Multiplat AFL 23: Launch Thread (Xbox release date TBC)

[Dannnnnnnnnn]

STATE OF PLAY:

• The game is out for Steam and PlayStation. There have been issues with Xbox release and it is unclear when the game will be available.
• Big Ant are aware that there are playability issues & bugs at present.
• Content has been temporarily removed from the game to identify where the issues lie.
• This content will be re-introduced via patches in the coming days.
• Big Ant have released a summary of what is to be reintroduced, which can be seen below.

Spoiler: Features to be added

Spoiler: MOST RECENT PATCH NOTES

Issues & constructive criticism are best communicated to: support.bigant.com

Michaels Twitch video with QA from Ross(BigAntStudios) from 31:40

 

[SirBont]

Beep plenty of builds on steam so they are working on patches reckon will see something today

 

[candymanwb]

So, is it worth grabbing this on PS5 after work? Or still best to hold off until further patches are implemented?

The game genuinely has a lot of potential and I believe that the patches will make some improvements to the issues that everyone is facing.

The game now is borderline playable/unplayable but I would imagine it would be better in a week and seamless in a month or so after being patched up.

If you’re after a good laugh where goal umpires become coaches, coaches become goal umpires and you can’t handball to teammates then you’re in for a real treat! Jokes aside though, it can be frustrating at times where you’re finding you can only handball straight ahead instead of sideways or backwards.

It’s your call

 

[freoman10]

Some stats from the above game:
Clearances: Me: 3 - AI: 16
Tackles: Me: 4 - AI: 15
Contested marks: Me: 30 - AI: 7
Hit outs: Me: 12 (4 to adv) - AI: 10 (9 to adv)
Intercept marks: Me: 18 - AI: 2
Clanger disposals: Me: 2 - AI: 26

So plenty to work on still but moving in a better direction from yesterday.

I enjoyed it.

Did they add stats to the game ?

 

[PenAndPaper]

Can’t even read the writing. Whose idea to have white writing on a white and black background. Least of our worries though

Legit that is absolutely amateur UI design

 

[lmaohelp]

First game post PS4 patch.
While there’s still obviously plenty to be worked on and fixed, the gameplay was improved. I hear Gold Coast 37-25 in my career mode pre season game which would’ve been 80-0 yesterday. Got pinged for holding the ball plenty of times trying to play like it was yesterday.

Tackling for us still seems almost impossible.
Handballing better.
Still work to be done on marking.

It’s a promising start to a long recovery but it feels like there’s a lot of potential when they get it right.

It’s crazy they released the game even with the patch embarrassing and could have well and truely killed off any hope of future releases

We might get Wicked Witch back

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

Did they add stats to the game ?

Sorry should have clarified that. Post game stats where you can see the score work etc and scroll across. No individual stats except too 4 disposals and goals. Nothing in game.

 

[ice444]

How do I bounce the ball? Dumb question I know but I’ve never played an afl game before and can’t find it in controls.


On iPhone using BigFooty.com mobile app

A control guide would be good, as would a prompt (which we can toggle on/off in settings) to show players what buttons we should press.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

A few thoughts here after playing a match on PS post-patch. I'm not writing a few reviews yet, but I wanted to elaborate more on things that I have been "feeling" whilst playing.

It is a playable game now

I don't think it's a good game yet... but it's playable... just. The AI do defend. I found myself actually trying to win and actually got a bit stressed at the end. I was losing and then Brodie Grundy came out and kicked a bag in the last quarter. I felt some excitement! But it did still feel fairly easy and this was on hard difficulty, so ultimately far too easy still.

Tackling is completely unbalanced

People criticised AFL Live 1 as being a tackle fest but it was a very well balanced game. You really had to earn your clearances. Here user tackling is barely existent (I only laid 2 tackles all game despite spamming the triangle button). But on the other hand, it's very hard to get a kick away without being tackled. I tried all modifiers of the kicks and unless you are really in space, you get tackled easy. It's almost as if your player slows down for the tackle

The game feels "light"

Again, in AFL Live 1 you really had to earn your marks. Also in AFL Evo 2 I thought one of the few things they did well was marking - it felt that more often than not the marks go to the player in the better position. In AFL 23 often there is no body on body interaction between players. Observe below, where McDonald kicks to Fritsch on the lead, but it's not a perfect kick so Fritsch has to stop and wait to mark. He and the Essendon defender completely overlap and execute an identical marking animation. There is no context here. It's two players individually going for the mark... on top of each other... and I suppose a dice roll/attributes determination gives one of them the mark

There are a lot of "snapped/canned" animations

We love for a game to feel fluid. This means having the players and ball naturally interact with each other. FIFA for example has had a physics based collision system for ~10 years, and whilst it can occasionally lead to some funny moments, it's largely very good. What I find in this game is that there are certain animations attached to certain outcomes and if that outcome is determined the game forces the animation. This includes a player who really has plenty of time to kick slowing down to be tackled. Another one comes from marks and spoils.

See below where Essendon kicks to their teammate... a BEAUTIFUL animation of a low stab pass. It might be hard to tell from a freeze frame but the ball is following a perfect trajectory for a nice Essendon chest mark on the lead. The Melbourne defender really has zero hope. I nevertheless have pressed the spoil button, so what happens? Well, a few metres out from the Essendon player the ball suddenly jumps up in its trajectory such that the Melbourne player is in a perfect spoiling position. The Essendon player on the other hand keeps their animation for a chest mark, despite the ball warping 2 metres above them. The ball actually magically appears in their chest for a split second before returning back up to be punched away.

In the cricket games there was the odd snapping like that. The ball would snap onto the bat a tad for the shot animation. The ball would snap into a fielder's hands for a catch. It never broke the immersion of the game though. Here we are seeing it really affect gameplay.

I think for now it's a game that's playable with friends because the AI is still very poor/easy, but ultimately there are basic things we are still missing that affect the feel of the game, which was ultimately AFL Live 1's strongest suit.

I wonder, can you turn in the direction you want on the PS5 version? The PC version is still very broken in regards to rotating players. They either run backwards if you turn in a different direction, or they don't move at all. And I can't rotate players who have marked the ball on the mark, when I could rotate players in Live 1, when they marked the ball.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

I wonder, can you turn in the direction you want on the PS5 version? The PC version is still very broken in regards to rotating players. They either run backwards if you turn in a different direction, or they don't move at all. And I can't rotate players who have marked the ball on the mark, when I could rotate players in Live 1, when they marked the ball.

I still found some work to be done in this area. Players still seem stagnant on a handball receive and on occasion when playing on etc.

 

[DasItMayne]

I wonder, can you turn in the direction you want on the PS5 version? The PC version is still very broken in regards to rotating players. They either run backwards if you turn in a different direction, or they don't move at all. And I can't rotate players who have marked the ball on the mark, when I could rotate players in Live 1, when they marked the ball.

Movement still feels sluggish, particularly after a handball receive. Kicking is your best friend in this game atm.

 

[andy_c91]

This is pre ps5 patch, but does the error still occur where if you smoother and take possession of a ball your player can’t move?

 

[Demonic Ascent]

Just be patient, it’s day 1 remember.

What does this even mean? I'm probably just old but in my book when you buy a product you expect it to work. Patches are for upgrades (ie updated team lists, fixing minor bugs etc) not to overhaul fundamental flaws in the game that makes it unplayable. If it is not ready for release then don't release it. You will get backlash for delays but it is better than backlash for taking peoples money for a game that doesn't work.

Im writing this on behalf of my 10 year old son who has been counting down the days for this since before the initial release, saved up his birthday money so he could buy this game. Kids expect to be able to play something out of the box not have to wait until the developer overhauls the entire game to fix fundamental flaws in the gameplay. I can overlook all the peripheral things like stats, state leagues etc if the game itself is playable but when its not then it just adds to the pile of issues.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

This is pre ps5 patch, but does the error still occur where if you smoother and take possession of a ball your player can’t move?

It does, occasionally I had enough time to squeeze a handball to nowhere

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Movement still feels sluggish, particularly after a handball receive.

It's being unable to rotate the players 360 degrees that breaks the game. Live 1 had perfect rotating players. Right, and players are jumping into opposition players if they're receiving a handpass.

 

[Demonic Ascent]

Read the bloody comment, mate. I said I am supportive of the criticism. I am critical of its current state myself.

Just don't act like a petulant child and frame your criticisms in a rude, abrasive way.

Oh sorry, I'll take my cues from you then "you bloody petulant child"

 

[Xtreme]

I love that one of the Steam revuews is just copy and paste of Brett Kirks Saturday arvos speech

 

[NimFromSudan]

I went through the hellish Cricket 22 launch, and learnt the best way to get a game crash bug fixed is to report it to the BAS support page. Particularly useful for those on Steam with the latest patch

Submit a ticket

It took C22 from an unplayable crashy mess to a very high quality game, but it took months to get there.

If BAS is reading, it's time to arrange a large pool of beta testers from non-dev users prior to launch of Cricket 24. You can't keep doing releases that aren't even stable until weeks after launch

 

[dont argue 04]

Pre Patch PS5 first game

Better but still shaking my head this morning.

Bring on the next patch

 

[PenAndPaper]

Yes patches are coming and it’s been said already that the digital version launched isn’t the latest version so BA are working hard to fix these issues.

Just be patient, it’s day 1 remember.

The problem is the game should be ready to go and contain all the features they promised from day 1. You can't just give them a pass because they are trying to fix it now.

 

[DasItMayne]

Anyone else get stuck when the opposition is taking a set shot? Impossible to take the player out of frame but doesn’t give away the 50.

 

[mclovin99]

They need to get the stuff fixed asap.
Games that slowly get fixed dont get their fan base back and people will always think afl23 will always be like the launch version.
Each day refunds and trade ins will happen

 

[PenAndPaper]

They need to get the stuff fixed asap.
Games that slowly get fixed dont get their fan base back and people will always think afl23 will always be like the launch version.
Each day refunds and trade ins will happen

And you lose so much consumer confidence in the next game as well whenever that releases

 

[tastiger]

So, is it worth grabbing this on PS5 after work? Or still best to hold off until further patches are implemented?

While it needs a lot of work, it's no where near as bad as some are saying.

On VOG-L09 using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[lmaohelp]

Have people forgot that patches are meant to fix minor defects? This patch is over 300MB it’s a new game

 

[mclovin99]

And you lose so much consumer confidence in the next game as well whenever that releases

Pretty much what happened with evo 2. Parents aren't going to rebuy a game if its fixed in 2 weeks if they refund it soon cause little johny thinks its trash.
People don't have patience which is fair enough as it should be good from day 1 (multiplayer servers being an exemption at launch)