BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Hey all, you've seen the poster for this game in the GenCon pics and we'll be making an announcement for the game in the upcoming weeks. Boku Strategy Games (The War Engine, Combat Command 2, Horse and Musket) is producing this game.

Before describing what it is all about, I wanted to hear what you'd like it to be - besides settling internal arguments as to what direction we should take http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif , your input may influence the final game. So if you don't mind indulging us, I'd like to hear what you have to say.

[ August 04, 2003, 04:13: Message edited by: Mike Cooney ]

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Anything that slows the release of 82nd Airborne is a dumb idea.

And baseball is not related to wargaming.

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

I have been eagerly awaiting this since the photos of the poster from Gencon were released. I was wondering when the SGSports label was going to get some titles.

It kind of tough to exprese opinions when we don't have a clue what the game is like though, no?

Maybe if you could gie us a small taste of what the game is like we can discuss it.

Geoschmo

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Joe for the Last time, geez. This does not slow down the release of 82nd. It is developed by an outside developer. We have to publish outside developed games to stay in business to put out 82nd, so if it weren't this it would be another game. If you don't like that you could send in the money for the remainder of the development costs and we can put everything on hold for a month http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif . So chill out.

Personally I think this is going to be an awesome game.

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

I think we know where Joe98 stands on things...

And I DEFINITELY am interested in Base Brawl!!!

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

As for what I'd like it to be...

Well, that's a tough one...

I'd like it to be a baseball game, not too dissimilar from Avalon Hill's old bookshelf baseball games, but with a bit more strategy and chance involved.

I'd also like it to be bloody http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif

What I'm thinking is a sort of "no holds barred" setup in which players are ranked according to a variety of attributes: fielding, batting average, slugging, speed and brawn, for instance, while pitchers are graded on velocity and control. So far, it's pretty much like normal baseball.

The "brawl" part comes in the strategy: pitchers can actually try to hit batters on purpose, and batters can rush the mound. Physically blocking the base paths is perfectly legal, as is tackling. For instance, a runner at second can try to tackle the shortstop to prevent him from making the play on a ball hit his way. Batters will be able to try to hit the ball directly at opposing players in order to take them out. That sort of thing.

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Not familiar with AH's old baseball game, but everything else (partially) highlights BaseBrawl!!! to an eerie degree... As for more strategy and chance, the game is played on a large grid: no abstract decision matrices.

[ August 06, 2003, 00:29: Message edited by: Mike Cooney ]

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

The old (original) AH game, in a nutshell:

Each team has a 25-man roster (including 7 or 8 pitchers.) Each fielder has a ranking for hitting and fielding, as well as handedness. Each pitcher is listed as either a fastball pitcher or a junk pitcher. The pitcher would select a pitch location, the batter would select a target quadrant, and you look up on a matrix and go from there.

The second edition was a bit more complex than that, with further divisions of quality. Still, it was rather simplistic and completely matrix-based. If the batter correctly guessed which pitch the pitcher was throwing, good things would happen. Otherwise, he's out. I'm not sure I like that model.

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Take the old Blood Bowl, apply the concepts to baseball and you may have something. Some dedicated fans are STILL playing Blood Bowl on the PC.

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

They must be very, VERY dedicated to still be playing that Version. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif I've written to GW more than once for the Blood Bowl license to do a new PC Version just to finally put that one to rest (they wanted 100K's of retail sales...)

[ August 08, 2003, 17:53: Message edited by: Mike Cooney ]

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Sorry to hear that Mike. I'd put my pre-order in for a Blood Bowl remake right now. Here's a Blood Bowl remake/mod link that you might find interesting.

http://www.gonegold.com/ubb/ultimate...=008095#000000

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Yo Mike!

This sounds like a really promising project. I think just the thing that'd make baseball more interesting is the ability for the batter to keep the bat with him and have to FIGHT for those bases. <eg>

Seriously, though, maybe the basemen should have a chance to block (ala football, or maybe as even even more OTT Version, ala certain Jackie Chan movies <g>) incoming runners.

The image of the game-play that pops to my mind is a chance for the pitcher to put it over the plate, or aim for the batter. If he hits the batter, there's a chance for injury. (And detailed injury locations that effect player performance are a must!) The batter would get a walk though, and not get challenged by the baseman. If the pitcher throws it over the plate, there's a check to see how the swing goes, and if it goes far enough, the batter has to contend with the basemen. And, if one side wants to just mess up a star hitter, they might walk him and let a bruiser baseman go over-the-top in his defense, get ejected, but put the batter out of the game for the series . . .

Yeah . . . just picture it . . . the CARNAGE! <weg>

Oh, and team managers, doctors, trainers, etc. would be a great addition. Maybe stats like team spirit could add in to "morale checks" while training gives boosts to skills. The doctor would get a chance to rehab players between games (or even between innings for minor injuries) and there might also be a physical trainer to build up toughness as well as a skill trainer for hitting/batting/etc.

Fertile area for a game . . .

(Gives me a mod idea too! The martial arts add-on! Will the Shaolin Sluggers with their Snake Fist style outpitch the Kung Fu Klubbers with their Dragon Fist batting technique?!? OK, maybe that's going too far . . . <g>)

Re: BaseBrawl!!! Big bats, Hard Balls.
 

Slightly related to this subject, there was an excellent future sports game called Crush Deluxe which had medical and skills and stuff. It was really good

Id love to see someone make a genuinely good Version of bloodbowl with a season system

Me and my circle of friends have been playing a long running game of Blood Bowl using 1st edition rules that we've tooled a bit.

We're now on our 24th season and the game is great with each team with its own history and all time greats

I'd love to see it on computer

Cheers