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

 

[bdawwg1021]

What in the holy f**k happened with the latest patch on PS5?

Don't, get my wrong.. I know I'm sh*t, but I literally just lost an offline game on medium 10.4.64 to 0.0.0. I literally couldn't do anything of value. Don't think I got one inside 50. Constantly outmarked, tackled, kicked to low, straight to the guy on the mark. Turn over after turn over, leading to them going forward and getting a goal, every single time.

Like, what happened in the latest patch? Jesus! I preferred it yesterday, prepatch. Despite the obvious issues and bugs, the games were tight and enjoyable.

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

=

• It is way too easy to break tackles. I had a streak with Libba where he broke four (!) tackles in a row, and I swear I didn't even press triangle for some of them.

Probably need to take your own advice and play a real team, cos I see this shit on a weekly basis

 

[CrowsArmy]

2nd game on PS4 crashed in the 1st quarter, 2 crashes within 10 minutes.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

=


Probably need to take your own advice and play a real team, cos I see this s**t on a weekly basis

You had us for two and a half quarters on Saturday! I took Prestia actually slotting goals to shake you which shocked all of us

 

[tigerairau]

Adams streaming out of the centre, gives it off to Ginnivan, who decides to turn around to recieve the ball, stand still for a whole second and ponder into the crowd before continuing his run, getting tackled by an opponent 3 metres away who telepathically causes him to shank his kick

Wtf am I meant to do here, how do I get him to recieve the handball in his run and not stop??? I'm pointing the stick towards the goal the entire time, this is why we mean we have no control over players

 

[Mootsy]

ball-trail on in settings actually helps a lot

 

[stewi09]

EDIT: I'm playing on PS5
In saying what I've said, I have seen improvement in the game it's just these cons make it hard enjoy playing

The game is still unplayable to me

-sling shot tackles
-cpu sling shotting from 5m away to pick the ball up
- randomly playing on and getting done ball
-players randomly going flat footed
- cpu seems to get rid of the ball mid tackle every single time
-handballs well we all know the issue there

 

[Dannnnnnnnnn]

For those posting pros/cons/general experiences with the game to pass on to BA, I encourage you to add to your post:

• Which platform you are playing on
• What version # you are on
• Which difficulty you're playing
• Which game mode
• Teams involved

Note this post from Ross:

All systems are on the same patch.

Individual team selection, player ability, camera angles etc. can make for a very different experience, which is why we can't just go with one person's view for game balancing.

So if you want your feedback to get through and make a difference - the more info the better.

 

[Baz_hawk]

Just played my first game with the PS5 patches - Play Now on Hard, Dogs vs Eagles. I felt that the game was hugely, hugely improved from the weekend. There are still issues - some minor, some big and still detract from the experience - but overall, my feel is that the game has moved from 'unplayable' into 'fun' for the first time.

Firstly - difficulty. I won 9.3.57 to 5.1.31, which was a little bit of a surprise given what I'd heard here re: difficulty since the patch. It was definitely harder, but fair and not unmanageable. I was playing WCE though, so let's see what happens when I play a real team.

Overall I thought it was quite satisfying, witch hugely improved general control. I felt like I was mostly doing the good things, and mostly making the mistakes, as opposed to having them just happen like it was previously. The responsiveness was much, much higher.

Similarly, I found that the handball game was more viable post-patch. There is still a discrepancy, whereby the best strategy is short kicking and marking, but to summarise the changes simply, it felt like handballs/running had been buffed and kicking/marking had been nerfed (obviously this isn't exactly what happened, but it is how it has affected playability.

The stats were well implemented and a welcome addition. There were "new" animations in tackling, disposing of the ball etc which helped to make the things happening on the screen seem more tied to what the player actually did.

Cons

• Opposition teleport tackles are still an issue, as documented ad infinitum in here. The one thing I will say, though, is that there has been a clear change to reduce the frequency of these leading to HTBs, which makes it more tolerable.
• Kick strength seemed sometimes entirely random? Not sure how to explain this, but sometimes I tapped X and bombed it long randomly.
• Similarly, on a couple of occasions, my player genuinely handballed of their own accord. Very weird.
• As promised, congestion has definitely increased. It's been offset by some other changes, but the biggest problem is still too many players crowding the ball. Would like to see some AI changes here as real teams create layers behind the ball instead of pushing all of their players into the contest.
• It is way too easy to break tackles. I had a streak with Libba where he broke four (!) tackles in a row, and I swear I didn't even press triangle for some of them.
• The shrug animation is just far, far, far too many frames. It takes so long that the feedback about "have I broken the tackle or not" isn't quick enough - so often I have to kick/handball the ball halfway through the animation anyway just in case it fails and it's an auto-HTB.
• The balancing of player stat differences seems too high for some attributes (i.e. the top ratings give too big an advantage). For example, Aaron Naughton just kicked 6 in 5 minute quarters because if I sat the ball on his head he would mark it every time. And his set shot timer is so slow that I couldn't miss if I wanted to.
• Players still stop and prop after they get the ball and turning is sometimes effortful.

Overall - a big step forward. I've only played one game post-patch, so there'll be more to add I'm sure, but I am pleased with the direction the game is going. A caveat to my praise is that many of the pros are kind of bare minimums for a sports game, and there is a lot of room still to improve - so I'm not ready to sing its praises or congratulate BA (beyond their efforts to get the game from where it was to where it is now in such a short time frame) yet. But I am encouraged, and am keen to play more for the first time.

I've encountered this as well. Would go to do a short pass to a player in space and instead would blast the ball 40 rows back. Definitely some sort of bug.

 

[kingbob182]

When I say almost there is like 60-70%
I was happy with the gameplay (teleporting tackles, wacky handballs aside) on Saturday night. But the changes on Sunday night while (hopefully) positive in the long run. Basically soured my outlook on the game.

Whatever they did during last night's patch altered it slightly and I'm coming around to it again. But Evo 1 and 2 are still my preferred AFL games. AFL '23 has potential, it just needs a Clarko spray

Yeah, last night might have stopped inorrect disposal every time you're trying to kick with a defender nearby. I also think they're made positive changes. I just prefer the way it was 3 days ago where it was broken but flowing.

Just played a game where the clock hit zero in the 3rd qtr and the game just continued. I kept playing for a while thinking a clock stoppage might end the qtr but it just kept going until I alt+F4'd.

 

[Saintsation]

Tried 3 games since I got home all crashed before I could finish. Unreal game, can’t even get a refund, actually just want to get through a game.

Also in season mode why can’t we have the side select option during the game. Usually like to make my way through the season every game swapping between teams each qtr. obviously not an option at this current stage


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[Pickitt]

We were promised an AFL game. If they can’t even get right, what’s the point of the rest that they haven’t delivered on?

Cool, let’s create teams and stadiums even if you can’t actually make use of them. Let’s get the basics right before worrying about everything else!

I've been playing in my own custom stadiums what do you mean lol

i do remember ross saying logo and guernsey creator would come today

Logo is in

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

Tried 3 games since I got home all crashed before I could finish. Unreal game, can’t even get a refund, actually just want to get through a game.

Also in season mode why can’t we have the side select option during the game. Usually like to make my way through the season every game swapping between teams each qtr. obviously not an option at this current stage


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com

I know it’s not the same but I usually toss a coin and decide who I play as.

 

[Mootsy]

Bugs i've noticed on PS4:

• kicking for goal, If the opposing team has a player standing still in-front and the player lining up walks directly through that player.
• Ruck contest, the first five seconds of a throw-in and each player runs through each other instead of contact.
• Really hard to take a grab, even on easy mode.
• Handball sometimes doesn't go the direction that you intend.
• Tackling is just a bit too sensitive, often players will be tackled before even having a chance of some clean disposal, even with visual space to move.
• Marking could be a bit easier, but it's a tricky balance to get right.
• You get the blue screen error every so often after a game loads into the start of a game.
• There is no deliberate out-of-bounds call.
• Sometimes a player will just stand still and be non-reactive.
• Easy-mode could be a bit easier, meaning, something casuals can get their teeth into a bit more.
• Gameplay just needs some fine-tuning to get that flow factor spot on.

Pros and ideas:

• Ball-trail is really helpful in terms of seeing where the ball is moving across the field, i highly recommend this as a good training tool.
• Ball movement has improved a lot since recent patch. Handballs and kicking etc..
• Lining up for goal is very good, this is my favourite segment of the game-play.
• Stadiums and animations, atmosphere and crowd are really good.
• Menus, designs, user experience really good
• For those struggling, print out your controls scheme and try to learn it that way
• Try and think ahead of the play, in terms of marking, hand balling, finding space, you need to get the player ahead of the contest that you are already in to be a step ahead of the defending players. Quick reflexes.
• Would like to see a specky function at some point. Hint(AFL Live 1 had a good one).
• Would like to see more player movement variations to enhance the realism.

-

 

[kingbob182]

is anyone/everyone having a prolem with kick-ins? I can bomb it long or torp but if I try to chip to an open player, it thumps it 60m out of bounds or for a delierate rushed behind. Not ideal since I'm usually doing that as the safe option. I think it may also happen if you press X to chip to someone with the set shot view.

And I've also found that I cannot time the set shot accuracy. I press square in the blue and the bar just goes all the way off the end and sprays the kick. Luckily, I found you can just press it super early, miss the blue entirely and always have a perfect kick.

Oh and there seems to be a tackle animation (both players upright, one holding the ball above his head) where it doesn't matter if you had no prior. You just cannot dispose and will always get called holding the ball.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

With the game crashing during matches for me I’ve been playing around with stadium creator so my cousin (when I eventually give him the game when it’s up to scratch) can play at these custom stadiums.
Giving each team their own home ground feel.

Here’s what I’ve done so far.
Crows Nest
Lions Den
Blues Park
Magpies Nest
The Hanger
Freo Field
The Cattery
Suns Arena
Giants Arena
The Hawks Nest
Demon Land
Power Stadium
Tigerland
The Kennel

Kanga Paddock
Saints Stadium
Swan Lake
Eagles Nest all coming in the next few days!
Might even do Devil Den for Tassie!

I’m sure kids will find them more fun than you guys but just putting them out there

Will probably get a couple more out tonight.

Significantly more time put into Richmond’s

 

[stewi09]

is anyone/everyone having a prolem with kick-ins? I can bomb it long or torp but if I try to chip to an open player, it thumps it 60m out of bounds or for a delierate rushed behind. Not ideal since I'm usually doing that as the safe option. I think it may also happen if you press X to chip to someone with the set shot view.

And I've also found that I cannot time the set shot accuracy. I press square in the blue and the bar just goes all the way off the end and sprays the kick. Luckily, I found you can just press it super early, miss the blue entirely and always have a perfect kick.

yeah i cant seem to figure the set shot out either and I am wondering if that's why im struggling to kick 50m I reckon the futherest set shot i have kicked is about 40m

 

[Chark96]

Idk whether it’s Just me but the ai difficulty seems to have gone from one extreme to the other


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[ptrg]

Adams streaming out of the centre, gives it off to Ginnivan, who decides to turn around to recieve the ball, stand still for a whole second and ponder into the crowd before continuing his run, getting tackled by an opponent 3 metres away who telepathically causes him to shank his kick

Wtf am I meant to do here, how do I get him to recieve the handball in his run and not stop??? I'm pointing the stick towards the goal the entire time, this is why we mean we have no control over players

Haha god that’s bad. To top it off, he clearly kicked it well before any contact was made, but still munged it..

Thats just gotta be fixed

 

[Mr T]

Is there another patch planned tonight?

If so, is there any information as to what is being addressed?

BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[CrowsArmy]

3rd game I played, 3rd consecutive crash… can’t even get through a game. This is after the recent patch on PS4. Game is ‘playable’ but I can’t even play it.

 

[ptrg]

Almost...

Just a horrific string of glitches, bugs and crap AI over and over again.
Can’t believe it hasn’t been pulled and only made available again when it’s at an acceptable point of development.

 

[Dannnnnnnnnn]

Kick out camera for left goals at TIO Stadium is too high and cuts off the player taking the kick out - will submit through support later, but just in case I forget, JNT BA

 

[Saintsation]

3rd game I played, 3rd consecutive crash… can’t even get through a game. This is after the recent patch on PS4. Game is ‘playable’ but I can’t even play it.

Feel ya pain


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[zac080]

Hey Ross when will ps4 crashes be fixed