OOTP vs Strat-O-Matic

[Dr. Brian]

So what is this game about? In SOM, I can draft my team and play the last season out. So right now, I use the stats from 2012. What does OOTP use for the 2013 season, andwhere can I find a compilation of those stats to draft the best team possible?



In SOM, there are in game decisions. Are there any in OOTP, specifically,advancing the runner to score? Is it anin game choice or does the computer just figure this out?



After I complete a season with trades and injuries and all,what happens to my team? Is it somehowported over to another season and I start with what I ended the previous yearwith?



So many questions, as the manual was crap on my iPhone.

Sorry for the basic questions.

[Dr. Brian]

Anybody that can help, it'd be appreciated.

[pstrickert]

1. OOTP uses the Baseball Prospectus PECOTA projection system to rate players for 2013.

2. OOTP allows you to make baserunning decisions (first to third, second to home, etc.). I believe this applies to relatively uncertain situations. If it is clear that the runner has no chance, the runner will be held. If it is clear that the runner will make it safely, the runner will be sent.

3. One season rolls over to the next with the same roster. Of course, you can make off-season trades and sign (or not sign) players to new contracts.

EDIT: I'm referring to OOTP14. Sorry! I didn't realize I was in the iOOTP forum.

[Jordan]

Knowing how addictive Strat-O-Matic can be, I'm having a hard time believing you won't fall in love with whatever version of this game you might purchase.

Also, it sounds like you want to draft a fantasy roster using real major leaguers. There is a function in this game where you can do just that before you start playing out games

EDIT: I should say that you can do that in OOTP14. I haven't played iOOTP 13 yet, so I shouldn't say that necessarily about that game.

[BradC]

You can indeed do a fantasy draft with real MLBers in iOOTP. (There's an option for that when you set up a new game.)

Dr. Brian: Are your questions in reference to OOTP, our game for PC/Mac, or iOOTP, our game for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad? I ask because OOTP has tons and tons of depth to it, whereas iOOTP is geared more toward casual dimming, so it would help to know which game you're talking about before I run down all the details.

BTW, OOTP lets you make the call RE runners advancing (although not always; it depends on the situation), while iOOTP doesn't.

[Dr. Brian]

All my questions are for the iOOTP version .... so it does sound like there are some limitations, such as the in game decsisions?

I also ahve so many questions that the manuals don't seem to cover, like how Potential or skill increases or decreases.

[BradC]

Just about all the in-game decisions in OOTP are in iOOTP, with the exception of a few, such as Pitch to Contact.

RE potential and skill ratings increasing and decreasing: The game mimics a typical player's career, so their ratings will start on the low side when they're young, but they'll have potential ratings that you can see when you look at their batting, pitching, and fielding in more detail. Their ratings will then increase toward those potentials as they age, and once they peak, they'll start to slowly decline. As in real life, though, some players decline faster than others.

And, of course, some players start their careers with pretty high ratings - there may not be as much of a gap between their current and potential ratings, while others may need more time to fully develop. Again, that's like real life too.

Feel free to post any other questions you have.

[Moneybrawler]

As a longtime Strat player and a recent iOOTP player, we might share some of the same perspective.

First, let me state that iOOTP is addictive with two "A's". If I don't do well on my finals this semester, I'll know why.

Second, it picks up in places where Strat falls short. Instead of doing single-season replays, you can play from 1901 until the end of time conceiveably. There is also a financial system in place (optional), meaning there are free agents, budgets, arbitration, etc.

However, one area where iOOTP comes up short in comparisson to Strat is customization. In Strat, you can build you own league from scratch, have (some) influence on the schedule, create different playoof formats, etc. You can also edit a team's info, like their ballpark (and the ballpark effects). Player edits are also available in Strat.

From what I can tell so far, these options aren't available in iOOTP yet. As a Strat player, you may find this frustrating. I love customizing leagues and wish this was an option here. It can really be an issue for me when my game progresses into expansion years, as the new team will NOT be added. So if you start in a year with the original 16 teams, you will always have just those teams. Plus, even though I never edited players in Strat, I really want to in iOOTP. This is because some pitchers, such as Pedro Martinez, debut as relievers and their stanima doesn't seem to ever increase enough to make them viable starters.

Another area where Strat is better in my opinion is that there are more stats readily available and sortable.

As far as in-game play, the biggest feature I miss is the option in Strat where you can compare batters to see who has the better chance of getting on base or hitting into a double play.

Hope this helps. If I got anything wrong about iOOTP please correct me.

[BradC]

I just wanted to point out that there are tons of customization options in OOTP, our PC/Mac game, so if you want full customization, you may want to go that route. That game lets you build leagues from scratch, edit player and team info, edit ballparks, edit players, and much, much more.

iOOTP is geared more toward casual simming, so we don't expect to ever have the same depth of customization, although we are planning on adding a player editor at some point.

[Dr. Brian]

Yeah, the whole potential thing stymies me. As does this PETCO ratings. Where can I view that stuff?

And when we're talking about past seasons, isn't it using the actual stats, or is it still using something else? Will players generally perform the same as they did in that past season?