TEW2016 Developer's Journal

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 04: Match Aims

 

One of the issues that some people have struggled with in previous games is that the motivation behind most matches is only in your head, as the game itself has no concept of why the match is happening or what its purpose is. This is addressed in TEW2016 with the new match aims feature.

 

Every match now has a specified aim which tells the game exactly what the intent behind the bout is. This ranges from basics (that were used in previous games but to a lesser degree) like Calm The Crowd and Work The Crowd to specialisms like Comedy and Eye Candy to more spectacular items like Steal The Show and Technical Masterclass. There are 15 aims in total (NB this may increase before the release of the game).

 

The match aim is added via the road agent notes, and default automatically to Regular, the most basic type available. Many of the match aims automatically switch on other, related, road agent notes, so that there's no need to select them; for example, the Wild Brawl aim will automatically mean that the workers are going All Out, there's no need to also select that specific road agent note.

 

Different aims create different effects within the game. For example, Technical Masterclass will see the workers specifically rely on their chain and mat wrestling skills, will be useful for keeping a crowd engaged without making them too rowdy, but requires at least 15 minutes of ring time to allow the story to be built up properly. A badly executed Technical Masterclass could kill a crowd's enthusiasm though. On the flip side, Steal The Show will send the workers out to specifically try and tear things up with the most amazing match possible, but this is harder on them physically, burns them out quicker, and the pressure can prove too much and see them try so hard that they actually overdo it and the match can fall apart.

 

The different qualities that each aim brings is described in the game so that you know what to expect. Plus, the names are all pretty self explanatory, so there's nothing difficult to remember or learn.

 

The idea behind this concept is to make sure that your intent is actually registered by the game and makes a difference to the show, as oppose to just being in your head. This makes booking more realistic and more nuanced.

 

This feature plays a big part in two others that alter the way you will book in TEW2016, so we'll be covering them on Monday.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 07: Mix Of Match Aims

 

Based on their products, companies have minimum requirements for including different match aims to keep the crowd entertained. For example, a light-hearted Chikara-style company would naturally expect at least one Comedy match aim per show.

 

This introduces two new elements into play.

 

The first is that it adds a further element of strategy to booking. If you know that you're going to need a Comedy match and a Technical Masterclass on each show then you will need to think carefully about how you're deploying your roster as not everyone can thrive in those sort of bouts. This also has the knock-on effect of making sure that cards actually have content that's in-line with their product. For example, real life WWE cards are generally geared towards having a mix of content, with some action-packed matches, some 'comedy' (NB: I'm using some terminology extremely loosely at this point), some divas, some storyline-driven matches, etc, etc. If their product is set up to reflect this, the booker will need to keep that in mind.

 

The second element is roster diversity. In previous games, going all the way back to the EWR days, there's not a huge incentive to go for anyone other than the good workers - leading to the old meme where 95% of players using WWE\F used to hire AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels on day one because talent always won out. This doesn't really reflect reality where a diverse roster is almost always a good thing. Again taking WWE as an example, there's always a place for comedy acts, for the odd 'freak show' worker, midgets, etc, etc. By introducing match aims, you now have an actual reason to bring in people who aren't necessarily the best workers in the world, so that you can fill that Comedy match aim slot, so that you can throw in some 'Eye Candy', etc.

 

NB: The Analysis button shows your current match aim requirements, so you don't have to remember them or constantly go back to the product screen to check.

 

Mar 07: Perfect Show Theory Overhaul

 

As Perfect Show Theory appeared to confuse a lot of players in previous games it has now been overhauled to be less rigid by tapping into the new match aim system.

 

PST (which can still be turned off if you wish) now works like a pressure gauge; if the fans are kept 'up' for too long then they'll burn out and be hard to recover. Careful use of calming match aims (such as Calm The Crowd), or mixing up different match aims to keep the fans on their toes, is therefore needed to avoid this (or to 'relieve the pressure' if you want to continue the analogy). As a lot of the match aims are explicit about bringing the crowd up or down (or at specifically about manipulating the crowd level in other ways) this takes a lot of the guesswork out of the feature and instead makes it more about booking order and forward planning, as you'd do in reality.

 

To reflect the above changes, Perfect Show Theory has been renamed as Crowd Management in TEW2016.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 08: Sausage Fest Penalty

 

My favourite named feature ever, the sausage fest penalty means that mainstream \ entertainment based companies (other than those that are dedicated to female wrestling) are now required to hit a certain ratio of attractive women to male competitors per show or they will get a penalty for not appealing to their core male audience.

 

This is a companion piece to yesterday's feature in that it's aim is to make players follow reality a little more closely. In previous games there was virtually no point in having attractive women on the roster (other than if you were gaming the system by spamming T-shirt shooting angles to get high ratings), which is of course not how reality works - WWE\F, WCW, ECW, NWA...pretty much everyone has had a number of attractive women on their roster, even if they had little use other than standing around looking pretty, for the simple reason that sex sells. By having this potential penalty in place, the player will now have to follow suit and maintain some on the roster.

 

To clarify, these are not female wrestlers, nor do they actually have to be actively in angles; just have someone work as a manager counts, even if all they are doing is accompanying someone to the ring for a match or angle, even if that's only a few minutes of time.

 

Mar 08: EWR Throwback Options (x7)

 

With this being the 20th anniversary of the EW series, one of the big things we're looking at is trying to encourage those people who haven't yet made the switch from the freeware games to do so. As the most common reason given is that the game is too complex \ detailed \ time consuming, we've added a raft of seven new user preferences to specifically target this. Collectively they've become known as the EWR Throwback options as they allow the game to be switched to become a very open, less restrictive, less realistic experience a la EWR - whether that name will remain post-testing I don't know, but for now it serves its purpose.

 

These are primarily to encourage new players, but I'm sure even some of the veterans of TEW will be able to get some use out of them now and then.

 

The seven are all on\off toggles, and are as follows:

 

Booking times: If turned off, the length of the show is ignored entirely, allowing the player to book as little or as much as he wants. i.e. if it's a two hour show, you could book 5 minutes or 5 hours and the game isn't going to penalise or block you.

 

Match ratios: If turned off, the player does not need to worry about the match \ angle ratio of shows. The player could not have any angles at all, even for an entertainment-based company, if desired.

 

Left off show complaints: If turned off, workers never complain about being left off shows. This removes the need to plan ahead and make sure that everybody has something to do.

 

Match aims: If turned off, the player does not need to meet the minimum number of match aims per show that are required by the product. (Match aims can still be used, it's just the requirement that is turned off.)

 

Momentum: If turned off, worker momentum effects are disabled. This means there are no effects on match ratings and no complaints about it. They are still stored and visible however, so if you wish to turn the feature back on you do not need to start from scratch.

 

Sex appeal: If turned off, the sausage fest penalty that was described above is disabled entirely.

 

Worker overuse: If turned off, there are no penalties for using a worker too much during a show. You can throw a jobber out there for an iron man match and won't get a penalty for it (although you would still of course have to deal with the poor match rating that would likely result; it's just the post-show penalty of 'You used X far too much on this show' that is turned off).

 

As with all the user preferences, these can be turned on and off via the options menu and only apply to the specific player - so it's perfectly OK for one player to have them all turned off, another player to have them all off, and another player to pick and choose a selection to turn off.

 

When combined with the other user preferences that already exist, this allows a huge scope for removing a lot of the complexity and realism from the game and turning it from a sim-game to a fantasy-game instead.

[Adam Ryland]

Time for a themed day, I think...

 

Mar 09: Botches

 

Previously the Safety skill didn't really do much in the game; to rectify this, the game now introduces botched moves. Workers with low Safety ratings will run the risk of botching moves and potentially injuring their opponents. (NB: This is separate from regular injuries, which are still linked to the Resilience skill.) Very occasionally even skilled opponents may get a freak accident and botch a move.

 

As well as potential injuries, botches (and even near botches) can lead to negative relationships between the workers involved and potential morale issues. On top of this, even people not involved in the match can react; for example, veterans may get irate about a clumsy rookie being 'reckless'.

 

This also makes dealing with rookies and clumsy workers more of a challenge in the long run.

 

If a botch does happen you will read about it on-screen, as well as getting an e-mail if there is any fall-out from it.

 

Mar 09: Refusal To Work With Botchers

 

Mirroring the real life Austin - Owen Hart situation, workers who get injured thanks to a botched move can refuse to work with that person again. This is dependent on their personality and the severity of the injury.

 

Mar 09: Injury History

 

Accessing a worker's profile and viewing the Physical screen will now list all the injuries that worker has suffered during the course of their career, together with the date of when it happened. This includes any pre-existing injuries that were added via the editor before the game began.

 

This allows you to get a better idea of exactly how injury prone a worker is, and where the damage may have been done in terms of body parts.

 

Mar 09: Botch History

 

As an addition to the previous entry, the injury history will also record and list if the injury occured due to a botched move. If so, the botcher's name will be displayed too, so that you know who was at fault.

 

Mar 09: Injury Notes

 

In previous games you would only find out about injuries via an e-mail after the show. This has now been altered so that you'll be able to see on-screen when an injury happens. It's a minor touch, but it helps the immersion.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 10: Singles Titles In Tag Matches

 

New to the game is the ability to have singles titles put on the line in tag team bouts. If used, the title will change hands if the current holder is beaten (i.e. is the person taking the fall), being won by the person who beat them. The title does not change hands if someone other than the champion is beaten (unless the title was vacant). This allows some real world situations to be simulated.

 

Mar 10: More Titles Per Match

 

The number of titles allowed per match has been upped from two to three. This allows, for example, the tag team champions to defend against two singles champions.

 

Mar 10: Player's Handbook

 

I already alluded to this in a reply in the discussion thread, but work has been done to make TEW2016 as user friendly as possible in terms of explaining how things work.

 

The primary source of this is the Player's Handbook. This is found in the office, and replaces the Booker's Advice button. This works as an in-game help file, divided up into topics and giving detailed explanations about the mechanics. Unlike its predecessor, this is less about general tips and more about precise details. For example, in the angles section it gives specifics on how many minutes angles need to run for to allow workers to benefit from them, what skills the different Rated On categories use, and how workers' popularity is altered by them.

 

The idea behind this is to address as many of the questions that crop up in the Small Questions thread as possible. As everything is divided into topics, it should be easy to navigate straight to your answer if you have something specific in mind. The reason we've moved the help file in-game rather than as the more traditional external document is that not only is it easier to get to, but it means it can be updated via patches very easily; so if any new questions appear, or if there's something that people are finding unclear, a new topic or more detailed answer can be patched right in.

 

As well as the Handbook, there are also more "?" buttons than ever before to explain specifics, and many of the road agent notes that seemed to confuse people have had their descriptions beefed up to be explicit about what their pros and cons are and how they should be used. Again, this includes specific like exactly how many minutes you need \ can't exceed in order to get bonuses or avoid penalties.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 11: Expanded Production

 

The production department now contains four new areas: Production Values, Broadcast Quality, Music and Live Event Experience.

 

Production values are things like sets, entrance ways, professional video editing capabilities, etc. Broadcast Quality is the crew and equipment used to shoot the shows, i.e. things like HDTV. Music covers all the licensing of music used for entrances, videos, etc. Live Event Experience is the event crew who organise and run the shows in regards to fans, for example organising the seating, organising VIP packages, etc. Some of these elements mean a monthly ongoing cost, some are done per show, and some are a combination of both; the costs are dependent on the level used. All costs are clearly shown on screen when selecting levels.

 

These have two major impacts on the game.

 

The first is in relation to your rivals (NB: a rival is any company of similar size in the same game area, except for International and Global companies where it is a company of similar size anywhere in the world) - if you hold a show and are running any of the elements at a lower level than them, you will get a penalty to your overall show grade for looking amateurish in comparison.

 

This opens up a potentially brutal game of cat and mouse with companies being able to raise the stakes to try and force opponents into difficult situations. This is especially true of financial powerhouses who can use their might to make life very difficult for their more cash-strapped opponents. For example, a rich company may decide to up all four of their production elements by two levels; this will make things very expensive for them in the long run but instantly puts a lot of pressure on all their rivals, who are now left with the dilemma of whether to take the same, potentially killer, financial hit or to try to weather the storm and just take the penalties. This of course makes life very tough for companies who lack money, but that's business.

 

The second major impact is in regard to broadcasters. Every broadcaster has minimum requirements for the first three elements mentioned at the start of the journal. A company that does not meet those requirements each show will annoy them and potentially get kicked off the air if it lasts long enough. This again adds another dilemma, as some companies may get the opportunity to snag a good broadcast deal but need to factor in whether they can meet the requirements without putting themselves under too much pressure.

 

For ease of use, player's are e-mailed whenever a rival alters their production values in a manner that could potentially cause penalties. The production screen also gives clear on-screen warnings of any potential penalties and includes a View Rivals button that allows you to see exactly what levels your rivals are currently using.

 

Mar 11: Half Year Awards

 

As a companion piece to the End Of Year Awards, there is now a half yearly version that comes out during the summer. These sum up the year thus far and give a good indication of who the front runners for each of the full awards are.

 

Mar 11: Painkillers

 

A new lifestyle \ habit has been added to the game, painkiller addiction. This can be a very dangerous and disruptive habit to acquire, and normally occurs post-injury. As with the other habits, there are a raft of custom stories and events related to painkiller addiction, and it can impact in-ring performance, reliability, and impacts physical condition and at high levels can shorten a worker's potential life span.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 14: Screw Jobs

 

The user can now choose to perform a 'screw job' on one of his employees via the road agent notes. This involves hatching a plan with his opponent whereby the victim believes he is going to be winning the match, only for you to either have a fast count or 'false' submission happen to make him lose.

 

This risky last resort allows the user to indulge his inner villain and can be useful for taking a belt off someone who doesn't want to do a job...but it may not go down so well with the rest of the locker room.

 

Mar 14: Injury Frequency

 

Each injury can now be set to have an individual frequency that sets how likely it is to occur. This allows injuries to be divided up so that some are very common, some very rare, etc, and make things more realistic.

 

Mar 14: Global Injury Rate

 

By request, the overall rate of injury across the game world is higher, resulting in more injuries happening. You can still set the general frequency via the Options menu, but all options result in a higher amount than they would in TEW2013.

 

Mar 14: Extra Injury Rate Setting

 

The injury rate option now has an additional level, Extreme. This is for users who like to have a lot of injuries in their games.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 15: More Aggressive AI Hiring & Bids

 

The AI is now not only far more aggressive at going after top talent but also deliberately trying to snatch away workers from rivals, even when they don't particularly need them, as a way of hurting the competition. Part of this new aggression is that the AI is no longer limited to primarily hiring only when their roster needs it, it can now respond intelligently to what other companies are doing.

 

On top of this, the AI is now also more aggressive in the way it puts together bids, being willing to push itself further and give more incentives so that it can compete even with human players. This is particularly true of financially powerful companies, who will use their muscle to try and blow away the competition.

 

These features make for a more dynamic game world, particularly amongst the big companies, with bitter wars over top talent now commonplace.

 

Mar 15: Nepotism

 

To reflect reality, owners and head bookers in AI companies are now far more likely to use their positions of power to hire friends and family.

 

Mar 15: Automated Admin Mode Check

 

Very minor, but the game can now automatically detect whether there is an admin mode issue and flash up a warning when you open the game. This replaces the old system of simply having a warning for everyone. This will hopefully help stop people accidentally forgetting to put themselves in the right mode.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 16: Title Changes In Angles

 

The booker can now allow title changes to happen within angles. This allows many real world situations, such as title vacations, to be simulated without the need to visit the belts screen and do it manually.

 

Whether an angle allows a title change is set when adding the angle to the database.

 

Mar 16: Alternate Loading Screens

 

A new folder called Loading has been added to the Skins folder which can hold any number of custom loading screen designs. When the game starts its between-days loading process it will pick a random file from this folder and use that as the background.

 

Mar 16: Free Picture Years

 

The Free Pictures files, used when assigning pictures to freshly generated characters, now includes optional earliest and latest possible dates that restrict when the picture is valid. This allows some pictures to only appear during the appropriate era.

[Adam Ryland]

Alteration

 

Please note that the March 8th entry, "EWR Throwback Options (x7)" is no longer accurate. Two new preferences have been added, taking the number to nine. They are:

 

Production effects: If turned off, the player is not penalised if a rival has superior production values, music, etc, not will broadcasters complain if he runs a show with less than the minimum production requirements.

 

Lifestyle effects: If turned off, a worker's lifestyle (i.e. smoking, drinking, etc) have no impact on the worker's performance during a show. They still retain their wider impact on lifespan, skill changes, etc, however.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 17: Screwed Up Endings

 

If a wrestler is injured during a match there is now the chance that the workers will 'call an audible', rebooking the finish of the match themselves on the fly. This doesn't happen often, but when it does it can lead to surprising booking changes that can throw a spanner in the works for a player.

 

Mar 17: Trademark Spots

 

Workers can now come up with brand new trademark spots (in matches) or new catchphrases (in angles). When this happens, you are informed on-screen via the road agent.

 

Trademark spots take multiple forms, including 'hope' spots for babyfaces and visually cool power spots for workers who are very strong. Debuting a new trademark spot gives the worker a one-off boost to one or more of their skills.

 

A new catchphrase, only available to workers with high charisma, gives the worker a one-off boost to his microphone skills.

 

Mar 17: Creative Meeting Change

 

The criteria for some of the sections of the Creative Meeting feature have been relaxed considerably for smaller companies; this stops them ending up with only one or two entries for some categories, as they were prone to do in TEW2013, thus making the feature more useful.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 18: Development \ Child Split

 

'Child' companies now have two defined types: Development Territory and Child Company.

 

A Child Company is how it functioned in TEW2013, basically being self reliant; it can hire its own talent whenever it needs.

 

A Development Territory is the new method and means that the company is essentially isolated. It cannot hire its own workers, instead being totally dependent on the parent company to stock its roster.

 

Using the latter option gives the user tighter control, as you're guaranteeing that the roster will only contain people that you want it to have. However, this does put the onus on you to keep an eye on the Dev Territory as if the roster gets too small it won't be able to hold shows and will have no way of dealing with that.

 

The user can swap between the two options whenever he wants, it's a one click change.

 

Mar 18: Control Of Development Upgrade

 

The user now has a much greater degree of control over all his child companies.

 

Via the new Child Companies button the user can access the following controls: Roster, Schedule, Product, Teams, Titles and TV Controls. In each case, these are almost identical to the version the user has access to for the parent company, meaning you can do the same actions for both. For example, the Schedule screen is literally exactly the same same, so everything you can do for the parent company (changing schedule, adding or modifying events, etc) you can do for the child company too.

 

There are also two new controls: Staff and Own Broadcaster.

 

Staff allows you to assign, replace or fire the owner and head booker of the child company. The user has total control of this area, so doesn't have to worry about the AI bringing in a new owner out of the blue - it will always be someone the user specifically went after. Own Broadcaster, as discussed earlier in the journal, allows a parent company that owns its own broadcaster to use it to give the child company air time.

 

These new options give the user a really fine degree of control over his or her child companies, basically being able to fine tune everything bar the actual booking of shows.

 

Mar 18: One Night Developmentals

 

Similar to the already-announced ability to hire a local worker to make a one night only appearance, players who have a development territory now also have the option of calling up any of the workers from there for a one night only appearance. This is done via the booking screen while putting together a show.

 

As with the Hire Local feature, this is a special one night deal that has them become available for the show and then disappear off the roster without any of the associated blocks or penalties on rehiring. The big advantage to this, as well as ease of use, is that bringing a developmental worker up for one night does not affect his status with the child company; i.e. he does not have to vacate titles, does not lose his contract, does not split up any teams, etc, etc.

 

This also, of course, helps simulate reality by allowing development workers to be brought up for try outs, to temporarily bulk out the roster if there have been injuries, etc.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 21: Freestyle Angles

 

Freestyle angles are an addition to the booking screen that allow ultimate flexibility when it comes to writing your show, being a third way in addition to using pre-existing angles or creating your own custom versions.

 

The way they work is that you can quickly set up to eight participants, together with what they're rated on, whether they're on screen, and what the result of the angle is (i.e. who gains advantages, who loses out, etc). Essentially it's just like creating your own angle the normal way but without the need to deal with writing actual text or fiddling about with multiple versions to hold different amounts of people.

 

The advantage of this method is that its quick, involves no searching through the database to find something to suit your needs, and is very flexible. The downsides are that when the angle runs during the show there's no text as to what actually happened, as that only exists in your head. This therefore probably won't be used by those people who like a very tight simulation with exact details, but it should be of benefit to those who are happy to let their imagination fill in the gaps.

 

Mar 21: Dirty Doctor

 

Added to the backstage rules, companies can now employ a 'dirty doctor'. This morally ambivelant medico will be on hand backstage and will hand out illegal drugs to whichever workers want them. The spread of steroids has benefits for workers, including better looking bodies and the ability to heal quicker, so it can benefit a company to allow the dirty doctor backstage. However, there is the risk that his work will get rumbled by the media, leading to a potentially huge backlash - particularly if a wrestler who works for the company (or recently did) gets busted for drugs, or worse, ends up dying as a result of them.

 

Mar 21: Fog Of War By Player

 

In previous games the Fog Of War worked on a global level, i.e. every player got the same level for each worker. In TEW2016, this has been altered to work on a player level. This means, for example, that a player who has employed a specific worker for a few years will naturally have a better grasp of that worker's skills than another player who has never employed him because he's seeing him up close and personal over a long period of time.

 

Mar 21: Suspension Delay

 

When giving a suspension to a worker in PM mode it now takes effect from the end of the show, not immediately as it did before. This way the player can job the worker out before they disappear, which is both more realistic and allows titles to be taken off them first.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 22: Locker Room Handling

 

Once the user has handled the incidents that occur at the start of a show he now has access to a special Locker Room Controls section. This gives the ability to use several management techniques, ranging from trying to intimidate people by publicly firing someone in front of the whole locker room to holding a 'clear the air' session where you allow any worker with a beef to have the opportunity to air their problem. Each option has specific potential advantages and disadvantages, usually revolving around keeping control of the backstage area, your image with the workers, and the general atmosphere in the locker room. This allows the user to be proactive about keeping things running smoothly.

 

Mar 22: Double Show Order

 

By request, the user now has the option of setting the order of his shows (via the Schedule screen) when he has more than one on the same day. For example, he could choose to run his TV shows after his events, and run them in reverse order of prestige.

 

Mar 22: Blacklist

 

Essentially a 'reverse shortlist', the user now has access to a Blacklist where he can put workers who he has no interest at all in. Any worker assigned to the Blacklist will be automatically left out of any search results, lists, etc.

 

Mar 22: Interventions

 

The user can now stage a sit-down 'clear the air' meeting with two employees who are not getting along. This could result in them getting along better but could also make the situation worse and possibly get them mad at you for sticking your nose in to their business. This adds another backstage management tool to the user's arsenal.

[Adam Ryland]

We'll do a themed day today; 10 things that directly affect your matches.

 

Mar 23: Cash Ins

 

To simulate 'cashing in' there are now Midway Addition and Late Addition road agent notes. These mean that the targetted worker does not wrestle the full match but instead appears either partway through or right before the finish. This obviously penalises their ring work somewhat as there were not fully involved.

 

These notes allow real world situations to be simulated without the need for a complex set of booking instructions. For example, if you wanted to model the last WrestleMania main event you'd actually book it as a three-way bout to begin with, but have Rollins set as a Late Addition; this way he can be involved only in the finish while the in-ring stuff is primarily handled by the other two. This saves you from having to go the messy route of having a singles match with a no contest ending followed immediately with a short three-way, which would potentially cause a lot of penalties and tank your show rating.

 

These notes also allow you to indulge your inner Teddy Long and have a singles bout spontaneously turn into a tag bout, simply by booking it as a tag match to begin with but having one partner from each team be listed as a Midway Addition. Again, this makes booking much cleaner as you're not having to make two separate bookings for what is essentially the same bout.

 

Mar 23: Keep It Simple

 

A new road agent note, this targets a specific worker and tells them to stick to the basics. This means that the worker has far less chance of botching anything, but naturally also gives a penalty to his ring work due to him being limited. This note is useful for building up green workers slowly or stopping clumsy workers crippling the rest of the roster.

 

Mar 23: Intentional DQ

 

A new road agent note, this allows a worker to intentionally get himself disqualified.

 

Mar 23: Intentional Count Out

 

A new road agent note, this allows a worker to intentionally get counted out.

 

Mar 23: Rage DQ

 

A new road agent note, this allows one worker to get disqualified because he went insane with rage, a la Ken Shamrock.

 

Mar 23: Eating Up

 

A selfish wrestler who is the far better worker in the match now has the option of using his advantage to take too much of the match himself, purposely 'eating up' his opponent and ruining the match slightly to make the opponent look worse. This may happen due to a quirk of his personality, because he was having a bad day, or because he just didn't like the other wrestler.

 

Mar 23: Make Not Break

 

The counterpoint to Eating Up, generous workers who are booked to win and are in the ring with an opponent who is weaker and lower down the card than them can now intentionally go out of their way to make the opponent look great in defeat, giving them an extra popularity boost and potentially creating a friendly relationship.

 

Mar 23: Enhanced Match Report Details

 

The match reports have been enhanced in two ways. Firstly, it can now contain comments on people being carried, who the MVPs were, etc. Secondly, individual performance levels are now noted by the road agent too. This allows the user to get a better sense of who is actually doing the work in a match and who is just coasting along.

 

Mar 23: Stunt Bumps

 

A companion note to the Crazy Bump, a Stunt Bump works the same way except that the bump is more controlled (and possibly gimmicked) and is therefore safer (but slightly less spectacular). This would cover, for example, when a guy gets tossed off the stage onto crash mats, with the padding quickly being removed before the cameras get there to give the illusion that it was much more dangerous than it really was.

 

Mar 23: Better Jobber Matches

 

By request, the penalty about "the fans were put off by a match between jobbers" no longer applies if the match is safely stowed away in a dark match.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 24: National Battle Upgrade

 

Rather than simply being a battle of the best event rating of the month, the national battle system now has a focus on star power within a roster. So, at the end of the month the game compares the 'draw' of the rosters involved and the company who has the most star-powered roster will come out on top. There is a special screen in your office that gives you an exact breakdown of how things currently stand.

 

This better simulates the Monday Night Wars era, which was always about who had the bigger and hotter stars rather than being about who actually produced the best show that month, and more importantly makes clashes between giant companies much more of a long-term and strategic war - stealing top talent now becomes a much bigger deal and can have huge ramifications due to the 'swing' it can create (i.e. the company the worker left is losing some of their star power while simultaneously boosting their rival who he has joined), and developing new, hot stars (and then protecting them properly) also becomes key.

 

This does not affect the regional battle system, which remains as it was. This therefore creates a key difference between them: regional battles are much more volatile, with constant changes in winners and losers, while national battles become a long-term war, with it being perfectly possible for one company to go many months (if not years) on top before being toppled when their rivals manage to finally steal that one top worker or develop that one white-hot superstar of their own. This therefore better simulates how the wrestling industry works.

 

Mar 24: Pay Rise Requests

 

For the first time in the series, employees can request pay rises without requiring an entirely new contract to be negotiated. The user has the option not only of accepting of refusing the offer, but also giving partial pay rises if he's trying to save a buck of two. This adds a new layer to the strategy of managing a locker room \ finances and eliminates the previous 'loophole' whereby a worker could get trapped on a much lower pay than he deserved thanks to being stuck in a lengthy deal.

 

Mar 24: Toxic Workers

 

Workers can now become embroiled in scandals of various sorts which, once publicly reported, cause them to become 'toxic' for several months and therefore virtually unemployable due to the popularity damage they'd do to anyone who chooses to have them on their roster. This can cause top stars to fall from grace and create major changes in the game world, as well as creating nice dilemmas for the player - whatcha gonna do when an iconic star turns out to be a racist, brother? (Probably fire him.)

 

Mar 24: Psycho Complaints

 

Workers classified as Psychopath style are now far less likely to complain about doing sick bumps or dangerous bouts, even if they have a conservative personality. However, to balance this out, older wrestlers are now more likely to switch from Psychopath to another, less intense, style to extend their career.

 

Mar 24: More Backstage Incidents

 

The number of possible backstage incidents has been massively increased in order to create more variety.

 

Mar 24: Detailed Match Display

 

Double clicking a segment in any of the 'historical' data screens (i.e. match histories, results, company histories, etc) now loads an expanded view which shows the details of the bout, including exactly who was in it - clicking on any of the workers loads their profile. This solves the occasional issue whereby the user doesn't know who is in a match because they're using an alternate identity or unusual tag team name.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 25: Excursions

 

To better simulate the way that the Japanese industry works, young workers can now leave on an excursion to a foreign area. This allows them to hone their skills in a different environment. These tours will usually be between 6 months and 2 years, after which they'll return home, often directly onto the roster of the company that sent them out. They automatically become open in the area they choose to go to. Excursions can be preset in the editor too. Youngsters on excursion are less picky about who they'll work for, allowing them a better chance of landing a job.

 

Mar 25: Japanese Weight Split

 

To better simulate the Japanese industry, and New Japan in particular, there is a new option that allows a defined split between junior and heavyweight wrestlers. This means that they will be book primarily against each other with little crossover between the two classes. This also creates something of a natural roster split, with the AI understanding that it needs to keep both weight classes filled properly.

 

Mar 25: Movies Upgrade

 

In previous games a worker who left to film a movie did so immediately. In TEW2016 he will give a warning, allowing the user to book around his upcoming hiatus.

 

Mar 25: Sticky Window Position

 

The game window is now 'sticky' in that it does not reposition itself at the end of each loading process, now only moving back to the center of the screen when accessing the main title splash screen.

 

Mar 25: Post Segment Incidents

 

There can now be fights or arguments that break out immediately following a match if one worker injures or hurts the other. These are reported via the road agent.

 

Mar 25: Auto Area Opening

 

If a worker appears for a company then he will automatically then have that company's home area open to him (if not already). For example, if someone tours Japan then they become automatically open for all Japanese companies to hire in the future. This allows loans, etc, to open up that worker to new careers and makes for a more dynamic game world.

 

Mar 25: AI Takeovers

 

AI companies can now try and take over struggling companies, just like the player can. To do this they must have spare cash, a ruthless owner, and for the purchase not to put them in financial trouble.

 

Mar 25: National Battle Impact

 

National battle wins and losses now cause a knock-on morale effect on the locker room for the remainder of that month. This helps signify how important the psychological effects of the battles are and ties in to the stories about how the real life Monday Night Wars were received.

 

Mar 25: Classic Agers

 

The ager section now contains a 'classic' option; these pictures will be used when a worker dies or when they are displayed in places like the Hall Of Immortals. This allows a more appropriate picture to be displayed rather than what otherwise may have been them in old age.

 

Mar 25: Venue Opening & Closing Dates

 

Venues \ locations can now be given specific opening and closing dates, the same way that items like companies can. This allows for better simulation of reality.

 

NB: There'll be a bonus journal entry tomorrow in preparation for the final week.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 26: Bits & Pieces (x100!)

 

With only a week of the journal to go we still have a huge amount of content to get through, so today's bonus entry is a run through of a massive 100 items. Yes, 100.

 

These are all entries that fell under the category of 'Bits & Pieces'; i.e. they're not game changers and they're not going to cause anyone to spontaneously break into their happy dance, but they're nice to have.

 

Because there's so many and I didn't want to spend my entire weekend writing, I've simply copied their title across from the "What's New In 2016?" feature from the game's title screen; I've only provided deeper explanations if the title isn't completely self explanatory. I'll apologise now for any spelling mistakes, as given that I've got an absolute ton of writing to do and no automatic spell checking available on this site, some are bound to slip through.

 

--

 

Move Level Separation: By request, a move's level (i.e. finisher, secondary finisher, etc) is now defined at the move set level, not within the move itself. This means, for example, that one person can have Choke Slam as their finisher while another can have it as a secondary finisher without the need to make two different moves with slightly different names.

 

Title Prestige Change: In previous games title prestige was tied directly to absolute match ratings; this made it extremely hard for smaller companies to reach or maintain high levels for any of their titles. This has now been altered so that it's based on match ratings relative to the size of the company.

 

AI Call Ups: In previous games the AI always called up workers from development; now it is more picky and can choose to ditch people who aren't up to scratch.

 

B Shows: In previous games the AI always tried for as many 'A' shows as possible and never went for 'B' levels. This could put a big strain on the main event crew. This has been altered so that the AI can now go for 'B' shows too.

 

Additional Backstage Rules: Some extra backstage rules have been added, giving the user more control over how strict or relaxed he wants to be.

 

More Walk Outs: The tolerance levels before an unhappy worker chooses to quit a company have been lowered. This leads to higher turnover and makes morale management more key.

 

Negative Morale Impact: Unhappy workers now get more of a morale penalty in matches, getting worse the more miserable they are. This makes it more important to keep a tight grip of the locker room.

 

Personality Changes Upgrade: Young workers who are being successful now become more big headed over time, basedon the size of their employer, etc. On the flip side, young workers who are stuck working tiny indy shows will become more humble.

 

Power 500 Filtering

 

Non-Wrestler Creative Control: In previous games there was a loophole where you could offer CC to a non-worker to lower his asking price, knowing that it would never actually impact you. This has been closed.

 

Small Company Turnover: Small companies have a higher turnover of workers, with more emphasis placed on workers choosing to go elsewhere due to disputes with management or because they've grown stale.

 

Manager Turnover: In previous games the AI had very low turnover of managers. This has been increased.

 

Quick Help For Sizes: Many users posted questions about what the worker sizes mean. To aid them, the details from the help file are now right next to the size menu, via a "?" button.

 

Ager Auto Naming: In the editor.

 

Company Wide Bonuses: By request, the user can now offer company wide bonuses rather than having to do it individually.

 

Weight Change Time: When a worker changes size the effects are no longer instant, they take time. This is more realistic. While changing size there are also extra effects to simulate the transition.

 

Ageing Popularity Loss Change: By request, the popularity loss suffered by workers who were past their prime has been vastly reduced.

 

Import Areas And Regions: To aid mod makers, area and regional settings can be imported.

 

Battle Royal Timings: The AI has been improved to know that not everyone in a battle royal type match is working the whole time and most are only in there for a short duration. This affects stamina and refusals.

 

Loyalty Mass Edit

 

Lifestyle Mass Edit: i.e. smoking, drinking, etc.

 

Popularity Maximum Filter: By request the user can now filter by maximum popularity as well as minimum.

 

Change Brand With Push: By request the user can now change a worker's brand at the same time as their push.

 

Stricter Loyalty: The loyalty feature has been made to apply more strictly to make it more realisitc.

 

Alliance Women Wrestling: Alliances now have criteria options for women's wrestling.

 

Storyline Usage: Previously when creating a storyline you could see who was already in one but not who wasn't; now you can.

 

Discovered Chemistry Filter: By request, the filter for discovered chemistry now allows a user to limit search results to only those workers who are currently on the roster.

 

HoI In Title History: A worker's title history now displays Hall Of Immortal entries.

 

No New Titles: By request, you can set a company to have no new titles during gameplay. This prevents them creating any, which may be useful for some mods and scenarios.

 

Injury Retirement Upgrade: When a worker will be retired by an injury they will now announce the retirement immediately, not wait until the injury 'heals'.

 

Battle Royal Ratings: The way battle royals are rated has been upgraded to be more realistic, with less emphasis on selling and psychology.

 

Tour Name Settings: By request, potential tour names can now be defined by company and time of year.

 

Search By Based: You can search by where a worker is based. This is useful for travel costs.

 

Wage Bill: In the finance screen there is an easy overview of what the likely monthly wage bill is going to be.

 

Pre Set Last Turn: You can preset when the last turn for a worker was via the editor.

 

Mass Edit Filter: There is now a filter on the mass editor screen, removing the need to go back one level each time.

 

Dormant TV Shows: You can now classify TV shows as dormant, meaning they are hidden from view on the various lists. This tidies things up and is more user friendly.

 

Title Filter: The filter options for title belts in the editor has been expanded.

 

No Gimmick Filter: You can now filter the editor by workers with a missing gimmick.

 

No Bio Filter: You can filter the editor by workers with an empty bio.

 

Scripted Promos Change: The scripted promos feature confused many users. It has been rewritten from scratch to be easier to understand.

 

Dark Storylines: By request, dark matches and angles no longer impact storylines as they are not seen by the majority of fans.

 

Title Prestige Penalty: By request, the penalty for low title prestige has been removed.

 

Mass Assign Move Sets: By request, the mass editor now allows workers to be automatically assigned move sets.

 

No Employment History Filter: You can now filter workers by not having any employment history.

 

Match Name Value Filter: You can filter matches by name value in the editor.

 

Agers For Retirement: You can now set agers that are specifically for when a worker retires (i.e. suited pictures).

 

Agers Save & continue: The agers section of the editor now has a Save & Continue button for ease of use.

 

AI Prioritise Own Venue: The AI has been altered to better prioritise the use of its own venue.

 

Last Used Analysis Upgrade: By request, the 'last used' part of the analysis screen now shows day and week as well as month and year.

 

Apply Agers Now: Via the mass editor you can now auto apply any valid agers to workers' default settings.

 

Angles Rated On Selling: By request angles can now be rated on selling.

 

Low Popularity Mechanics: The mechanics whereby a low-level worker appearing for a large company gets a popularity boost to bring him up to a minimum level have been overhauled to be more realistic and more powerful. This makes it easier to get an unknown rookie up to at least a viable opening match worker.

 

Increase Maximum Appearances: By request, the maximum number of appearances that can be offered in a contract have been substantially increased.

 

Alter Ego Everywhere But...: By request alter egos can now be applied 'everywhere but X', allowing the worker's default name to be their most famous identity and to have alter egos used when they worker anywhere but their most famous employer. i.e. you could have Undertaker as the character's default name, making him easier to find in searches, etc, and give him an alter ego for 'everywhere but WWE' to simulate the fact that if he ever left he couldn't take the gimmick with him.

 

Alter Ego Searching: Alter egos are now searchable in the editor by missing pictures and empty bios, the same as workers can be.

 

Short Contract Blocks: If a contract ends that was only ever for a small number of appearances or a short length of time the game will automatically recognise that it was not a proper full-time deal and therefore will not activate the traditional six month block on rehiring them. This allows better simulation of try-outs and short term deals.

 

Auto Reset Filters: Right clicking on a Filter \ Search button will automatically cause it to change to its default state.

 

International & Global Criteria: The requirements to reach the top two size levels have been refined to be more natural and a little stricter, making things more realistic.

 

Shortlist Auto Removal: Clicking to shortlist someone who is already shortlisted will now automatically give the option to reove them; previously this was limited only to certain screens.

 

Morale Notes With Names: When viewing a worker's morale pros and cons it will now give specific names when another person is involved. I.e. "Pleased about a hiring" is now "Pleased about the hiring of X".

 

Upcoming Changes: On the roster overview there is now the option of listing everybody who has an upcoming turn or gimmick change, making roster management a little easier.

 

Alliance Criteria View: Previously the user had to go to the editor to see an alliance's membership criteria; it is now listed on any alliance screen.

 

Walk Out Tolerance: The tolerance level before an unhappy worker will choose to walk out on a company is now lowered for those with a PPA deal as they have less reason to bother staying if they're unhappy and fewer obstacles to just heading home. This matches reality a lot better as it will increase the number of low-level indy workers who simply quietly disappear off a roster over time.

 

More Title Defences: The number of defences was capped at 255 in previous games. As one user managed to go past this limit, the cap has been raised significantly.

 

Downsides: For realism, smaller companies are no longer expected to offer downside agreements. This has the knock on effect of easing their financial burden.

 

Mass Edit Worker Popularity

 

Mass Edit For Companies: Includes various items.

 

Easier Comedy Matches: Comedy bouts in previous games were hard to pull off successfully. The way they are rated has now been altered to make it a lot easier, as well as being clearer as to what is expected.

 

Indy Show Off: Young rising indy stars are now more likely to put in extra effort in matches to try and attract attention.

 

Battle Royal Botches: The risk of botches is naturally lowered for battle royals due to their nature.

 

Gimmick Match Botches: The risk of botches in highly risky bouts like ladder matches is increased.

 

Battle Royal Perks: Being the runner up, iron man or having the most eliminations in a battle royal now count as minor victories; in previous games only the winner was seen as having any sort of success.

 

Match Report Modification: In previous games the match reports for smaller companies would almost always complain about the quality of wrestling or heat due to the fact that they would rarely have the talent to do better; the reports are now done relative to the company's size.

 

Contract Amount Round-Up: For visual appeal, in large AI contract offers the amount is rounded to the nearest hundred (or thousand if possible) rather than just to the nearest ten.

 

Title Vacation Stories: When the AI vacated a title due to a 'bad' champion or lack of challengers in previous games, no story or confirmation was created. To address this, news entries and web site stories have been added.

 

Mass Edit Injuries

 

Child Product: When controlling a parent company the user can now easily alter the product settings for any child company that he owns, with the AI understand that they're subservient to you. This allows the user to alter things like match ratios to better serve their needs.

 

Product Analysis Help: Some users were confused by some of the terms used in the product analysis screen; double-clicking a line of text will now generate a more detailed explanation.

 

Preset Backstage Rules: The backstage rules for a company can be preset via the editor.

 

Random Area Order: When the AI looks to add new companies to the game world it always does so in the traditional area order (USA, Canada, etc). This causes the areas further down the list to get an unfair bias against them. This has been addressed by making the area order random each time.

 

AI Pact Stories: Previously not every AI-led change in company relations generated a web story or new items; this has now been addressed.

 

Auto Delete Mail: By request, hitting Delete removes the currently viewed e-mail regardless of whether it has been ticked or not. This makes the e-mail system a lot more user friendly.

 

AI Contract Lengths: By request, AI contract length offers are now more random as before they had little, if any, variance.

 

Standardise Event Lengths: The user can now standardise all his event lengths in one click rather than having to do them all individually.

 

AI Firings Change: Small companies used to slavishly stick to their maximum roster size limits in previous games; this has been adjusted so that companies who have nobody with a downside won't start firing people because they have no reason to; unused workers don't cost them anything. This removes the annoyance of smaller companies constantly trimming their roster.

 

Minor Walk Out: If a bold worker is unhappy, but not seriously so, and has at least two other employers then he can now choose to walk out rather than stay with a company he doesn't enjoy being with. This adds realism and makes the game world more dynamic.

 

Graduate Debut Year: By request, when adding new dojo graduates their debut year is shown on screen, making it more user friendly.

 

Company Ranking Fairness: The ranking of companies was previously heavily biased towards areas that had a large number of regions. This system has been redesigned to remove this bias.

 

Minimum Quality Guide: In the editor, when making broadcast deals there is an on-screen guide to what the minimum quality setting would be under normal game conditions; this is more user friendly for the mod makers and removes the need to test it out in-game.

 

Expanded AI Teams: In previous games the AI would rarely have more than eight active teams; the maximum has now been increased for larger company, making for a more vibrant tag scene.

 

Era Sexuality Controls: Eras can now be used to alter the ratio of heterosexual, homosexual and bisexual workers being created or regenerated during gameplay.

 

Development Trainers: The user can now specifically tell a worker that you want to hire them to development to be a trainer, not a trainee; this gets round the issue whereby the worker would reject you because he didn't understand what you were trying to do.

 

Sensitivity To PPV Death: Eras can now be used to simulate a drop-off in PPV figures; the AI is sensitive to this change, and if it drops too low then they will start biasing towards other reveue sources like subscription-based models.

 

More Screwy AI Finishes: When running entertainment based companies the AI will now be far more likely to throw count out, DQ and no contest finishes into the mix, especially on TV. This leads to more realistic looking results.

 

Absence Removes Pay: When a worker is away (for example when filming a movie) the company will automatically pause their pay. This removes the unfairness of having to support a worker who is earning elsewhere.

 

Owner Bonus Block: The loophole whereby you could make your own boss happy by giving him a bonus (i.e. with his own money) has been closed.

 

Worker News Archive Change: The News Archive available directly from a worker's profile now automatically displays all years by default, not just the current year. This makes it more useful as it is unlikely that much will happen to any worker in a single year.

 

Mass Edit Positions: By request, the user now has the option of mass editing the vacation of owner, head booker and announcer positions rather than having to do it manually on a company by company basis.

 

Development Morale: The first time that a worker complains about being stuck in development is now a 'freebie' that does not generate a morale hit; this means the user at least has the time to address the problem before getting morale problems to deal with.

 

--

 

NB: A lot of people have been asking about the release date. To confirm, the FAQ is still accurate and the game is scheduled for some time in April or May. An actual release date will probably either be announced next Friday or the following week.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 28: Game Changers

 

A new series of random events known as 'game changers' have been added. These major events, which occur every 2-4 years usually, have a significant impact on certain workers or companies and thus, as the name suggests, change the entire course of the game. One example of a 'game changer' is a worker turning whistleblower to reveal hardcore steroid usage backstage to the press.

 

Mar 28: Owner Types

 

Owners now have types, being either Lifetime, Purchased (i.e. they bought their way into ownership of the company) or CEOs; each affect how long they will remain in power, whether they can be fired, and whether they can pass the company on to family members when they retire or die. This allows a variety of real world situations to be modelled correctly.

 

Mar 28: Owner Min & Max Sizes

 

Via the Business subscreen of the editor, workers can now be set to have minimum and maximum sizes for companies that they can take over as owner. This stops, for example, virtually unknown workers being handed the reins of power for gloval companies just because they have high skills.

 

Mar 28: Owner-Booker Tolerance

 

Some owners like to also set themselves as the head booker. This is based on personality and booking skill. The tolerance level for this has now been lowered, meaning that more owners will choose to employ someone else to book. This opens up more job opportunities, which is useful for human players in particular.

 

Mar 28: Owner Investments

 

When owners take over a company they have the option of investing some of their personal wealth into it. This can help give a company a boost or ease them out of debt.

 

Mar 28: Company Strategy

 

Companies can now be set to have a specific strategy, ranging from the traditional 'events and TV' model to being entirely dedicated to TV. This allows some idiosyncratic real world companies to be simulated better.

 

Mar 28: Owner Defers Pay

 

Owners can now opt to defer their pay if the company is struggling financially. This means they don't take the money owed them, lessening the monthly wage bill.

 

Mar 28: Scumbag Owners

 

If an owner of a sub-Cult company has a particularly ugly personality then he now falls under the heading of Scumbag Owner. Workers who get this categorisation - and they'd have to be pretty rotten people to do so - generate special incidents where they stiff employees on payments, do scummy behaviour like organise fraudulent kickstarter campaings, beat up rookies backstage, etc. They are also extra likely to develop bad relationships with their employees and have walk outs happen. This adds to the realism of the game.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 29: Gimmicks Upgrade

 

The entire gimmick system has been completely overhauled to be both more realistic and far easier to understand. Amongst the changes are gimmick life cycles that allow worker's gimmicks to peak and wane, and gimmick tweaks that allow the user to try and extend the lifespan of successful gimmicks by adjusting them slightly. The way gimmicks are rated has also been revamped, making it less of a lottery, and their impact on the game has also been redone.

 

Mar 29: Preset Gimmick Settings

 

Mod makers can now use the editor to preset not only a gimmick's rating but also how long of a lifespan it has left and how freshly it was altered.

 

Mar 29: Gimmick Copying

 

For realism, if a company assigns a gimmick to a worker and he is already using it in another company, the rating will be the same to reflect that it is already well known how well he performs it.

 

Mar 29: AI Gimmicks

 

In previous games the AI did not alter its workers' gimmicks when turning them, leading to a messy roster. This has been altered so that the AI will switch the gimmick accordingly.

 

Mar 29: Manual Gimmick Changes

 

As with turns, the user can now manually decide when a gimmick change is to take place (rather than it happening the next time they appear on screen). This gives the user a far greater degree of control, especially if the gimmick change is being done at the same time as a turn.

 

Mar 29: Gimmick Changes With A Turn

 

The 'too soon for a gimmick change' penalty previously made turns tricky, as logically just changing a gimmick also then precluded a turn for a few months (unless the gimmick could work with both dispositions). A turn now allows a gimmick change to happen without this penalty if done simultaneously, thus eliminating this annoyance and allowing the player to be more creative.

 

Mar 29: Default Gimmick Auto Pass

 

To improve the way gimmicks work, a worker's default gimmicks are now automatically considered to be appropriate for them, irrespective of whether their stats genuinely fulfil the criteria. This is especially useful for mod makers who no longer have to check each gimmick for each worker using them.

 

Mar 29: Harder Non-Aggression Pacts

Mar 29: Harder Working Agreements

 

In previous games it was too easy for human-controlled smaller companies to get non-aggression or working agreements with larger AI-controlled companies who had no real incentive to agree. This acted as a sort of loophole as the user got lots of advantages but few, if any, disadvantages. The AI is now smarter about rejecting relationship requests that have no benefit to them.

 

Mar 29: Alliance-Mate Pacts

 

If a human-controlled company attempts to create a positive relationship with another company who are in the same alliance then the likelihood of it being accepted greatly increases. This adds another benefit to being in an alliance.

 

Mar 29: Pact Switching

 

In previous games there was no easy way of switching your relationship with another company without first ending the original, risking a war. This has been addressed by allowing the company to propose moving directly from one relationship type to another.

 

Mar 29: AI Alliance Joining

 

AI companies can now choose to apply to join alliances whenever they want to. Previously it was limited to when the user actively made offers. This makes a more dynamic game world.

 

Mar 29: Preset Alliance Membership

 

By request, mod makers can now preset certain companies to join specific alliances when they debut.

 

Mar 29: Leaving Alliance Reaction

 

In previous games a company could quit an alliance with few consequences; this has been changed so that the remaining members can get annoyed or even declare war at the betrayal.

 

Mar 29: Monday Night Wars

 

A national battle is now triggered with two rivals, not three, so that the real life Monday Night Wars can be simulated.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 30: Auto Booker

 

As a companion piece to the existing Assistant Booker, players now also have access to a full Auto Booker. This will create an entire show based upon the same code (with only mild alterations) that the AI uses when putting together its shows. This can be used for players who, for example, don't wish to book 'B' shows or have two TV shows a week and want to hand one off to the AI. The shows, once booked, can be edited by the player as they would if they'd booked it themselves, or can simply be re-run through the Auto Booker to create an entirely new one.

 

Mar 30: AI Angles Upgrade

 

In previous games the AI was limited to using three people per angles. This has now been expanded to six, allowing, for example, tag teams to interact properly.

 

Mar 30: AI Tournament Events

 

In previous games if a show had a tournament in it then that's all the AI would book. It can now put extra matches on to fill out the show if it's a small tournament. If the tournament is for a midcard title the AI is now smart enough to choose to put something else as the main event, having the finals in the semi-final spot instead, saving the show from potentially getting a bad grade.

 

Mar 30: AI Morale Impact

 

In previous games morale changes were only created for events in human-led companies. This has now been altered so that AI companies can create them too.

 

Mar 30: More AI Turnover

 

The AI now has increased turnover when it comes to midcard deadwood, increasing the dynamic nature of the game world and giving lower level wrestlers more of a chance of moving up the card in a natural fashion.

 

Mar 30: More Varied Reign Lengths

 

In previous games AI title reign lengths were quite static, always being in or around the same number of defences. More variety has now been added, with an emphasis on good champions reigning longer.

 

Mar 30: Better AI Expansion Planning

 

The AI that governs how companies go about gradually expanding has been enhanced to be more realistic, with companies now being more proactive about growth.

 

Mar 30: AI Loops

 

The AI has now been upgraded to be smarter about planning tours. This goes all the way from regional companies making more stops outside their home region to help grow to larger companies doing more realistic international tours where they stay in a foreign company for a few dates in a row. National tours, especially in the US, are also more geographically sensible in terms of what order the regions are visited.

 

Mar 30: More Mixed AI Booking

 

In previous games the AI would primarily book people of the same level of push together; this has been altered so that it can throw in more mixed pairings, for example to give squash matches. This makes AI booking more realistic.

 

Mar 30: AI Disposition Handling

 

The way that the AI handles turning people has been upgraded, with it only happening during shows now too. This includes smarter turning of tag teams.

 

Mar 30: AI Six Man Booking

 

In previous games six man teams were booked as if three individuals. This has been enhanced so that the AI will try and book it more as one individual and a tag team when appropriate. This makes AI booking more realistic.

 

Mar 30: More AI Angles

 

To mimic reality and human booking more closely, the AI will now use far more angles when booking, if appropriate. They can also use the same worker in more than one segment.

 

Mar 30: AI Booking Skill

 

The AI head booker's bookoing skill is now far more impactful, actively helping or hindering the match ratings and angles that he runs. This can lead to great bookers actively enhancing companies and leading them to glory, or bad bookers taking a promotion down.

 

Mar 30: Assistant Booking By Division

 

By request, the assistant booker can now take divisions into account.

 

Mar 30: Worker Profile Quick Jump

Mar 30: Company Profile Quick Jump

 

Both worker and company profiles now include a quick jump feature that allows you to 'jump' to see someone else's profile without having to close the window and find that person \ company in a list.

 

Mar 30: Employment Quick Tab

 

A fifth quick tab, Employment, has been added to all worker screens. It shows the worker's estimated value, whether they will negotiate with the user, and any relationships that exist with members of the user's existing roster. This is far more user friendly and takes a lot of guesswork and clicking away

 

Mar 30: Mask Log Enhancements

 

The existing mask history log has now been enhanced to include both unmaskings and head shavings and also notes who, if anybody, the mask or hair was lost to.

 

Mar 30: Victor Displays Mask Log

 

In previous games the log of mask changes was only referenced in the loser's profile; this has been altered so that the winner also shows them.

 

Mar 30: Preset Mask Log

 

Mod makers can now preset mask and hair histories to be displayed in a worker's title history section.

[Adam Ryland]

Mar 31: Halls Of Fame

 

Companies now have the option of having a custom Hall Of Fame for their most successful alumni. This works like the Hall Of Immortals except that the criteria to get inducted is much easier, with even some successful midcarders having a shot at getting in, and the scope being wider - whereas the HOI is for wrestlers only, the HOF is open to owners, head bookers, announcers, and referees too. Being in the HOF is almost entirely cosmetic, but is a nice extra feature. The HOF can be viewed via a company's profile (or via the office if the player is running the company). HOF inductions are also listed in a worker's title history.

 

Mar 31: Hall Of Fame Overview

 

The website has a link to a HOF overview that lists the current standings for all companies; this removes the need to visit each HOF individually.

 

Mar 31: Hall Of Fame Induction

 

The user has the option of both forcefully adding someone to a HOF, irrespective of merit, or forcing through anybody who has earned it but has yet to be inducted. As the HOF is primarily cosmetic, the user also has the option of adding people to other companies HOF if he wants to - this allows the player to recognise workers who were key to a company but may not have hit the criteria for whatever reason (for example, a worker like Jake Roberts who didn't win any titles but would clearly be a WWF\E Hall Of Famer - although the AI wouldn't induct him, the player could rectify that manually with ease).

 

Mar 31: Free Picture Criteria

 

An additional set of criteria have been added to the Free Pictures section, allowing them to be subdivided by looks, athleticism, etc.

 

Mar 31: Last Booked Reminder

 

On the booking screen there is now a 'last booked' reminder, making it easier for the player to book.

 

Mar 31: Learning The Ropes

 

There is now a limit on how much psychology a worker can learn on his own; to reach the higher levels it is imperative that they work with veterans in order to learn. This adds to the challenge of booking and also adds more realism.

 

Mar 31: Expanded Hiring Preferences

 

Owners now have expanded hiring preferences, allowing them to bias towards workers with great physiques, for example.

 

Mar 31: Announcers Affect Angles

 

In previous games announcers did not impact on angle ratings; now they do.

 

Mar 31: Event Location Settings

 

Events can now be 'locked' to take place in certain areas or regions.

 

Mar 31: Name & Picture Narratives

 

New narratives have been added that allow workers (name, short name and picture), companies (name, initials, logo, banner) and broadcasters (name and logo) to be altered mid-game.

 

Mar 31: Enhanced Founding Dates

 

Company founding dates can now be done with 'not before' and 'not after' controls, giving the mod maker a finer degree of control.

 

Mar 31: Pre Set Morale

 

Morale can now be preset via the editor.

 

Mar 31: Popularity Absorbing

 

When taking over a company there is now the option for the buyer to absorb the popularity of the victim as they are essentially taking over their fan base.

 

Mar 31: Pre Set Absences

 

Starting absences can be preset via the editor.

 

Mar 31: Movie Stars

 

Workers can now be set to be movie stars; if they are, they will occasionally go and film movies. This affects their popularity and contract expectations.

 

Mar 31: Mentor Tips

 

Mentors can now give their proteges tips, such as how to work better as a heel. This happens backstage and gives a small boost to the protege.

 

Mar 31: MMA Hiatus

 

Workers can now be set as MMA fighters and will take an occasional hiatus to train and fight. Their success of failure can impact their popularity.

 

Mar 31: Colour Commentary Skill

 

There is now a dedicated colour commentary stat. This makes the game more realistic and intuitive.

 

Mar 31: Pre Set Power 500

 

Previous Power 500 rankings can now be preset via the editor.

 

Mar 31: Models

Mar 31: Bodybuilders

 

To be more realistic, models and bodybuilders are two new backgrounds that generated workers can have.

 

Mar 31: Personal Finance

 

Potential owners now have a personal finance stat that lists their wealth; this plays into their investments into a company.

 

Mar 31: Worker Refuses To Sign

 

To add a new twist to hirings, some workers may refuse to join a company if someone they hate is on the roster.

 

Mar 31: Day By Day Finances

 

In previous games a lot of financial items were calculated at the end of the month only; to be more realistic, almost all items are now calculated daily to make them easier to understand.

 

Mar 31: Data Dump

 

From the Options menu there is now the option of 'dumping' the current database into a custom MDB file that isn't password protected and has all the different variables and fields given appropriate names to make it easy to read. This allows those who like to play with databases the chance to fiddle around with reports and other features without running the risk of corrupting anything or having to wade through data that is obscure.

 

Mar 31: Advertising Impacters

 

If a company experiences \ does something that would get their advertisers nervous then this is noted; revenue may be reduced until the drama passes. This allows shameful events to have a very real effect on a company's finances.

 

Mar 31: Game Region Breakdown

 

To clarify things for users, the game world screen now specifies exactly how each region does in terms of spillover and what the exact amount is. This can be useful for planning expansions.

 

Mar 31: Affairs

 

Workers can now have affairs, with appropriate consequences if they get caught.

 

Mar 31: Loyalty Improvement

 

Loyal wrestlers now give slightly higher value to exclusive contract offers from companies that they already work for (unless there's a reason not to, like morale). This means that anyone trying to steal them has to add a little more to their offer, simulating the impact of their loyalty without making them unsignable.

 

Mar 31: Importable Narratives

 

Narratives can now be imported, which was previously unavailable.

 

Mar 31: Pre Set Starting Loans

 

Workers can be preset to start the game on loan via the editor.

 

Mar 31: Website Mail & Decisions

 

The website now has handy quick link to a worker's e-mail and decisions screens, eliminating some clicking.

 

Mar 31: Musicians

 

Workers can now be set to be well known musicians. If this is the case then they will sometimes go off on tour, much like movie stars and filming.

 

Mar 31: Global Morale

 

In previous games morale was linked only to the player who caused it (or experienced it); it has now been switched to be global, to make things more realistic. This stops workers magically forgetting all their frustrations and unhappiness just because someone new took charge.

 

Mar 31: Top Workers

 

The website now contains a subsection where workers can be viewed in terms of worldwide or area-by-area popularity.

 

Mar 31: Auto Bio Fill

 

The editor now features an auto fill button that allows the bio to be filled in immediately using the new organic bio feature. This helps save mod makers time.

 

Mar 31: Dynamic External Relationships

 

In previous games a worker's external relationship was static; it has now been made dynamic so they can date, get engaged, marry, etc.

 

Mar 31: Tour Days Reset

 

The days that an AI company tours on are now reset between tours, replacing the old system where they were fixed forever. This makes for a more dynamic game world and stops smaller companies that share workers either always losing or always avoiding losing people dependent on their own schedule.

 

Mar 31: Pre Set TV Announcers

 

Specific announcer teams can now be preset for specific TV shows.

 

Mar 31: Property Of Benefits

 

If owned by a media group or broadcaster, a company now benefits by having much easier Minimum Quality requirements when dealing with their parent for broadcasting contracts.

 

Mar 31: Attendance Gradient

 

Attendances are now calculated on a gradient rather than stepped, relating to the company's popularity. This is more realistic.

 

Mar 31: Sponsorship Gradient

 

Sponsorship money is now calculated on a gradient rather than stepped, meaning that as a company rises or falls in popularity they can expect their income to move in relation. This is more realistic and makes financial planning easier.

 

Mar 31: Bankruptcy Leniency

 

New companies now get extra leniency from bankruptcy; the extra time gives them a chance to establish themselves and leads to less companies having a very short lifespan.

 

Mar 31: Daily Contract Payments

 

Instead of written deals being paid in a lump sum at the end of the month, they are now paid daily instead. This makes the system far more accurate as a worker who joins or leaves midway through a month does not gain or lose a substantial amount of money that they shouldn't have. This also makes finances a lot clearer for the player.

 

Mar 31: Regional Industry Effects

 

In previous games the industry effects were only calculated in relation to the region the event was being held in. This has been altered so that each region covered is calculated separately.

 

Mar 31: Booker Stability

 

In previous games the AI head booker could only really lose his job is the company fell in size. Under the new system, a long period of inertia can result in him deciding to move on. This is more realistic and opens up more jobs for the human players as well as making the game world more dynamic.

[Adam Ryland]

Apr 01: Company Figureheads

 

Each company now has the option of appointing a company figurehead (or 'ace'). This is the face of the company and the central focal point of the promotion's marketing and creative direction.

 

Finding a strong figurehead can provide a massive boost, but requires long-term planning and a good eye for talent. Good figureheads are very hard to find but can provide such a boost to business that they're worth their weight in gold. This simulates the real-life impact that the WWF had with finding Hogan at exactly the right time, for example.

 

A bad figurehead will tank business and is generally bad news. Companies don't have to have a figurehead, but going without means that you're not getting any of the potential bonuses. The battle between two big companies who are equally matched could easily be decided by who finds that key figurehead.

 

The figurehead has lots of specific pros and cons applied to him; for example, he'll be in a much stronger negotiating position and demand more money, and he's easier to keep popular, but he will be far more heavily affected by losses. This can help simulate the meme about Cena always winning; if he is your figurehead you may well find yourself having him win all the time to allow you to keep reaping the benefits of having him be a strong figurehead for you.

 

This is both a realistic feature and one that can potentially have a major impact on the way the player books, particularly in large organisations.

 

Apr 01: Merchandise Sales Effect

 

A top babyface worker may now take into account the drop in merchandise revenue he'd endure if he turned heel. This makes things more interesting as the player may be forced to turn other workers instead in order to keep the star happy, potentially altered booking plans. To stop this being a permenent issue, eventually all workers will relent and agree to turn heel.

 

Apr 01: Casting Call

 

When assigning gimmicks the user can now perform a 'casting call', giving him the ability to see all the workers who would particularly suit that gimmick. This is useful if the player has a specific role in mind.

 

Apr 01: Harder Harmonies

 

Relationships made creating a harmonious backstage environment too easy in previous games as the user could just stack up proteges and blood relatives. This has been addressed to make the system less abusable.

 

Apr 01: Product Impacting In-Ring

 

In previous games a company's product didn't impact the workers' in-ring performances very much, meaning the same workers would get similar ratings regardless of the company they were fighting for. This has now been altered so that the product can have a major impact and some workers will be significantly better or worse in certain companies.

 

Apr 01: Recent Fortunes Reset

 

For realism, a successful gimmick change or turn can potentially reset a worker's recent fortunes to simulate his fresh new creative direction.

 

Apr 01: Extra Product Settings

 

Extra settings have been added to the product screen, notably being able to ban risky moves or head drops - this impacts the injury rate of the company, at the expense of match ratings.

 

Apr 01: Judge Finishes

 

Road agent notes giving MMA-style finishes that go to the judges have been added.

 

Apr 01: End Storyline Note

 

There is now a road agent note that allows storylines to be ended in a segment automatically, thus negating the need to visit the storyline screen after to do it manually.

 

Apr 01: Track Title Prestige

 

By request, title prestige can be tracked in the same way that a worker's skills can.

 

Apr 01: Storyline Notifications

 

Momentum changes from storylines are now either e-mailed to the player or show on-screen.

 

Apr 01: Storyline Heat Impact

 

The heat that a storyline has can now influence the ratings of matches and angles that the participants are in.

 

Apr 01: Flash Pin Upgrade

 

Flash pins have been altered to be more realistic; they are now specifically about allowing someone to get beat without tanking their heat or momentum the way a 'proper' loss would. The flipside is that there are reduced bonuses for the winner.

 

Apr 01: Tour Regulars

 

Companies can now have tour regulars; these are workers who they'll always try to bring in if possible. This list is dynamic.

 

Apr 01: Contracted For Matches

 

In previous games workers could be contracts for a specific number of shows; this has now been adjusted to apply to matches instead. This allows workers to appear in angles to promote their matches without running down their contract.

 

Apr 01: Too Small Note Upgrade

 

The 'you're too small' note that would stop smaller companies from getting big stars has been relaxed slightly, allowing more scope for out of work stars to resurrect their careers.

 

Apr 01: Furthered Storylines

 

In previous games a company was forced to have a minimum number of storylines or they'd get a penalty. This has been adjusted so that the requirement is now to actually further a minimum number per event (rather than them just existing). This forces the player to actually pay more attention to how they're booking and not just lazily dodge the penalties. The number and lowest acceptable heat have also been adjusted to be fairer.

 

Apr 01: Leaving Off Major Shows

 

Workers are now smarter about when they complain about being left off major shows. In particular, being left off a season finale or legendary event is a huge sign of disrespect and will annoy anyone, even those who are quite low down. This forces the player to book more realistically and try and fit everyone on certain shows, even if it means stuffing people into a battle royal or turning singles matches into meaningless multi-way bouts, like this coming Sunday.

 

Apr 01: Toxic Locker Room

 

If your locker room harmony rating becomes low enough everyone will get a small 'toxic locker room' penalty. This forces the user to start dealing with growing bad situations before they poison everyone.

 

Apr 01: Losing The Locker Room

 

If the number of unhappy locker room leaders rises above the number of happy or neutral leaders then the player can 'lose the locker room', causing morale problems. Similarly, having no leaders whatsoever can cause issues too. This adds to the backstage management realism.

 

Apr 01: Political Feedback

 

After a show finishes, major players (main events, road agents, etc) can comment on lesser workers, either for better or worse. This can lead to relationship changes.

 

Apr 01: Sneaky Writtens

 

In previous games, AI companies who'd just fallen to Cult status often ended up with a booker on a PPA deal because it was almost impossible for them to still have the momentum to 'sneak' a written deal. This has been changed so that important jobs are automatically allowed to sneak a written deal. This leads to more realistic AI behaviour.

 

Apr 01: Female Role Models

 

Young, attractive, bubbly babyface females can be eligible to get a bonus to simulate a young female fanbase and being a positive role model to them.

 

Apr 01: Clique Building

 

Highly manipulative workers are now able to poison the minds of their friends to turn them against people they dislike, or, form bonds between two or more allies to create a clique.

 

Apr 01: Isolation Effects

 

A worker who has lots of enemies and few friends backstage now gets morale hits and may eventually choose to leave. This is another feature that makes managing the locker room more interesting and subtle.

 

Apr 01: Intimidating Presence

 

A worker who would otherwise have complained about a booking decision may now choose to keep quiet if the opponent is much tougher than him and decides to intimidate him. This can lead to some workers becoming the user's enforcers of sorts.

 

Apr 01: Try Out Contracts

 

A very short contract is automatically considered a 'try out' and this is taken into account during negotiations.

 

Apr 01: Contract Offer Memory

 

To make contract negotiations less exploitable, workers now remember all previous offers that they've recieved in the recent pact and will not fall for cheap tactics like being undercut or 'sounded out' by making offers to find the lowest acceptable limit and then exiting the screen and coming back in.

 

Apr 01: Pulling Ribs

 

In the locker room controls screen there is now the option for the user to pull ribs on specific workers. This can cause morale changes and impact the locker room atmosphere.

 

Apr 01: Negative Chemistry Reminder

 

The game will now pop-up warning messages if you try and book something that would trigger some negative chemistry that you've already discovered. The user can supress these messages if he wants.

 

Apr 01: Announcer Experience

 

Announcing teams with high experience are immune to poor chemistry in the same way that highly experienced tag teams are.

 

Apr 01: Low Level Popularity

 

Just appearing on shows helps boost worker popularity if the worker in question has virtually none to begin with. This helps get total rookies to at least a usable level pretty quickly.

 

Apr 01: Momentum In Segments

 

Significantly high or low momentum now affects segment ratings as it simulates fans being invested \ cold on a worker.

 

Apr 01: Momentum Complaints

 

Workers can now complain if their momentum gets too low, potentially leading to morale hits. They can also get pleased from good momentum. This makes roster management more realistic.

 

Apr 01: Show Grade Calculation

 

Rather than the penultimate match always being considered the 'secondary main event' figure for show grade calculations, it is now the best rated match (other than the main event). This makes it fairer and more realistic as the user can put his co-main event anywhere on the card, or put a 'calm down' bout before the main event without tanking the rating.

 

Apr 01: Six Man Team Names

 

Results will now name six man teams as 'X & Tag Team' where possible rather than just using three shortened names. This is more visually pleasing when reading histories.

 

Apr 01: Using Stable Names

 

When the user is booking a match with three or more wrestlers on one side the auto namer will automatically try and use stables names where possible.

 

Apr 01: Smart Fatigue

 

The AI is now smarter about using fatigued workers, but will overlook it if it means having them work on critical shows or season finales.

 

Apr 01: Contract Expiry Change

 

If a worker leaves due to contract expiry rather than being released it no longer creates the standard six month resigning block due to it not necessarily being a negative event.

 

Apr 01: Freelancer Improvements

 

The AI that governs freelancers has been improved, better simulating their tendency to stay with companies only for a short stay.

 

Apr 01: Improved Title History

 

A worker's title history list has now been significantly smartened up, with everything organised in a more logical manner and with importance incorporated.

 

Apr 01: Original Belt Owners

 

Titles can now be set to have an original (company) owner as well as a current one. In most cases it will be the same, but if a belt has been purchased by another organisation this allows the title to appear in the correct HOF listings.

 

Apr 01: Narrative AI-Player Split

 

By request, mod makers can now make specific narratives apply only to companies if they are AI-controlled or only if they're human-controlled if they want to.

 

Apr 01: Locker Room Leader Search

 

The user can now search for locker room leaders.

 

Apr 01: Regional Battle Immunity

 

After rising in size but still being less than Cult, a company now gets a one month immunity from regional battles; this helps them stabilise rather than yo-yoing.

 

Apr 01: Being Sent Home

 

As a new pre-show event, workers can show up who are physically unable to perform and therefore must be sent home. This adds an extra wrinkle to bookings and encourages occasional on-the-fly changes.

 

Apr 01: Impairment Complaints

 

Other workers in a match can now complain, and get morale hits, for working with opponents who are too high or drunk to perform properly.

 

Apr 01: Impairment Via Road Agent

 

If a worker is so high or drunk that he gets heavily penalised during a match then the road agent will now comment upon it.

 

Apr 01: Loyalty Change

 

If a worker goes more than six months without work or gets fired he now loses his loyalty to a specific company.

 

Apr 01: AI Company Generation

 

The game now has the ability to create its own companies during gameplay, not just rely on pre-created versions. This allows the game world to continue evolving with companies far longer than otherwise would have been possible.

[Adam Ryland]

That now concludes the developer's journal.

 

Release Date

 

The trial \ public beta of TEW2016 will be released on Monday April 25th.

 

The trial will allow two months of gameplay per save game; i.e. you can start as many save games as you want, but only play two months with each. You can play in any year (so historical mods are eligible to be played) but only in the months of January and February. Save games can be continued with the full version of the game.

 

The full version of TEW2016 will be released on Monday May 2nd.

 

In both cases the release will be sometime between 4pm and 10pm GMT. A more accurate time will not be given. If you do not know how GMT relates to your own time zone I would suggest searching for a time conversion website, there are many easily and freely available.

 

There will be no standalone editor released. The editor is available in the trial however.