The Gaming Tailgate: NCAA Football 12 Preview

[Kwizzy]

10) Ever since NCAA '09, the OL has basically been psychic, in that they know who is blitzing and who is dropping back into coverage based on pre-snap assignments. This tends to make overload blitzes much less effective than they should be, and actually opens up some potential exploits with "fake blitzing." One of the most frustrating things about pass defense on NCAA '11 is drawing up a zone blitz, and the having the OT on the complete opposite side of the play peel back at the snap of the ball to pick up an overload blitz to the other side. Does this still happen on NCAA '12?

I did notice something that gave me some hope for this, I saw more sacks from blitzing LBs rather than DTs. Now in the past I feel like it was th opposite way around because, like you said, the OL knew they were coming and would pick them up. Now my only concern was that the OL shouldn't let the inside man come free all of the time & that was in my feedback. They assured my that is all still being tweaked so we'll see what happens.

Also, as tommy said, the DTs were really overpowered last week so it's tough to say on anything related to line play at this point. I will say however that you are able to get through smaller holes because of the improvements to suction animations so that really helped with shotgun running.

[souljahbill]

Can I change the color of my shoestrings? If not

[gschwendt]

Can I change the color of my shoestrings? If not

Sorry madam... consider the deal broken.

[skipwondah33]

I second that

[Oneback]

1) It sounds like the improvements to zone AI will dramatically lessen the effectiveness of things like SG 5 wide and 4 verticals type plays. Is that the case?

This was the first play I tested and yes it does lessen the effectiveness of verts. There was a big improvement in this area from the first visit to the second visit, I will let others comment on what it was last week as I was unable to attend.

2) Did you notice any difference in terms of defensive reaction to counter plays? On NCAA '11 they are way over-effective.

The dev team acknowledged the counter was over effective last year and did work to improve the defensive reation to the play. For me it felt good, as on offense you still had the ability to break a big one, but I did not feel helpless on defense.

3) To what extent did you see a more fully developed running game from the shotgun? In other words, do more playbooks have non-finesse HB runs, such as dive and power plays? In a similar vein, the QB wrap plays from last year were basically broken. Do these work effectively now?

Anthony (play designer) and I sat down and talked for a few hours about blocking schemes and the shotgun running game, everything from Auburn's power run game to Oregon's Veer and Midline option from the gun. He was going to work to get a lot of plays and blocking schemes in but am unsure if he has yet, I'll leave it up to the guys that were there recently.

4) Bubble screens on NCAA '11 did not really work all that well because of poor blocking AI and some odd animations that seemed to throw off the timing of the play. Do these work better now?

This is another area I spoke with Anthony at length about and it seemed to be better when I was there, but was unsure if this was due to the new defenses or blocking logic.

5) Is play action fixed so that it does not result in a disproportionate number of sacks? Similarly, is the defense able to respond/recognize play action effectively?

I will leave others to answer this question as they were still working on offensive line blocking the two times I was present.

6) In terms of pass rush, did you see any significant changes in terms of DEs/OLBs getting better speed pressure off the edge and/or containing mobile QBs? Have there been any changes to how "QB contain" works? What about DTs? Do dominant DTs get penetration against both the run and the pass?

I was able to generate pressure from a 4 man rush and they did have the ability to get off blocks in order to maintain containment. No changes to QB contain that I remember. As for DT's I remember seeing a replay where a DT pushed to blockers into the backfield colapsing the pocket but I did not specifically look for it.

Generally speaking, how would you compare the pass rush in '12 to '11. I don't just mean in terms of sacks generated, but do you see a more realistic pocket? Do you see more realistic amounts of time in the pocket to pass against a 4 man pass rush? On NCAA '11 it basically felt like you either had all day or no time at all, and the real problem is that there weren't enough instances where the offense did not get sacked but was forced to throw it in under 4 seconds. To what extent is that still the case?

I will let others that were there last week respond this this as again they were working on offensive line play.

7) I don't know if this counts as a non-play now feature, but do we have the Madden QB ratings yet? Similarly, NCAA QBs have been way too accurate for years, which has contributed to zones being under-effective and spread offenses being too hard to stop. To what extent is that the case this year (on default sliders)? Will there finally be a premium on pocket passers? Are there more significant penalties for throwing off-balance or on the run?

Rosters were just being put together when I was in Orlando.

8) Any changes to the way run/pass commit work?

None that I noticed.

9) Do dominant nose-tackles, particularly in a 3-4 defense, actually command a double team, particularly in the run game?

What do you mean by command? Just that they are unblockable?

10) Ever since NCAA '09, the OL has basically been psychic, in that they know who is blitzing and who is dropping back into coverage based on pre-snap assignments. This tends to make overload blitzes much less effective than they should be, and actually opens up some potential exploits with "fake blitzing." One of the most frustrating things about pass defense on NCAA '11 is drawing up a zone blitz, and the having the OT on the complete opposite side of the play peel back at the snap of the ball to pick up an overload blitz to the other side. Does this still happen on NCAA '12?

This was the first thing I brought up with the devs and one of the first things I tested on defense and I felt as though I was able to confuse the blocking scheme and generate pressure with zone blitzes, this combined with pattern reading zone coverages allows for some exotic pressures.

11) Many of the triple option and read option plays on NCAA '11 did not work as well as they should have because the double team logic often struggled to correctly identify players at the second level to block. This was especially an issue when the defense blitzed linebackers in the gaps between offensive linemen. Is this issue improved in any way on NCAA '12?

I was able to run the zone read however I spent a good hour with Anthony just talking about the zone read, I will let others comment on if there has been any improvement from the early visits.

12) Suppose my opponent keeps throwing the same route over and over. For instance, let's say that he keeps coming out and throwing the slant pattern to the right side on 3rd and short. Does the defense ever react to this? Is there any mechanism for me to manually tell a defender to shade to a particular side?

The answer is yes and no, the defense called will determine the effectiveness of the offensive play, however again with improved coverages you are able to take things away.

Generally speaking, is the defensive AI better suited to adjust when the offense runs the same play (or very similar plays) over and over?

I'll let others comment.

13) Any adjustments to hot routes on offense or defense?

This is another thing I spent time talking about and how un realistic it is to be able to change routes for each individual play on offense, at the line of scrimmage offenses are able to change concepts which happens most notibly in the quick passing game depending on the leverage of the key defenders. I'll let others comment on if this has changed from the times I attended.

14) Any changes to the kicking game? Will FGs be any more difficult to make than they have in the past?

Not that I remember, other than the fact you won't be able to attempt as many due to better defense.

15) One of the things that is frustrating about run defense on NCAA '11 is that defenders really have no concept of gap responsibility. Essentially, at the snap of the ball everybody moves to try and tackle the ballcarrier, without any respect to the gap/hole they are responsible to fill. This is primarily an issue for DL and LBs. Do we see any changes in this respect? Will linebackers who are not assigned to blitz be more effective at stepping up and plugging holes when they recognize the play?

This was unchanged in the early builds so I will let others respond.

[ram29jackson]

sorry if i'm being lazy not reading everything.....

is there really a difference in crowd reactions? Gschwendt, did you get to play an Ark State home game and notice what that crowd was like?


:rolleyes:v how come Steelerfan got to be involved ?
I didnt know he was considered special around here?

[drlw322]

nice write up. Just a quick question, did they take out pro-tak all together or is it still in with the new tackle engine. Thanks for taking your time to do this for the community.

[ram29jackson]

did they still keep run commit etc?

[gschwendt]

sorry if i'm being lazy not reading everything.....

is there really a difference in crowd reactions? Gschwendt, did you get to play an Ark State home game and notice what that crowd was like?

Yeah... there definitely seems to be a difference. The way they captured the audio for each is that they went to varying sized games (Florida, FAU, high school, and more) to gather audio for the various sizes of crowds & stadiums. So... when you play at a big stadium, you'll hear the crowd react as though it's a large attendance.

nice write up. Just a quick question, did they take out pro-tak all together or is it still in with the new tackle engine. Thanks for taking your time to do this for the community.

Pro-tak is still there... remember though that's not just the tackling, it's blocking, etc. There are still "9 man" tackling scrums that we saw last year. The new tackling mechanics though build on it differently.

did they still keep run commit etc?

Yes.

[fsuprime]

U really should just read everything

[JBHuskers]

I took the morning off from work....woke up around noon....what I miss?

[JBHuskers]

Especially in an epic game between myself and steelerfan where my defender tipped the ball at the line of scrimmage and his receiver caught it and fell into the endzone for a touchdown. Completed a comeback from down 14-0 for him and he ended up winning the game when he pick-6'ed my desperation heave to avoid overtime.

The ending of that game was SICK. One of the best endings I had ever seen in a NCAA game.

[JBHuskers]

I read that they have improved on the zone defense, now in a play now game how did the defenders protect their assignments and what was your take overall of the "new" zone coverage?

...as I'm catching up.

At first people are going to think the game is broken because the defense is so improved. The cool thing is there were still a game here and there where both teams score 30, but there were also times where it was a defense struggle. You are basically going to have to revamp your offensive scheme because what you know now will not necessarily work in 12.

[JBHuskers]

Given that all you (saying bad things under my breath about you lucky SOB's) got to be part of this and help shape NCAA 12 what from the play now games stuck out to you guys the most? What was "your" wow factor within the Presentation and the Play Now? And please everyone chime in, I love different takes on it all.

I really like the amount of new animations in the game. It definitely breathes some life into the game and doesn't feel stale. There are some BRUTAL hits too.

[JBHuskers]

Oh boy, as "psuexv" would say "my pants just got a little tighter".......

We might have to create a Cold Shower thread for you two

[Boucher]

Couple of Questions...

Stat Overlays are there more of them and are they more frequent in which they appear?

Secondary color armbands/sleeves?

Playcard on the belt?

[gschwendt]

Stat Overlays are there more of them and are they more frequent in which they appear?
Yes... they're not timed or anything but now instead of being told "show overlay at 100yds", they're instead told to show up at more random times. An example might be that after 12 carries, you'll see your HBs stats... he might have 10 yards, he might have 70 yards. It's not a perfect system but certainly much improved in that regard. (FYI 12 is just a random number I threw out there)

Secondary color armbands/sleeves?
Player editing isn't in play-now games but I want to say the answer is no.

Playcard on the belt?
Again, can't say for certain but I don't believe you'll see that.

[tweety21]

Again wanna say u guys are doing a great job...nice breath of fresh air not over hyped

[JBHuskers]

A few random thoughts.

I spent several hours playing the game with headphones on last week (mostly to avoid JB's rants, lol) and I must say the game sounds great. There are lots of new drum lines that play throughout the game that give you atmosphere. The PA guy also says, "Penn State FIRST DOWN". Nice little add.

[JBHuskers]

Again wanna say u guys are doing a great job...nice breath of fresh air not over hyped

Thank you sir!