactions, follow any trades that are happening around the league, and check out an All-Star voting watch menu.
Pretty cool, huh? But that’s just the start. Now that your game and your league are in sync, the door is thrown open for dynamic commentary and presentation that’s based on what’s really happening in the real NBA (have I said “real” enough times?) Throughout the season, there is no doubt you will be impressed by the intelligent commentating that not only keeps you informed on the ACTUAL latest league happenings but also keeps track of your team info as well. Examples include knowing that you just got home from a 3-game road trip where you won one and lost two, knowing the opposing team’s starting center is out with an injury, knowing your point guard put up 22 points in the road win against the Grizzlies Tuesday night and that he’s averaging 17 ppg this season, knowing this is the first of a four game series between the two teams … get it? The commentators now have the knowledge of what’s happening league-wide and will reference the most up-to-date information possible in their conversations. But it’s not just all talk, a lot of the topics, the commentary team will talk about, have overlays that coincide with their analysis. During the season, they’ll catch you up on who’s leading the league and how teams are ranked in various stat categories, check out a team’s upcoming schedule and even do a promo spot for an upcoming game. If it’s a holiday, as you may have seen in previous screens, that isn’t going to be ignored; the game will present the holiday in overlays and commentary. As the playoffs are approaching you’ll get the east/west conference standings and once the post season starts, you’ll get playoffs and finals screen wipes. The commentary and presentation will constantly be changing throughout the season to coincide with the real league and transition from pre-season to regular season and finally to the postseason.
For the few days during the season where there are no NBA games taking place (or anytime you feel like playing your team) you can simply use Quick Game to create your own fantasy matchup. All the NBA Today commentary/presentation will still be valid looking back and forward in time. And yes, all the NBA Today commentary/presentation will also occur in your Association (but it will be your Association data that drives the commentary, not the real NBA). A quick note: Often during an NBA game, commentators let the visual demonstration of the game lead itself if they are having a conversation. That changes, however, if there is a huge highlight play. If a thunderous dunk rains down, you’ll get the commentators attention. The same can be said during our game.
We’re really excited to see what you guys think about this new feature. Drop me a line in the comments and tell me what you think!
Asif Chaudhri
Presentation Producer
NEXT NBA 2K10 DEVELOPER INSIGHT: “My Player,” by Erick Boenisch – Tuesday, August 25th
One of the greatest features in a sports game. For NBA2K11 this feature must be expanded on. Implement this in the halftime show, displaying score, stats and HIGHLIGHTS from around the league. Let the highlights be actual NBA2K11 highlights, not real world video highlights.
Pitchers vs. Hitters Battle, Part I By: 2K Admin Ron | Monday February 08 2010 Hello,
My name is Sean Bailey and I am a gameplay designer on Major League Baseball® 2K10. I want to share with you a quote straight from the white board in my office. Hall of Fame pitcher Warren Spahn once said, “Hitting is timing. Pitching is upsetting timing.” After winning more games than any left-handed pitcher in baseball history, Mr. Spahn is as well versed as anyone when it comes to the battle at the plate between a pitcher and a hitter. In Major League Baseball® 2K10, we have provided an experience where the gamer will really feel the benefits and challenges of upsetting timing, as Warren Spahn so eloquently put it decades ago.
Let’s walk through an at bat together and touch more on the pitching improvements that make this year’s game the most enjoyable baseball game I’ve ever played.
Right now, I literally have the controller in my hand with recently acquired Roy Halladay on the mound for the Phillies.
As you can see, we allow you to select your pitch this year before performing the gesture. By selecting the pitch before doing the gesture, we prevent you from accidentally throwing a pitch type that you never wanted to throw in the first place. The pitch selection means that you will always throw the pitch type that you intended to throw, regardless of how far off your gesture was. With Pablo Sandoval at the plate, I am going with my catcher’s suggestion in the 0-0 count: Cut Fastball. Upon selecting your pitch, a diagram will show you how the gesture should be performed in order to throw a pitch with the optimal control, break, and aim. The green zones in the diagram are the targets for where you want to move your right stick.
Since Halladay has a good control rating, these gesture targets, or green zones in the diagram are larger than those of some of his teammates, like Antonio Bastardo. Bastardo’s control rating is only a 70, making it tougher to precisely stop the 2nd gesture in the right spot.
Now that I’ve selected the Cut Fastball, it’s time to let it fly. The Inside Edge report shows me that Pablo Sandoval bats over .300 against right handed pitchers in all but 3 zones. Luckily, 2 of those 3 zones are low in the strike zone. Sorry Pablo. I’m not serving you any high heat just yet.
The first pitch is a ball. The Cutter missed the low, inside corner that I was trying to paint with Halladay and almost grazed Pablo’s leg.
On my gesture, I was supposed to stop at 9 o’clock. However, I moved the right stick too far past 9 o’clock (more like 7 o’clock…whoops), resulting in the pitch being overthrown in that direction. Had I done the opposite and completely stopped short of my gesture, the pitch would have been closer to the middle of the plate rather than outside for a ball. The right stick gesture this year dictates the placement of the ball in a way that is predictable. No more random pitch gestures with random results. If you stop short of your gesture on a 12-6 curveball, the pitch will be hung. If you go past your gesture on a 12-6 curveball, the pitch will be overthrown below the strike zone, or even into the dirt. This 1-to-1 relationship between the right stick gesture and final location of the pitch is consistent for each pitch type. Even better though, it gives the gamer a sense of command on the mound. And like we touched on earlier, the pitcher’s control rating plays a heavy role in how far off a pitch misses when the gesture is performed inaccurately. After pitching earlier today with Jonathan Sanchez, I really feel how much bigger the margin for error is with an ace like Halladay.
Back to Halladay vs Pablo. After going with the slider, I filled the meter 100% for a max pitch .
The Panda swings for the fences. Strike 1. When getting a max pitch, the batter’s contact chance is decreased and the pitch is thrown with ideal velocity and movement. The smaller the pitch meter is, the less breaking balls will move and the slower fastballs will travel. Think of a full meter as a way to represent the pitcher’s ratings. If I fill the meter 50% instead of 100%, Halladay’s cut fastball is no longer a rating of 88 for that pitch. This is crucial considering how important a pitch’s rating is to the batter’s chances of making solid contact, or just contact in general. And don’t worry - the likelihood of timing a max pitch is easier or harder depending on who is pitching and how tired they are. The 2K10 dev team did a great job making sure that the player ratings, player tendencies, and performance of the gamers’ pitching mechanics all come together in a realistic, learnable fashion. While accurately nailing the gestures is required for perfect aim, the degree of difficulty varies from pitcher to pitcher, and pitch to pitch. Since the slider is Halladay’s lowest rated pitch, it requires more accurate movement on the right stick and more precision in timing the meter compared to his higher rated sinker.
Let’s get back to this 1-1 count between Halladay and Sandoval. Better yet, now that I’ve touched on the pitching mechanics, let’s pause the game and switch sides. I’m taking over for Pablo. It’s time to go over the new hitting mechanics.
As I take over at the plate with Pablo, I am informed that Sandoval is a .315 hitter with 9 HRs and 37 strikeouts after a 1-1 count . If pitching is about control, command, and avoiding the big mistake, hitting is definitely about waiting for the right pitch and working the count. Get ahead in the count, and you’ll be more likely to see a fastball for a strike. Fall behind in the count, and you’ll be chasing breaking balls outside of the strike zone. Face a pitcher like Halladay, and both the balls and strikes are separated by inches. Face the 4th or 5th man in the rotation, and strikes are down the middle more often while the balls are way outside of the strike zone. That’s the beauty of incorporating Inside Edge™ into the CPU AI hitting and pitching logic. Per count, every pitcher will throw what he throws in real life and will try to hit the spots that he hits in real life.
Sticking to the realism theme, every batter has a new eye rating this year (both vs lefties and righties). The higher the eye rating, the more likely your batter is to see the pitch type as it is being thrown as well as what part of the strike zone it is being thrown to. By pitch type, I mean fastball, breaking ball, or change-up. You won’t know the exact pitch type, but by knowing which of the 3 categories the pitch is, your timing will be that much better on the swing.
Unfortunately for me, Pablo’s eye rating vs righties is only a 64. The next pitch is a 12-6 curveball by Halladay that just drops into the strike zone. No swing. Strike 2. The pitch started out looking a lot like a fastball that would have been high for a called ball 2. If Pablo had the eye rating of a guy like Albert Pujols, I would have had a chance at knowing it was a high breaking ball and waited to unload on it. If I hadn’t read so deep into Halladay’s scouting report, I wouldn’t have ruled out a 12-6 curve being thrown.
Only 18% of his pitches in real life are 12-6 curveballs compared to 71% which are fastballs. I should clarify that by no means are the pitch tells too effective. They simply provide occasional and subtle hints to the batters in real life who are patient, read pitches, and draw walks. While Pablo had an outstanding 2009 season, he is not what we would call a patient hitter.
Looking to end the at bat, Halladay delivers a cutter low and away, hoping to graze the strike zone. Knowing it is a strike (thanks to the new batting camera and new strike zone which make it so much easier to watch the incoming ball), I swing away with the contact swing. Foul ball.
My timing was a little late, but I’m still alive. In Major League Baseball® 2K10, we completely re-wrote the physics of the hit distribution. The location of the pitch and the timing of the swing have everything to do with where that ball is hit and how hard it is hit. Replicating real life, the location of the pitch and my late timing is what drove the ball 20 feet foul to the left of the 3rd base line. Had I timed my swing perfectly against that low and away strike, Pablo could have been looking at a line drive base hit over the 3rd baseman’s head. My timing was late and the angle of the bat during contact resulted in a foul ball. Want to pull a ball and rip it down the base line for a double? Start the swing early against an inside pitch when making contact, just like in real life. If you want to hit a blooper over the infield to opposite field, swing a little later against an outside pitch. Major League Baseball® 2K10 is about playing baseball, not spamming the swing stick in hopes of base hits that are randomly sprayed about the field. If you find yourself hitting too many fly outs to the outfield, it’s time to lay off the power swing against high pitches. If you find yourself grounding into double plays, it’s time to lay off those low and away pitches being thrown for balls.
Oh, by the way, while writing this, Pablo just grounded out to 3rd. Faced with a 1-2 count, I resorted to the defensive swing. The defensive swing is a new swing type in Major League Baseball® 2K10. Flicking left or right on the right stick will perform a defensive swing. This swing is a low risk, low reward swing that is good to use when faced with 2 strikes. If you aren’t sure whether an incoming pitch is going to be a ball or a decisive 3rd strike, flick the right stick to the left or right to protect the plate. It’s all about working the count and waiting for the right pitch. This is a good way to foul pitches off to stay alive. In my case with Pablo, the defensive swing resulted in a ground out to 3rd. For other players with a lesser contact rating, they may swing and miss. However, you still have a better contact chance and a higher foul ball chance when using the defensive swing. In addition to staying alive with 2 strikes while waiting for the dream pitch, defensive swings can also wear down a starting pitcher who is trying to go the full 9 innings by racking up a high pitch count.
i was getting this game anyway cause i dont care how good "mlb10 the show" looks it is boring to play.Commentary and presentation play a huge role in sports games and theres nobody better than visual concepts at doing presentation.
looking good...graphically games kind of lacks that shine that 2K7 had but its all about gameplay to me.. I plan on mostly playing the CPU and some online. I am happy they will be patching the check swing. I really thought 2K9 would have been at least a playable game last year for me but I traded it in to gamestop because it kept freezing (not online) and my pitcher would wander off the field at the end of inning.. I hope they addressed these issues!
im really excited for this game 1. cuz its definetly bttr thn 2k9 and 2. theres ANOTHER my player mode and i liked it in the nba version cept there were 2 many glitches
the batting mode is horrible i think that is really stupid three stick movements ,we should be able to swing with a normal button ,im not the only one who will complain about this so i think you gonna need a mod for it.and there is no any information still about an option for the automatic fielding because i dont know a single person who likes to play the defense in a baseball video game.
