Multiplat AFL 23 - PS/Steam Releasing May 4, Xbox TBC

[Dannnnnnnnnn]

WHEN CAN I PLAY? READ BELOW:

• PlayStation (Physical): Thursday 4 May
• PlayStation (Digital): 8:01am AEST Thursday 4 May
• Steam: Currently 8:01am AEST Thursday 4 May, may be moved to 12:01am AEST
• Xbox (Digital or Physical): TO BE CONFIRMED, unlikely to be 4 May

Spoiler: Specific Big Ant quotes about the release:

Those that pre-ordered PS versions will be able to play on Thursday, disks will have already been mailed by retailers, they will also be available in-store.

Steam will also be available Thursday.

Stating the obvious, we are still having issues with XBox.

Seriously, anyone that looks hard knows there’s issues - why do you think there are so many exclusives for a particular platform that are not marked as exclusive, but are only on that platform.

If I took that road, life would have been a lot easier.

Xbox digital and retail will release at the same time - that is not a decision we get to make.

It applies now and I will no doubt pay a price.

Spoiler: Other Quotes

Re: commentary team

Spoiler: Other Quotes

Hamish is still there, Daisy didn't make it into the final version of the game.

We added Gary and increased the workload of Harf.

Re: game availability/release dates

I can never give 100% guarantee about anything in the future, but as it stands today, the statement I am prepared to make it that all stock that is at retailers on 4 May will be available for sale.

As to the amount that will be there for sale, and whether it is enough, that is a question I cannot answer.

It will be made digitally available on the various platform holder electronic stores.

Clarifying, the game will not release prior to 4 May 2023.

I am vague as there is one platform that has had sufficient stock at retailers and the other has not, and I cannot name them (contractual reasons).

The game will not be further delayed because of the numbers of units in stock.

Re: Steam listing

I've already put in a request for the screenshots to be replaced with current ones, they'll probably only be there for a day.

As much as the feedback has generally been positive, these are old, meant to be placeholder only and were not meant to go live.

Re: playing lists

All playing lists are accurate for the 2023 season.

Re: content creator footage

This is all prior to day one patch (as some have noted updates like numbers etc are apparent)

Re: Career mode

A head's up on Career mode.

At the AFL 23 Launch night I mentioned the non-team based Individual Career Mode in an interview with Dean (Twistie3). As alluded to at that same event, we were working with the AFL and AFLPA to include as many past legends in the game as possible.

The great news is that we have received approval for far more AFL legends than were previously envisaged, but this has meant that we had to make the tough decision to divert resources away from the Individual Career mode development. The individual Career Mode function will not make it into AFL 23, Career Mode will be entirely team based. I expect this mode to be include in future iterations of the game.

Re: microtransactions

You do not have to make purchases, things can be earned.

Re: general development

So fundamentally flawed, in so many ways, it’s bananas.

We are doing AFL as it’s a passion project, without us doing it there would not be one being made.

So much more upside with making games that are played internationally, let alone one that will not even be played in every state in this country.

 

[melbournemartin]

Just on this…

I remember in the Live 2 days when Ross gave WW a tonne of crap about the whistle after a goal (rightfully so) but I’d argue most of the main stadiums having the camera/logos on the wrong side of the ground is just as big of a facepalm moment

I agree there are a few egg on face moments perhaps.

But at the end of the day Ross will be Ross. His presence on this forum (and planet cricket) is a huge positive and a complete unicorn in terms of the video game industry.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Just on this…

I remember in the Live 2 days when Ross gave WW a tonne of crap about the whistle after a goal (rightfully so) but I’d argue most of the main stadiums having the camera/logos on the wrong side of the ground is just as big of a facepalm moment

I wouldn't mind a feature where you can choose which side of the ground you want to view, brings a different perspective.

 

[Flagmantle Pod]

Will we hit 600 pages before release??? 31 to go!

 

[George]

Just read about the further delay to XBOX. Thankfully I'm on PC.

Gotta say I feel for XBOX users having to wait another 6 weeks for release. If you don't use your console too much and have decent PC specs I'd consider switching over. I was a PS guy but hate having to fork out money for new consoles every few years and the inability to illegally download games, lol.

As for the build up to this game it has been pretty embarrassing and amateurish if I'm being honest. I can't remember the last time a game was released without gameplay footage from the developer. We were promised this, weren't we? Why wasn't it delivered?

Weren't we also promised play sessions? Where are those?

I'm indifferent about it because I'm a sucker that'll just cough up the money to get the game regardless, but consumers shouldn't be treated like they don't matter. Some of the rhetoric from the devs in here has been tough to read, comes across as arrogance and belittling their customers. Find it astounding that a small dev team with a very niche product are potentially damaging their reputation and revenue by interacting with their consumers in this way.

As for the few that got the game early and are uploading videos - thank you, whilst not from the company directly it's nice to see how the game looks. Unfortunately your constant defense of BA is making it very difficult to know what you're being honest about when talking about the game so I mark it down as white noise which is a shame because some honest feedback would be appreciated by many I'd suspect.

Ultimately I'm not fussed about no gameplay or play sessions, and I will purchase the game anyway, however I totally understand others displeasure at how this has been handled and how they've been spoken to.

Can totally understand people waiting for the price to drop before buying or not buying at all. I haven't seen the game marketed outside of this thread - I wouldn't have known the game was releasing otherwise. Oh actually, 1 video on YouTube from the AFL was the only thing I saw outside of this thread.

I hope the game is good. We've waited 12 years for a decent product.

 

[melbournemartin]

The marketing does seem weird, for several reasons:

1) The AFL Launch event seemed like a huge production and very cool getting all of the players there and some "influencers". However the actual footage to come out of it was camera phone quality and showing off an apparently very old version of the game played by people who had no idea how to play it. I'd say the overall impressions were pretty negative there

2) The play sessions were such a cool feature of AFL Live 1. I went to several and met Ross and the team and loved it. To not have play sessions for a game is pretty much normal for any other game, but I think folks were just disappointed here if they had those memories from 13 years ago.

3) The game is coming out in 24 hours and aside for the 2-3 trailers the only gameplay footage that has come out has been from Youtube streamers and we keep being told it's from a build that isn't representative of the final product

4) A comprehensive feature list for the launch of the game seemingly still isn't out

 

[BubbleBass]

They really should have released this game play footage to the public earlier so they could have gathered feedback and tweaked a lot of the mechanics before release.

 

[Flagmantle Pod]

They really should have released this game play footage to the public earlier so they could have gathered feedback and tweaked a lot of the mechanics before release.

Reckon majority of online criticism would just be harsh reviews of things they already know

 

[Selim]

Reckon majority of online criticism would just be harsh reviews of things they already know

yea if you look at any of the twitter post revolved around afl 23 its usually people just commenting about the graphics and comparing them to fifa or nba

 

[Flagmantle Pod]

yea if you look at any of the twitter post revolved around afl 23 its usually people just commenting about the graphics and comparing them to fifa or nba

True but then again what are they gonna talk about? Cant be gameplay, no one on Twitter knows gameplay is out

 

[Xtreme]

Its definitely concerning. True no AFL game is perfect (well Aussie Rules Footy on the NES is still #1 in my heart lol), but you'd like some of the more glaring issues fixed early on.

There's an element of risk buying early (especially digital purchases) where you have 2 hours or less of playing the game to decide if the issues are worth putting up with or just give up and pursue a refund.

I love the Evolution games, reading the comments over the years are like daggers to my heart (lol). Hundred's of hours played across multiple platforms (had a few hours on Evo 2 last weekend!). The game wasn't perfect by any stretch but contained enough that it was easy to play and enjoy. My only negative was the commentary and that was easy to turn off.

These gameplay previews show that AFL 23 has done a lot of things right.
But theres a lot that needs work. Will those glaring issues eventually get fixed or will they stay as quirks of the game ? I think gameplay should have been the heavier focus rather than ensuring the vast majority of playing lists looked like their real life selves.

On one hand I do think programming the ins and outs of AFL in a game is a tough ask. On the other hand, other games have managed it well (but in those days the stand rule didn't exist lol).

Its going to be a fun few days!

 

[tastiger]

Imagine a WW employee came in here and started talking trash about the game like Ross did about WW’s games

I think we may have one here... There just not advertising it

On VOG-L09 using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[tastiger]

From what I took from the last 5 pages it’s that people need to change sliders to make the game better. Do people realise the sliders changing wont work for Pro Team/online games. Which is probably going to be the most played game mode

I would think career mode would be most peoples go to?

On VOG-L09 using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[gunbarrelstraight91]

I would think career mode would be most peoples go to?

On VOG-L09 using BigFooty.com mobile app

Not going to lie. A player career mode but play as the whole team in games is my go to. Pre ordered before I saw they pulled a player centric career mode. However still going to go through with the purchase and play the coach or manger career mode

 

[Cummdog3000]

As always, thanks for the gameplay and insights Michaels, you’ve done a great job in the build up mate. If BA gets another crack at a footy game I hope they continue giving you a bit of inside access. Hard for me to get around to sitting down for the streams but I’m definitely subscribed and smashing that like button on YouTube while on the toilet

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Its definitely concerning. True no AFL game is perfect (well Aussie Rules Footy on the NES is still #1 in my heart lol), but you'd like some of the more glaring issues fixed early on.

There's an element of risk buying early (especially digital purchases) where you have 2 hours or less of playing the game to decide if the issues are worth putting up with or just give up and pursue a refund.

I love the Evolution games, reading the comments over the years are like daggers to my heart (lol). Hundred's of hours played across multiple platforms (had a few hours on Evo 2 last weekend!). The game wasn't perfect by any stretch but contained enough that it was easy to play and enjoy. My only negative was the commentary and that was easy to turn off.

These gameplay previews show that AFL 23 has done a lot of things right.
But theres a lot that needs work. Will those glaring issues eventually get fixed or will they stay as quirks of the game ? I think gameplay should have been the heavier focus rather than ensuring the vast majority of playing lists looked like their real life selves.

On one hand I do think programming the ins and outs of AFL in a game is a tough ask. On the other hand, other games have managed it well (but in those days the stand rule didn't exist lol).

Its going to be a fun few days!

There's certainly never been a pure simulation. I would have thought with AFL 23, that should have been the number 1 priority. I don't know if the release version is going to be much more advanced than the demos.

 

[berisha]

berisha you have review codes yet?

Negative. Review code not coming until launch, so there will be no reviews on release date.

 

[Saintsation]

Very frustrating to hear of the Xbox issues after upgrading from a PS4 to a series X last year. I didn’t think i would ever have to buy a PS4 game ever again….. Are there any big differences between the current and next gen versions of the game?

In the same boat, anyone know if there’s any major differences if any at all


Sent from my iPhone using BigFooty.com

 

[jwikked]

As for the build up to this game it has been pretty embarrassing and amateurish if I'm being honest. I can't remember the last time a game was released without gameplay footage from the developer. We were promised this, weren't we? Why wasn't it delivered?

This has happened for literally every other AFL game so far. Big Ant, True Blue and Wicked Witch all marketed the games exactly the same.
Gameplay for all those games were first seen filmed off a mobile phone from some influencer or footy player playing the game somewhere.

The complete lack of information pre-release is by design. They do it deliberately, and have been doing it for years.

But I do agree, it is very amateurish. It reminds me of when other game developers have the review embargo for the day the game releases. They know it's shit but don't want the reviews to affect the sales on day 1.

Negative. Review code not coming until launch, so there will be no reviews on release date.

Says it all.

 

[BallaratBulldog]

I think we may have one here... There just not advertising it

On VOG-L09 using BigFooty.com mobile app

I think two.

 

[fancyscum]

Given how Ross carried himself in the Evo 2 launch thread I think the level of criticism is more than fair.

Treat others how you’d like to be treated etc etc

I would imagine he would be pretty embarrassed with how this has all finished up. Seems like his passionate team of AFL fans have not done too much better than a bunch of nerds who didn't know very much about the sport and seemingly detested having to make sports games.

 

[BuddyF23]

Was yesterday a bad dream

 

[Nicho50]

Negative. Review code not coming until launch, so there will be no reviews on release date.

Because being able to read reviews to make an informed decision on a purchase of a product is to risky right.

 

[thedavemiester]

Interesting that EB still looks fine with regards to xbox. Can preorder and still listed as tomorrow launch. Even my preorder says collection tomorrow. If it wasn't for the text message (and this thread obviously) I would be blissfully unaware.

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

Negative. Review code not coming until launch, so there will be no reviews on release date.

Oh no

Well, at least Melburnians have play sessions of the final version to look forward to today right? Right?

 

[Michaels]

If youve been called in to play test you aren't exactly going to come out and s**t on a game are you? Quick way to not get included ever again, means nothing really

Lol

No one is under any obligation to say or do anything.

Everyone Is welcome to form their own opinion in what they see but your suggestion is fairly disrespectful to be honest.