Inside Strat-O-Matic Computer Hockey
Will Kolodzie

Part Two:  Game Screen & Options

Have you ever played a computer game with a lousy interface?  I've comes across a couple of them in my non-Strat gaming experiences.

A good interface is one that is simple, easy to use, and ordered in a logical manner.  There is a reason why things are where they are.  There is not a need to search through multiple screens or menus in order to find something.

A bad interface can take away your "will" to play the game.  This has happened to me on several occasions.  Instead of complimenting and enhancing the gaming experience, I've seen computer products so poorly designed that you spend more time trying to figure out how things work than you do actually playing it.  When I purchase a computer game I don't want to spend a lot of my time frustrated by what I can't find or what I can't do. 

I recall playing one computer hockey game that just irked me to death.  You couldn't "save" your games in the middle of them, which made it almost impossible for me to complete one.  You couldn't access the season statistics during the game.  Setting lines and pairings in the computer manager was time-consuming.  Plus, there weren't any settings to alter or modify player tendencies.  I'm sure some people like the game but it gets a big goose egg in my book, simply for the fact that the computer design makes the game more trouble than its worth.

Fortunately, all of my bad experiences are in the past.  We have the first version of Strat-O-Matic computer hockey.  Is there not a better way to spend your Christmas vacation?  I figure it should arrive on my front steps within a couple of weeks, and as I'm telling my wife, the leaves in the backyard are going to have to wait. 

Version 1.0 gets top marks for its interface, as indeed it should.  The game is a very close reproduction of Strat-O-Matic's computer baseball game.  The hockey has almost everything the baseball does.  What is missing is not the result of effort and design but rather the nature of a first release version.  There's not enough time to put everything in your first release.  Hey, that's what upgrades are for!

Those who have played the computer baseball game should feel comfortable with Strat's offering.   Those who are new to Strat-O-Matic will have a short learning curve.  The format is clear, concise, and effective.  It doesn't take long to figure out how to play the game or discern what you need to do so.

Here's some good news, too.  Unlike the baseball game, you can "right-click" the game screen database to access information.  You can "right-click" to update or generate a computer manager, view team's statistics or the team's notebook, and even release players.   

MENU ITEMS
You'll see seven drop-down menu items after loading the game.

File
Game
League
Team
Player
Statistics
Options

FILE MENU
The file menu lets you access the print files.  This is useful when you want to view boxscores and game stats that have accumulated during a season.  

GAME MENU
There are three items here.  You can play an unscheduled game, a scheduled game, or open a saved game.

LEAGUE MENU
The League menu lets you start a new league from scratch, update the basic and detailed league information, zero out all replay statistics so you can start the league over again, permanently remove a league from your hard drive, and add, update or delete scheduled games.

TEAM MENU
The team menu facilitates the updating of teams, including conference, division, and team information.  Version 1.0 goes even further than the baseball game.  You can assign each team a color, team logo (not included), manager name, and e-mail address.  This last item is great.  How many times have you played in a league, wanted to talk to another manager about a trade, and didn't even know his name or e-mail address?  As an aside, provisions for a phone number should be included in Version 2.0

TEAM NICKNAMES
One area of concern is with the team nicknames on the season disks.  Anaheim is simply ANA, not the Mighty Ducks.  This is getting old.  Do you have any idea of how many times I've changed the "Bombers" to "Yankees?"  Enough.  J  Strat-O-Matic has made it really simple to input actual team names in the hockey.  Click on "Update Teams" from the team menu.  Click "Team Information" from the dialogue box.  Select your team and make the appropriate choices.  Here, you can also add a logo for your team if so desired.  I believe that Ted Coursen has, or will have, a file for all of the NHL team logos on his website.

OPTIONS MENU
One of Strat-O-Matic's greatest strengths is that it provides gamers with the opportunity to play its games with a number of different rules and options.  Some of their competitors let you play the game with one, or just a few, rules.  That's not a lot of fun for many people.  The level of customization for rules and options here is unparalleled.   No other hockey simulation product on the market today comes close to offering what Strat-O-Matic does.  

The options screen is split into five sections:

General
Overtime
Lineups
Autoplay
MAX Rules

There are two types of options in the game.  The general options alter the way the game appears on the screen, the speed at which information is presented, and the type of information shown.  The rules, or the way the game is played, is changed by "league" or "game" options.

GENERAL OPTIONS
The general options include such things as settings for the play-by-play, showing board game information, and cards per forward and defensive pair change.  The latter sets the number of "cards" that each forward line and defensive pair will be on the ice.  I found this to be an impressive feature when playing the game.  

The play-by-play adjusts for normal or detailed settings.  The board game information tells you everything you need to know about what is happening.  Basically, as an old SOM hockey board gamer, I was able to follow along nicely.  The detailed setting adds color and descriptive phrases to the game.  The module is customizable.  Any text editor is suitable for making changes.  The default file is pbp.ini.  Make a copy before you start making changes!  Like the baseball game, you can change the base delay for it.  All in all, the play-by-play module works well for a first start.  I'd like to see a little more added to it in Version 2.0.

The nicest general option is the auto action card feature.  This option automates the selection of the next action card so that play can proceed.  To put it simply, use this option and you don't have to click for each action card.   I think the programmer or beta tester who came up with this should receive a year of free products from the company.  I tried playing with and without this option.  The game is much better when the auto action card is utilized.  The game flows more like real hockey, and more importantly, prevents gamers from excessively clicking for each action card.

OVERTIME
The overtime settings gives you an idea of how many choices are in this game.  Users can eliminate overtime.  There are options for 20-minute overtime periods as well as the new 5-minute overtime.  Finally, there is the new "Overtime Point" setting, which is for the rule introduced into the NHL in the 1999-2000 season.  Personally, I'm going with the "No" overtime option.  There is no sympathy in the Kolodzie household for ties and players who can't skate a few extra minutes.

LINEUPS
This screen allows you to control the number of skaters used in the game and to select rest and injury options.  Using this setting, the computer will occasionally rest players. 

AUTOPLAY
The Autoplay settings include options for boxscores and export files.  If checked, the game saves boxscores for all autoplayed games and the respective game files.  This is an easy way for draft leaguers to have everything set before their games are played. 

MAX RULES
The first computer hockey MAX rule is a setting for home ice advantage.  If selected, the game engine will adjust certain readings from the action deck to better reflect the home-ice advantage experienced in real life.   The company does not present much information regarding the exact specifics of this rule.  I'm wondering if there will be more "MAX" rules for the hockey game in the future.  How about "clutch" goal scoring or goaltending?  Hint to Strat:  Don't include this MAX rule for the Dallas Stars.  There are games when Ed Belfour couldn't stop a freight train from going through his legs.

SUMMARY
The game screen makes it a snap to access the game playing module and access statistical information.  Editing of league and team information is actually a little easier here than in the baseball game.  A tremendous amount of thought and effort went into making the interface.  The programmers certainly took a page out of Strat history.  They know what Strat customers want to see in a game.  They also know what works well for draft leagues.  Basically, in my mind, the programmers and testers deserve to waive the five-year requirement.  They get a pass into the Strat Hall of Fame today.   The only computer game interface that is better than Strat-O-Matic hockey is, well…  Strat-O-Matic baseball.  I give the hockey interface and options package an A+.

Next:  Statistics