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All of them do. You could have the exact same slate as someone else if you wanted. But what's the fun in that? Then you couldn't win, only tie. The trick is finding the best combination of movies, but similarities are pretty much inevitable between slates.

I, like many of you, have stated my case elsewhere about the whole Salary Cap versus draft debate. However, one month in to a season playing several salary cap leagues there is one glaring problem that has to do with the way these movies have been priced.

One of the best things about the game previously was the interest it forced me to take in box office tracking and results. If I didn't have an movies coming out for the next three weeks I was still avidly following Steve Mason's projections and rotton tomatoes reviews cheering for my opponents movies to tank. This element has been removed this season I feel, due to the pricing. If anyone was going to spend big bucks on a movie, it was POTC, SM3 or Shrek 3 as the safe plays and that has left movies like transformers, FF2, Ratatouille, etc. out in the cold. NOONE in my leagues took the chances on these movies (who wants to pay 40 bucks for one weekend of transformers results?), and as a result we are left agonizing over whether "License to Wed" will be able to eke out a victory over "Captivity" since those small movies are the only differences between slates.

PLEASE GIVE US BACK THE DRAFT!!!!!

Eldr1tch wrote:

I, like many of you, have stated my case elsewhere about the whole Salary Cap versus draft debate. However, one month in to a season playing several salary cap leagues there is one glaring problem that has to do with the way these movies have been priced.

One of the best things about the game previously was the interest it forced me to take in box office tracking and results. If I didn't have an movies coming out for the next three weeks I was still avidly following Steve Mason's projections and rotton tomatoes reviews cheering for my opponents movies to tank. This element has been removed this season I feel, due to the pricing. If anyone was going to spend big bucks on a movie, it was POTC, SM3 or Shrek 3 as the safe plays and that has left movies like transformers, FF2, Ratatouille, etc. out in the cold. NOONE in my leagues took the chances on these movies (who wants to pay 40 bucks for one weekend of transformers results?), and as a result we are left agonizing over whether "License to Wed" will be able to eke out a victory over "Captivity" since those small movies are the only differences between slates.

PLEASE GIVE US BACK THE DRAFT!!!!!

At the risk of beating a dead horse... AMEN!

After a month of playing this game, I still do not see how it is any better, fairer, or more fun than the draft version.

I do see how it is easier and less time consuming. As Eldr1tch pointed out, this version doesn't require players to pay close attention to weekly tracking or opponents' weekly scores. Those things just don't matter as much when there is little variance amongst team slates.
Consequently there is little reason to update the numbers more than once a week, which is now how often the numbers do get updated.
Someone has already posted their gripes on that issue.

Furthermore, there is no use for the league film chart that was updated with the numbers for each team's movies from the previous weekend and used to grace every league's main page.
I miss this chart. It was a convenient and useful way of seeing how each of your opponents had performed on the most recent weekend. Now we have to click on each individual studio to see what movies they own, which ones they are succeeding with, and which they are failing with. In a league with more than 5 or 6 studios this gets incredibly tedious.

I don't think I'm the only one who is still hoping to get longer seasons and some drafting capability (i.e.- no cap), amongst other things, back before this short three months is up. But these things seem pretty unlikely, given that we haven't heard a peep about them for over a month.

Those of us who want to play the old game are still here, FM, in case you had gotten too busy to forget.

Thanks for posting, all. We haven't forgotten that there are those of you who prefer the draft, and it's still on our list for future development along with a host of other items that we've been cranking on as well -- it's been a busy spring with a small crew here!

Thanks as always for playing and for your feedback.

Jake
Fantasy Moguls

Just bring the frickin' draft back by next season and this will all stop. I am really disappointed by the summer season. Everyone in my league was pumped for it and the idea of having Transformers and Fantastic 4 on the same slate. B/c of your ill-conceived system that was unable to happen. I am very disappointed in Moguls and ,more importantly, I simply don't like this current game.

P.S. In my league it is Spidey vs. Pirates vs. Harry Potter... What fun is that?

helfy91782 wrote:

P.S. In my league it is Spidey vs. Pirates vs. Harry Potter... What fun is that?

Would it really be all that different under the draft system?

~D

helfy: I'm not sure that a draft system would solve that problem re wanting to have Transformers and Fantastic Four on the same slate. Under a draft, at most one studio would have the chance to have both movies, and depending on the size of the league, both of those movies would possibly be selected by different studios in the first round before any studio had a chance at a second selection.

In both the May-July and June-Aug seasons of Ultimate and Box Office, the pricing for both of those movies is such that it actually is possible to have both on your slate at the same time within the $100 budget. The pricing for Transformers and Fantastic Four, respectively, is:

May-July Ultimate: $40+$29=$69
May-July Box Office: $33+$26=$59
June-Aug Ultimate: $50+$36=$86
June-Aug Box Office: $57+$38=$95

We understand that there are things about the draft system that some players prefer, and it's certainly been duly noted. But one of the main benefits of the salary cap system is that it provides more ability to have the movies you want on your slate, as opposed to, say, a one-in-eight chance of being in position to choose both Transformers and Fantastic Four under a draft system in an eight-studio league, and that's assuming both movies weren't chosen by different studios in the first round of picks.

Thanks for playing and for posting.

Jake
Fantasy Moguls

Although I had misgivings about the salary cap mode initially, I've been won over. I've got a much greater chance to repair holes in my slate than I would under the draft and it would also be virtually impossible to play in leagues of greater than 8 people under the draft system. Do I miss the draft? Sure. I'm finding the new system is much more hands however. In my leagues anyway, it is foolish not to be checking your competitor's slates every day. I love the constant chess game as you drop your last three films to pick up three new ones from a quickly thinning slate in the hope of cumulatively gaining ONE point on the guy ahead of you, *lol*. I think that all things considered, the chances of resurrection and strategy are better the way things are now.

I'm with you A_Roode, I think the new version is more fair, and more fun because it allows us to play with more of our friends and coworkers. I do agree that if they were to bring back the option of the draft, I would probably play in a few draft leagues, because it has some very fun attributes too (the draft itself is really fun!), but I think I would primarily play in Salary Cap leagues. The salary cap league gives you much more flexibility to put in-depth analysis and strategy while not requiring that level of interaction from all people who play.

~D

Alright, Jake I don't really appreciate your tone right now. (A) in a draft format anything can happen... During our first season some one wound up owning the 3 of the top 5 grossing films of the holiday season. (B) We were going to have a season that extended from the beginning of May to the end of August and have a short fall season of about 6 or 7 weeks and go right into the holiday season. The film to draft would have included

Spidey 3
Shrek 3
Pirates 3
Oceans 11 (3)
Fantastic 4 (2)
Evan Almighty
Die Hard (4)
Ratatouille
Transformers
Harry Potter 5
Hairspray
I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
Sunshine
The Simpsons
The Bourne Ultimatum
Rush Hour 3

There are some others that could break out too but those seem to be pretty solid picks to be apart of the 100 mill club and depending on how the draft goes and the strategies involved you might have wound up owning 3 of them. Basically, what the cap makes you do is pick your big movie and then have to fit the rest of your slate in around it. Instead, you could be picking from the best available and you won't feel so limitted by an arbitrary cap with arbitrary pricing. I am not saying you would have a better slate than you have right now. I am saying you would have the perception that you have more freedom to pick the slate you want instead of being forced to pick the slate that works.

Also, in our draft we have set position based on how you finished the previous season, last picks first, etc. We also use the snake format which allows some stronger positioning from the last pick.

And there is one last point that I would like to make, it could have been made already but I will make it anyway, the current cap method turns us all into daytraders. I picked up Spiderman 3 after reading Mase's Tracking column. In a draft I would have to project the entire season before it began and then if I am lucky I might be able to find open films that are on the upswing of tracking. In this format I could simply pick up a movie every week after reading a tracking poll without forcasting one bit. Quite simply it dimishes the game, period.

hey, guys!

as always, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts. I'm glad that at least some of you are having fun with current game!

I understand that the best case scenario would be to offer multiple options, including the salary cap and the draft. And I get that at least some of you just plain don't like the current system.

The fact is, the current game works and is very cool, even if it's not the optimal game for everyone. We need to spend some of our time and focus on some stuff that will help us build a business to support all of this and all of the cool stuff that you and we might want to do in the future..frankly, if we don't do that, the draft vs salary cap debate is going to be a moot point because we won't be able to keep running everything indefinitely without building the business to support it.

So I hear y'all on this point and I hope you're enjoying the game. We're going to keep working our behinds off to keep the lights on and hopefully someday in the future when the business takes off we'll be able to offer all the milk and honey that everyone wants. In the meantime, be nice and we hope you stay a part of the great community here while we grow.

Questions etc etc--you can email me at Brenda AT fantasymoguls.com

I'm completely in the "pro" draft/ previous style of play category. I've preached my reasons before. Now that being said, I sense that those of us who are enamored with that format, along with more game controls, will eventually get our wish. Unfortunately, it will come with a price............a subscription price!!

I am even more convinced now with Moviebabes latest response. Hey, I understand what the powers that be are doing. They want to build this game the best way they see fit. That is with the salary cap game. This style of play allows for more "churn" population wise if you will. With the elongated seasonal drafting play, the participation level was restrictive. Now people can jump right in monthly and play..........and in multitudes.

Those of us who were hoping to build on the archival site,(with the commissioner controls we previously had), were totally blind sided by the change, after the original two seasons. But the proprietors obviously felt this style would limit the traffic they needed to make the site and the game viable in the long run. So even though, we ask for the "bells & whistles" (that I can still view going to my archived leagues), we are told they are still "figuring out how to do them!" Uh, you already have them.....don't you?

So I'm guessing we'll get it back, but probably at $39.95 per person, per season. Or something akin to every other fantasy sports site on the internet. Hey, that's business!!

Just another .02 which may cost me more in a few more months!!

Hey, Moviebabe's back!

Hi Helfy, I feel I have a need to come to Jake's defence here. Firstly, I saw no aggression in his tone. He has always been helpful to me, and responding at all is a sign that the creators of the site do care.

Now for your Draft arguments. I see your point to a certain extent, in that there is a certain sense of freedom. However, that freedom creates problems. My main dislike of the draft system is that it is based on luck. If you come last in the first round of drafting, you are instantly at a disadvantage. Sure, you are first to pick from round two, but unless it's a long league, the disadvantage is great, and you end up entereing a league and already playing catch-up.

I love the Salary-cap method. Sure, you're working with pricing that someone picked, but the challenge is to use your knowledge to pick the best options. I disagree with your statement that all you have to do is wait for Mason's tracking articles. Firstly, they're not always right. Secondly, due to price limits you can't just choose what the tracking will think will be number one. Also, when the league is in its last few weeks, you're going to find yourself with not a lot of money to play around with, so it's impossible to follow the tracking in that manner. In fact, plotting before the league starts is the best way of playing the salary-cap, as you can plot out your dollars wisely. A lot of people in my leagues were so excited about the Big 3 that they didn't stop to think about Harry Potter or Tansformers doing just as good. Again, foresight is the winning key to salary cap just as much as draft.

I think the salary cap will show its true colours outside of the summer season. Then you'll see why salary-cap is better. I was always frustrated in the Spring when I didn't get 300, because during these seasons there are only 3 or 4 Big films, and once they're taken, you're pretty much in a desperate, if not futile, game of scrambling to catch up.

With all that said, I am disappointed by Moviegal's announcement that the Draft may not return, but if I HAD to pick, Salary is the best way to go.

numbersix_99 wrote:

I think the salary cap will show its true colours outside of the summer season. Then you'll see why draft is better.

From the context of your post I think you meant that salary-cap is better. If that is waht you meant, I agree with you completely. I enjoy the draft method but I can't say that it's fairer.

~D

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