Multiplat AFL Evolution 2 - pre-launch thread

[thefootymanalex]

What an excellent sign. Some dude that recorded videos doing game development.

He obviously won't do actual game development, but it's good to see someone that more than likely shares the same views as the community to hopefully further the game, just an opinion.

 

[thefootymanalex]

Ultimate Team for AFL Evo isn't going to happen, their main focus I do believe will probably be in career mode or manager mode to make it more immersive. The gameplay I believe will be built off the previous game rather than going from scratch but like I said before with logo creators or stadium creators, although minor can make a big difference.

 

[MMAPride Scott]

Ultimate Team for AFL Evo isn't going to happen, their main focus I do believe will probably be in career mode or manager mode to make it more immersive. The gameplay I believe will be built off the previous game rather than going from scratch but like I said before with logo creators or stadium creators, although minor can make a big difference.

yeah I think Ultimate team would be too far but could be a way to raise more coin. stuff like that will happen if they keep at it and the AFL get right behind them

 

[Mootsy]

Actually it is the third console game produced by WW and I believe their fifth AFL video game overall. The game should be a lot better than it is after so many iterations, even for a small company.

3 different games.

Evolution is a new engine, so it’s the second instalment of Evolution, which doesn’t use anything from AFL Live 2.

 

[melbournemartin]

3 different games.

Evolution is a new engine, so it’s the second instalment of Evolution, which doesn’t use anything from AFL Live 2.

Having played both games I can say confidently this isn't true.

Also video games often use "a new engine" as a buzz term for a completely new game. It is not. Often it just means a new means of graphics processing, so it looks a bit prettier, as Evolution indeed does, but guarantees nothing about the AI, animations, gameplay etc.

Evolution is an improvement, yes, but it's still a very mediocre video game.

 

[Mootsy]

Evolution is an improvement, yes, but it's still a very mediocre video game.

compared to what exactly?

 

[melbournemartin]

compared to what exactly?

... activities which provide me entertainment and enjoyment?

Also the gameplay in AFL Live 1 (360,PS3 and PC, not Wii) was much better balanced. The animations were arguably better in that Big Ant game too. Aside for the graphics and some off-field features, there isn't much of an improvement.

And this was the problem from the start. AFL Live 1 had two versions: the main one on PS3, 360 and PC made by Big Ant and then the secondary one made on Wii by Wicked Witch. They were marketed as the same game, yet they were completely different and made by two different companies. When it came to making sequels Wicked Witch offered the publishers the ability to do it for less money, and hence AFL Live 2 was a PS3 port of a Wii U game, which was itself a port of an old PSP game.

And now you have AFL Evolution, which is a port of a port of a port, which some admittedly very well done player models thrown on top to help it sell well.

 

[jod23]

I never played AFL Evolution 2017. Can anyone tell me about the game play.

With football games like FIFA, their is structure, formations that teams and players play in. With a game like AFL, it is chaos, no offside, anybody can be anywhere at anytime. So I dont know how they can translate that into a game.

I remember the old AFL games from 10-15 years ago and the CHF would sit on the 50 metre arc with a defender next to him. A wingman would stand on the wing with a defender on him. They would move if the ball came near them...

Haha... tell me it was better than that.

 

[mike123]

I remember the old AFL games from 10-15 years ago and the CHF would sit on the 50 metre arc with a defender next to him. A wingman would stand on the wing with a defender on him. They would move if the ball came near them...

It’s pretty much the same except the CHB runs into the centre square after the bounce and thinks he’s a midfielder for a few seconds.

 

[jod23]

It’s pretty much the same except the CHB runs into the centre square after the bounce and thinks he’s a midfielder for a few seconds.

Yeah I watched some Youtube videos on the gameplay. Looks awful and unplayable. It will be years and years before that game becomes remotely playable and anything close to real AFL.

 

[Del80659]

Yeah I watched some Youtube videos on the gameplay. Looks awful and unplayable. It will be years and years before that game becomes remotely playable and anything close to real AFL.

when we had hope the games would get better, my friends and I thought they should have an 'inside, outside' kind of system where every ball up and every contested midfield situation had an 'inside game' where you had to get the ball into space, then it transitioned into outside game where controls do slightly different things. still problems to come out of that but we thought it would address the problem where the whole game basically came down to 1) who has a better ruck and 2) who could be bothered to persistently tackle their opponent until your players broke away

 

[jod23]

when we had hope the games would get better, my friends and I thought they should have an 'inside, outside' kind of system where every ball up and every contested midfield situation had an 'inside game' where you had to get the ball into space, then it transitioned into outside game where controls do slightly different things. still problems to come out of that but we thought it would address the problem where the whole game basically came down to 1) who has a better ruck and 2) who could be bothered to persistently tackle their opponent until your players broke away

There just isnt any feel of real AFL. No congestion around stoppages. No flooding back, nobody getting back into the hole. Nobody ever free. Someone always has a defender on them. Spoiling and marking looks broken. I mean i commend them for taking it on as turning AFL footy into a playable game is almost mission impossible. But they have a loooooooooong way to go to make anything close to resembling the real game.

 

[Quivorir]

 

[palmomagpie]

Love that they used Lachie Neale as one of the example shots too haha

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Actually it is the third console game produced by WW and I believe their fifth AFL video game overall. The game should be a lot better than it is after so many iterations, even for a small company.

Fourth on a home console, you mean. Probably 5th or 6th iteration if you include their DLC packs. And still leagues behind AFL Live 1. De-evolution will be the next flop, for an obvious cash grab. I wish The AFL took the multi billion dollar video games industry seriously.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

... activities which provide me entertainment and enjoyment?

Also the gameplay in AFL Live 1 (360,PS3 and PC, not Wii) was much better balanced. The animations were arguably better in that Big Ant game too. Aside for the graphics and some off-field features, there isn't much of an improvement.

And this was the problem from the start. AFL Live 1 had two versions: the main one on PS3, 360 and PC made by Big Ant and then the secondary one made on Wii by Wicked Witch. They were marketed as the same game, yet they were completely different and made by two different companies. When it came to making sequels Wicked Witch offered the publishers the ability to do it for less money, and hence AFL Live 2 was a PS3 port of a Wii U game, which was itself a port of an old PSP game.

And now you have AFL Evolution, which is a port of a port of a port, which some admittedly very well done player models thrown on top to help it sell well.

It feels so choppy and very unnatural in De-evolution with the player movements. Those ball movements are too slow and awkward, like with the PS2 games. Marking is a pain, and not in a rewarding/satisfying way.

 

[Quivorir]

"de-evolution"

 

[mike123]

"de-evolution"

I liked it the first time but now it’s getting old.

 

[thefootymanalex]

I hope they release more information about 'de-evolution' XD

 

[GoldbergsGold]

I liked it the first time but now it’s getting old.

Calling it anything else is false advertising.

 

[dwwaino]

Is ‘de-evolution’ the French title?

 

[CharlesJames]

I had a chat to one of the mods, and they gave me a green light, I made a vid on the topic on specific features and gameplay improvements that NEED to be done to the next afl game coming this year or else it might be toast for the franchise going forward. But I have been reading through here a bit lately and would love to see what you guys think on the suggestions i have made.

 

[Xtreme]

^ I'd still think its GOTY if they just gave us a team update.

I'm still playing Evolution regularly and think it's pretty good, pretty pretty pretty good.

 

[Scallop Industry Thug]

Good video Charles. I agree with most of what you said. Unless I skipped over the part, player positioning needs to be a focus. It can't be 18 different 1 on 1 contests. We need to be able to play with 1-3 behind the ball, or no wingmen, or a 3 man forward line or whatever.

 

[dwwaino]

Anyone know what engine WW actually use for Evo? I can understand any medium to large developers staying away from Unity and Unreal licensing can be pretty pricey. I can't understand the lack of polish on some of these sorts of games (as in Evolution) though when all you need to do is follow Unity on Twitter and look the quality that single developers are pumping out from their bedrooms on a weekend. Mind you, Golf Club 2019 by HB Studios is a great example of what's possible with Unity with a team of 80-100 people.

As a programmer and wannabe game developer (ok... I get an idea, make a sandbox prototype then give up) and I think about an AFL game I can't get my head around how realistic AI could work. Programming is really just problem solving and you can think about how to solve a problem without writing a line of code. Soccer is pretty rigid in positioning and rules and you can think through the whole thing in your head without any code. This is why I haven't played an AFL game since Live 1 as they're really just aerial ping pong. I don't think it will take a massive budget or team to improve, just a genius or two to work it out.