Interview with Markus Heinsohn, Creator of OOTP

by Daniel Paulling
May 28, 2006

Markus Heinsohn is one of the creators and writers of the Outside of the Park baseball simulation game. Since 1999, his company has been producing top-notch games that have continually won gaming awards. It was a pleasure to interview him before the release of their new game, Out of the Park 2006, due May 31st. (Click Here to see my review of OOTP6, which is the second to last version of this game, and Click Here to see my review of the software in general.)

Q1. For I don’t know how many years, Out of the Park Development has been creating some of the best software for baseball simulation. It gives us fanatics something to do in the offseason during “downtime.” Especially those of us who think we would be better GMs than at least whoever is running the Devil Rays. How did OOTP get started? Are you all a bunch of baseball freaks?

A: It all started when I grew tired with the statistical accuracy of a baseball action game called Hardball 4. I did not like controlling the players on the field too much; I rather simulated games and looked at the results. But the stats were not close to what I’d call realistic, so I started looking for a better baseball simulation. I found one, but it did not allow me to simulate more than one season, it just stopped. But I wanted to guide my team into the future, draft players, sign free agents, negotiate extensions, watch my veterans retire. That was the point where the idea of OOTP was born.

Q2. Could you tell us a little about the progression from version to version? I believe the newest OOTP release, OOTP2006, is the seventh program your company has put out. What have you been changing from game to game? How close is it to what you’d call the perfect simulation? What would you call the perfect simulation?

A: The first version was released in 1999, and it was a DOS based program with ugly graphics and no menus. It was a pain to use, but still offered what I wanted. You could manage your baseball franchise into the infinite future and create your fictional baseball universe. The second version was released a year later (we entered a yearly release cycle) and was a Windows application with a real financial system (signing of free agents etc). Version number three was the breakthrough; it won numerous awards and sold a lot of copies. It was the first version that introduced real online league support, as it generated a whole league website on demand. Later versions built on that success, introducing numerous new features each year and resulting in a growing fan base. Right now we have one of the most active and biggest game communities on the internet.

The new version however is a brand new game, totally rewritten from the ground up. It has been in development for over two years now. The rewrite was necessary because the code of OOTP 6 looked like a mess, and it got more difficult to add features to the framework. But it opens up a whole new world of possibilities, and OOTP 2006 is only the start of what will be a long history of great baseball games. It’s still far away from the perfect baseball simulation (you just can’t please everyone), but it is as close as anyone on the market has gotten so far, by a mile.

Q3. What are the best features of OOTP2006?

A: The league history (imagine baseball-reference.com for your OOTP baseball universe), the complete customization, the open-ended design (you can create as many leagues/teams as your system can handle), the new user interface, the built-in HTML browser and the simulation speed. For starters. I could write pages about this topic.

Q4. You’ve since expanded upon the original game, Outside of the Park Baseball, to a few other games like Inside the Park Baseball and Title Bout Championship Boxing. Could you give us a little rundown of those two games?

A: Inside the Park Baseball was an experiment for me and a game that I always wanted to play myself. It allows you to play the role of a baseball prospect, trying to reach the majors and eventually be inducted to the Hall of Fame. It’s a lot of fun! You can buy lots of baseball related items that improve your skills, you can schedule your workout, and you can call your action in every game you play!

Title Bout is the best boxing simulation game on the planet. It’s designed by the Trunzo brothers and programmed by Andreas Raht, who is also my co-programmer for OOTP. The game features thousands of boxers with tons of accurate ratings, and the simulation engine is unrivaled.

Q5. Here are two questions nearly every GM wants to ask you: 1) Why do older players diminish so quickly -- I once had Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling, Tom Glavine, and Al Leiter in the same rotation. It didn’t end well -- and 2) Could you give us some tips on constructing a winning OOTP team?

A: Older players do develop in OOTP the way they do in real life. But because you are more attached to ‘your’ players, it seems as if they fail just at the wrong time. Speaking of Randy Johnson… last year he was still pretty good, and in 2006?

A winning team – well, there are many approaches, some good, some bad. I tend to build on pitching and strong defense up the middle, and I do like the idea of having many OBP-monsters on my team. So far this has worked quite well.

Q6. Do you have any teams in an OOTP league? If so, do you have any World Series titles to your name? (I’ve been playing for about three years now and have yet to escape the second round of the playoffs.)

A: No, unfortunately I do not have time to participate in an online league. But even if I did, I probably would have no chance against those veteran OOTP players.

Q7. When should OOTP2006 be available for download? Also, I’ve heard that OOTP5, an older, but still an award-winning version, is available free for downloading, which would be great for anyone to get a feel for what it’s all about.

A: OOTP 2006 will be available on May 31st, via download from http://www.ootpbaseball2006.com. On the same page you can find a link to the free version OOTP 5!

Daniel is an AtHomePlate blogger; to see his article archive, click here. If you have any non-fantasy baseball questions, please send an email to Daniel’s mailbag at Daniel@athomeplate.com