Alright boyz, here we go!!! OOTP2006 First Impressions Thread!

[Godzilla Blitz]

Just reading the about how you guys are figuring out how to set up a league makes my head spin.

Can I get university credit for playing this game?

[Young Drachma]

Originally Posted by Godzilla Blitz

Just reading the about how you guys are figuring out how to set up a league makes my head spin.

Can I get university credit for playing this game?

Hmm...there's an idea for a class.

[SackAttack]

I am.

So.

Fucking.

Tired.

Of changing the pinch hitter's position from PH to, say, SS, having SS go --, and then when I drag a new pitcher onto the mound, instead of inserting him in the lineup spot with the -- for position, the pitcher goes into the 9th spot, where I JUST PUT THE DAMN DEFENSIVE REPLACEMENT.

For the love of God, is it that hard for the computer to intuit, "hey, there's a defensive change with a player taking the place of an existing fielder, but in a different lineup spot, maybe we should put the new pitcher THERE"?

Augh.

[SackAttack]

OOTP is taking forever to load the results of my search, so I'm going to note the two things I just saw here.

1) When the umpire calls for an infield fly, doesn't matter WHERE the ball lands: on the second baseman's head, in the baserunner's crack, or just plain ol' on the infield dirt: batter-runner is OUT, and it's a dead ball. It's not a single. Or anything else, for that matter.

I mean, from an emotional perspective, it gave my #3 hitter a 4-4 day instead of a 3-4 day, and led to a pair of two-out runs (instead of the inning being over), but, uh - them ain't the rules.

2) I saw this in a previous version of OOTP, but the game seems to be tracking team LOB as the cumulative total of LOB for each individual batter, which also is incorrect.

[SackAttack]

Well, no, it's not a TRUE dead ball, as the runners can still advance at their own peril, but the infield fly causes a dead ball in the sense that if they don't bother to move off of their bases, there's no play, because they're not at peril to be put out on the play.

/clarification.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

if waivers are included in the game they should be on. ditto with foreign leagues. they should work in the way that they work in the real world, otherwise why bother to include them. it's like i'm paying for features i'm not using then. If you were deaf would you want to pay extra for a 6-disc CD changer in your car? I think not! Same thing here. Why pay for a feature if it's not going to be useable. If waivers and foreign countries are broken then the game should cost less or the features ought to be removed. Otherwise I'm paying for a feature I'm not using, which as a consumer I am opposed to.

I didn't want to comment on this but it's driving me crazy. I don't know if you're serious about this which to me would make me pity you or if you're just posturing t osupport your position which frankly isn't needed. You could just say you don't want anyone else to enjoy options that you don't use. I mean, wargames have "what if" scenarios don't they? Or, do you mean that you expect that a game that games should include real world functionality or they wouldn't be your cup of tea which giving you the benefit of the doubt is what I'd like to believe you mean? if it's the last though, your point misses the point.

Do you really have a problem with paying the base price for items if you don't utilize every feature of the item?

I don't smoke but I don't try and haggle with the dealership to remove the cigarette lighter. If I was deaf I wouldn't pay for a 6-disc CD changer but I wouldn't bitch if it was included and I didn't pay extra for it.

I could do without the silver wrapper on individual sticks of gum, I don't use every feature of Microsoft Word, I don't use the left back pocket of my jeans, I don't use every feature of my VCR, I don't always want tomatoes on my hamburger, the list goes on. I wouldn't pay extra for any of these things but I've never felt opposed to them being included in the basic package ( except the tomatoes which I simply ask them to remove. I don't ask for a discount ).

Your position seems weird enough to ask for clarification.

[Icy]

Originally Posted by Axxon

I didn't want to comment on this but it's driving me crazy. I don't know if you're serious about this which to me would make me pity you or if you're just posturing t osupport your position which frankly isn't needed. You could just say you don't want anyone else to enjoy options that you don't use. I mean, wargames have "what if" scenarios don't they? Or, do you mean that you expect that a game that games should include real world functionality or they wouldn't be your cup of tea which giving you the benefit of the doubt is what I'd like to believe you mean? if it's the last though, your point misses the point.

Do you really have a problem with paying the base price for items if you don't utilize every feature of the item?

I don't smoke but I don't try and haggle with the dealership to remove the cigarette lighter. If I was deaf I wouldn't pay for a 6-disc CD changer but I wouldn't bitch if it was included and I didn't pay extra for it.

I could do without the silver wrapper on individual sticks of gum, I don't use every feature of Microsoft Word, I don't use the left back pocket of my jeans, I don't use every feature of my VCR, I don't always want tomatoes on my hamburger, the list goes on. I wouldn't pay extra for any of these things but I've never felt opposed to them being included in the basic package ( except the tomatoes which I simply ask them to remove. I don't ask for a discount ).

Your position seems weird enough to ask for clarification.

I agree with your statement... but i think you didn't underestand what he wrote. What i underestand from his post is that he complains about why are added features that don't work properly, or you add them and they work as they should, or you don't add and don't advertise them, as some guys could buy the game based on that features that end not working properly. It's like if FOF advertises a 2D view for the next game, you buy it because that and then the 2D view is not working, you basicaly pay for something you won't enjoy.

Anyway it's just what i read from his post, but of course i'm not him. I also trust SI and Markus and i guess that those features (waivers, AI roster management and international leagues), will end working properly in OOTP after a couple of patches so i'm not really worried. Of course i'm a bit dissapointed that they don't work since day one as i really wanted to enjoy this game, but i'll play FM in the mean time. Sadly we are too used to games not being fully playable since the release day.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by Icy

I agree with your statement... but i think you didn't underestand what he wrote. What i underestand from his post is that he complains about why are added features that don't work properly, or you add them and they work as they should, or you don't add and don't advertise them, as some guys could buy the game based on that features that end not working properly. It's like if FOF advertises a 2D view for the next game, you buy it because that and then the 2D view is not working, you basicaly pay for something you won't enjoy.

Anyway it's just what i read from his post, but of course i'm not him. I also trust SI and Markus and i guess that those features (waivers, AI roster management and international leagues), will end working properly in OOTP after a couple of patches so i'm not really worried.

That's why I asked for clarification from him. I was getting what you read into it but the CD thing threw me off. Clearly he doesn't say the CD changer doesn't work but that since he's deaf he doesn't want it. That's the clarification I wanted.

Like I told him, if he meant what I thought he meant and what you read from it too, he stated it badly but if he truly meant he has a problem with paying the base price for features he won't use, then that's weird.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by Icy

I also trust SI and Markus and i guess that those features (waivers, AI roster management and international leagues), will end working properly in OOTP after a couple of patches so i'm not really worried. Of course i'm a bit dissapointed that they don't work since day one as i really wanted to enjoy this game, but i'll play FM in the mean time. Sadly we are too used to games not being fully playable since the release day.

Weirdly enough, I bought the game now because I trust SI to make things work correctly. I read enough in this thread to realize I'd be able to lose myself in the things they do right like the stats and the player cards that I'd be having fun looking at this stuff at least until the patch comes out since I don't really have a lot of playing time right now.

Sometimes, to me, learning a game is more fun than playing a game. I knew this pre computer. My friends and I would often buy games that we only played a couple of times but had so much fun learning that they never seemed a ripoff. I guess maybe we contributed to the whole getting used to games not being fully playable on release day trend. I don't know. But to me, the fun is in the learning something new and the anticipation that it'll be more fun than it usually turns out to be. *shurg*

Different strokes for different folks but to me, the cost/reward ratio works for a whole lot of games. The elite that pass this mark are the ones I remember forever but if I based my enjoyment of the hobby on this criteria I'd be a bitter, bitter man by now.

[Axxon]

Dola. I went out last night and had a meal and two excellent margaritas. My bill was more than the cost of this game. It was wonderful but the experience is over now. I'm very sure the honeymoon period for this game will last longer so it's money well spent.

That's my view of my hobby.

[Bee]

There's definitely a lot of bugs and issues with the game, but I have to say I'm having 10 times more fun with this game than any baseball game I've played. I love the fact that I can set things up with so many various options. I don't want to replay the MLB 20 times in a row. I like being able to create my own fictional universe where things aren't exactly like they are in the MLB with just the names changed to protect the innocent. If you're looking for an exact duplication of the MLB then the game probably falls short right now...of course, I have yet to see a game that met all the expectations some people have.

[Draft Dodger]

Originally Posted by Axxon

Dola. I went out last night and had a meal and two excellent margaritas. My bill was more than the cost of this game. It was wonderful but the experience is over now. I'm very sure the honeymoon period for this game will last longer so it's money well spent.

That's my view of my hobby.

I think I understand what you are saying: if you're drunk, the game is good!

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by Draft Dodger

I think I understand what you are saying: if you're drunk, the game is good!

If you're drunk, it's all good.

[kcchief19]

OK, did I overlook another setting or is this the "1901" bug I've read about? I started a new league in 1901 and sent it to sim overnight. I come back this morning and start glancing around and I see that 1901 was played with 2006 era settings -- bunch of home runs and offense galore. All of the top offensive seasons were in 1901 with guys hitting 55 homers then everything goes to normally in 1902. After I set the eras, I searched for a button that would recalibrate the settings but didn't find it. It does recalibrate for subsequent seasons but not for the first season.

Is there a recalibration option I missed or does this go on the fix list?

[kcchief19]

Another neat thing -- I noticed a guy was leading the league in a couple of categories during my simming but didn't have a team, so I stopped the league to check him out. I was initially afraid that somebody had cut the league's leading hitter and nobody snatched him. Nope, on August 19 he ruptured a disc in his back and the next day Baltimore cut him. He officially announced his retirement September 9.

I like the idea that players don't automatically retire after an injury, even if it is career-ending. That said, I'm firmly in the camp that has always hated the career-ending injury in OOTP. There are almost no immediate career-ending injuries in baseball. Almost everybody tries to come back. I prefer the FOF career-ending injury where the guy is out for 52+ weeks and may try to come back or not. That's much more realistic to me.

At least this guy thought about trying to come back for a couple of weeks.

[kcchief19]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

Sack, that looks like what happens in FOBL (v5) every now and then when all the other pitchers are tired. The game just doesn't know what else to do but to leave that guy in.

Case in point:
http://www.thefobl.com/fobl/box2396.html

or:
http://www.thefobl.com/fobl/box1425.html

Happens a few times each season. No Jose Canseco relief appearances in OOTP. So this is far from a new issue.

And this is at the crux of something that bothers me with some games, and with all due respect I think OOTP has been more guilty of this in the past than some others.

This game has been promoted as being a "brand new" engine and rebuilt from the ground up. I infer that means that the game design began with a blank sheet of paper and no new code. Yet there are a handful of bugs of bugs in this game that have been in previous versions of OOTP in their exact same format. So the development team made the same mistakes when redesigning the engine completely? That seems too coincidental.

It doesn't bother me that they reuse code, but I just dislike what I perceive as disingenuousness of giving the impression that code is not reused. However, I think that SI is a big-time positive influence on Markus and the OOTP group -- I get the impression thus far that they think more along the lines of the fanbase on what is a bug and should be remedy and what is a design choice.

[kcchief19]

Originally Posted by Godzilla Blitz

Just reading the about how you guys are figuring out how to set up a league makes my head spin.

Can I get university credit for playing this game?

I don't think I'm ready to flipflop like Cooleyvol did over at the OOTP forums quite yet, but I will say this -- it gets better. The game gets less intimidating the more you use it. There are still things I think are a bit counter-intuitive, but my impression at this point is that this is a substantial upgrade over previous versions and worth the time time it takes to figure everything out.

The only thing that continues to disappoint me are the logistics of historic play. It was always frustrating to create a realistic historic replace spanning eras -- particularly the expansion era. But now the difficult level has been increased by a magnitude of 100 in this version.

First, playing with historic teams essentially means playing without minors unless you have your PhD in OOTP BM Customization. Minor leagues don't create automatically with an import league. If you choose to play with minor leagues, you need to do it all yourself. Expansion is still manual too. You have to add the teams yourself and there is no expansion draft. Expansion teams also get added in the preseason after players are already imported, which means that even if you are importing players on to their original teams in year one of a new franchise you have to add all those players by hand. If you're playing with minors on, you'll have to create minor league teams during expansion too.

If you're like Bucc and you only play in an era where league size is constant, it's not a big deal at all. What I can't figure out is this -- Baseball Mogul is a game that in almost all respects is inferior to OOTP and this version of OOTP in particular. But Baseball Mogul got historic expansion right and made it so freakin' easy. Why can't OOTP figure that out? It doesn't seem like it would be that difficult to automate historic expansion -- if Clay can do it, why can't Markus?

[Galaril]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

I don't think I'm ready to flipflop like Cooleyvol did over at the OOTP forums quite yet, but I will say this -- it gets better. The game gets less intimidating the more you use it. There are still things I think are a bit counter-intuitive, but my impression at this point is that this is a substantial upgrade over previous versions and worth the time time it takes to figure everything out.

The only thing that continues to disappoint me are the logistics of historic play. It was always frustrating to create a realistic historic replace spanning eras -- particularly the expansion era. But now the difficult level has been increased by a magnitude of 100 in this version.

First, playing with historic teams essentially means playing without minors unless you have your PhD in OOTP BM Customization. Minor leagues don't create automatically with an import league. If you choose to play with minor leagues, you need to do it all yourself. Expansion is still manual too. You have to add the teams yourself and there is no expansion draft. Expansion teams also get added in the preseason after players are already imported, which means that even if you are importing players on to their original teams in year one of a new franchise you have to add all those players by hand. If you're playing with minors on, you'll have to create minor league teams during expansion too.

If you're like Bucc and you only play in an era where league size is constant, it's not a big deal at all. What I can't figure out is this -- Baseball Mogul is a game that in almost all respects is inferior to OOTP and this version of OOTP in particular. But Baseball Mogul got historic expansion right and made it so freakin' easy. Why can't OOTP figure that out? It doesn't seem like it would be that difficult to automate historic expansion -- if Clay can do it, why can't Markus?

Good question.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

Why can't OOTP figure that out? It doesn't seem like it would be that difficult to automate historic expansion -- if Clay can do it, why can't Markus?

Clay didn't have to factor in the effects of expansion on the Outer Cumquat league on Ultima Thule.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

It doesn't bother me that they reuse code, but I just dislike what I perceive as disingenuousness of giving the impression that code is not reused. However, I think that SI is a big-time positive influence on Markus and the OOTP group -- I get the impression thus far that they think more along the lines of the fanbase on what is a bug and should be remedy and what is a design choice.

After reading posts over at the ootp forums, this is the reason I'm still thinking I might end up getting this game. It appears to me SI is really envolved with making sure the game gets patched and promptly. The only question is, "Can Markus do it?".

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

Of changing the pinch hitter's position from PH to, say, SS, having SS go --, and then when I drag a new pitcher onto the mound, instead of inserting him in the lineup spot with the -- for position, the pitcher goes into the 9th spot, where I JUST PUT THE DAMN DEFENSIVE REPLACEMENT.

For the love of God, is it that hard for the computer to intuit, "hey, there's a defensive change with a player taking the place of an existing fielder, but in a different lineup spot, maybe we should put the new pitcher THERE"?

Augh.

Must be an American League AI.

(This really got to me some years ago when Josh Lewin - who is by all accounts a pretty decent announcer now - was doing a non-DH game and just could not understand what had happened after a double switch. He went on and on about how the pinch hitter stayed in the game and was now in the field. He couldn't figure out how that could be possible. Now, he was primarily an AL guy as he was doing O's games at the time...but it was still pretty pathetic.)

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

It doesn't bother me that they reuse code, but I just dislike what I perceive as disingenuousness of giving the impression that code is not reused. However, I think that SI is a big-time positive influence on Markus and the OOTP group -- I get the impression thus far that they think more along the lines of the fanbase on what is a bug and should be remedy and what is a design choice.

I'll echo what I've said before (possibly at the FOBL forum and not here) - I think it is entirely possible that Markus didn't reuse actual lines of code for this. But, I also think it's possible that having knowledge of how the game was programmed before, he quite likely built the new code with the same logic as he had used before. Basically, coding the same functions twice. While some of the syntax might be a little different, the functionality is basically the same. So while bugs in the code might not be there, flaws in the logic could very well remain.

I also don't have an issue with using code from FM (as some seem to) - that just seems to be streamlined programming to me. That's the point of modular programming anyway.

I'll also echo the sentiment that the more you get used to it, the more you warm to the game. Scouting is pretty involved, but if I'm willing to take a career slow - day by day - it's not that bad. Some days that's all you're doing, really. I could see myself doing this in a career, considering I used to sim out 162 games for various teams in MicroLeague (each taking about an hour). Just something I have to get used to again. Also, I'm having a much better time at navigating around. It's not exactly second nature yet, but definitely getting better. There are still oddities with how the AI picks up players (I found a STUD 1B in FA in a small league and signed him for peanuts, only to get a trade proposal for him the following week), but I'm getting more into my first startup career.

Now...the main reason I picked up the game was in anticipation of the FOBL moving from v5 to 2006. This I'm not completely sold on, though I figure we'll be doing it eventually. Most of the additions to the game to me seem to be things that will be interesting for single player careers. For leagues, I'm not so sure. We already run w/o scouts, w/o coaches, w/o waivers, and have finances and contracts outside of the game. We'll be turning all of this off again I'm fairly certain. We're also not likely to change the league structure...so the international aspect of the game won't come into play.

So what does that leave? Beefed up HTML, for one. Problem there is, we're doing pretty well just with Cato and BOSI, and will probably be taking a step BACK until newer equivalents of these tools pop up (the game history still seems watered down compared to Cato to me). Another thing is more management of the minors. I really do like the idea of this, following actual games for minor leaguers is a great addition. Unfortunately, it requires teams to actually have full minors. Problem is...the FOBL has FAR from a full minors (see http://www.thefobl.com/fobl/team34m.html , http://www.thefobl.com/fobl/team20m.html for instance). Definitely issues there.

I think the big hope for some is that screwy AI decisions would be fixed. Things like RP abuse, for instance. I guess we have to wait a bit for that. At least maybe there won't be as many double steals in odd situations and line-outs to the catcher...

[FBPro]

But in all reasonable thought to say that Clay can add expansion to BM so Markus should be able to as well is like saying a Yugo and a Ferrari are on the same footing as far as cars go. They are somewhat the same 4 wheels, doors, seats, etc........BUT there are also unfathomable differences in the two which make comparison laughable. I'm not saying it isn't possible I'm just saying you can't compare adding it to one as being the same as adding it to the other.

[Buccaneer]

kc, I know we've discussed this before but I have found team movement/expansion in v5 to be fun to do. Sure it's manual but I like that it is not automated. As you know, I play in the 50s where there are 5 teams moving - that's easy. Then I hit the early 60s and you have the AL expanding 10 teams and then on eor two years later, the NL does the same thing. However in one career, I delayed the AL expansion until 1962 so I could do both at the same time. Takes about 5 minutes to do, including putting in the updated logos and stadiums.

With a game that has so many options, it doesn't make any sense to not give the gamer the option on historical movement/expansion. I would agree that an option could be given to automate this part but I would not ever play that way.

[dervack]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

kc, I know we've discussed this before but I have found team movement/expansion in v5 to be fun to do. Sure it's manual but I like that it is not automated. As you know, I play in the 50s where there are 5 teams moving - that's easy. Then I hit the early 60s and you have the AL expanding 10 teams and then on eor two years later, the NL does the same thing. However in one career, I delayed the AL expansion until 1962 so I could do both at the same time. Takes about 5 minutes to do, including putting in the updated logos and stadiums.

With a game that has so many options, it doesn't make any sense to not give the gamer the option on historical movement/expansion. I would agree that an option could be given to automate this part but I would not ever play that way.

See, I don't want it to be automatic. I want the ability to tell the game I want to expand, for me to pick where the teams are going and what the names are going to be, and then hold an expansion draft. I know that it seems hard for Markus to code as it's been asked for by many for years. But it would be great if we could do it that way then the manual way, which takes longer sometimes than most people will want to spend adding teams and then players to that team.

[miked]

Question for the guys who own the game and are playing the hell out of it...

In the UBL (our pseudo-FOFC OOTP league), I run a separate Euro league from which we import certain FA's that meet a specific criteria. Is it possible to import our 2 leagues into the same universe, but only have players flow one way (from EBF to UBL)? Would it just be better to turn foreign FA's up and jack up the amount? We get about 5-10 FA's each season that are eligible...is it possible to reproduce this?

Thanks!

[Maple Leafs]

All this baseball talk has me interested in firing up OOTP6 while I wait for the 2006 demo. Does anyone know if there are any rosters available for this season?

[jbmagic]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

After reading posts over at the ootp forums, this is the reason I'm still thinking I might end up getting this game. It appears to me SI is really envolved with making sure the game gets patched and promptly. The only question is, "Can Markus do it?".

How can you have confidence in Markus, if the same Ai bugs from previous versions are in the new engine of ootp 2006?

Do you honestly think after the game gets patch it will be fix finally?

These Ai bugs for waivers, trades, and releases has been going on for a long time. And I don't see those getting fix. I hope I am wrong.

Now these new bugs in ootp 2006 that we never seen in previous versions, I have confidence Markus will fix those in the incoming patches.

I just not understanding how the same old bugs are still in the new engine of ootp 2006.

I have confidence in SI, but your right can Markus do it.

I going to wait and see.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

Must be an American League AI.

(This really got to me some years ago when Josh Lewin - who is by all accounts a pretty decent announcer now - was doing a non-DH game and just could not understand what had happened after a double switch. He went on and on about how the pinch hitter stayed in the game and was now in the field. He couldn't figure out how that could be possible. Now, he was primarily an AL guy as he was doing O's games at the time...but it was still pretty pathetic.)

People get confused, I can see that.

Vin Scully went off one time about how a scoreboard in Arizona was broken because it was tracking balls, strikes, and pitch counts.

He was looking at the strike and pitch count part of it, and for the life of him he couldn't figure out why the scoreboard was showing a 2-15 count.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Maple Leafs

All this baseball talk has me interested in firing up OOTP6 while I wait for the 2006 demo. Does anyone know if there are any rosters available for this season?

Yes, here if you have access to the ootp forums:

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...d.php?t=114738

In fact, the whole league setup is about the best I've used since playing ootp. I'm in 2008 now and have had an absolute blast starting off with these.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

How can you have confidence in Markus, if the same Ai bugs from previous versions are in the new engine of ootp 2006?

Do you honestly think after the game gets patch it will be fix finally?

These Ai bugs for waivers, trades, and releases has been going on for a long time. And I don't see those getting fix. I hope I am wrong.

Now these new bugs in ootp 2006 that we never seen in previous versions, I have confidence Markus will fix those in the incoming patches.

I just not understanding how the same old bugs are still in the new engine of ootp 2006.

I have confidence in SI, but your right can Markus do it.

I going to wait and see.

If it can be fixed to be on par with 6.5 AND have all the new things 2006 has, I'll be happy. I don't think the MR issue is in the new version, at least I haven't read anything about it yet and goofy waivers.. although irks me, I can deal with.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by jbmagic

How can you have confidence in Markus, if the same Ai bugs from previous versions are in the new engine of ootp 2006?

Do you honestly think after the game gets patch it will be fix finally?

These Ai bugs for waivers, trades, and releases has been going on for a long time. And I don't see those getting fix. I hope I am wrong.

Now these new bugs in ootp 2006 that we never seen in previous versions, I have confidence Markus will fix those in the incoming patches.

I just not understanding how the same old bugs are still in the new engine of ootp 2006.

I have confidence in SI, but your right can Markus do it.

I going to wait and see.

My confidence is in SI. I fully expect SI to demand the core features of the game work. (ie: pitchers not playing the field, stat bugs, etc.)

Can Markus fix the waivers and some of the other issues? I don't think he can. I think some things are so far gone, they cannot be fixed. And my line of thinking is like JIMG, I think to fix some of this stuff it may take a new game designer.

It may be nasty to say, but we've been dealing with these same issues for four versions now. Get the damned things fixed already.

Still, I'm enjoying my time with OOTP. Frustrated? yes. Baffled on occasion? yes.

But it's been an enjoyable experience. I just pray to the Gods he gets the core issues fixed. I'll be more than happy to turn off waivers, other leagues and anything else if the core game works.

[TroyF]

A quick update: These are the things already fixed according to the Marc Duffy at the OOTP board: (I've bolded the things I find incredibly important)

General
Added the option to disable the news ticker to the game preferences
Added "Run computer manager on all teams" to the "Other Functions" menu of the league setup
Fixed problems with insufficient players on AI rosters (#1497)
Fixed crash problem when asking manager to set up depth charts (#1490)
Added ratings to the player lists used in the transaction screen and the trade screen
Fixed problems with nationalities and filters (#1493, #1496)
Fixed default Minor League city repeating (#1474)
Fixed buttons not adding correct amounts on the contract screen (#1476)
Fixed some inaugral draft head scout rating issues (#1478)
Fixed splitseason issue with playoffs (#1480)
Fixed unaffiliated minor league teams spending silly money on trades (#1482)
Fixed issue where subleague was duplicated on setup page (#1484)
Added more checks for a human controlled lineup before entering the game screen (#1617)
Fixed a problem with assigning SB stats on double-steals (#1615)
Improved rookie draft AI (#1614)
Fixed several cosmetic issues (#1611,
Fixed unwanted AI substitutions when simming to inning X (#1607)
Adjusted player photo loading, named photos have priority now and png's work now (#1605, #1430)
Fixed human manager age calculation when creating new game (#1580)
Fixed missing results from game log (#1572)
Fixed PbP problems on bunt plays (#1570)
Fixed crash problems when creating very small leagues (less than 5 teams)
Fixed in-game crash problems (#1561)
Improved retiring logic (#1549)
Improved trade AI when cash is involved (#1542)
Fixed the problem of pitchers playing other positions too often late in ballgames
Fixed CF importing from OOTP 6.5, some did not get an overall fielding rating (#1348)
Fixed illegal number of pitcher problem (#1405, #1421)
Fixed crash when opening empty game logs
Fixed filter coaches by league bug (#1424)
Fixed problem with crediting saves (#1425)
Improved batter development algorythm (#1454, #1456)
Improved AI minor league roster management (#1459, #1465)
Fixed game not ending properly when hitting "enter" after the game ended (#1463, #1464)
Fixed crashing on right-clicking on certain players (#1481)
Fixed crashing after importing certain OOTP 6.5 leagues together with standard leagues (#1483)
Fixed crash when sorting players by nickname (#1544)
Added notification on auto-fill lineups when the depth chart is not filled properly (#1551)
Fixed crashing on inning-ending injuries
Opening day starting pitchers selction improved (#1623)
Fixed players becoming coaches birthdate (#1626)
Spring stats now appear in team reports (#1410)
Fixed DFA loophole (#1498)

Skins

Fixed Pearl skin loading times

Schedules

Added information to the schedule evaluation report

Importing

Fixed problem with importing multiple OOTP 6 leagues into a signle OOTP 2006 game (#1495)

Play-by-Play and In-Game Text
Fixed issue with PbP showing a fielder named Davis when no player was named Davis
Fixed issue where text (nL) would show up in some PbP commentary(#1590)
Fixed issue where (%game fielder] was displayed(#1591)
Fixed issue where "OBP" was incorrectly written as "OPB"
Fixed issue where player is credited with a sacrifice bunt when the runner didn't advance (#1570)

[Marc Duffy]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

After reading posts over at the ootp forums, this is the reason I'm still thinking I might end up getting this game. It appears to me SI is really envolved with making sure the game gets patched and promptly. The only question is, "Can Markus do it?".

He sure can, I've had him slumped at his computer all weekend!

[Marc Duffy]

Just as a side note : Markus today went through all the high priority bugs logged in the system from the technical support forum. Most were fixed as you can see on the changelist. Some we needed more info for and a couple were flagged for patch 2 which i stress should tackle some of the more complex issues being raised.

I'm confident that we can achieve much of what you guys want irrelevant if it's a problem you've experienced in the past or not

[SackAttack]

Marc, how about the wacky pitcher usage?

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Marc Duffy

Just as a side note : Markus today went through all the high priority bugs logged in the system from the technical support forum. Most were fixed as you can see on the changelist. Some we needed more info for and a couple were flagged for patch 2 which i stress should tackle some of the more complex issues being raised.

I'm confident that we can achieve much of what you guys want irrelevant if it's a problem you've experienced in the past or not

I really hope so. I'm looking forward to hearing in the upcoming weeks/months that all of the significant problems have been fixed and this game is reaching its potential. If so, I've got my credit card ready to order.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

Marc, how about the wacky pitcher usage?

I think it is one of things that TroyF bolded in his post.


Edit: Nevermind, you weren't talking about pitchers playing the field. My bad.

[SackAttack]

Speaking of which, the Diamondbacks just had to use their closer for 4 innings, which initially set off alarm bells, until I noticed a larger problem - they were carrying only 9 pitchers, and had already used two of their three middle relievers (the other had been used the day before).

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

I think it is one of things that TroyF bolded in his post.

wrong wacky pitcher usage. I don't mean playing the field.

I mean closers pitching 6 innings, that sort of thing.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I haven't bought the new OOTP, but if SI can get Markus to fix these long-standing problems, I'm going to go over to Europe and tongue-kiss every single one of the guys there.

[SackAttack]

Pumpy, I thought you WANTED those problems fixed.

You're confusing me here, man!

[Marc Duffy]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I haven't bought the new OOTP, but if SI can get Markus to fix these long-standing problems, I'm going to go over to Europe and tongue-kiss every single one of the guys there.

I'm primed and ready for your visit!!

[Pumpy Tudors]

[TroyF]

Marc,

One little note about the exact wording of the bug listing here:

Fixed the problem of pitchers playing other positions too often late in ballgames


Too often should be virtually nil. It should happen maybe two or three times a year, if that. MLB pitchers make to much money and are to valuable in this day and age to have them play 3B or LF even for an inning at a time.

I remember it being done on occasion by Herzog and some other creative managers, but those were for some very specific purposes. (ie: with a lefty, rightie, lefty coming up, Herzog might call on his lefty reliever to get the first guy out, then move him to RF for the right handed hitter and then put him back on the mound for the next lefty)

If Markus is ingenious enough to create that scenario, that's terrific. Other than that, it simply shouldn't happen at all.

[SackAttack]

Oh, interesting.

My third baseman apparently has no position.



Maybe he needs to be a DH.

[SackAttack]

I love this scouting report.

"Boss,

Our coaches have reported that 19-year-old left fielder Teo Toble looks very uncomfortable at the plate these days."

followed by:

"His overall record up to this point in the season shows the following: 5 games played, .350 BA..."

If that's uncomfortable at the plate, feed the rest of my prospects what we're feeding Toble, please.

[lynchjm24]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

I love this scouting report.

"Boss,

Our coaches have reported that 19-year-old left fielder Teo Toble looks very uncomfortable at the plate these days."

followed by:

"His overall record up to this point in the season shows the following: 5 games played, .350 BA..."

If that's uncomfortable at the plate, feed the rest of my prospects what we're feeding Toble, please.

I got the pitching version as well. So and so looks uncomfortable on the mound.

Blah blah new ratings which are lower.

He's very confident this season, in 17 IP he's given up 15 hits and 2 ER and has an ERA of 1.whatever.... and he's 19 and in the FSL.

I guess it's safe to say that the minor league stats don't have anything to do with development or my scout's opinion of the player.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

I love this scouting report.

"Boss,

Our coaches have reported that 19-year-old left fielder Teo Toble looks very uncomfortable at the plate these days."

followed by:

"His overall record up to this point in the season shows the following: 5 games played, .350 BA..."

If that's uncomfortable at the plate, feed the rest of my prospects what we're feeding Toble, please.

Maybe he did look very uncomfortable at the plate.

Maybe the pitcher looked even more uncomfortable when he was at the plate though.

[SackAttack]

I love this guy.