Fantasy Football is, by all accounts, one of the most incredible phenomenon ever conceived. You don't have to participate in a league to understand its popularity, or the amazing, sometimes absurd hold it has over people. To suggest it changes the way people follow professional football would be a woeful understatement. Fantasy Sports have the power to turn a non fan into a Sunday couch potato, and an existing fan into a stark raving mad obsessive (guilty as charged). In case you are wondering, there is some relatively obvious learning opportunities in all of this (my friend and colleague Brian Smith explores some of them), but thats not the purpose of this particular post.
I could probably go on for days about all the things that amaze me about Fantasy Football, but none are more impressive than the way that a little competition (sorry, I couldnt resist) can drive ordinary people to become scholars of the game. Ive been a huge pro football fan all of my life. But up until the Stubstyle Gangstaz started fantasy ballin', I could probably only name you a fraction of the players in the league at any given time. Add a little FFL, and all of a sudden I can name you every skill player in the league, rattle off the depth chart for teams I don't even remotely care about, give you weather report for every city with a pro team, and bang out a more comprehensive injury update than ESPN. Some would say this is a sign of obsession, which no doubt it is. And as with any such measure of analyzing something you have no control over, there is an element of luck involved in the process (Frank Gore, I'm looking at you). But the skill aspect of Fantasy Football comes from the decision making that knowledge affords you. The more you know, the better the decisions you can make when it comes to making your moves. Knowledge is also directly related to the stress you will experience when playing in a Fantasy League, but that is neither here nor there. =)
Football is an incredible sport, but it is the hunt to learn more that makes Fantasy Football so compelling - so addictive. Because knowledge is the only element of fantasy sports that you can actually control. Or so it was in the days of old...
For the past few years, EA, the video game super-titan, has been trying to get their hand in the Fantasy Football pot, with somewhat dubious success. But this year, EA's Fantasy Sports unit is partnering with their blockbuster Madden franchise to allow you to import your fantasy team into Madden '09, and use it play against anyone your little heart desires.
There is a part of me that wants to absolutely love this, despite the fact that its a bit of a novelty (not enough of my friends actually purchase Madden to make this feature worth-wild). And yet I'm struck with a bit of hesitation. Yes, there is most certainly something to be said for giving Fantasy Football patrons a true element of control over some aspect of the action on the field (even if it is only for show). But it also feels as though it detracts, in some sense, from the quest for knowledge that makes traditional fantasy football so compelling.
Obviously choosing better players would give you an advantage when pitting your Fantasy Madden team against a friend's, but your ability to play the game could very well offset any intellectual efforts involved. While it might make for a more personal experience, I wonder if it diminishes the overall thrill of game. Yes I my Madden Fantasy team might be able to beat yours, but what does it really prove?
Obviously this feature is not meant as a replacement for actual Fantasy Football, and obviously its meant to be a flashy addition to a game that already sells an obscene number of copies. But all things considered, it just doesn't feel that compelling to me.
Though it may absolutely stun you to hear me say it, this is one time when I'm content to learn without the interactivity of a video game. I guess there is a first time for everything =)
Image from fantasy.easports.com
I could probably go on for days about all the things that amaze me about Fantasy Football, but none are more impressive than the way that a little competition (sorry, I couldnt resist) can drive ordinary people to become scholars of the game. Ive been a huge pro football fan all of my life. But up until the Stubstyle Gangstaz started fantasy ballin', I could probably only name you a fraction of the players in the league at any given time. Add a little FFL, and all of a sudden I can name you every skill player in the league, rattle off the depth chart for teams I don't even remotely care about, give you weather report for every city with a pro team, and bang out a more comprehensive injury update than ESPN. Some would say this is a sign of obsession, which no doubt it is. And as with any such measure of analyzing something you have no control over, there is an element of luck involved in the process (Frank Gore, I'm looking at you). But the skill aspect of Fantasy Football comes from the decision making that knowledge affords you. The more you know, the better the decisions you can make when it comes to making your moves. Knowledge is also directly related to the stress you will experience when playing in a Fantasy League, but that is neither here nor there. =)Football is an incredible sport, but it is the hunt to learn more that makes Fantasy Football so compelling - so addictive. Because knowledge is the only element of fantasy sports that you can actually control. Or so it was in the days of old...
For the past few years, EA, the video game super-titan, has been trying to get their hand in the Fantasy Football pot, with somewhat dubious success. But this year, EA's Fantasy Sports unit is partnering with their blockbuster Madden franchise to allow you to import your fantasy team into Madden '09, and use it play against anyone your little heart desires.
There is a part of me that wants to absolutely love this, despite the fact that its a bit of a novelty (not enough of my friends actually purchase Madden to make this feature worth-wild). And yet I'm struck with a bit of hesitation. Yes, there is most certainly something to be said for giving Fantasy Football patrons a true element of control over some aspect of the action on the field (even if it is only for show). But it also feels as though it detracts, in some sense, from the quest for knowledge that makes traditional fantasy football so compelling.
Obviously choosing better players would give you an advantage when pitting your Fantasy Madden team against a friend's, but your ability to play the game could very well offset any intellectual efforts involved. While it might make for a more personal experience, I wonder if it diminishes the overall thrill of game. Yes I my Madden Fantasy team might be able to beat yours, but what does it really prove?
Obviously this feature is not meant as a replacement for actual Fantasy Football, and obviously its meant to be a flashy addition to a game that already sells an obscene number of copies. But all things considered, it just doesn't feel that compelling to me.
Though it may absolutely stun you to hear me say it, this is one time when I'm content to learn without the interactivity of a video game. I guess there is a first time for everything =)
Image from fantasy.easports.com
I completely agree with you Jamie. I think there is a point at which there just isnt any value added by tacking on more bells and whistles. I won't pretend that Fantasy Sports have nothing upon which they can improve, but I don't think "gamifying" a game is the answer.
This is a lot of writing just to relive your 2006 victory via a screen grab of your Yahoo trophy case.
I kid! Actually, this is interesting in that it was technology that caused the boom of fantasy football - before, you had to compile stats and scoring by hand. Then, the Internet came and you had Yahoo do it for you. But I wonder if this technological aspect is sort of too much - if it is great, don't fix it.