Wolverine Studios has been plugging away for 16 years now. It may have started out as a fun side project, but it has evolved into a full-fledged development company in the world of sports simulations. A gaming catalog that includes titles that range from college and pro football and basketball to golf, the company continues to look at ways to improve and expand on each title.
I have reviewed multiple titles over the years from Wolverine Studios, and while I have always found them to be engaging and offering a high level of fun, I have had one complaint that has remained constant. That complaint, especially in their football and basketball series, has been how the game is visually presented during an individual game simulation.
In basketball, it’s a 2-D presentation with players being represented by miniature jerseys chaotically traversing around the court. With football, it’s basic circles with their position abbreviations found in the circle. While what is there technically works as of now, that style offers very little in terms of immersion and excitement. That is about to change, and I couldn’t be more excited.
Community Feedback
The developers at Wolverine Studios have always been open to embracing community ideas and suggestions, and have done their best to implement the ones they loved, were feasible, and made sense. That’s important to note because Wolverine Studios invited me to a Twitch premiere party for, you guessed it, a new visual game style that will initially launch with DDS: Pro Basketball 2022 (in October of 2022 as of now).
The next evolution in gameplay is ready to drop for Wolverine Studios, and it’s a step that feels like it will be entirely embraced by the community — and possibly open the doors for casual fans who have always been interested in simulation games but have yet to jump in.
Again, the individual game was always shown in a 2-D format with tiny jerseys moving about the court. With the release of DDS: Pro Basketball 2022, that will all change.
What’s Changed?
The court will now be presented in more of a three-quarter view with the arena stands visible and player models that include a whole body and complete uniforms. Even more exciting is that this new direction is only the beginning. Although what was shown during the presentation was extremely impressive, the developers made it known that this was just the start. They are welcoming all types of feedback in hopes of creating an even more immersive experience when it comes to watching the game play out in its entirety.
The new presentation view will only be incorporated into the college and pro versions of their basketball simulations, but during the Twitch premiere they said they are looking into how this new view could work in both of their football franchises as well.
Again, this is the genesis of this upgrade for the Draft Day Sports basketball titles. If you have an idea that could work well in its implementation, head over to the Wolverine forums and let them know about it.
Published: May 16, 2022 10:05 am