Development Journal

[Brian Nichols]

July 17 - Long time no update :)....So I'll try to provide more updates from here on out. I've been working hard on the code that allows the game to support multiple leagues at once. Going back and converting code that was designed to only handle one league has been a significant process but it is mostly done. It also took me forever to figure out how I wanted to lay out the available options when starting a new game but I finally came up with something that I'm pretty happy with. The end result of all this is I've added 4 leagues to the game so far: NBA, ABA, NBDL, and Italy's Serie A. The three American leagues have full historical settings for league structure so the process of expansion and team movement in the correct years can be fully automated. The game will also automatically update league rules like the salary cap for you each year if you enable the option. Currently ABA teams will leave for the NBA in 1976 but I still need to add code to make the league fold. Coming work will include adding more leagues as well as adding code for how the leagues can interact. For instance it will be possible to set up promotion and relagation between leagues and it will be possible to specify one league as a developmental league of another league.

[BHK1978]

This is an odd question but I love alternate timeline stuff so:

Would it be possible for the ABA to never merge with the NBA? That way if you want you can play as the ABA up until the present day.

[Brian Nichols]

There should be some way of making that possible whether the NBA continues on just without those teams or maybe adds other fictional teams instead. Right now one way would be to just turn off historical movement and expansion for the NBA once you get to 1975.

[TheStroke7]

July 17 - Long time no update :)....So I'll try to provide more updates from here on out. I've been working hard on the code that allows the game to support multiple leagues at once. Going back and converting code that was designed to only handle one league has been a significant process but it is mostly done. It also took me forever to figure out how I wanted to lay out the available options when starting a new game but I finally came up with something that I'm pretty happy with. The end result of all this is I've added 4 leagues to the game so far: NBA, ABA, NBDL, and Italy's Serie A. The three American leagues have full historical settings for league structure so the process of expansion and team movement in the correct years can be fully automated. The game will also automatically update league rules like the salary cap for you each year if you enable the option. Currently ABA teams will leave for the NBA in 1976 but I still need to add code to make the league fold. Coming work will include adding more leagues as well as adding code for how the leagues can interact. For instance it will be possible to set up promotion and relagation between leagues and it will be possible to specify one league as a developmental league of another league.

Being Italian this is a fantastic news.
If you need help with where to find logos and stats feel free to ask.

[Pokerking88]

Sounding amazing so far Brian. I can't wait to keep hearing awesome updates.

[RA27]

Wow, extremely ambitious. Sounds like it is going to be amazing.

[yeah826]

I am extremely excited about this game now

[thamolas]

This game is starting to sound like it's going to be for basketball what OOTP is for baseball: amazing.

[yeah826]

Any update on the development of the game??

[Brian Nichols]

July 31 - I was thinking I was due for an update. Time flies. I was finally able to get a build ready for a small group of testers back on the 21st. They are keeping me busy with new suggestions and fixes. While there is still a ways to go, that is always a big step for me. I tend to get the most done when I'm getting constant feedback. Even though I don't have anything to share as far as new features today, hopefully people will take the move to the next phase of development as good news.

[yeah826]

Testing is a very good sign :) btw if you are in need for more testers i can lend a hand.

[Pokerking88]

July 31 - I was thinking I was due for an update. Time flies. I was finally able to get a build ready for a small group of testers back on the 21st. They are keeping me busy with new suggestions and fixes. While there is still a ways to go, that is always a big step for me. I tend to get the most done when I'm getting constant feedback. Even though I don't have anything to share as far as new features today, hopefully people will take the move to the next phase of development as good news.

Thanks for the update.

[Theheel]

Really looking forward to the continued development of this game

[Antonin]

Testing is a very good sign :) btw if you are in need for more testers i can lend a hand.

Agree 100%. Thanks for the update.

[RA27]

Testing is a very good sign :) btw if you are in need for more testers i can lend a hand.

Yeah very exciting. I don't think I have ever looked forward to a game as much as this one. Also as a guy who has owned FBB for more than 10 years and played as much as any person currently living I would be more than happy to volunteer as a tester.:D

[shawn michaels 82]

NBA, SERIE A? What about the licensing??

[Brian Nichols]

For the release version, copyrighted things like team nicknames and league names will be fictionalized. Obviously stuff like that can be easily changed to whatever you would like however. :D

[shawn michaels 82]

For the release version, copyrighted things like team nicknames and league names will be fictionalized. Obviously stuff like that can be easily changed to whatever you would like however. :D

Ah, that explains it. :D

[yugi123]

I am wondering if there will be player profiles, team, league & player pictures in this game? It would awesome to have pictures showing when looking at a teams roster and such.

[yeah826]

So any update to the game??

[Brian Nichols]

Currently I'm working through updating contracts and free agency to better match the new CBA. That has been a longer process than I'd hoped but it is almost done.

I am wondering if there will be player profiles, team, league & player pictures in this game? It would awesome to have pictures showing when looking at a teams roster and such.

Team logos are in the game but league ones are not. Code is in the game for player pictures but it hasn't been implemented yet. I'll need some modifications from Jason in order to make room for them and haven't had a chance to get it figured out.

[Pokerking88]

Good to hear progress is being made. There are a lot of games I wanna get in the months coming up :P
Not surprised some stuff will be fictionalized, as long as a good modder comes along to help us it will be great.

Will there be customizable draft classes? That would be huge for historic seasons.

[HansLanda11]

One thing that I have always wanted in FBB was the ability to import and export players from one draft class to another. If we could do that we would be able to combine different draft classes to make them deeper or just have a mix of players being drafted from different eras. Will this be possible in the new game and if not would you consider this a worthy enough feature to be added into the game? Either way you've got yourself a customer right here.

[yeah826]

So i was wondering hows progress on the game is going?

[yeah826]

Ok so its been almost a month has there been any progress with the game if not would be nice to know??

[Brian Nichols]

The short answer is yes things are still progressing. I'll try and write up a more detailed report tomorrow.

[Pokerking88]

The short answer is yes things are still progressing. I'll try and write up a more detailed report tomorrow.

Alright thank you. We are anxiously awaiting more info for this game :)

[Brian Nichols]

Sorry I missed the question above about draft classes. I'll try and describe the available options. You have the automated options of fictional, historical, or FBCB import draft classes. It would also be possible to import from a user created draft file in csv format.

Much of my recent work has gone into finances. In terms of finances and the cap, you can play with a hard(ish) cap, a soft cap only, or full finances has your owner set your max budget. The system for ticket prices works like it did with Season Ticket Basketball. You can set the average ticket price long with the prices for club seats and luxury suites. You'll have the option to build a new arena or to attempt to move to a new city if your proposal fails in your current city.

In the overall process, here is an idea of what needs to be done:

Interaction between leagues
In game league editors
Team exports/Imports
HTML
Engine Balancing

I'm sure there are some steps I'm missing but this should give you a general idea.

[Brian Nichols]

Not sure why the above post wasn't showing up before but it should be visible now.

[BHK1978]

Will it be possible to have a three team trade?

[Brian Nichols]

As of now there are only two team trades. I'm open to making it possible for larger trades but the complication is coming up with an interface for it that isn't super complicated with the amount of screen space available.

[RA27]

Thanks for the update, sounds like the game is progressing well. Can't wait to buy it.

[OutlawIII]

Just wanted to peek in to say that I'm really looking forward to this game. This is my first time commenting, and I'm sure there are others like me who have been silent who are patiently awaiting the release.

[Vatechfan24]

Just read an article on the top Rookie of the Year candidates for this year and i immediately thought of this game and got super pumped!!!

Can't wait for this game!

[RatedRKO16]

Excited for this game! So many great things happening at GDS right now with this and TEW 2013... I might have to buy college basketball. Haven't gotten to try that out!

I have a question on rules. I'm assuming there will be a "commissioner mode". Will we get to set rules like 24 second clock, foul outs at 6, etc..? Things that would impact simulation? Add a 4 point line (kind of joking here, but it would be cool). :)

[Brian Nichols]

There is the ability to customize rules by league although I still need to add most of the options. I'd be looking at things like quarters vs halves, time per quarter/half, shot clock, max fouls. Anything that can be customized requires the AI to adjust accordingly though.

[RatedRKO16]

There is the ability to customize rules by league although I still need to add most of the options. I'd be looking at things like quarters vs halves, time per quarter/half, shot clock, max fouls. Anything that can be customized requires the AI to adjust accordingly though.

That's awesome news! Customization is key for me. :)

[fredreed]

When will we be seeing some screenshots of the new game? I don't think that having more then two team trades is a bad idea since basketball isn't like baseball. The only question that I have is how many players can be traded between two teams at one time?

[damonster]

might get this game, just wondering though if you have or plan on adding NBL of Canada to the game, if no will we be able to add them?

[TheStroke7]

There is the ability to customize rules by league although I still need to add most of the options. I'd be looking at things like quarters vs halves, time per quarter/half, shot clock, max fouls. Anything that can be customized requires the AI to adjust accordingly though.

Great news.

I was also wondering if a team can play in more then one league every season, so that we can create euroleague or somethign like the McDonald Invitation...

[Brian Nichols]

Screenshots are waiting on a decision for how much the skin will change if at all. Everything is plugged into the FBCB skin right now.

might get this game, just wondering though if you have or plan on adding NBL of Canada to the game, if no will we be able to add them

It will be possible to add leagues into the game and it is also possible that more leagues could be added by me with each patch.

I was also wondering if a team can play in more then one league every season, so that we can create euroleague or somethign like the McDonald Invitation

Right off the bat probably not. It might be something that could be added in a patch but it just depends how complicated getting the extra leagues to interact properly ends up being.

[Pokerking88]

I hope you are able to make multi team trades possible.
You said previously it's not implemented yet right?

[Brian Nichols]

Correct.

[Antonin]

As a big fan of the original pro game and FBCB, I'm very happy that progress is being made on the new pro version. Multi-team trades would be nice, but if such a feature would add significantly to development time, I'd rather not see it just now.

I'm eager to spend my money on the fruits of Brian's labor, the sooner the better! :D

[yeah826]

True in all honesty if multiple team trade add significantly to development time it can wait imo Im so anxious for this game.

[Brian Nichols]

Today I finished up the feature that allows you to set the historical database to random debuts. This will make it so you don't know which year certain players are entering the league. Now I'm testing the code that lets you set which years each league are active.

[Steam☆Odin]

Today I finished up the feature that allows you to set the historical database to random debuts. This will make it so you don't know which year certain players are entering the league. Now I'm testing the code that lets you set which years each league are active.

Just how far back could the historical databases go anyway?

[prw18]

Today I finished up the feature that allows you to set the historical database to random debuts. This will make it so you don't know which year certain players are entering the league. Now I'm testing the code that lets you set which years each league are active.

This is huge. I love what you're doing with this game. Keep up the great work.

[yeah826]

So ive been wondering hows the game been coming along??

[Vatechfan24]

Man i can't take it anymore!!! The start of the basketball season starts today and I'm so ready to dive into this game when it comes out. Saving my money for this so i don't have to buy the other basketball game on the market. (Not that i have anything against the makers of that game and the game itself)

[RA27]

Man i can't take it anymore!!! The start of the basketball season starts today and I'm so ready to dive into this game when it comes out. Saving my money for this so i don't have to buy the other basketball game on the market. (Not that i have anything against the makers of that game and the game itself)

The one thing I have learned following the FBB series is that patience is a virtue.

[Vatechfan24]

The one thing I have learned following the FBB series is that patience is a virtue.

Yeah i know and I'm totally being patient about the game (fantasy basketball to hold me over) I'm just going off the fact that FBCB is such a great game that with this game the sky's the limit!

[Brian Nichols]

Just how far back could the historical databases go anyway?

The database has data back to 1946. Earlier years are much harder to rate though.

[Brian Nichols]

Progress has been good this week. This is the most productive that I've been able to be in a while. In terms of the previous update, the editors are mostly done and a bunch of work has been done on league interaction. Work has also been done on balancing the engine. That is a never ending process but I'm happy with the the progress that has been made there.

[Steam☆Odin]

Thanks, looking forward to this! Keep us posted. :)

[Pokerking88]

Great, thanks for the update.
I have a question regarding the editor. Are we going to be able to trade players in the editor if we want stay "updated"? Can we trade draft picks in the editor/will there be more than 2 years of draft picks available for trade (that would help a lot for "blockbuster'' trades.

[Brian Nichols]

Trading players to stay current would involve editing whichever player file you are using. Right now there is not a way to pre-assign draft picks prior to starting a league but it isn't something that I'm opposed to adding. It is just one of those things that I have to figure out a user friendly way of doing it based on how everything is currently set up. Currently there are 3 years of picks on the game.

[Pokerking88]

Trading players to stay current would involve editing whichever player file you are using. Right now there is not a way to pre-assign draft picks prior to starting a league but it isn't something that I'm opposed to adding. It is just one of those things that I have to figure out a user friendly way of doing it based on how everything is currently set up. Currently there are 3 years of picks on the game.

Alright thank you. The pre-assigning draft picks would be nice, but if you can't get it in, it isn't a gamechanger as long as there an editor where we can manually move them in each individual save.

[scoman]

Wonder how close we are to release on this?

[3rdStringPG]

Cool! Looks like once this game's out, we'll finally be having the pro basketball equivalent to OOTP! :D

Will the historical drafts extend to well over 10 rounds like they did before the '80s?

[Antonin]

Cool! Looks like once this game's out, we'll finally be having the pro basketball equivalent to OOTP! :D


That will be a very, very good thing!

[Brian Nichols]

My goal is to have most of the coding done by the end of the month. Then there would be some sort of beta demo likely made available while I work on the html, online league exports, and help file.

[RA27]

My goal is to have most of the coding done by the end of the month. Then there would be some sort of beta demo likely made available while I work on the html, online league exports, and help file.

That is very exciting news, I can't wait to try the demo.

[RA27]

Any chance for a few screenshots to hold us over until then?

[Pokerking88]

Can't wait for the demo :)
How is the scouting of prospects so far?

[Antonin]

Will the new version be playable on Win XP? We have an 8 year old Win XP machine that I currently use to play FBB SE and Fast Break College Basketball 2010 [among other games]. I wasn't planning to buy a new desktop any time soon, although we do have a 1.5 year old Win 7 laptop.

[hawkeye]

Hey Brian...love your games, just wondering (and maybe this has already been talked about elsewhere...sorry if it has)...how much the game will be going for. I am not concerned when it is coming out...just making sure i save enough to buy it when it does come out!:)

[Brian Nichols]

1) There shouldn't be any issues with XP when compared to FBCB2010. The only possible change in compatibility would involve a couple 3rd Party controls that I'm using this time and they work just fine in XP in my testing. Unless you are running a ton of leagues or something the game requires less memory than the college game as well.

2) Price would be the standard Greydog price of $34.95.

3) Scouting will be relatively basic at this time. There aren't any special instructions to give your scout. This could be expanded in the future.

4) Right now the annual draft is limited to 2 rounds. The 2nd round is already pretty scarce so adding additional rounds wouldn't really benefit gameplay.

5) Screens are pretty similar to FBCB2010....only small changes in spots. I haven't posted any because the beta uses copyrighted stuff that needs to be removed.

[Vatechfan24]

Sounds like we are getting close!!!! Who has 2 thumbs, excited and is pointing at himself right now............................................... ..

THIS GUY!!!!!!!!!

[Pokerking88]

Not having the expanded draft in the earlier years sucks, but it isn't anything game breaking. I hope we get a release date/demo date soon because I can't wait to play this game.

[Vatechfan24]

Not having the expanded draft in the earlier years sucks, but it isn't anything game breaking. I hope we get a release date/demo date soon because I can't wait to play this game.

Right with you on this. I have been playing the crap out of the College version for the past weeks anticipating this game coming out!!

[Unregistered]

TEW coming out is great, this new Basketball game coming out is even better. Looking forward to release date!

[RA27]

Right with you on this. I have been playing the crap out of the College version for the past weeks anticipating this game coming out!!

Yeah I have been playing the college game a ton as well, and I don't even like college basketball very much. Can't wait for the pro game.

[Pokerking88]

Unfortunately I don't have the money for the basketball game, so I am hoping for a bundle of the two when this comes out and I will try and pick that up. I'm not a big fan of TEW (I've never really gotten in it to be fair, so I might actually like it) but I love basketball games, so I could definitely see this being like the OOTP of basketball.

Are there random things that can happen in this game to players to help simulate randomness?

[Brian Nichols]

At this point there are no random off court type things that affect players.

[Pokerking88]

That sucks, but once again, it isn't something that is going to ruin a game. "Little things" like random storylines do go a long way imo to making every single game feel different.

[RA27]

Any word on when the Demo will be released. No rush of course, just curious. :)

[Antonin]

Another feature I hope the new pro game has is the "can't get fired" option. I play text-based sports management sims because I want to enjoy my little fantasy of managing my favorite team. In FBCB 2010 I get to manage the team of Cleveland State University, the school I attended way back in the 1970s. In the current version of the pro game I manage the Cleveland Cavaliers. I don't want to manage the Knicks, or the Thunder, or the Heat. I want to guide my Cleveland Cavaliers to glory! I enjoy building my team my way, at my own pace.

I also hope the new pro game makes player creation and editing as easy as it is in the current pro game. I am playing with fictional players in my current game, and kind of felt sorry for Delonte West, who in real life as far as I know is not with any team. So I created him as a free agent and signed him to my Cavs. Unfortunately I was out-bid for his services when he became a free agent--oh well!

[scoman]

Any news on a release date?

[fredreed]

Will you be allowed to add your own NBA teams to the database or will this be fixed?

[mike b]

Will you be allowed to add your own NBA teams to the database or will this be fixed?

He said you can have leagues with up to 40teams in it so yes to that

[OneWarriorNation]

I apologize if this has already been mentioned, but will this game feature player photographs (randomly generated or otherwise)? While they obviously don't have any functional impact on gameplay, I believe player photos help significantly with immersion. It is hard to grow attached to a team or players when they are nothing but a wall of numbers.

[robster1225]

I'm really excited for this to release, "that other game" just isn't cooperating with me for online leagues, and I really want to run a GOOD online pro basketball league.

If you want/need any help testing the online portion, hit me up :)

[yeah826]

Hey I know its holiday season any update on the progress of the game??

[RA27]

An ETA would be cool. I hate having to check the site every couple of days without knowing if the game is a day, a week, a month, a year from release.

[KingofOldSchool]

Been awfully quiet on the updates.

[yeah826]

http://www.operationsports.com/fofc/showthread.php?t=84055&page=4

He says that he plan on releasing a beta demo soon for the 2012 season demo on this forum right here. Look towards the top.

[RA27]

This was posted December 27 on the FBB forum.

"There should be a one-season beta demo out reasonably soon to help find any extra issues that might not be getting noticed by the beta team."

http://www.fbbgames.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=8920&start=140

[Brian Nichols]

I did want to add in here that the game will have support for photos although it doesn't show up in the demo. Right now the game looks for photo's named along the lines of firstname_lastname.jpg and will use them in the player profile screen if it finds it otherwise it will use the team logo. It is also possible to specify the actual picture name. If anyone has any suggestions on a better way of doing it let me know. I'd also like to have support for random pics. In the past I've had the game use any pic it finds in the photo's folder named random#.jpg for those.

[[Icy]]

I did want to add in here that the game will have support for photos although it doesn't show up in the demo. Right now the game looks for photo's named along the lines of firstname_lastname.jpg and will use them in the player profile screen if it finds it otherwise it will use the team logo. It is also possible to specify the actual picture name. If anyone has any suggestions on a better way of doing it let me know. I'd also like to have support for random pics. In the past I've had the game use any pic it finds in the photo's folder named random#.jpg for those.

One issue you might have is when two players have the same firstname & lastname.

Other games like EHM2007 use: fistname_lastname_birthdate to avoid it, as it would be really rare two players with same firstname, lastname and birthdate.

[Brian Nichols]

I was kind of thinking of going that way with it as well. That probably makes the most sense.