Operation Sports is proud to present an interview with Mike Saperstein, Senior Director of High Heat 2003.

Operation Sports:  What is your role in the Development of High Heat 2003?

 

Mike Saperstein:    I am Mike Saperstein, the Senior Director of High Heat 2003.

 

Operation Sports:  I am reading about a tuning menu in various previews.  What exactly is this, and how many elements of the game will you be able to tune?

 

Mike Saperstein:    We have spent a lot of time this year tuning the game to make sure that High Heat MLB 2003 plays great right away.  However different users play the game many different ways, with various options enabled and disabled, and with varying levels of joypad skills and baseball knowledge.  To make the game even more fun for these people, we added a tuning menu which gives users the ability to customize the game to fit their skill and style of play.

 

In the PS2 game there are ten elements of the game that you will be able to fine-tune via this menu.  These include hitting and power for a human or computer-controlled batter, visual pitch speeds for fastballs and other pitches, injury frequency, error frequency and player running speeds.

 

In the PC game these variables have been added in the tune file, along with the already very deep set of variables you can tune there.

 

 

Operation Sports:  Is simulation versus arcade one of the elements you can tune?

 

Mike Saperstein:    Yes, “Simulation” is a game option.

 

If this is turned all the way up, the real-life abilities of the players will strongly impact the results of each play with only minimal weight given to the joypad skill of the user.  For example, at this setting it’s only important that the user make contact with the ball – not if he gets the “good part of the bat” on the ball – and then whether the ball is hit hard or not depends completely on the statistics of the batter and pitcher involved.

 

If “Simulation” is turned all the way down, then the hitting and fielding skills of the user will mean almost everything, and which real-life player is involved in the play will have almost no bearing on the play.  For example, at this setting getting the “good part of the bat” on the ball will result in a hard hit ball regardless of who’s batting and pitching.

 

This setting defaults halfway, which to me yields the best balance.  At this setting arcade skills matter a lot in determining the user’s success, yet player statistics still tend to come out quite believably over the long term.  But we leave multiple clicks available in this meter such that each user can customize the game to their liking.

 

 

Operation Sports:  What are the differences between the PS2 version and the PC version?

 

Mike Saperstein:    The PS2 version features totally overhauled state-of-the-art graphics, and our new high-impact “Two On Two Showdown” mode.  In addition, many of the modes which fans have come to love on the PC are now in the PS2 game.  That includes Home Run Derby, Batting Practice, Stand-Alone Playoffs, Two On Two Showdown, Create a Player Capability, Edit Player Capability, Load Roster Capability, and Fantasy Draft.

 

The PC version features an extensive Career Mode and a very deep minor league system.

 

Of course, both games feature significantly upgraded announcer and crowd audio, as well as improved pitcher, batter, and manager AI.  Not only that, we’ve substantially raised the bar on our award-winning on-the-field gameplay.

 

 

Operation Sports:  Can I record a save in this years edition?

 

Mike Saperstein:    Yes.

 

Operation Sports:  Has the pitcher endurance changed any? When playing on the hardest level I would throw 50 pitches and my pitcher would be dead, the CPU could throw 100 and have the same endurance left as my guy.

 

Mike Saperstein:    Both in-game and between-game pitcher fatigue has been completely overhauled.  It should now seem much more accurate with respect to real-life in terms of fatigue per innings pitched and days of rest needed to return to full strength.

 

Note that in a video game setting, pitch count isn’t the most accurate way to measure pitcher fatigue.  Almost everyone who plays High Heat takes less pitches when they’re at the plate than real-life ballplayers do.  To compensate, our pitcher endurance and fatigue formulae are based on a combination of pitch-count and batters-faced.  We feel that this gives the most realistic results in terms of bullpen use and pitcher tiredness over the course of a season.

 

Operation Sports:  The previews mentioned Create-a-player, editing of players, how deep does this go and which attributes does it allow you to edit?

 

Mike Saperstein:    You can create up to 25 players from scratch.  You can also edit any of the 775 Major League players in the game.

 

Whether editing or creating, you can change many of their general attributes such as name, number, position, skin color, height, weight, and body type. 

 

You can modify batting visual attributes including stance, bat side, waggle, wave and stride, and also game-related statistical items such as average, power, and pull likelihood. 

 

Fielding range, running speed, arm strength, and throwing arm are also editable for all players.

 

For pitchers you can modify throwing arm, delivery style, power, control, endurance, effectiveness, and ground ball ratio, as well as which pitch types a pitcher throws.

 

Operation Sports:  What were the reasons for leaving out Franchise mode?

 

Mike Saperstein:    In High Heat 2002 there was only Exhibition, Season, and All-Star Game modes available.  When we began to design High Heat 2003, one of our goals was to add as many additional modes and off-the-field features as possible.  We prioritized these based on many factors including appeal to the widest audience and time required for implementation, among others.  In the end we added Home Run Derby, Batting Practice, Stand-Alone Playoffs, Two On Two Showdown, Create a Player Capability, Edit Player Capability, Load Roster Capability, Fantasy Draft, and support for analog control.

 

While we really wanted to add Career Mode as well, we definitely did not want to do it in a halfhearted way.  We wanted to spend our time this year getting the PS2 version’s new modes done right.  Looking forward, it is very high on our list of items that we would like to add in future console versions of High Heat.

 

Operation Sports:  The game play of the High Heat series is what has gained it accolades. How do you tweak the Gameplay without creating new problems?

 

Mike Saperstein:    People do frequently praise the High Heat game play.   Our development team is made up of people who are dedicated sports fans, hardcore gamers, and top-notch Engineers and Artists, many of whom are perfectionists; so we are often our own harshest critics.  Every team member brings a slightly different perspective to the table – some are High Heat or video game “traditionalists” while others are more “new school” when it comes to game play.

 

When there’s something that isn’t working perfectly in game play, we try to analyze the main causes of why the problems exist and redesign much of the solution before implementation.  When doing these redesigns, it’s not unusual for two or three people to be locked in extended heated debates over the best solution because of their different perspectives and areas of expertise.  Oftentimes these discussions lead to more complete, more fulfilling, better solutions than any individual could have come up with on his own.

 

For example: the “user feel” of batting is greatly improved this year because of a discussion of this type.  It came together via a conversation about a game play code design from one team member, “user response feel” arguments from another, and the animation quality perspective of a third.

 

Operation Sports:  What have you done to improve the graphics and animations of the PS2 version? What priority is placed on looks versus quality game play?

 

Mike Saperstein:    The primary criticism of the High Heat 2002 PS2 game was the graphics, particularly the animation.  As such we have spent a huge amount of time and effort upgrading these areas for High Heat 2003.

 

Among other things, we have completely redesigned a much smoother player model, and given him multiple body types such that players are properly fat, short, tall, muscular, etc.  We took many steps in the animations themselves to smooth them out.  The user interface has been completely overhauled and looks a lot more like a real televised baseball broadcast.  The camera motion has been improved to better show off the animations and players, and to give more of a TV-style feel as well.

 

On top of that, numerous new animations were added, particularly celebrations, frustrations, and other “emotions of the game”.  Then we added some cool extras like a super-jump at the wall that can occasionally rob a would-be homer.  We added particle system effects such as dust “poof” clouds, and animated stadium textures such as waterfalls and flags waving.  Beyond all that we made major texture improvements to the uniforms, stadiums, grass, dirt, sky, and any other piece of art we have in the game.

 

Meanwhile our engineers implemented many code improvements that have helped significantly.  There is now motion-blending between animations which allows the animations to flow seamlessly one to another.  We have doubled the texture bit depth for all textures in the game, which greatly helps show off details, particularly in our stadiums.  We have made engine improvements that have increased and solidified our frame rate, and added texture-swapping capability to allow us to use more textures on each frame.

 

As to the second question, we realize that great graphics are a key component of getting people to notice and try High Heat, and that great game play is what keeps them coming back.  We want to continue to raise the quality of our graphics until we get accolades for that area of the game like we currently do for game play.  At the same time we hope to not only maintain, but also significantly improve our game play experience and push the limits there as well.  Because we felt we had further to go in graphics this year to be the best than we did in game play, graphics were somewhat higher priority internally -- but never to the detriment or neglect of game play improvements.  And we put in significant time and effort into audio improvements as well.  We strive to be the best baseball game, best sports game, and the best game, in every aspect of the game.

 

 

Operation Sports:  How do you feel when reviewers and gamers call your game on the PS2 last year ugly? Personally, it worked for me, but the graphics took a lot of heat, and your previews seem to emphasize Graphical improvements.

 

Mike Saperstein:    At first we feel disappointed when something we put a lot of time and effort into isn’t regarded as great – it’s like when somebody tells a parent that their baby is ugly, it stings!  But we realize that reviewers and gamers generally aren’t stupid or liars.  Once the initial shock wore off, we took a long hard look at our game and what we could have done better.  Then we did a lot of comparison with, and analysis of, other products to figure out what they did well.  We used all of this information to figure out just what we needed to do better and how we could do it, so that we can close the gap.  There’s no sweeter reward for us than to win over those reviewers, the ones who were critical of us or our graphics last year, and hear them say things like “Wow, High Heat’s graphics are pretty cool…and now that I’m playing it more, I realize that the game play and audio rule!”.

 

Operation Sports:  Will we see a High Heat series on the X-box or Gamecube in the future? I would think the Hard drive on the X-box would present some interesting opportunities?

 

Mike Saperstein:    High Heat 2003 will be available for PS2, PC, and Gameboy Advance.  Other platforms are under consideration for future versions.

 

Operation Sports:  How many players will I have on my roster to start the season?

 

Mike Saperstein:    There are 25 players per team.

 

Operation Sports:  Will the reserve or inactive players have real names or fictional names?

 

Mike Saperstein:    In the PS2 version, there is a Free Agents list (which we call the ‘Extra Players List’), made up of actual Major League players.  So they have real names as long as they are in the Major League Baseball Players Association.

 

In the PC version, players who are not on Major League rosters have real names as long as they are in the MLBPA in real life.  Otherwise we are legally not allowed to use them – hence fictional players.

 

Operation Sports:  Will we have a Farm System or just reserve players?

 

Mike Saperstein:    On the PS2 there is the Free Agents list (which we call the ‘Extra Players List’) of 25 players.  And the user has the ability to create 25 additional players and move them onto teams as well.  There are no team-specific Farm Systems, although we hope to add that in future console versions of High Heat.

 

On the PC there is everything that has always been there: An Extra Players List, and also a full Minor League system per team which in Career Mode includes AAA, AA, and A levels.

 

Operation Sports:  Have you tweaked the Pitching/Hitter interface? Please tell me you have stayed away from a cursor based system.

 

Mike Saperstein:    The pitching interface remains the same as last year although we have added a new pitch type, the cut fastball, or ‘cutter’.  It has a late break and is just plain nasty.

 

The hitting controls remain the same as last year as well, and is definitely not cursor based!  However we have made a number of “under-the-hood” improvements that better analyze the joypad skill of the user.  On higher skill levels particularly, you will need to use the directional button and “put the good part of the bat” on the ball or really “go with the pitch” to hit balls solidly for power.  While it is a bit more challenging at first on higher skill levels, it is intuitive.  And it is so much more satisfying than in previous versions when you hit a big double or home run – it just feels like you really did something right and “earned it”.  In previous versions, hardcore players sometimes complained about hitting balls way too hard to the opposite field, or getting a “lucky home run” that didn’t really feel like a solid contact.  This year’s game challenges users to develop their skills even more than previous versions if they want to be successful.

 

And if some long-time users object to this, they can always use the Simulation setting and Tuning Menu to create their own customized game experience that minimizes these factors and can make the game feel similar to previous versions.

 

Operation Sports:  Can you move in the batters box or adjust batting stances?

 

Mike Saperstein:    You can change numerous attributes of a player’s batting style in the Player Editor including his stance.

 

You can’t really move in the batter’s box as the game is going on.  But we now give the user a little visual feedback for inside or outside swings using the Directional Button where the batter rotates a bit to allow the user to “go with the pitch”.  There’s also different swing animations for high and low swings.  Trust me, when you do an inside swing on an inside pitch and pull the ball and absolutely crush one, it’s just a great feeling.  It really feels like you positively walloped it.  It’s tremendously satisfying, especially at key moments of a close game!

 

Operation Sports:  Their were a few stadiums where the High Heat or 3DO logo was in centerfield and when the pitcher threw the ball it would come right out of that background, has this been corrected?

 

Mike Saperstein:    All the artists working on stadiums this year were very sensitive to problems caused by bright colors in hitting-view backgrounds.  Much time and effort was spent making sure that there were no stadiums with significant problems of this type.

 

Operation Sports:  Although no salary cap exists in baseball, many gamers are asking about some sort of monetary/ GM function? Baseball Mogul has been mentioned by some, any intentions on going into this area?

 

Mike Saperstein:    In the future we would love to put this type of feature into High Heat to further expand the realism of the experience.  There may be certain restrictions we would be subject to, however, in terms of how we could express salaries.

 

Operation Sports:  Did you motion capture any professional athletes?

 

Mike Saperstein:    All our animations are motion captured.  In the history of the High Heat franchise we have used a number of motion capture actors, many of which were professional ballplayers.

 

Operation Sports:  Could you please explain ICE?

 

Mike Saperstein:    ICE is “interactive crowd excitement”.  This is a system that gives the crowd more realistic intelligence than in an average sports game.

 

At a base level, the audio crowd typically knows how to react to each game situation like you’d expect.  But ICE goes above and beyond that, getting very close to replicating what a real-life crowd does based on larger factors as well.

 

For example, if it is a close game into the late innings, the fans will start to be more vocal than usual and sometimes cheer or boo every pitch for key at bats.  Heck, with two strikes and Roger Clemens pitching in Yankee Stadium, they sometimes will come to life looking for the strikeout based on Clemens’ reputation.  If the home team is having a terrible inning, they’ll sometimes get rowdy and boo their team off the field.  If the home team falls far behind, the fans will tend to get quiet even for Home Runs.  But if they come back from a long way back, the fans that stuck around will be going crazy!

 

Further, the crowd knows a bit about history and rivals.  They will be amped for a Red Sox/Yankees or Giants/Dodgers game, even if it is in mid-season and both teams are going nowhere in the standings.  On the other hand, the crowd will tend to be quiet for a typical mid-season Expos/Brewers match-up, but would be totally energized if these teams were meeting in the playoffs.  And even if teams are not normally rivals, the crowd will still be ready to rock if the visiting team is in first place and the home team is only one game out heading into September!

 

Moreover, there are a lot of little touches on how the crowd reacts based on real life.  For example, sometimes when you watch a game where the Braves or Yankees are on the road, you will notice a small cheer in the background of the crowd when the visiting team does something good – these teams have small followings nationally.  Things like this are modeled into the game, as well as East Coast fans relocating to places like Oakland and Anaheim and showing up to cheer their team.

 

All of this audio is combined on the PS2 version with our all-new crowd animations that are used in tandem with this system.  The visual crowd in High Heat behaves appropriately, reacting (or not) to the plays on the field.  On top of that we have attendance logic that uses team vs. team attendance data at all ballparks to help determine whether it’s a sellout or if plenty of good seats are going to still be available at game time. All together this adds up to one of the most complete crowd features to date ever seen or heard in a sports game.

 

 

Operation Sports:  Will the wind still have an effect on a game? How about other weather effects. Will we see little things like flags blowing in the wind and Home Runs followed into the seats? Most games seem to pull away as the ball goes into the crowd? Yet all gamers want to see where their home run landed.

 

Mike Saperstein:    Wind does have a major effect on the game, though it depends where you are playing and what time of year…just like real life!

 

There are rain delays and rain-shortened games in the PC version, though not in the PS2 version.

 

Flags animate in both versions, and other stadium animations and stadium-specific sounds (such as the foghorn for Home Runs at certain parks) are there as well.

 

We have often heard the request for following Home Runs into the seats, and hope to incorporate it in future versions of High Heat, but it is not in this year’s version.

 

Operation Sports:  Has the trade logic improved?

 

Mike Saperstein:    On the PS2 the user has the ability to trade players between teams.

 

On the PC there have been many user complaints for the last two years about roster management, including trade logic, moving players up to the Majors too soon, sending veterans down to the lower levels, and more.  We are in the process of researching these problems and attempting to fix as many as possible.  The caveat is that our computer-controlled player evaluation and roster management uses extremely complex code that works properly and behaves smartly a high percentage of the time, so it’s difficult to put in “a small fix” for a seemingly-easy problem without potentially breaking something else that already works.  Therefore we can’t realistically promise that it will always behave super-smartly 100% of the time, but we are striving to make it considerably better than in the past, and certainly better than competing products.

 

Operation Sports:  The PC version last year, was considered quite buggy, how do you attack an issue like this in order to not have it happen this year?

 

Mike Saperstein:    For this year’s PC game, our #1 priority is to make sure it is as bug-free as possible.  We know that some customers had problems with the game last year, and we are committed to making sure their gaming experience is great from the very beginning.

 

Part of the problem last year was trying to get in so many new features that we created lots of new permutations and combinations of ways to use the game.  When you add on issues from various users using many different machine setups with numerous video cards, etc, and it just led to a lot of potential instability in many areas.  This year we are striving to be as thorough as possible in testing permutations and combinations.

 

We have also compiled a list of known problems from last year’s game.  We have used Customer Service data, our own experiences with the game, customer letters, as well as message board posts to try to put together this together.  We then ranked these issues in terms of importance to the widest range of users.  Now we are working our way through the list, and should be mostly through it before shipping this year.

 

Operation Sports:  The patches on the PC version always help, with the PS2 and X-box having on line capabilities, do you see patches available for the console versions?

 

Mike Saperstein:    Certainly High Heat will consider patches in cases where the game is unplayable due to a bug.  But honestly, patches are a no-win proposition for us.  Users always want the patch immediately, and complain until it comes out.  And different users will want different small issues fixed, and they can’t all make the patch, so when the patch comes out many will complain about why their fix didn’t make it.  And any item that patches a problem can inadvertently break something else under different circumstances – like last year’s problem with patching mound visits (which, by the way, actually fixed a crash in online games regarding mound visits).

 

So while High Heat may release patches in the future for the PC, my guess is that they would only tend to address problems that make the game unplayable. On consoles, bugs of that magnitude generally need to be fixed prior to the game’s initial release, and on PC they should be as well.

 

 

Operation Sports:  What is the release date for the PC and PS2 versions?

 

Mike Saperstein:    Expect to see High Heat 2003 PS2 in stores sometime in February, and the PC sometime in March.

 

 

Operation Sports:  I would like to thank you for making time for this interview, is there anything you would like to add?

 

Mike Saperstein:    Thanks to all those who have supported High Heat up until now.  Please continue spreading the good word to those who haven’t heard of High Heat or otherwise dismissed it in the past due to graphics and never gave the game a real chance.

 

For those who are skeptical of our commitment to getting it right after seeing bugs in the PC game last year, keep the faith.  We are aware of our shortcomings and putting in a ton of time and effort to right things this time around.  We don’t promise absolute perfection, but we’re making progress and striving for greatness.

 

Thanks…