Sunday Rivals News

Hope everyone is enjoying all the catching and gameplay changes from the last update! The v.15.1 patch fixes a number of bugs that showed up recently as well as adding some quality of life features to the game including a more useful power meter:



Check out the full patch notes below:


Gameplay

• Removed severe blocking imbalance on kicking plays
  

UI

• Added a meter to visualize the time it takes for a player's power moves to recharge
  
• Added an animated banner to the playbook screen on 4th down and extra points
  
• Added timeouts to the scoreboard portion of the playbook screen
  
• Added potential field goal distance to the playbook screen special menu
  
• Added a possession marker to the playbook screen
  
• Playbook scoreboard correctly shows extra point details
  
• Plays of less than 1 yard that result in touchdowns / first downs are rounded up to 1
  

Bugs

• Potential fix for a rare issue where a receiver will be tackled by no one immediately after catching the ball
  
• Potential fix for a rare issue where a running back will not catch a toss
  
• Fixed a number of issues causing players to be facing the opposite direction they were running
  
• Fixed an issue where non-kick returners would face the wrong direction once they caught the kickoff
  
• Fixed an issue where stadium scoreboards wouldn't update after scoring when time has expired heading into halftime/final
  
• Fixed an issue where QB's would not be able to toggle back to passing mode until their power meter fully recharged
  

As the name implies, I've completely rebuilt how catching works in the game, from the way players run routes, anticipate passes, catch (or drop) the ball, and take off running afterwards. Factors like player height and ball location drive a series of all new, contextual catch animations for both the offense and defense. After the catch, I've made some timing changes to create more space and opportunity to pick up yards without immediately being swallowed up by nearby defenders.

Speaking of running, I've slowed the global running speed down by about 10% and added all new running/leaning animations to compliment it. I think the speed change will help make the game a bit more readable (especially for new players), while still maintaining the frantic action on field veterans are used to.

Of course receivers need good throws to catch, so v.15.0 features a handful of changes targeting all aspects of the passing game. Improvements have been made to pass blocking, AI QB pocket presence, and smarter pass leading and placement. There's a whole lot more going on under the hood, so take a look at the full patch notes below to get an idea of what to expect.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on everything in this release, here and on Discord!

Animation

• Added several all new, contextual catching animations
  
• Added new blended catch anticipation animations
  
• Added new run and leaning animations
  
• Updated existing dive animations
  

Gameplay

• Globally decreased maximum running speed by 10%
  
• Added new catching system that takes into account relative ball location, quality of throw, and receiver's height
  
• Receiver and defenders will now jump for high passes
  
• Receivers will now side leap for out of reach passes
  
• Receivers will now look at incoming passes and catch ball on the appropriate side
  
• Defenders now make a decision between trying to intercept a pass or deflect it
  
• Missed interception attempts have a chance to turn into tipped balls
  
• Removed the ability for defenders to intercept a pass while trying to deflect it
  
• Missed deflection attempts now have a chance to distract the receiver from catching the ball
  
• Improved clarity on failed attempts to catch tips and dropped passes
  
• Improved QB pass leading to better take into account a receiver's speed, direction, and distance
  
• AI QB's properly move around and out of their pocket to avoid pass rushers
  
• AI QB's have better understanding of a collapsing pocket
  
• AI QB's are able to throw bullet passes more frequently
  
• Decreased throw quality and accuracy on low strength rated QB's who are hit while throwing
  
• Decreased throw accuracy on low agility / skill rated QB's throwing while backpedaling
  
• Lessened throw quality penalty on low agility rated QB's throwing while on the move
  
• Added a short delay before a pass can be thrown immediately after snapping the ball
  
• Added a short delay before a juke/protect can be performed immediately after catching the ball
  
• Added a ratings-based delay for defender's reaction after passes are tipped/caught
  
• Players who are in a catch animation can no longer tackle a player until the animation is complete
  
• Removed rotation jitter immediately after throwing the ball
  
• Decreased movement jitter when receivers reach their destination at high speeds
  
• Adjusted OL pass blocking to better utilize the awareness rating
  
• Improved OL blocking on XP/FG kicks
  

Playbook

• Updated blocking assignments in most passing plays
  
• Reworked routes in a number of plays
  
• Removed 5th receiver from 'Turbo' pass play
  
• Updated play art to reflect changes
  

HUD

• On offense, the player control ring does not turn green until the ball can be snapped
  
• Pass destination target is hidden on player controlled passes and dead balls
  

Camera

• Game camera now tracks players all the way to the sideline
  
• Game camera now zooms in for a short period of time after a player completes a pass
  
• Game camera now dollys in before the start of a play to show entire width of field
  
• Updated game camera to initially be further back after a change of possession
  
• Adjusted camera position for kicking plays
  
• Goal posts fully fade out when next to the camera
  

Bugs

• Fixed a critical bug where incomplete passes in own endzone silently crashed the game and resulted in endless safeties
  
• Fixed a critical bug where saving a customized player with a blank uniform number crashed the game and corrupted the roster file
  
• Fixed a bug that listed safeties as 6 points on the summary page's per-quarter scoring breakdown
  
• Fixed a bug that allowed the OL to lineup sideways before the snap
  

Quick patch to address some issues that came up in the last update. Full notes below:

Gameplay

• Increased defenders ability to sack the QB based on the QB's AWR rating
  
• Touchbacks are taken at the 25 now
  

Bugs

• Potential fix for the rare occurrence of a player quickly pushed 20+ yards while catching the ball
  
• Fixed another issue that was keeping AI-called timeout messages from being displayed in the UI
  

Building on the the last update, v.14.3 gives some much needed attention to how the AI runs the ball, especially when making their way through interior holes. Now with better ground and air attacks, my hope is that you will start to see more balanced and competitive games against your AI opponents. As always, custom skill sliders are there for you if things start to feel too punishing, but either way let me know how it goes!



Additionally, changes have been made in a number of areas to bolster gameplay, including improved defender breaks on passes, much better edge blocking, a new touchback system, and some cleanup to tackling. Hopefully we've seen the end of whiffed tackles, with way more bumps and bruises in its place!

Looking forward a bit, I intend to continue work on the gameplay side of things for a few more weeks, hoping to improve and expand on the way running and catching works in the game. Once that is in a good place, I'll shift over to building out Season Mode, which will most likely occupy a few months of my time again. Since it's such an important part of the game's future, I'm going to try and not sit on it the entire time, but rather roll it out as a work in progress so yall can hammer on it and let me know if I'm heading in the right direction. More info to come in the future...

In the mean time, I've had a blast checking out folks really digging into custom teams and building out their own leagues and players! If you've made something cool and want to show it off, post it in the forums or on Discord!

As always, lots of changes in this update, read on for the full patch notes:

Gameplay

• Improved AI decision making on running plays, especially on interior runs
  
• Improved edge blocking awareness and responsibility, particularly for TE's
  
• Significantly decreased the possibility of missed tackles flying through the ball carrier
  
• Improved visual feedback and response on missed tackles
  
• Increased AI controlled defender's break speed on pass defense
  
• Awareness (AWR) rating has significantly more impact a on defender's pass defense ability
  
• Skill (SKL) rating has an increased impact on defender's ability to overcome blocking
  
• Pass deflection ability is more evenly distributed between a defender's ratings, defensive play call selection, user skill level settings, and situational factors
  
• Slightly decreased likelihood of tipped passes being caught
  
• Increased receiver's willingness to dive horizontally for passes
  
• Improved blocking on field goals/xp kicks to eliminate automatic kick blocking strategies
  
• On kickoffs, standing still in the endzone brings up a timed touchback meter
  
• Remapped kickoff power bar so max power kicks can go out of the endzone
  
• AI kick returners will now take touchbacks based on their ratings
  
• AI kick returners no longer solely run in a straight line
  

Experimental

• Removed collision when receivers are running their routes with the hope to decrease the amount of players getting stuck on each other
  

Customization

• Added hyphen support to team and player information fields
  

This update looks to improve some of the smaller, lingering gameplay issues existing in the game right now. First off, a handful of minor adjustments have been made to how AI QB's play, including how they read the field and make decisions under pressure. Coupled with that, I've put more emphasis on skill level values for interceptions, so you should hopefully see less 4+ INT games on normal.

I've also made some adjustments to offensive line blocking that should improve the success of inside run plays, even against stack and pressure defenses. Be sure to use your power moves (jukes and protect) once you're in the open field!

Lastly, a few presentation improvements have been made as well, including your sideline reacting to the play in real time, more animations, and the addition of a yardage tracker while the ball carrier runs. Full details below:

Gameplay

• Adjusted timing, boosting, and rating balance to improve offensive line blocking on running plays
  
• Fixed situations where AI QB's would purposely roll into a pursuing defender rather than away
  
• Improved AI QB's ability to recognize their chance of being sacked and willingness to make 'danger' throws to avoid them
  
• AI QB's now take a receivers skill into account when deciding if they're open or not
  
• Increased AI QB's willingness to make throws to covered receivers when they're being chased
  
• Improved AI QB's understanding of prioritizing deep receivers on deep pass playcalls
  
• AI QB progression speed is more directly controlled by their ratings now
  
• Increased the ratio of tipped passes to deflections, as well as receiver's ability to catch them
  
• AI defense reacts to offensive playcalling earlier in game
  
• AI offense will call running plays in more situations
  
• Boosted defensive attack when AI correctly identifies run-dominant playcalling trends
  
• Proportionally increased the impact of the interception skill slider with a decreased impact on player ratings, giving skill level the priority on the amount of interceptions in game
  
• Increased minimum running speed for sub-40 SPD rated runners to avoid missed handoffs/pitches
  

Animation

• Sideline players now react to plays in real time
  
• Added more celebration animations
  

UI

• Added animated yard tracking and sound while runners carry the ball
  
• Added animation to HeadHunter score changes
  

Customization

• Added 4 letter support to team initials
  

Bugs

• Fixed a critical issue where facial hair settings were not being saved correctly, causing a silent crash. Facial hair and hair color should now update and appear correct in menus and the game
  
• Fixed an issue that was keeping AI-called timeout messages from being displayed in the UI