This update focuses on expanding and improving on a number of gameplay issues on the defensive side of the field. The majority of the defensive playbook has been revamped to provide a broader, more useful selection of plays to work in all scenarios. You can check out your plays now in game by holding down LT/RT on the controller (just like on offense) and toggle through defenders too! On the field, player collisions have been updated to allow for bumping the ball carrier on missed and broken tackles, hopefully providing for more dynamic moments. Zone AI has also been improved to give defenders a better understanding of players positions on the field.
While a lot of these updates touch the gameplay side of things, how that experience plays out differs across all players. In this update, I've added 3 experimental skill levels (beginner, normal, expert) for you to try out and see how they play. Normal is what you've played in the past, while beginner and expert scale in opposite directions to provide for different levels of challenge. Give them a shot and let me know what you think!
There's a whole bunch more in v.12.2, so please check out the full release notes below:
Controls
- Holding LT/RT on defense brings up a defensive play preview and allows for toggling control of defenders without the AI snapping the ball
- Standardized the selection order when toggling through players on defense
Difficulty
- Added 3 experimental skill levels (beginner, normal, expert) to try out
UI
- Updated playbook field position display to better show hash mark, first down, and field position
Gameplay
- Eliminated jittery rotations on collisions, allowing for more predictable bumping between players
- Missed tackles, broken tackles, and jukes no longer phase through defenders, allowing for additional collisions and bumps to take place during a play. Low STR rated runners will get slowed or knocked back when holding down protect
- Players no longer cease moving immediately after a tackle, allowing for additional hits and collisions to ball carrier
- Increased likelihood of missed tackles based on runner and tackler's TKL ratings
- Greatly improved blocking on field goals and extra points
- Greatly increased ability and likelihood of QB to move around in pocket and avoid sacks
- Slightly increased AI QB's wait to throw time
- Slightly decreased slowing while turning, improving open field agility for higher AGL players
- Decreased energy recharge time for power moves
- Decreased downtime for failed blockers and boosted their blocking ability on subsequent block
- Running backs no longer attempt to make illegal downfield blocks during passing plays
- LB/CB zone defenders better adjust to receivers within their zone assignments
- Safeties sag less off deep routes
Playbook
- AI is now able to utilize the entire playbook, removing situational requirements for some plays
- Defensive category 'run stop' has been renamed 'stack' and features new or significantly reworked plays using a more consistent 4-4 formation
- Defensive playbook now displays each play's balance of attack vs. defend values
- Defensive formations have been normalized to better mask what play has been called
- Most defensive plays have been rebalanced to provide a better range of strategy and tactics
- Short passing routes have been elongated to increase route time
- Plays HB Tunnel, HB Phalanx, FB Knuckle, and QB Hero have been reworked
- New play HB Elbow replaces FB Dozer and swaps position with HB Phalanx