Suggestions for FHM

slimjim111 · 12-29-2017, 10:59 AM

Hi,

A couple of things that came to mind for future releases of FHM. I've been playing many different sports management games since the early 90s so I was hoping to make some suggestions.

Firstly, I wanted to say that OOTP has done a good job over the years of implementing new leagues and features, but there is always room for development of course.

In terms of the in-game play, I find this is probably the feature that needs most improving. The location of the 'puck' and the events described do not make sense. At times the puck can be located at the opposite end of the goal but the action being described is that a player is taking a shot on net. It would be great to keep the top down view but actually see numbers or players and the puck. It would be great to see actually which side you are defending and where you are scoring. It took me a while to understand what the logic was and whether or not teams change sides after each period.

Right now it just feels very arbitrary. You do not get a sense of how your tactics are working and how the team is actually playing, for example if you have an umbrella tactic for the power play, you don't see if your team can establish itself into position or not.

The momentum idea is good but flawed. I've had multiple occasions where I've played against a team that got 2 or more penalties in the span of 4-5 minutes and the momentum never shifted to my side. Of course, this could happen in a game, but again, the lack of a visible in-game feature makes this difficult to understand why momentum does not shift.

Furthermore, there needs to be the feature of press conferences. This is a MAJOR part of hockey now and I think that Football Manager is a good example of how they've done this. Again theirs is not perfect. Answering poorly to questions or in a brash way should affect the team morale and your reputation.

Right now things feel too one-dimensional: set your tactics and play. It doesn't matter if your team is in a slump, there is nothing you can do to shake things up... apart from changing roster/tactics or doing a trade. You should be able to address your team to do team talks, or have individual talks to praise/criticise a player's performance. Obviously, a player's personality would become more important since if you spoke harshly to a brash or sensitive player, it would have higher odds of having a bad affect on the player.

Moreover, in hockey, just like any sport, controlling the locker room is key. Once you lose the dressing room, it's pretty much over as a coach. To implement such a dynamic, having core groups or influence groups are key. If you pick harshly on a player that is influential player and part of the core of a team (a la Crosby) it might lead to a bit of a revolt in the dressing room if he feels your comments are unjustified.

There should be a mode where you are just the coach and not only GM or GM/coach. This could be an interesting mode where the GM can make trade suggestions to you or depending on the type of GM or ownership, trades can be made without your full approval. You can then perhaps go to the GM and ask to trade for a LD or RW and list the players you might be willing to give away. Or you can perhaps list a player that the GM can shop around if the player is playing poorly or is unhappy at the team. This could be an interesting challenge/mode.

Just as with having dynamics with players, there should be a more elaborate dynamic with owners (depending if the owner is a hands-on type), coaching staff/scouts.

Last but not least, the overall UI can be optimized. Logos take up so much space, the layout is awkward, fonts feel generic, and in general there is a lot of dead space on screen. A good example is your NHL team's logo on the top left corner and the fact that the text 'NHL Entry Draft' is cropped under Draft Logs. There are so many instances where text is cropped. Same can be said about the layout of the in-game section. During highlights, the team roster is cut out since the image of the ice rink is overlayed on top. Moreover, it is rather annoying that the list of names is cropped during the game and you have to scroll down to view the 4-5 players on the bottom (I believe it is the LW position that gets cut out).

I know this is A LOT to take in and implementing all of it perfectly will take years, but I think that they would add more depth to the game overall.

Thank you!

12-29-2017, 10:59 AM	#1
slimjim111 Bat Boy Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 10	Suggestions for FHM Hi, A couple of things that came to mind for future releases of FHM. I've been playing many different sports management games since the early 90s so I was hoping to make some suggestions. Firstly, I wanted to say that OOTP has done a good job over the years of implementing new leagues and features, but there is always room for development of course. In terms of the in-game play, I find this is probably the feature that needs most improving. The location of the 'puck' and the events described do not make sense. At times the puck can be located at the opposite end of the goal but the action being described is that a player is taking a shot on net. It would be great to keep the top down view but actually see numbers or players and the puck. It would be great to see actually which side you are defending and where you are scoring. It took me a while to understand what the logic was and whether or not teams change sides after each period. Right now it just feels very arbitrary. You do not get a sense of how your tactics are working and how the team is actually playing, for example if you have an umbrella tactic for the power play, you don't see if your team can establish itself into position or not. The momentum idea is good but flawed. I've had multiple occasions where I've played against a team that got 2 or more penalties in the span of 4-5 minutes and the momentum never shifted to my side. Of course, this could happen in a game, but again, the lack of a visible in-game feature makes this difficult to understand why momentum does not shift. Furthermore, there needs to be the feature of press conferences. This is a MAJOR part of hockey now and I think that Football Manager is a good example of how they've done this. Again theirs is not perfect. Answering poorly to questions or in a brash way should affect the team morale and your reputation. Right now things feel too one-dimensional: set your tactics and play. It doesn't matter if your team is in a slump, there is nothing you can do to shake things up... apart from changing roster/tactics or doing a trade. You should be able to address your team to do team talks, or have individual talks to praise/criticise a player's performance. Obviously, a player's personality would become more important since if you spoke harshly to a brash or sensitive player, it would have higher odds of having a bad affect on the player. Moreover, in hockey, just like any sport, controlling the locker room is key. Once you lose the dressing room, it's pretty much over as a coach. To implement such a dynamic, having core groups or influence groups are key. If you pick harshly on a player that is influential player and part of the core of a team (a la Crosby) it might lead to a bit of a revolt in the dressing room if he feels your comments are unjustified. There should be a mode where you are just the coach and not only GM or GM/coach. This could be an interesting mode where the GM can make trade suggestions to you or depending on the type of GM or ownership, trades can be made without your full approval. You can then perhaps go to the GM and ask to trade for a LD or RW and list the players you might be willing to give away. Or you can perhaps list a player that the GM can shop around if the player is playing poorly or is unhappy at the team. This could be an interesting challenge/mode. Just as with having dynamics with players, there should be a more elaborate dynamic with owners (depending if the owner is a hands-on type), coaching staff/scouts. Last but not least, the overall UI can be optimized. Logos take up so much space, the layout is awkward, fonts feel generic, and in general there is a lot of dead space on screen. A good example is your NHL team's logo on the top left corner and the fact that the text 'NHL Entry Draft' is cropped under Draft Logs. There are so many instances where text is cropped. Same can be said about the layout of the in-game section. During highlights, the team roster is cut out since the image of the ice rink is overlayed on top. Moreover, it is rather annoying that the list of names is cropped during the game and you have to scroll down to view the 4-5 players on the bottom (I believe it is the LW position that gets cut out). I know this is A LOT to take in and implementing all of it perfectly will take years, but I think that they would add more depth to the game overall. Thank you!