02 / Sports gameplay research
All-Pro Football 2K8
Exploring the systems behind play design and gameplay, with a clear distinction between a passing check and a change verified on the field.
A controlled investigation
Research workflowKeep a baseline
Preserve the original inputs and work in a separate experiment.
Documented practiceMake a change
Limit the scope so the experiment asks a specific question.
Controlled experimentsCheck the data
Use repeatable checks to examine structure and expected behavior.
Automated validationVerify in game
Observe the change during actual gameplay before calling it an improvement.
Pending milestoneThe question
How much of an existing sports game’s behavior can be understood through its play design and underlying systems? This project investigates that question in the PS3 version of All-Pro Football 2K8.
My role is setting the research direction and gameplay priorities, using AI tools to support investigation and iteration. The work also builds on community tooling, with upstream contributions kept distinct from the project’s own work.
Areas of investigation
Play & formation design
Tooling for authoring and validating custom play and formation data.
Gameplay mechanics
Research into gameplay systems, including player AI and contact behavior.
Controlled experiments
Reversible changes with retained baselines to keep comparisons meaningful.
Repeatable validation
Automated checks and recorded results that help separate an observation from an assumption.
What the evidence says
The project includes working play-data tools, controlled experiments, and saved passing automated checks. Custom play data has passed validation in synthetic test conditions.
That does not yet establish how the change behaves in a match. Route execution and gameplay improvements remain unverified. The next milestone is direct in-game validation of specific, controlled changes.
Why it belongs here
A useful investigation needs a clear account of what is known, how it was checked, and what is still uncertain. This project gives me a way to practice that discipline around the sports-game systems I’m interested in.