BuzzerBeater Forums

Thanks mate, good spot there.

On a related note, what do the BBs actually do? There hasn't been one change to the game I can think of since I started playing again in January 2011.

Are my expectations too high? I would hope for changes to the game in that time (and not just the addition of a few stats). It seems like there hasn't been any development of the actual game in the last couple of years?

i told yas you all fools for backin the dreamers...

just 1 of those games, we pretty much won everywhere except on the scoreboard where it counted :D

They added career stats page this year. Also added random pops (cross training) - other than that I'm not sure

The last big change I can remember was when they added the new tactics. Box and one and isolation. Problem is none of them seem to be that popular and it was a long time ago now. They have made a few economic changes in recent seasons. 5th and 8th not paying salaries, salaries going down, free agents coming back, then less free agents coming back with the $10-$20,000 minimum salaries needed, the salary floor and probably a lot of others. There was also the new scouting system which is a lot better than the old one although I still think they need to improve the median standard of the draft (not the top). So that is a lot of changes really.

They are hardly 'game development' changes though, most of them are just tweaks here and there. There's been very little game development, or changes to improve the game experience, that I've noticed since I came back 18 months ago.

- The new tactics had just been implemented when I started again, making them ~18 months old. Like you said, they're not very popular, and there seems to be a fair bit of debate around whether they even work as they're intended to.

- Economic changes are not really 'game development', nor do they take much to implement. 5th and 8th not paying salaries is a pretty easy change, I doubt it took much effort at all to implement. Same with the salary floor.

- Free agents are total balls. Excellent way of killing the transfer market and I have no idea how the BBs didn't anticipate that happening. Flooding the market with a bunch of available players is only going to kill prices, which affects the profitability of training, plus a large range of other areas. this is without even considering the effect that money leaving the game (i.e. because it doesn't go to another team when a free agent is purchased) has on the overall economy. Totally ridiculous addition to the game.

- Salaries will need to be adjusted as the game progresses, but this is really 'maintenance' rather than 'development'.

- The current scouting system was in place when I joined again, which makes it more than 18 months old.

- Cross training was added a few months back, but if that's the best change they can come up with, then I'm not really sure what they actually do over there? Sure, it's nice... but the addition of random skills being trained each week is hardly what you would call a revolutionary change to the game. Some would ask why they would bother implementing this at all? What does it really add to the game?

- Career stats are nice, but they aren't particularly difficult. These have been around in most other sports management games for ages.

There are a number of major flaws in the game that need to be addressed sooner, rather than later, so it really makes me wonder what they are actually doing? The fan survey (let's face it, it's pretty much broken), tanking and the ability to buy up players for the playoffs (just to name a few) are all major issues with the game, but nothing seems to be done to address them...

Even the fact that you can't play your best team in three competitive matches each week (i.e. league and cup) without suffering a gameshape penalty is ridiculous and totally illogical. That's probably another debate for another time though.

i told yas you all fools for backin the dreamers...

just 1 of those games, we pretty much won everywhere except on the scoreboard where it counted

Outside shooting big men is where I got you.

I don't reckon they do much, either.

There are so many changes I'd like to make... There are a few big things that annoy me:

1. GS (a realistic concept but not at all realistic in BB)
2. Enthusiasm (completely unrealistic)
3. Tanking (completely unrealistic)
4. FA (they're ok if they're done moderately and based on number of accounts, but in BB they're not)
5. Lack of team chemistry
6. Lack of tactical options


Wouldn't it be awesome if we could start our own game?

I may be a little biased, but the game mechanics in HT work so much better, with significantly fewer problems than BB.

They have 'form', rather than gameshape. Over there, playing a guy in all matches during the week won't make his from go down, which is how it should be. There's no reasonable explanation for preventing u from playing our best line up in three competitive matches for the week.

Taking is a massive problem, no arguments there.

Enthusiasm adds some strategy to the game, plus it's used in all sports management games I've come across, so I guess I'm used to it. Don't have too much of a problem with it (I do agree that it's totally unrealistic, but it seems to work ok).

Free agency is a total balls up. I can't believe they implemented it without anticipating any of the transfer market and economy problems it would cause.

Team chemistry would be a great idea. There's a similar concept in HT where players get a bonus to their skills, dependent on the length of time they've been in your team (up to a maximum of 3 seasons). It works well because it gives a nice bonus, but isn't so overpowered that it's the only way to be successful (which is very important).

A lot of the tactics appear 'broken', or not working as intended. Most of them revolve around boosting one area at the expense of another (e.g. more inside scoring at the expense of outside scoring)... these aren't really 'tactics', let's be honest here. Agree with you on that point.

Is HT a soccer game?

Yep.

http://www.hattrick.org

I don't actually like soccer, but I really enjoy the game.

Check it out and if you're interested in joining up, I'll 'invite' you to my league. The new seasons starts next weekend, so it's good timing.

Last edited by Matt1986 at 6/8/2012 1:25:59 PM

Good debate by everyone but I do disagree with the game shape points made here. One of the reasons everyone was so high on Greg Poppovich this season was because he did such a good job managing his stars minutes and keeping them fresh and in the best shape for the playoffs. Likewise some commentators have said (WARNING NBA SPOILER)the reason for the Celtics falling apart in game six is just because they look tired and need rest.

In this game the game shape mechanism works really well to reward good management. In whatever division I have been in I have always been able to win extra games during the cup as teams with better rosters exhaust their players and ruin their game shape. I think making the managing of a team a bit more skilful is a good thing.

Play your best roster every game for the entire season = best chance to win = low skill.
Have to manage minutes very carefully during the cup for three games a week and at the allstar break for a one game week and not always play your stars = best chance to win = high skill level required.

It is the same for enthusiasm management. I agree it is totally unrealistic. I can't imagine Erik Spoelstra and Doc Rivers both sating to their teams, "It is game one of a seven game series so it is essential that we take it easy this game and don't try too hard, that will make us better in the next game". So it fails on the realism test. However in the does it make the game more of a challenge and reward clever management? Yes. Knowing when to TIE and when to normal, and to identify those very, very rare games when you actually should CT (tough cup match followed by two games against tankers) takes skill. I like the game rewarding skill.