No More Player Ratings - sticks323's Blog

sticks323's Blog

No More Player Ratings

Posted on July 22, 2014 at 02:05 PM.

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When a new sports game is released we quickly look at the ratings of our favorite players and compare to other players. When people play online they quickly grab the highest rated team or player regardless if they are fans. With all these updates in sports games I think it�s time to slowly walk away from ratings.
I don�t want to completely get rid of ratings because they are helpful especially to a person new to a game or sport. Ratings can help a person choose the right player to fit their team. I think ratings hurt the online experience mostly. When you play head to head against a friend you can agree to do a random selection of teams or fighters and have a good time.
I recently picked up UFC and the online play is good. However when you do the championship mode you can�t see the opponent pick their fighter. I usually pick the highest overall person/team last after I use everyone else. So in UFC you end up fighting the highest rated person in a weight class. The person doesn�t have to be good to use the highest rated fighter and they can get lucky. I�m tired of fighting Bruce Lee, Anderson Silva and GSP online. Ratings can sometimes hinder a game.
In Madden people usually go with a mobile quarterback or a team with a great defense online. They run around with the QB or try to run the option. Any skilled player could easily defeat this type of player but you don�t see all the teams being selected while playing online. Too often I found myself playing against the 49ers, Seahawks or the Panthers because they have mobile qbs and great defenses. Instead of picking your favorite team, people usually go with the highest rated teams.
NBA 2k has a rating problem as well. The Miami Heat or the Oklahoma City Thunder are the go to teams online because you have LeBron James who is the highest rated player in the game and Kevin Durant who is the best scorer in the game. To make matters worse some players only shoot with LeBron or Durant and Westbrook.
Besides overall ratings for teams or players I think these sports games have too many ratings that don�t really matter. I don�t like the fact that 2k has letter grades and number ratings. I don�t understand the reasoning for having an Inside and a Close rating. The hustle attribute is not needed; I don�t have many opportunities to dive for a loose ball. Emotion shouldn�t be an attribute either. Is the player with the highest 3 point rating really the best 3 point shooter in the league? What exactly is ball carrier vision used for in Madden? If you have a better Kick Return rating does that really make you better at returning kicks? I usually go with the fastest guy on my team.
I know we can�t get rid of ratings but they need to be adjusted. There should be no 99 overall in any game. LeBron is the best player in the world but he�s not perfect. In a career mode most people just try to get a 99 overall. How does this give players a unique experience? A 99 overall shouldn�t be the goal when you start a career mode. Career mode should give me a reason to comeback with a different type of character, to try different things and get a different type of player. I don�t want VC/experience point cheats so I can be a 99 quickly.