FHM 2 Teaser Thread

[cyclone]

As mentioned,

The oddest thing for me about this is the match engine "patch" which if course is not really a patch but a redesigned game (because the last match engine didn't work).

But for 1.5 years of work on this, we had one basic post that made suggestions that were going to be in it, but all this time not one screenshot of it, not one bit of detail in any area (how will proper assists be calculated, how will forecheck effect puck possession, how shooters are rated to score with it, what penalties look like). It has just been a black hole in this area.
A few screenshots of some new logos and type face is fine, shows they are making progress in a few areas, but the hockey areas are the reasons everyone stopped playing it after a few hours or days.
match engine, proper stats, hockey related match engine, trades, rosters, draft choices whatnot. It is the hockey areas that doomed the first version, and those are the areas they are showing nothing of. is there really progress in it. We don't know because no one is saying or showing anything.

A few teases of the work being done in these key areas would go along way to giving the guys more space to say *hey they are improving.* Someone posting a one sentence comment *the game is getting better" tells us nothing if they have no bit to show to prove it.

Anyway...

[Prowl]

While I applaud you Sebastien for not releasing the game before it's ready, I was kindly wondering if we could get a closer look at how the match engine works. Similar to what OOTP does, maybe you could stream something on twitch so we could have a good look. Honestly, I haven't touched FHM since it was released because it was pretty poor (sorry, but my opinion) and to be honest, I haven't personally seen anything other than some UI shots of the new game. I would love to see FHM do really well as I'm an avid OOTP player, but there's not enough for me right now. Again, I understand you want to avoid the mistakes from the first release, but surely, there has to be something that you could show us on a video that would make us want to give the game a shot. In a niche market such as text sims, reputation is really important and so far, I am not enthusiastic.

[Sebastian Palkowski]

With the Match Engine, where most of the interesting stuff is under the hood, it is hard to really show it off. But we will do our best to explain (supported with e.g. screenshots) the new engine as detailed as possible. And before you buy FHM 2 (if you want), you can test the Match Engine in FHM 2014 first, so you can see for yourself if it suits you or not.

While I applaud you Sebastien for not releasing the game before it's ready, I was kindly wondering if we could get a closer look at how the match engine works. Similar to what OOTP does, maybe you could stream something on twitch so we could have a good look. Honestly, I haven't touched FHM since it was released because it was pretty poor (sorry, but my opinion) and to be honest, I haven't personally seen anything other than some UI shots of the new game. I would love to see FHM do really well as I'm an avid OOTP player, but there's not enough for me right now. Again, I understand you want to avoid the mistakes from the first release, but surely, there has to be something that you could show us on a video that would make us want to give the game a shot. In a niche market such as text sims, reputation is really important and so far, I am not enthusiastic.

[Prowl]

With the Match Engine, where most of the interesting stuff is under the hood, it is hard to really show it off. But we will do our best to explain (supported with e.g. screenshots) the new engine as detailed as possible. And before you buy FHM 2 (if you want), you can test the Match Engine in FHM 2014 first, so you can see for yourself if it suits you or not.

While I applaud you Sebastien for not releasing the game before it's ready, I was kindly wondering if we could get a closer look at how the match engine works. Similar to what OOTP does, maybe you could stream something on twitch so we could have a good look. Honestly, I haven't touched FHM since it was released because it was pretty poor (sorry, but my opinion) and to be honest, I haven't personally seen anything other than some UI shots of the new game. I would love to see FHM do really well as I'm an avid OOTP player, but there's not enough for me right now. Again, I understand you want to avoid the mistakes from the first release, but surely, there has to be something that you could show us on a video that would make us want to give the game a shot. In a niche market such as text sims, reputation is really important and so far, I am not enthusiastic.

Thanks Sebastien. Is is accurate to say that we will see the patch for FHM before FHM 2's release? Best of luck to you all and I really want you to be successful.

[SkierP20]

With every turn, every post, and every day that passes by I find it more and more unbelievable that this game falls under the same umbrella as the company who puts out a game of the quality and in the manner that OOTP Baseball releases and is handled every year... I just don't get it.

Maybe somebody in the development world can help shed some light on this for me, but I find it intriguing that in a company as small as OOTP the guy in charge of PR for the game finds himself "not privy to the inner workings of the development team aside from my Beta testing involvement." If its his responsibility to handle the "hype" for the game how does he not know information about it? If I am wrong, I am wrong. Like I said, if somebody with more game development knowledge than me can shed some light on this, that would be great.

[Sebastian Palkowski]

Thanks!

Yes, the patch will be released before FHM 2.

With the Match Engine, where most of the interesting stuff is under the hood, it is hard to really show it off. But we will do our best to explain (supported with e.g. screenshots) the new engine as detailed as possible. And before you buy FHM 2 (if you want), you can test the Match Engine in FHM 2014 first, so you can see for yourself if it suits you or not.

While I applaud you Sebastien for not releasing the game before it's ready, I was kindly wondering if we could get a closer look at how the match engine works. Similar to what OOTP does, maybe you could stream something on twitch so we could have a good look. Honestly, I haven't touched FHM since it was released because it was pretty poor (sorry, but my opinion) and to be honest, I haven't personally seen anything other than some UI shots of the new game. I would love to see FHM do really well as I'm an avid OOTP player, but there's not enough for me right now. Again, I understand you want to avoid the mistakes from the first release, but surely, there has to be something that you could show us on a video that would make us want to give the game a shot. In a niche market such as text sims, reputation is really important and so far, I am not enthusiastic.

Thanks Sebastien. Is is accurate to say that we will see the patch for FHM before FHM 2's release? Best of luck to you all and I really want you to be successful.

[nino33]

FHM is now promoting FaceGen http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/f ... -fhm2.html
I think it looks horrid, and can't imagine ever using it myself

To be honest, FHM may have missed the "window of opportunity" with me...

[Manimal]

To be honest, FHM may have missed the "window of opportunity" with me...

Yet, you keep reading their forum...

[nino33]

To be honest, FHM may have missed the "window of opportunity" with me...

Yet, you keep reading their forum...

Did you notice the "may have"? That indicates not yet decided, thus I keep reading their forum
You seem to be indicating I shouldn't read their forum...not sure why

[Vanaja]

"..may have.." = nino33 will buy FHM2 for sure

[nino33]

It's not hard/doesn't take much time to keep on top of things regarding FHM

[Prowl]

The facegens look interesting and I'm sure hoping they turn out well. Not to sound sarcastic but I don't think FHM 2 will need to worry about the 14-15 rosters when the game releases.

[MWE]

Not a fan of the facegen thing my self but then again im not a fan of player pictures on FM or EHM either. Each to their own I suppose.

[nino33]

Recent developments with FHM...
July 20th - Expansion (ability to expand NHL by two teams) http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/f ... t-2-a.html
July 27th - Strategy/Tactics http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/f ... rhaul.html
August 1st - Improved FaceGen http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/f ... hm2-4.html
Today - New Game Engine http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/board/f ... ation.html


For me the face on facegen now looks much better, everything else is pretty much not to my taste.

Expansion (and fictional play) really mean nothing to me...

Tactics/Strategy looks like a start (what I expected from version 1 really).

The Game Engine looks OK to Good...it's hard to judge a Game Engine from a screenshot! HaHa I wonder if there's a zoom mood where I can see a bigger rink and not some of the other stuff currently on the screen (like the bottom right player info with the facegen graphic)


What I really like are two things
- the ability to change backgrounds! a big deal for those that play out there games (even if only in part)
- the big deal/the best part/the great hope...the idea that every second of an actual simulated hockey game is actually simmed

[archibalduk]

On the face of it, I think it sounds very promising (of course I won't talk about my experiences beta testing it owing to the NDA). I think it's a really positive step forward and there's a lot that has improved over FHM 1.

Their PR guy, Cole, describes the tactics system as giving unprecedented control over the user's team. However, I'm not really sure in which way it is unprecedented. As far as I can see, it's nothing more advanced than the likes of EA's NHL GM Mode or EHM which clearly precede FHM... Unless I'm missing something. Either way, it does look a big improvement - assuming of course it works as intended.

[zbguy]

FHM2 has a lot to live up to but I have a good feeling about it for some reason.

[nino33]

Their PR guy, Cole, describes the tactics system as giving unprecedented control over the user's team. However, I'm not really sure in which way it is unprecedented. As far as I can see, it's nothing more advanced than the likes of EA's NHL GM Mode or EHM which clearly precede FHM... Unless I'm missing something.

PR/hype are a huge part of FHM/OOTP

I read today how the stats tracking is "miles beyond anything EHM can do" and my first thought was - does that include international play too? Because my understanding is FHM2 will have no international play. For me FHM2 can't possibly be "miles beyond" with no international play/stats (and I don't understand the need to reference EHM at all)

[archibalduk]

Was that one of the OOTP devs that said that?

Personally I try to avoid comparisons as far as possible. I don't think it's all that constructive comparing the two as it seems to create friction between some people.

[nino33]

Was that one of the OOTP devs that said that?

Smetana (FHM2 NHL researcher, not a developer for those who may not know).
I find outside of Cole, pretty much all the FHM supporters/posters are prone to excessive hyperbole and attempts at internet wittiness/sarcasm (which pretty much never work IMO, and pretty much always come across as childish/unhelpful, only make things worse and reduce the poster's credibility)

As Manimal has noted HaHa I still follow the development of FHM (while choosing to rarely post there).
I love simulations, I love sports simulations even more, and hockey simulations the most (and I'm a huge historical/retro hockey fan) so I hope both FHM and EHM are successful/longlasting!

My biggest reason for wanting to avoid comparisons at this time is there is no FHM2 to compare EHM:EA to, which means the current comparisons come across as more hype/PR (or worse, unnecessary "cheap shots" being taken at EHM)

[Smetana]

I'm the one who said it. The stat tracking in FHM2 is better than in EHM. International play has nothing to do with it. It's simply a fact, and a poster was asking about it, so I stated that fact.

It was not a cheap shot at EHM. I like EHM just fine, but it has its shortcomings, and history tracking is a big one. I did not speak in hyperbole, I simply made a statement. A true one.

There are things that EHM does better than FHM2, and vice versa. The fact that you choose to bag on everything that I say is becoming comical, Nino. You should put me on your ignore list, so you're not bothered by my statements when you browse the FHM boards.

Humorously enough, when I typed "miles better than EHM" when referring to history tracking, I laughed and knew somebody over here would take offense to it, most likely you. I hit the post button anyway.

[nino33]

So in your world international play missing is "miles better"
Given FHM2 has no international stats tracking, isn't that missing?
Do you think it's harder to add more robust stats tracking? Or worldwide international play?

Every time another opinion is expressed on the OOTP/FHM boards, you or others like you "freak out" and speak like little children (in your language of hyperbole, your group acts like 10 year old Taylor Swift fans at a slumber party, freaking out because someone doesn't agree with them about Taylor Swift).

Fortunately TBL isn't like the OOTP/FHM Boards. People actually discuss things, and differing opinions are allowed.
My opinion is without international play/stats it can't be considered "miles ahead" (this lack of international stats seems to be a "fact" that you missed.....you are aware EHM progressed from the freeware you worked on right?). And the poster didn't ask you about EHM, or mention EHM, only you did.

Humorously enough, when I typed "miles better than EHM" when referring to history tracking, I laughed and knew somebody over here would take offense to it, most likely you. I hit the post button anyway.

That's because as a representative of FHM you to often make bad choices.

[Smetana]

You're not comprehending very well.

The issue at hand was stats and history tracking. Yes, international play includes stats, and EHM's history tracking in this area is also lacking. FHM2 doesn't have international play. It's penciled in for the next version.

The poster asked about stats tracking. I stated it was much like that in OOTP baseball, to draw a comparison, and also that it was better than EHM, to draw another informed comparison. I've played rubbish-tons of every version of EHM. I am aware it has progressed nicely over the years. EHM does a lot of things well. This isn't one of them. Don't get so butthurt that you have to come back here and huff about it. EHM:EA is a good game. It's not perfect.

Every time another opinion is expressed on the OOTP/FHM boards, you or others like you "freak out" and speak like little children (in your language of hyperbole, your group acts like 10 year old Taylor Swift fans at a slumber party, freaking out because someone doesn't agree with them about Taylor Swift).

Please provide some actual examples of me "freaking out" when others express their opinion. Good luck with that. I tend to get bent out of shape when people are irrational, and I can troll back just as hard as they can troll me, but I'm always receptive to the rational, well-considered opinions of others.

[nino33]

We see things differently, you need to accept that

[SkierP20]

Since you asked... I'm bored at work with nothing to do so here are some highlights from the first two pages of your comments.. I was going to post them below, but that's not going to accomplish anything. Its just going to pick a fight and that's not going to do anybody any good but there were 5 or 6 posts in the first two pages of your comments that came across as a bit more aggressive than I have seen from any of your counterparts.

I'm going to be honest with you on this one, Smetana, you post some great stuff over there. Its very informative, and I legitimately mean that. You have an inside view of where development is going and that is great. But now that Sebastian isnt posting as often on the thread anymore, you're the first to jump down anyone's throats when they have anything negative to say about the game and its development.

I admire your outspoken support for the game, I really do. And I dont in any way view you or any of your colleagues on the Beta team as "bootlickers" as you said you might be referred to in one thread but the problem here is Sebastian brought most of the criticism on himself not just for how he developed the game but for how he handled himself on the forums last year.

Its great to see the game going in a positive direction and I am not going to be purchasing FHM2 much like Nino and its not because of the progress the game has made. I'm very interested in where the game is headed and I plan on potentially purchasing the game down the road but to be quite honest, for me its more of a personal thing than anything. The PR roll-out was handled poorly and with Cole coming out and basically running a one man show with the campaign to rebuild the brand of the game, well, that's something that I can support and admire I've even stated that multiple times over at the OOTP forums but with the way Sebastian handled himself with the iOOTP situation a few years ago and the FHM fallout after its release.. I quite honestly cant see myself putting my money in his pocket for FHM2.

Again, not trolling, not picking a fight. Just sharing an honest opinion.

[Garethw87]

Was that one of the OOTP devs that said that?

Smetana (FHM2 NHL researcher, not a developer for those who may not know).
I find outside of Cole, pretty much all the FHM supporters/posters are prone to excessive hyperbole and attempts at internet wittiness/sarcasm (which pretty much never work IMO, and pretty much always come across as childish/unhelpful, only make things worse and reduce the poster's credibility)

As Manimal has noted HaHa I still follow the development of FHM (while choosing to rarely post there).
I love simulations, I love sports simulations even more, and hockey simulations the most (and I'm a huge historical/retro hockey fan) so I hope both FHM and EHM are successful/longlasting!

My biggest reason for wanting to avoid comparisons at this time is there is no FHM2 to compare EHM:EA to, which means the current comparisons come across as more hype/PR (or worse, unnecessary "cheap shots" being taken at EHM)

Just because you've read a few comments by a few morons on OOTP Forums doesn't mean we are all like that. There are morons on every forum, even here!

I wish both games to suceed. This whole fanboy Adam Oates for any game is ridiculous. The more good hockey games the better for us all, surely.