GWJ Online Sports Game Hub

Rather than focus on leagues, I think it might make more sense to make this more about playing sports games online to take our focus off why so many of us are at home so much now.

Leagues are still a part of that, but so is grouping up and racing around in Forza Horizon, using our various MyPlayer modes in various sports games to get some pick-up games going in basketball, hockey, and soccer, which are great ways to play with friends rather than against them. Or it can be an arcade game, a text-based sim. There are a lot of options.

My original focus was leagues, because, as sports fans, that is what we are missing. But I'd rather drive more options and more ways to play. For me, this is about finding other ways to occupy my mind besides tracking the news. And while we can still easily talk sports with friends online, the sports worth talking about are dwindling.

It would be fun if we had a few different games going, and have that generate some sports talk.

This sounds good in theory. I'm having a heck of a time balancing remote work, kids, not letting the house devolve into mess and trying to be a good partner.

When and how much would folks be wanting to play?

My hope is to see what folks have time for, and what sports or games they would prefer.

The idea is to make this more fun and casual than hardcore. Maybe it is is just getting together and playing some pick-up games. Maybe we form a team and play other online. Maybe a league, maybe a tourney

Now that we have gone weeks, and there is no real sign of sports coming back any time soon, that some might want to spend this time playing some sports games.

The idea isn’t to have something super serious or sim, but more social and fun.

You know, like giving Kegion a chance to beat my Chiefs in Madden, since they can’t in real life.

Tagging in to see what’s up!

I’m god awful at sports games, but do love playing them!

OOTP online leagues require only a small time investment from players, though it’s possible to put a lot of time in. My impression is that it’s pretty time consuming for the league commissioner though, even if they aren’t going to a Prederick-level of awesome write ups around the game. I’d be up for joining in as a player, if there is someone who has the time and energy to take on the commissioner role.

I own NBA 2k on the PC. I mostly do single player things there, but If some sort of pick-up night was arranged I’d jump in for that.

Is there cross platform for any of this?

GWJ plays a lot of casual Rocket League with people on PC, Switch, or PS4.

If we can do the same with 2k hoops or something that might be nice. Admittedly I haven't got the game the last 2 years but I do miss it.

absurddoctor wrote:

My impression is that it’s pretty time consuming for the league commissioner though, even if they aren’t going to a Prederick-level of awesome write ups around the game.

I don't remember even putting in that much work. XD

I remember setting up a OOTP league is a little bit complicated, but if people are interested in one, I'd be interested, potentially even being commish again.

Stele wrote:

Is there cross platform for any of this?

GWJ plays a lot of casual Rocket League with people on PC, Switch, or PS4.

If we can do the same with 2k hoops or something that might be nice. Admittedly I haven't got the game the last 2 years but I do miss it.

I wish there was more crossplay. Maybe we should list our systems and games we are interested in.

For me, I’m mostly XB1, but I do have a gaming capable PC now. I also have a Switch.

There are a lot of games I’d be willing to play if we get some stuff going.

Madden
NHL 20
NBA Live 19
NBA 2K20
Super Mega Baseball 2, or 3 when it drops.
Rory Mac Golf

Also, my favorite Madden mode right now is KO Superstar. I’ve bern just playing 1v1, but they have options for 2b2 and 3v3.

I described the gameplay over in the NFL thread if folks are curious.

https://www.gamerswithjobs.com/node/...

Also, now that I’m back in PC, some other text sim games like Strat-O-Matic, Diamond Mind, and Action PC Football are things I’d be up for, in addition to OOTP, which at least cross plays on Mac.

So you'll play anything but FIFA?

I would be up for something, although not really in a place to buy new games at the moment. I have a few older maddens and anything that is on game pass.

Am definitely up for casual. Up for playing what the group is most interested in.

Prederick wrote:
absurddoctor wrote:

My impression is that it’s pretty time consuming for the league commissioner though, even if they aren’t going to a Prederick-level of awesome write ups around the game.

I don't remember even putting in that much work. XD

I remember setting up a OOTP league is a little bit complicated, but if people are interested in one, I'd be interested, potentially even being commish again.

I'd be interested - and I can't be relegated to AAA. That is right, isn't it ?

davet010 wrote:
Prederick wrote:
absurddoctor wrote:

My impression is that it’s pretty time consuming for the league commissioner though, even if they aren’t going to a Prederick-level of awesome write ups around the game.

I don't remember even putting in that much work. XD

I remember setting up a OOTP league is a little bit complicated, but if people are interested in one, I'd be interested, potentially even being commish again.

I'd be interested - and I can't be relegated to AAA. That is right, isn't it ?

;)

Despite how much the Marlins deserve to be, no.

Stele wrote:

So you'll play anything but FIFA?

Oh, I’d play FIFA. I like the game, but I tend to just roll with last year’s version because I don’t follow the sport close enough to know rosters, and I don’t play it a ton. But with EA Avccess, I get 10 hours with the new game every year, and the last year’s game free.

Prederick wrote:
absurddoctor wrote:

My impression is that it’s pretty time consuming for the league commissioner though, even if they aren’t going to a Prederick-level of awesome write ups around the game.

I don't remember even putting in that much work. XD

I remember setting up a OOTP league is a little bit complicated, but if people are interested in one, I'd be interested, potentially even being commish again.

As a player and the just reader, it certainly looked like a lot of work!

Well, after starting this thread I got a call back to work. They offered to accommodate my high risk for infection by moving me to deliver auto parts instead of selling them. That really does massively reduce exposure, and I worked a shift Saturday that went well, as far as feeling like I could avoid infection.

But with current projections showing a surge coming in 3-4 weeks in MO, and St. Louis having by far the most cases in the state, I’m back to just hiding out at home for at least a month.

So now I’m hoping to get something moving. My only complication is that I accidentally got my wife addicted to Forza Horizon 4, so she has been stealing the Xbox while not working. But I do have a gaming PC now, so I should be able to adapt.

One thing we could consider is a golf tournament. While I prefer Rory Mac Golf, The Golf Club would work, too.

I’d really love to find some folks that want to play some Chel in NHL 20 or get a crew to play some Live Run in NBALive 19.

I could play something tomorrow night? Kids go to bed ~730 Pacific and as long as I am not being roped in to Tiger King ep 2, I could give something a shot?

BTW, I started a club on Xbox called GWJ Sportsball. I made it public, so there is no password. Previous clubs haven't been used a ton, and tend to not use them. Definitely not meant as a hub for this, but something that might make meeting up easier for any XB1 games. But the forums here still tend to work fine for most of that.

I'm up for tomorrow night. And 7:30 Pacific would work out well here for me, which would be 5:30 Central.

I saw that BadKen signed up for the Sportsball group already, so he seems to be up for playing. I know he plays a ton of FH4, which I've been playing quite a bit again lately. Would you be up for a convoy? Mix some racing in with some Playground Games?

But I am up to play anything. I think it would be cool to play some Voilta football in FIFA 20, if we can get six of us to play 3v3. Or, hell, Threes in NHL 20 is really good too. Those would take guys that are interested enough to want to build a player to participate with.

I started looking at games that could be fun, especially out of the box things, like UFC 3, which I think is now on EA Access. I doubt anyone is going to want to play it a ton, but it might be fun to have a night to play around with it.

IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EUYFbiNXgAEwOS_?format=jpg&name=large)

730PDT is 930CDT. Or are you in AK?

Just dumb. You would think with a brother and my daughter on the west coast I wouldn’t confuse that!

But 9:30 can work for me, as well as 5:30.

I am super interested in checking out Super Mega Baseball 3. It drops “April 2020.”

https://supermegabaseball.com/

Baseball Simulation
Apply and refine your baseball instincts with a sophisticated baseball simulation featuring new pick-off and stealing mechanics, wild pitches and passed balls, designated hitters, and situational player traits.

Ego Difficulty System
Challenge your hand-eye coordination or relax and hit dingers with fluid gameplay that scales seamlessly from novice to beyond-expert levels of difficulty.

Customize
Create your ideal league with a comprehensive customization suite that includes season length/structure, team names/uniforms/logos, and player names/appearance/attributes.

Ballparks
Take in the sights and sounds of 14 richly detailed ballparks, each featuring unique day, night and alternate lighting conditions.

Franchise
Guide an evolving team to greatness over multiple seasons in the all new Franchise mode featuring player development, aging, retirement and signing/releasing of free agents.

Compete Online
Compete online to win pennants and climb to higher divisions in the cross-platform Pennant Race mode.

Season & Elimination
Play or simulate any combination of games/teams in customized Seasons and Elimination brackets, solo or with friends.

Play Ball
Skip customization and compete for top leaderboard scores with standardized teams and settings (locked player attributes) in Standard Season and Standard Elimination modes.

On for 730 PDT. Downloading 2K20 since it's on GamePass.

I have FH4 installed. Don't know any of those play modes but I'll give em a shot!

FH4 might be a problem if you have no played it, or played it much. The tuck the online stuff away until you reach a certain point.

But I have 2K20.

Also, this is in Gamepass:

Top Shelf and I are on in FH4. There did just seem to be a big reset as everyone went offline. But it seems like everyone is coming back on.

Sorry I spent most of the time messing with my headset, Top Shelf.

We only got a little bit of time, as I was really trying to find the best way. I set up an Adventure, but that wasn’t great with just two of us. I think we ought to be able to party up as a convoy, and then race or play one of the tag games on the same team against others.

All good.

It really will be cool to get some others rolling and balancing out all the social isolation. Thanks for pushing this!

I've been playing FH4 a tiny bit, it's a a fun game. Only right at the start (just got to autumn) so only have like 2 cars.

onewild wrote:

I've been playing FH4 a tiny bit, it's a a fun game. Only right at the start (just got to autumn) so only have like 2 cars.

The game opens up pretty quickly. Make sure you check for Wheelspins and your messages for gifts and payouts.

For convoys, I’d suggest having a few go to cars ready to go at different class levels. Upgrade them so they will be among the higher rated in each class.

Many times we will have races or games that require a particular class or style. You can make games like King of the Hill or Infected crazier by requiring odd choices.

To build up Skill Points, drive the fields between races and stuff. If you drive over 100 across the map, you will rack up points as your car bounces and drifts along uneven terrain, without even trying.

You will use Skill Points to apply to vehicles, giving them bonuses. In the past, these were to your profile, and applied to whatever you drive. Now you level up individual cars.

One advantage you can get is making it so that it takes to crashes to kill a skill score streak. It allows you to be much more aggressive, because if you hit a tree or barrier, you won’t lose your banked points.

The more skill points you get, the higher your level is. Every increase in level gets you Wheelspins, which gets you cash, cars, and items.

So how many people would be interested in an online OOTP 21 league?