I asked if the game has alternate team colors this year.Originally Posted by steelerfan
I asked if the game has alternate team colors this year.
I understand. And that is your right. No worries.
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@gatorbait NCAA has 4 times the amount of teams to worry about, which is why they're the last to do such things as alt colors. I'm not making excuses for them on something that simple and I agree with you... just pointing out its not as simple with so much more code to sift through.
Not only that, but they have half the resources that the Madden team has monetarily so they have to pick and choose what they do with their presentation budget and I would think getting stadiums, normal jerseys, and lighting fixed would be WAY higher on the totem pole than alternate colors and silly shit like socks.
NCAA had the alternate team colors coded in in previous editions. I don't think it's a question of code or resources. The amount of memory consumed by the team list could be a problem, but that's about it. Time and design priority are the most likely reasons, with the latter being much more important than the former. An intern could easily be responsible for the alternate colors, so then it's just a question of putting in the hooks to use it.
Twitter: @3YardsandACloud
Just wanted to stop in and say that I'm back home now and going to be working on this this afternoon. I plan to have all of the questions answered by tonight and also post my own impressions.
I'm going to start working on my full impressions write-up but wanted to get the Q&A out to you guys so you can start dissecting it. Continue to post questions as the week that we're down there is a major whirlwind so certainly easy that I might forget something I want to mention... questions can only help jog that.
Was the "Aggressive Zones" gameplay setting fixed, particularly for the CPU's use?
I didn't really test this... there were times where the deep coverage wasn't getting deep enough but generally just on one side of the field. Several of us noted this in our bug reports so I feel confident that it will be fixed by launch as similar bugs happen each year and are fixed. This could have been related to Aggressive Zones by the CPU.
Pass rush? Does the front 3 or 4 put pressure on the QB within 4 seconds consistently without the need for blitzing?
Not necessarily consistently but it does seem at least somewhat better in that regard. No longer are DTs able to get quick/instant pressure like last year but it certainly seems like DEs push upfield on the outside farther/faster.
Penalties? Do they have any new ones? Do they get called on default sliders or on maxed out sliders?
They did add the Illegal Touching penalty where a WR steps out of bounds, comes back in, and is the first to touch the ball. I know that was a complaint from last year. I didn't do any testing with penalty sliders but as a group we made sure they were aware that Pass Interference is not called enough. It sounded like it was something they were already looking at but no promises if it will be fixed for launch or not.
Special Teams any significant changes to this important aspect of football? New plays or formations? More realistic FG attempts? Blocked kicks a possibility(mostly punts since I blocked some FG's on 11' and 12')?, Better blocking on punt returns, coffin corner kicks for CPU and more control of the Punt for the user(deadening the ball inside the 10 rather than always having it bounce into the endzone)?
The major changes were to the punt return side of things. As shown in the video, the punt coverage team will stay in their lane. As well, the punt return team has new punt return plays... they scrapped all of the old ones and replaced them. Now on the max return you'll have two guys from the middle of the formation dropping deep to try to setup a wedge for the return. This seems to have improved the return somewhat allowing more 5-10 yard returns but also allowing the occasional 40 yard return or more.
As well, the ball physics on punts is different this year... if you let it hit, it will bounce higher instead of skidding low along the ground.
Non-option pro style running game improvements? Better blocking by lead blockers, pulling linemen, and WR's? Better power back animations(trucking, dragging defenders, and carry defender)? More effective stiff arms, jukes, spins, and trucking moves for USER and CPU?
There was not a lot of focus on that this year, though we certainly made them aware that it needs to improve greatly for the future. That said, it certainly seemed better this year, particularly the animations for trucking and stiff arms that have less loss of control time... if you succeed in stiff-arming someone, you'll be able to recover more quickly and expect to pick up additional yards in most cases.
As far as blocking, it seems largely the same this year up the middle, however outside blocking, particularly with WRs it seems greatly improved. Before, the DB would make a near instant move allowing him to play the ball too easily. This year though, he holds against the block later so that he can read where the play is actually going. This impacts not only the outside run game but also impacts greatly in the WR bubble screens and similar plays.
Can somebody possibly see how the crowd reacts now to in-game situations??
It seemed considerably improved... they would swell during big plays, etc. particularly when using a team that sells out a large stadium. I think it still needs some work and it's certainly possible we weren't seeing the final product (we were playing various builds that had various focuses throughout the week).
I would love to know if they have added any new sliders.
No new sliders. However I have a slider overhaul idea that I plan to detail later that would greatly improve that area. I plan to share it with them first and get a general idea on how likely something like that might happen in the future before posting it here.
Will they add an option to change the player momentum of the game?
No option to change it, however it is most certainly changed this year. It is now a lot like we saw in NCAA11 instead of NCAA12. Linebackers particularly are not able to recover and change directly as quickly. I think most will be satisfied with the changes in this area.
Will the cpu ever be able to run the spread option effectively?
This area is certainly improved. I played against Oregon and they weren't quite as deadly as they could/should be but they were much better than last year. Overall, the Shotgun Spread Option is greatly improved, due to A) the QB takes off much easier/much quicker and B) the defense is no longer instantly reacting once an option decision is made. In the past, as soon as you made your read option, the CPU defense would react to it but now you can certainly find space as I was having success with Michigan, Oregon, and Arkansas State running spread option.
Will they actually use game tuning files this year?
I talked with a couple of devs on this and the answer is that they hope to, however the difficulty in that is that in order to actually release a tuning file, they still have to have testing on it with 10-20 testers to see that the changes don't break something else. Unfortunately the only time they can really put that much attention to it is around the time that they're preparing for a patch which is why you see them released together.
Any new throwing animations or attributes for QBs?
As showcased in the video, the throwing animations were changed, particularly on the run. Otherwise though, not necessarily a ton done to standing still/pocket throwing animations. As for attributes, unfortunately the new ratings are not in. They are aware that we want to see them added for the future.
Big time WRs - do they actually matter now for the cpu?
It could be a placebo effect but in the games I was playing against the CPU, they did indeed target their primary WR more often. Part of this is likely due to the changes to coverage as more elite WRs should be able to get open just based on ratings, etc.
How has the double team WR option changed?
This has been changed to where if a CB and Safety are doubling a WR, the CB will generally play him short while the Safety will ensure that he keeps deep coverage behind him. It's much more realistic in that regard.
Which (if any) of the following Houston Cougars items will be "in the game"?
I saw the new UH logo is in the game. I didn't look nor really see the new Cougar logo so I can't say either way. I never used Houston myself so I can't comment on the field art changing. I did look at their uniforms and they appeared to the same as last year. Obviously depending on how they handle that post release, it potentially could be changed once Houston unveils their new uniforms.
Has the crowd movement been updated to match the crowd swells?
I really didn't pay much attention in this area so I can't really comment on it. However, they didn't really suggest that any changes have been made in that area. My best guess would be unchanged for this year.
are o/d-line battles still static or will i be able to see a 380 lb o-lineman drive a 180 lb safety playing d-end 10 yards downfield?
I didn't do any testing for scenarios like this. I do understand why you're interested but I was more concerned with looking at how the game played out of the box and as intended so I didn't test any scenarios like this.
Are the spread punt formations in the game or is it just some minor changes to the regular punt formation?
There weren't any changes to the punt formations themselves, rather just the punt return formations. The return formations do seem better in allowing you to generate a return but again, the punt formations themselves are the same.
Will Tennessee run through the T this year?
I didn't look at this so I can't say for certain but in all of my trips I've never heard it mentioned so I would be willing to say that no they will not run through the T this year.
With the alignment fixes, will one corner be able to be up in coverage while the other is off?
You will see CBs playing at varying depths, however I don't believe you have any control over this manually, rather it seems based on playcall and/or random. That said, if you put your DBs into press coverage, I believe that all will move into press except for your safeties who will stay deep (similar to last gen).
Is there a "matchup" option to keep one cb on a specific receiver all game no matter where the wr lines up?
No, unfortunately not. It's certainly something I'd like to see but is not used as prominently on the college level as it is at the pro level.
Do Safeties finally react appropriately to help over the top of man coverage or do they still turn late and allow the wr to get by them on a regular basis?
They seem improved for deep coverage however as I noted earlier, there was a bug that they weren't playing coverage properly all the time so we were seeing instances where a post might easily get behind a safety who is playing too shallow.
Do Defensive players still replace themselves if you move them presnap and then switch off of them?
Yes, I believe they do still replace themselves.
"Man Align" was in the preplay adjustments in previous versions for the defense. Has that been removed due to the finally proper alignment on defense? If it has not been removed, what is it's purpose and how does it work?
This year, it's called something like "Change Alignment"... essentially it gives a different look. For example, I was on defense and the offense came out in a 4WR Tight formation versus a Dime Cover 2 Zone look. Out of the huddle, based on this year's alignment changes, the CBs all lined up on their man (even though they were in zone). When I hit the button to change alignment, my DBs reoriented themselves to the alignment you would expect to see against a 4WR Spread. I didn't do any other specific testing on this but it could be interesting to see how this works in other scenarios.
With the new throwing system, is it still possible to overthrow receivers or do they always adjust to the throw?
Yes, you certainly can, even moreso this year. If you throw a post downfield and use the left stick to change the WR's direction with the pass, he may not be able to get to the ball in time or if your QBs THA rating is poor enough, he may just put it in the wrong spot.
Does anyone know if the game will include alternate team colors?
I didn't look for this specifically but they've not made any mention about it in the times that I've been down there so I would say that the answer is likely no.
question on the shovel pass.....does your rb have to have a certain route called or does it just happen if he's set to block?
I don't think he has to be in a certain route nor does it have to be on a certain play (I think misinformation was posted on that earlier)... it all has to do with the relationship to the QB/HB. If they're close then the QB will shovel it. As you saw in the sizzle video for gameplay, the HB ran a curl and the QB eventually ran towards the line and underhanded it to the HB. I think this is the type of relationship with the two that you'll have to see in order to trigger that pass animation.
They do anything on defense to stop the four vertical plays or the deep ball in general? In 12 you could run four verts every play and someone would always be open.
I really didn't test this. I remember there being a discussion about something like this but I don't remember what the end result is and whether any changes were made this year or not.
is the wr blocking logic fixed?
Particularly on WR screens, it seems like a change was made so that not only do WRs engage their counterpart but as well, the DBs no longer try to instantly release from the block. As in real life, the DB has to watch as the play develops and then choose which side to release to... that's what they seem to do this year, though of course you'll still see screens blown up from time to time but certainly more rare than you saw on NCAA12.
I'm sure this is the case but will wr's adjust when they look for the ball based on the QB's arm strength? When a weak armed QB throws a seam will the wr look for the ball sooner?
The "look" windows are all pre-programmed based on the route so the windows will essentially be the same regardless who the QB or WR is. However, they look early enough that even if a weaker QB throws it, they can be ready... unless of course you're talking about a 60THP then that could be a different story. Along the lines of receivers looking for the ball, there are situations where a receiver will look earlier for the ball, particularly when he takes off in his route and realizes not a single defender is around him he'll start looking much sooner than he would otherwise.
are you guys allowed to say anything regarding formation subs? did they bring the quick subs feature over from madden, that allows you to insert subs from the playcall screen? or do you still have to pause the game in order to use formation subs?
I don't believe anything was changed regarding formation subs.
did they work on kicking trajectories too?
I don't believe the trajectories were changed really, at least not in regards to see kicks blocked, etc.
what is meant by the option pitch being enhanced? whats different about it ?
The main change is the relationship with the QB and the pitch man. Last year you'd see examples where the pitch man was running nearly parallel to the QB which shouldn't happen. Additionally though, it at least seemed that as a user, the button to pitch the ball seemed to be more responsive.
I know things are still being tuned but how has the scoring been so far? Any low scoring games?
There were varying levels of scoring. I think it might have been a little on the high side in most cases but I know for a fact that one of the games in our annual tournament was won 9-6.
what about user controlled players on defense? do i need to try strafing at the last second to get my lb to see the ball and then swat it or does looking for the ball automatically happen depending on his awareness?
As a user, you'll still have the same capability for making plays manually. You won't need to "see" the ball as a user so you could technically switch to a defender and make a play that the CPU wouldn't be able to make on their own.
is the cpu flagged for intentional grounding and pass interference this year?
I think the intentional grounding is much the same as it was last year. However, in most cases it wasn't actually grounding that you were seeing. Grounding is only called if there is a defender making pressure on the QB forcing him to throw it away. If the QB is not under pressure and throws the ball away, he is not called which is what you saw the majority of the time on NCAA12. I don't know that anything was changed in this area for NCAA13.
As I mentioned previously, pass interference is something that they are looking into for this year. It wasn't happening really in the builds we were playing but we certainly made a case be known for it and they were already looking into it.
Did they fix the pistol? I know it has been asked about the shotgun running game, but as a guy who lovess the pistol, it was questionable at best on 12.
Personally, I didn't have too much trouble using the Pistol last year, though I only used it as a change-of-pace instead of a fulltime philosophy. Unfortunately you asked your question after I had already left so I didn't get to do any extensive testing with this. That said, in the limited use that I did have with the Pistol while I was down there, it seemed much of the same as last year, though again I had success with it last year.
Last edited by gschwendt; 04-22-2012 at 05:47 PM.
Thanks a lot G.
Nice post G, looking forward to more of your general impressions. Quick question, what determines when defenders look for the ball?
Thanks G. Good stuff in there.
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I was most pleased with the passing game overall. I felt like I had a lot of control, but it didn't always translate into always completing passes. There was one specific instance where the TE did a slant curl route to the middle of the field. He was double covered on the right, but everyone else was covered as well. I decided to throw a quick pass holding the left stick to the left and I was able to thread it in there. I thought that this was really cool in terms of having control on your passes. It doesn't always work though, I had a few instances where the defense would get a hand in there, whether it would be from the front, or coming around from the back.
In regards to penalties, I did see roughing the passer a few times in the two days I was down there (I had to leave early on Friday). I also did see a couple instances of offensive pass interference. These were two items I rarely saw in 12.
In regards to QB options and scrambling...that animation is MUCH faster and better. This is key in terms of being able to take off initially, which was way too slow in 12.
For throwing on the run, you are definitely not going to be able to have much accuracy if you are throwing it while running backwards to avoid a defender. I saw many instances where I was trying to avoid the sack and get the ball out and it would basically go straight into the ground five to ten yards out. It would be too low for a close receiver to catch, and if the WR was on an out route, it wouldn't even be close to him.
For shovel passes, I was initially told that it was only triggered on certain plays, but it apparently isn't. I was having a hard time triggering a shovel pass on a HB curl route as it was running towards the back. It would just do a soft overhand toss to the RB. I did tell the devs about this and hopefully that gets fixed.
Regarding 4-verts. It would always seem like the TE was open in 12, that was because the safety would always play the TE to the opposite side of the cut he would make 15-20 yards down field. This rate of success is definitely lowered in 13. There were times that the TE would get open, but there were also times where the safety would undercut the route and be in position to swat the pass. This play should not be as money was it was in 12.
Kicking trajectories were not touched.
Crap! I wish I had saw this thread last week. I had a few questions I would have liked to asked. Thanks for the info gschwendt and JB.
I'm sure you could still ask.
Thanks Tommy, JB. Very good to see a few more details and your impressions. Nice work.
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Thanks guys.
Appreciate the insight.
Great job Tommy.
Thanks for answering all our questions, I definitely appreciate it.
I'm looking forward to the demo in June.
First test is whether or not the aggressive zones by the CPU is fixed(ruined 12'). Second test is the Penalties like Pass Interference by running into and impeding the receiver's route with the pass in the air(changes from arcade passing to more sim). Third test is using the stiff arm and right analog moves for RB's, especially trucking (would love to really punish smaller/weaker defenders).
Question 1: Any new run plays, pass plays, trick plays in NCAA 13'? I would love to see some like the double reverse, hook and ladder, shotgun flea-flicker, fake reverses, and have the ones already in the game actually work like they do in real life.
Question 2: Have the defensive playbooks been expanded at all(new formations or zone blitz plays that work and/or old plays that were removed for no good reason have been added back in)? It seems like over the years many plays are removed entirely with no suitable replacement or the new plays just don't work.
Last edited by WolverineJay; 04-22-2012 at 09:41 PM. Reason: Added couple of questions
what about the socks! I play high school football i won't even think of consider commiting to a collage unless they have good socks!
I'm honestly not certain. I think it's a various amount of things like the WRs route, if the WR turns to look, etc. I never got a definitive answer to that but it seemed to have a pretty good feel for it. If you're asking what rating controls it, that I have no idea but would assume MCV/ZCV is going to be the largest factor.
I never paid attention to the socks so I never really even asked about it. Personally, that is very low on my list of priorities so it's hard for me to hold them very accountable for it.
Based on some things I saw last year, I believe repetition of a route/play will have a much more significant effect this year. Obviously that's just a guess because I haven't had hands-on anything, but I'm hoping I'm right.
Last edited by JeffHCross; 04-22-2012 at 10:01 PM.
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