Hoffman Aids in Game Development

August 27, 2012; San Diego, CA, USA; Hoffman (right) with Chipper Jones prior to the start of Jones’s final series in San Diego. Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Always nice to check in on what former Reds are doing these days. As for Trevor Hoffman, seems like he’s dabbling a bit into mobile gaming.

The former Reds farmhand and MLB’s #2 all-time save man teamed up with Sports Technology Applications Inc. (STA) for a new interactive and social game for mobile devices. The game is MLB Victis, and it offers real-time data as it pertains to baseball games which are currently being played.

The official U.S. launch of MLB Victis was announced yesterday.

STA is a developer of sports-focused social gaming apps. The app is free and players compete against each other for points. A little background on MLB Victis and how it works. Here’s STA’s Head of Studio Matt Pangborn.

"“We developed MLB Victis so that the baseball fanatic and casual fan alike can participate in the action and excitement of MLB games on a more personal and competitive level. A player can win points simply by selecting the correct game winner. Or, the player can go much deeper, by using batter, pitcher or manager modes to predict specific outcomes of the at-bat (single, double, home run, etc.), as well as the type and location of every pitch (fastball, breaking ball, etc.), with the outcome streamed in real-time. The more specific a player gets with a correct pick, the more points are awarded.”"

Points are earned by predicting the outcome of every aspect of a game including outcomes for an at-bat, a pitch, and even manager decisions. Points can then be redeemed for virtual locker goods like hats, bats jerseys, and other in-game updates including Advanced Stats.

Wait. Managerial decisions, too?

To help players get their hands on these goodies, STA entered into partnerships with companies such as Majestic, New Era and Louisville Slugger (I think those sound familiar) in order to provide licensed products that game players can win through contests and sweepstakes.

There’s even more to this game, or app if you prefer. Social functionality is also a big feature. With leaderboards and instant messaging, players can claim bragging rights as they can compete against their friends. Gotta talk some smack. Wouldn’t be a game then, now would it?

And Hoffman’s role? He added idea development as well as a branding arm. On the app, Hoffman had this to say:

"“It’s been a pleasure working with the Sports Technology Applications crew and watching the MLB Victis app come to life. There are so many layers to it. Not only is it fun to play while I watch or attend an MLB game, but I can also pick up my phone on the go and see play-by-play updates of every game live as it happens.”"

The app is available now on iOS and will be coming soon on Android. MLB Victis is an Official Licensee of MLB.com.

http://www.mlbvictis.com/appstore

A hearty “thank you” to Paul Kuo with Beverly Hill Sports Council for supplying this information.