AFL 2010 is a game I have been looking forward to for a long time. With the announcment of Rugby Leauge Live I was itching for more information on the AFL game by the same Developer. Luckily I came across this very large forum post over at BIg Footy that seems to contain a lot of detail and some screens from the game. Since this is a forum post and not a press release, please take this with a grain of salt.

Below is the post in full:

• Will be released on PS3, 360 & PC

• Has a 4 v 4 Online Multi player, No Split Screen.
  
  4 for Xbox local - 8 online max (4 v 4)
  
  7 for PS3 local - 8 online max (4 v 4)

• Every player of every team has been photographed and modelled.

• No Head High Bumps, tackles but no bumps
  
  No tribunal, No intentional head high tackles.

• Most of the "left of field" (odd) things will be trophy/achievement based. (Guessing getting Richmond past 9th )

• Our first screenshot. In the game the face, eyes, etc.. are animated.

• Controls : there are Torpedo's, stabs, snap kicks etc.. taps in the ruck, punches - mongrels will generally happen when you do something that doesn't make sense given the position on field, power of the kick, on the run (or not)
  
  Handball can be to a player directly or to space - the trajectory is dealt with by the system - there are "look aways" and over the head handballs.
  
  Have implemented a control mechanism for both handball and kicks that players can choose to "lock" to a team mate, allowing for strafing and drawing the opposition.
  
  Hoping the novice will be able to pick it up and play but that others will get more depth through "modifiers" we've put in there, eg. triggers/shoulder buttons for stab passes, torp's, strength of tap/punch in the ruck and so on.
  
  There will be meter systems in the game but BigAnt are trying to remove as many of them as possible, don't want this to be a "quick time" game.
  
  Ideally,there would be no meters at all in the High difficulty mode, but this may or may not be the case in the final delivery.
  
  Bouncing the ball can be manual or automatic (default). Will not bounce while sprinting. (Will get pinged if you run too far).

• Ruck work
  No meters on screen, individual size, speed, jump, stat's, etc.. are all taken into account, and you can also ruck conservatively or aggressivley by timing your run at the ball which effects the outcome based on what your opponent is doing in that regard. Taps can go to space or a player or you can punch.

• BigAnt debating internally about balancing the "real world" stats with the ability of say taking the 16th team to the flag... should everyone have an even shot?
  
  A lot of the debate is centred around online and maintaining the online community that they believe will be a huge part of the game.

• The grounds - they have all been licensed. Real MCG, SCG, etc... and they look *real*!

• Off the ball by-play incorporated into the game: "the off the ball play is currently my favourite thing to do, especially in 4 vs 4."

• Marking: Contested Pack Marking will be a contest. Players will hit up/honor leads.
  
  What they have implemented is that the player will automatically, on free kicks and marks, go to get back behind mark but you can pre-empt this at any stage by selecting any action - eg. just keep running, kick, etc

• Crowd/Atmosphere - Crowd is in team colours, there are flags and the old "floggers" made out of paper.
  There is more home crowd than away, based on interstate or not. There isn't booing.
  
  Heritage rounds, ANZAC day etc... are all in there.
  
  Based on the MCG being in Melbourne and both teams being from Melbourne the crowd would be equal for the ANZAC day clash - the key is that it is biased if a team has come from interstate (or out of town - eg Skilled at Geelong)

• Dennis Cometti to do the commentary (Will be more then just Dennis)

• Players individual attributes will be at play, including distance/accuracy, fitness, etc... ie Fev will find it easier to kick from outside 50 than Judd.

• Deliberate rushed behind rule is incorporated into the game

• Game Balancing.
  I always steer away from game balancing via penalties that take a player below what would be considered "0", you should always, in my opinion get your base stat. That's not to say that your opposition, having played well or having seen how bad you are playing don't get a lift from it.
  
  That said, most games have "catch up" - meaning the worse you are the easier it is to score/drive/whatever, this has been done all the way back to NBA Jam. I understand the idea of reward for good play (the old NBA Jam "he's on fire"), but there is something to be said to negating someone getting the daylights belted out of them.... particularly online, as it de motivates people and has them leave the online space.

• Camera Angles
  
  Getting the camera right is actually the hardest part of making the game.
  
  I struggle watching on TV, the coverage is too "cameo" and tight for my liking, so much is happening off the ball you lose at least 50% of the action in my opinion.
  
  So while there is a "broadcast like" camera, the default will be further back. I personally play it with the same view as if you were in the Southern stand, second level, front row. Playing it any closer doesn't allow you to see what's on offer far enough down the field.
  
  In any case, you will have many camera options. I know it will be a very personal thing as to which one you like most.

• International Footy supporters
  
  The advantage we have on 360 and PS3 is that we can package the game for download in other regions where a retail/disk version doesn't make sense. I am in talks with the publishers about this.

• Fully Licensed Game, only licensed product will be in the game, ie, all jumpers/logos shall be those that are currently under license.
  
  No Ochre

• Radar - There is one

• 3rd Person
  
  No Third person tried it and it was unplayable.

• Frame Rate
  There won't be an issue with frame rate - that is a top priority for us. The system we have implemented for the tattoo's is on a player by player basis - not all players will use the same amount of memory/textures.

• Replays
  There will be replays, this is where the close-ups of the characters, some of which you've seen here, will be at their highest resolution.
  
  Indeed, if it weren't for the replays we wouldn't have modelled the players so closely.

• Dynamic Weather
  Rain, sunshine, even shadows of clouds going accross the ground.

• Injuries
  Will be injuries and weaker clubs will be effected greater by injury

• AI
  The AI is very "fluid" and there is a lot of movement to and from space, not necessarily positions. Players will tend to keep to their "comfort zones" but react to team mates and opponents movement. I can't say much more...

• Interchange
  
  The Interchange works in conjunction with the switching of players anywhere on the field and does not interfere with gameplay, the game is not paused.
  
  First select the player to switch:
  Press the D-Pad (defaults on first menu - Down = Bench, Left = Defence, Up = Followers, Right = Forwards)
  Menu pops into hud with options:
  Bench
  Defence
  Followers
  Forwards
  
  Use D-pad up and down to navigate, right to select, left to cancel entire operation.
  
  Once area selected, list changes to player names in that region.
  Use D-pad up and down to navigate, right to select, left to cancel entire operation.
  
  Once player selected, list changes to regions for the player to swap with:
  Bench
  Defence
  Followers
  Forwards
  Use D-pad up and down to navigate, right to select, left to cancel entire operation.
  
  Once area selected, list changes to player names in that region.
  Use D-pad up and down to navigate, right to select, left to cancel entire operation.
  
  For example, to swap Waite to the bench and bring Betts on:
  Press D-Pad Right->
  Lists forwards on the field, press down on D-Pad until Waite is highlighted.
  Press D-Pad Right->to select Waite
  Lists Bench, Defence, Followers, Forwards, Press D-Pad Right->to select Bench
  Players on the Bench are listed, press down on D-Pad until Betts is highlighted.
  Press D-Pad Right->to select Betts
  Waite will then run to the bench and Betts will run to Waite's position.

AHHH That spider is eating his hea... oh that is just his hair, never mind.

(Will no longer be in the game: Gays 1, Aker 0)