Digital Card Central

For the last few years, boosted cards are the name of the game for success in Huddle. These cards can be some of the most popular types of releases to chase, and a lot of it has to do with how much emphasis is put on contests within the app. There are a few things to consider now that boosts are here, and I wanted to get it out while people are figuring it out.

Before I dive in, let me say that with GO Boosts always one step ahead, and released for many of the top players, you will NOT need boosts to win. As I have come to find out, very few people actually understand how to play the game and score the most points, and that means that having golds and blues for the right players will still get you near the top if played correctly.

Setup

When boosts were most successful in 2014, users were able to collect a group of cards and get a larger boost for their effort. In 2015, the boosts were more one off releases, and I dont think had the chase that we saw in the previous year. This year seems to be approaching the setup with a combination of 2014 and 2015, with a group of boosts released and a chase for a similar level boost. This chase doesnt produce the level of urgency that we would see with a larger boost attached, but bringing back sets (if that continues), is a good call.

Valuing Boosts

First off, people arent good at chasing the right players, so if you plan your points out, you can make BANK on this for upcoming contests. First off, QB boosts are erroneously determined to be the most valuable of any bunch. Personally, this is a really good thing for people who are lucky and pull them from packs. Not because the QBs are better, but because they have extra value. You might be able to trade them 2 for 1, and that means when you accurately chase top WR and RBs, you can get ahead pretty easily.

Most importantly, dont just give up your boosts for nothing. They do have really good trade value, and if you are not a contest player, you can get good stuff if you play your cards right.

Future Plans

If you think 2.2x is the end of the boost levels, you are sadly mistaken. If I had to guess, there will be MANY different levels, and they will go up higher and higher as the season rolls on. They will also get more expensive, so you might want to take advantage when they go on sale or are cheap to acquire en masse.

Playing Boosts

As mentioned before, your top targets should be WR, RB, TE and LBs that get a lot of tackles. If you play a lot of fantasy contests, then go for the QBs. Otherwise, a white card of a WR will outscore your 2.2x (or higher) QB on every play that both cards score. The more WR and RBs you can get, the better. There are a QBs that run for TDs or score points at a large clip thanks to rushing yards, but that’s the only reason to chase them. Cam Newton and Marcus Mariotacome to mind.

In the end, this is just when Huddle starts to get fun, and I am a big fan of rocking the contests like a boss. Boosts are polarizing around the app, but they are worth picking up for any number of reasons. Not only are they good cards for the contests, but if you dont play, they are some of the best trade bait there is.

This past week has been a fun one in Huddle, as we are finally getting a look at the main cards for the season. We got introduced to all the marathons, and as expected, the designs are quite impressive. I want to take a minute and go through the first of the top cards to be released and offer some thoughts.

Limited Marathon

Design: 
Difficulty to acquire: 
Collectiblility: 

I really like the look this year, even though the color is kind of monotone by design. It was an obvious choice to choose the cover athlete and should be pretty sought after considering the way it was packed out. The paywall in front of the release was not a popular packout scheme, and probably priced 95% of the community out of the chase. That being said, Limited is a popular set, and hopefully they make it more accessible as the year goes on. They did add a new type of variant to the mix this year, which was a bit easier to chase down, and should be a focus for those people who dont want to buy in with real money.

Signature Series Marathon

Design: 
Difficulty to acquire: 
Collectiblility: 

I think its awesome that signature series fits in so nicely with the design of the base set, and even more when the structure mirrors that of the offseason signatures. 250 makes the lowest variant a premium card, and the golds could end up being the top cards in the game all year long. Cam as the first subject is awesome in its own right, and of all the marathons, this was the best execution in my opinion.

Dual Signature Series

Design: 
Difficulty to acquire: 
Collectiblility: 

This is the best looking design I have seen in the app in a LONGGGGG time. Starting off with Russell Wilson and Andrew Luck is even more perfect, as both are two of the more highly collectible young QBs in the app. My only complaint is that the variant structure does not match the main sigs, as golds are 100 instead of 10, but it is what it is. I wold have put the golds at 10 and the platinums at 5, but that’s just me. Would have kept things consistent and easy to follow.

Relic Marathon

Design: 
Difficulty to acquire: 
Collectiblility: 

I was hoping for a dynamic design that was similar to the offseason version, but we didnt get that unfortunately. I think the card is a bit played out, even though they look much better than last year. The paywall around this card was really disappointing too, as there was literally no reason to do so. I would have just stuck with the 10k packs for the base and team color with the card exchange for gold. Would have been fine.

Brave the Elements

Design: 
Difficulty to acquire: 
Collectiblility: 

This looks like 2016’s version of Rain and Ice, two sets that were really popular last year. The design is especially cool, portraying the four main elements in a Topps Fire sort of look. The Adrian Peterson purple rain card was a fitting way to start the set, and that’s not just because im a Vikings fan. Looks like there will be legend versions as well, as we saw Barry Sanders get a card yesterday.

Contest Prize Cards

Design: 
Difficulty to acquire: N/A – Won through contests
Collectiblility: 

This was the real shocker of the week, and boy was it a big one. Walter Payton signature and 3 sigs for Winning the all day Sunday contest? Im in. Huddle has always been about contests and these cards are definitely worth the effort. If you havent been a spender, these are enough to get into the mix. Absolutely love the silhouetted players and the gold signatures, hopefully this continues for the entire season. Great looking stuff.

Again, there were definitely ups and downs with delivery, but I think we can all agree how sweet the cards look this year. Great job all around, and hopefully the execution will change where people have expressed their disapproval.

The contests this year are taking an interesting approach from day one, and I am on board 100%, plus some. Not only are there the standard fantasy contest and daily contests, but there is now a week long contest as well. The unlimited play contests have contest cards as prizes, and they are easily some of the best looking prizes I have seen in any of the apps. We havent gotten a look at the Legend ones, but I would guess they wont be any less insanely awesome than the others.

For whatever stupid reason, history hasnt been kind to contest cards. Even going back to the best of Huddle days, many of the prize releases didnt carry half the value that a pack pulled card had. To be fair, the community was never really treated to designs that they enjoyed, even though I thought last year’s were cool in their simplicity.

The one exception to the rule was the playoff signature ones from 2015, where many of the rewards had some serious trade potential, especially for top players. The signature versions of Tom Brady, Cam Newton (SB50), and Aaron Rodgers were easily 40 dollar cards, and still remain highly  collectible pieces. Other than that, good luck.

Hopefully this year will change, as the cards literally look incredible. I love the silhouetted player images and the sleek design is really something to behold. Par for the course for Huddle’s design team, as they have done some seriously amazing work.

Then to find out that for the week long contest, there will be a legend variant and a signature for the premium contest is something that takes this to another level. With the first Huddle card of Walter Payton on the way, im starting to wonder who else might be on their list of legends coming up. We have been getting the same 9 or 10 guys all offseason, hopefully this new list brings more epic names like Sweetness to digital for their initial offerings.

Contests are already hotly contested, and remain difficult to do well in, unless you have the goods. With boosted cards probably in the plans, this is only going to get more and more competitive. Thankfully the prizes look like they are going to reflect the effort that is required to do well in these day long grinds, and I hope the community will put these on a much higher value pedestal. These cards look good and are exclusive, but its up to the community to set value where they belong.

During the offseason last year, things got a little crazy with the low count stuff. With Supreme, Museum and Fire churning out gold in huge numbers, the way the community valued the cards was already interesting to begin with. Now that the season has changed over, the same people that were unsure of how to treat the situation last year, seem to be carrying that over into the new build. Im actually kind of surprised, and wanted to put down a few thoughts as we get going into the main marathons for the 2016 season.

History

First, its worth discussing a bit about what happened, as it was clear that a LOT of people bought the cards, but few people really saw the true impact it had. When the 2015 season was still in progress, anything 15 was basically untouchable. Legends, Limited variants, Rain, and especially 1/1s all had so much value in trade that 99% of the user base had literally no access. When the playoffs hit, a lot of the count based value was skewed by some really crazy awesome releases, even more so by the Super Bowl.

When Fire dropped during the offseason, all bets were off. Hundreds of 10 count and 50 count cards were released almost weekly, and it really messed with everything. People no longer valued anything that wasnt below 10 in count, and even then it was spotty. Up until the offseason sets, it was rare to see a sub 25 count card of someone that wasnt a star. Now, players like Sean Mannion and Clive Wolford were getting into the game, and people didnt really see the value like they once did.

When the new app build launched and people started getting into the game with Triple Threads, I saw impact like I hadnt seen in previous years. This new set was obviously based on the 2015 Topps Physical set, but was being branded as 2016 playable cards. I think that making them score for the new year was the right call, but it blurred the cutoff line that usually happens with each new season. It told the community that count issues created by the physical offseason sets may continue into 2016, and that doesnt seem to have had a good effect.

Setting Expectations

As with any 2015 card, it wont be the same value as a low count 2016 card. You cant just trade count for count in the game, and people really need to get used to that. As we have seen with Bunt, box purchased cards are not usually valued as high as pack pulled cards, either. These types of releases are so populous, that the “type” of card isnt rare like a marathon variant being rare. It boils down to a card about three to five times the count, minimum. So, if you have a 10 count card, it might be treated like a 50 count card if you are lucky and its a good player.

Rookie premiere stuff was a month worth of releases with INSANELY low counts because cost on the bundles to buy them was out of whack. These cards also have lower value, unless its the live sigs and minicamp cards for rookies that have no other scoring examples. Dak Prescott’s live sigs should be quite the hot ticket when the season starts.

Just be prepared to be laughed out of the building if you offer a 10 count gold for the Gurley limited at 30. Its just not the way Huddle works. Now, dont go throwing your 10 count gold cards away either, as there will be inserts that will be coming where they will come in very handy.

The app’s size shrinks during the offseason, and all those people who missed the fun – and there was a lot of it – will want to catch up on their team and player collections. When they pull some of the inserts coming, they will maybe take a second look if you have some nice offseason physical cards to offer.

Trading For 2016 Cards

As mentioned above, because there were so many low count examples that flooded the market, you cant do a count for count swap with 2016 stuff. Top players like Newton and Brady will definitely carry bigger sticks in the trade economy, but dont think that someone is just going to hit accept because you throw a gold their way. There will be a lot of reasons why its almost better to hang onto your best cards than it would be to dump them now, and that’s just the way it is.

As we saw last year, there was a large market that developed for previous year’s low count inserts. Even though there were fewer of them, people still saw them as cards worth acquiring. It might not happen right away, but if you have some of the more premium physical or low count inserts from last year, they wont be worthless.

The most important thing about all of this is recognizing what you gave up to get the cards in your collection, money or trades, before dumping them for pennies on the dollar. Just because 2015 is done and the cards dont score, is a license to cut bait unless you want to.

Huddle made its bed with the physical sets, and now needs to sleep in it, but that isnt the end of the cards in our collections. A low count card from last year is still going to be something worth having on lock, and dont feed into people who tell you otherwise. If you like it, dont let others influence you to devalue the cards. I had someone yesterday say their offer of 9 golds for one of my Supreme signatures was worth my time. I laughed. Early year hype for gold cards will be fleeting as always – especially once boosts hit. I dont believe that things have sunk that low, and I am not going to dump my cards unless someone has something I actually want more.

At the same time, dont be surprised if someone doesnt share that viewpoint – and that’s okay. Its one person of thousands. Things have a way of coming around. Trust me.

With the season ready to begin (FINALLY!), the Huddle contest scene is about to be in full swing. Although we dont have confirmation yet of GO Boosts or contest mechanics, I will assume everything will be the same until it isnt. Come Thursday, there will be a lot of interesting things going down, and if you are unprepared for the contest, you will not get the goods. Here are my players to watch.

Cam Newton

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to acquire: Hard

As I was mentioning before, Huddle has a misguided obsession with QBs, because the point totals on the back of the card are the highest of any position. Its misleading because QBs score on more plays, but their receivers are still better for your contest collection based on the way scoring is set up. Based on the popularity of Cam as a player, this is doubly so, as you want to pick up others before trying to get your share of the dab master. He will be ONE of the most playable QBs in the game, as his rushing yardage and scoring is higher than just about everyone. Other than that, pick up the rest of the team first.

Jonathan Stewart

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to acquire: Medium

Stewart had a good year last year, and should be back at it this year too. Basically, the Panthers are a well balanced offense, and with Stewart getting most of the carries, this is a good card to pick up. Tolbert still should get goal line carries too, but it wasnt as sure a thing as I thought it would be last year. He is good for at least having in case he can break a few longer runs. The Broncos are stout on defensive line and LB, so he could get shut down too.

Greg Olsen

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to Acquire: Medium

This is the guy I would have stacked. Olsen is a touchdown catching machine from inside the 30, and with how good the Broncos defense is, there may not be much for the rest of the Panthers’ team to get in terms of points. I would expect that Newton will use him a lot, as Kelvin Benjamin is coming off a year without playing, and Ted Ginn is hit or miss.

Kelvin Benjamin

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to Acquire: Low

Here is the thing with Benjamin. No one knows how he will adjust to game action after being out for the year last year. He could light it up, he could be a ghost as he gets his feet back under him. Have some of his cards in reserve in case he gets back on the highlight reel.

CJ Anderson

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to Acquire: Low

Another good card to pick up – especially with Ronnie Hillman gone. Devontae Booker is new to the show, and looks pretty good, so that might play into the setup as well if you have his cards from the premiere. I think if I am going to pick one or the other, Anderson gets the nod. He isnt tough to pick up in any way, and should be a great target if you dont have much to give up.

Demaryius Thomas

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to Acquire: Hard

Without Josh Norman roaming the secondary, the Broncos receivers might have a bit more ease catching passes. The problem is that they lost their method of getting the ball to their hands, and Trevor Siemian isnt exactly close to a top flight guy. Thomas is still a very popular player, and isnt easy to pick up. At least I have had some trouble.

Von Miller

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to Acquire: Medium

I dont like chasing defense, but in a game like this, its not that hard to see where they would be valuable. Miller had a banner run at the playoffs last year, and I would expect him to try to do similar things this time around. The Panthers didnt make any huge acquisitions to the line over the offseason, so its going to be interesting to see how Michael Oher (LT) handles the rush from Miller and Ware.

Emmanuel Sanders

Top Card: Gold 2x
Playability: 
Ease to Acquire: Low

Like Thomas, Sanders depends on a QB that can function, and that’s a stretch with what the Broncos have right now. I would expect more catches from Sanders as a better option for down to down throws, but you never know. He has been known to set it off in games, but that was when Manning was getting him the ball. Osweiler to an extent as well.

As soon as the contests are posted and GO boosts potentially released, start trying to piece together a winning strategy. Also – have your best fantasy lineup in place in case the traffic overloads the servers and you arent able to switch for a while.

If you have any questions – shoot me a tweet or a message in game @SCUncensored.

Good luck to everyone and have a great season!

I used to be tied into SWCT every single day. I was on the app all the time and I had to have a copy of every Marathon. I completed the entire initial sets for Vintage, Widevision and Connections, and that was only the start. I have been on the app since day one, and even when people spent all their time complaining, I was still a ravenous fan. These days, since the hype from Episode VII died out, I have really stopped paying attention to most of the stuff. Im so sad, because I love Star Wars, but I feel like things have changed so drastically that its becoming difficult to continue spending. Here are a few things I would love to see change, as I am longing to dive back in head first.

Control Variants

Right now, this is honestly one of the worst problems that exist in the app. Honestly, Im not even sure Topps is fully to blame. Production delays with Lucasfilms might be so extended, that variants are the only way to generate content. We know Topps is a business, and they have to support the app, but adding variants to everything only hurts the long term app performance. Variants need to be a special thing that add to a set. It cant be a thing that is just a different color border or a different saturation in the image. If a variant exists, it has to bring something extra.

Reward Hoarders 

Again, this is a long term play, not a MAKE MONEY NOW play. Right now, for many users, the only reason they play is to hoard. Showcasing appreciation for their dedication is not only suggested, but its essential. This isnt monetizing hoard tactics, its literally giving recognition without interest in adding additional revenue generation to the app. Its not just monuments or special base variants either – its something that needs to be a way of life in the app. Im not saying Monuments wont be welcome, just that it cant just be a bone thrown to people. The team legitimately needs to come together and create programs that are aimed at helping hoarders feel welcome and embraced.

Create Super Premium Content Purchased With Coins

Right now, if you want any real nice card, you have to use a bundle to get access. Not only that, but many of the bundles only offer a SHOT at paydirt, not a guaranteed card. What’s even worse, is there is a marathon that requires purchase in this same fashion. At some point, the coins are going to be so devalued in acquiring the top cards in the app, it wont even be worth saving them. This just cannot happen. Even though bundle purchases recognize revenue right away, it doesnt give users rewards for collecting coins and saving up. The coin economy is withering and has been for a long time, and I hope that at some point in the future, the main cards are available in coin packs again. Paywall creates a negative user experience, and if the numbers shown on app ranking sites are any indicator, it has brought spending across the app down. At some point, SWCT’s direction needs to be moved away from short term spending and focus more on a long term user generation strategy. Find ways to get more people into the app, not getting more out of people already spending.

Make the SWCT Physical Product an ENORMOUS FOCUS

The Bunt team already experienced how much planning is required for the app to be in sync with the release of a physical product. With SWCT being the focus of a similar experience launching shortly, things need to be ON POINT. That means promotion across the app, getting users prepared, and communicating how to make the most of the packs. There are also a number of things promised on the sell sheet, and every last one of those things need to work properly. This cant go down like the Bunt version, it just cant.

Give the App a Design Update

Here is something I really dont understand. When you think about it, the app has never really gone through the yearly re-design that we see in the sports apps. Although things havent changed drastically for the Topps apps over the last few years, maybe its time to fork the road for entertainment based licenses. Stop trying to fit SWCT into the same skin that Bunt, Huddle and Kick are using, as it really doesnt make sense to do so. Create interfaces that give users in the app a customized experience built for entertainment. Considering what happened with Kick a year back, it has to be calculated and worth it, which means community feedback is essential. We have already started seeing the Bunt team ask for feedback, and this is something that SWCT should do frequently as well.

As mentioned before, I am a big fan of the app, and I dont think things are too far gone. With focus on the right things and a shift in strategy, maybe some of those lost users will come back. Cherish the users already spending and try to expand the base. Its going to be difficult, but it can be done. Daily numbers might need to be sacrificed so that the right path can be established. Hopefully that type of dedication is still available.

In about 8 days, the NFL season is set to get underway with the Panthers taking on the Broncos in the yearly rematch of the Super Bowl. Based on years past, we can pretty much assume that there will be Huddle contests every day that NFL games are played, with special focus on Thursday and Monday nights. The thing is, from what I see around the feed, it doesnt seem to be that most people understand the scoring algorithm to figure out which players are the best choices to chase. I wanted to give some tips, as I do every year.

Fantasy Contests – Limited Moves

Here is the thing. Because this is a different format with limited roster switches, its much more based on getting the most out of your starting lineup than it is finding the most well known guys.

Deceptively, high tackle count LB and defensive players are great to use for these types of lineups, and many people overlook their value in that respect. I have seen a guy register 15 tackles and literally destroy things.

This is also where QBs and Running Backs can be a good fit too – guys that touch the ball a lot. If your running back is 3 downs, like Jamaal Charles or LeSean McCoy, even better, because they will get you catches where other guys wont.

WRs arent as great a play here, because there are games where they can be ghosts. Sure Julio Jones can go for 200 and 3 TDs, but that isnt every game. Better to start high TD pass and yardage guys like Rodgers who will be consistently awesome every game.

Try to plan out your boost levels too, because a 1x card of a normal high point scorer might score better than a 2x card of a lower point scorer. Gold isnt always better.

More importantly than all of that – WATCH the injury reports. Dont set your fantasy lineup until the last possible moment. There is nothing worse than having a guy in your lineup locked and then not playing. It will kill your chance to win.

Grind Contests – Unlimited Moves

These are the contests that require full attention to the game or games on TV. If you have Red Zone channel on Sunday, you are already in the spot you need to be to get an advantage. They literally show every touchdown, and this will help tremendously. Stay on top of the action and be ready to switch in guys that score along the way. Touchdowns, especially ones that come with a lot of yardage, are the ways people win contests.

In these contests, QBs are almost worthless unless Cam Newton decides he is going to run for a long gain or jump in for a TD. That is entirely possible, but if you have receivers to play on any QB completion, they will deliver more points at 1x than a QB will at 2x. Your white WR cards are better, because they have a better scoring algorithm that rewards yardage at a higher point total.

Similarly, when you add a TD on top of that, its money in the bank – even more so as boost levels increase.

Running backs remain valuable too, as they will get points in these contests as much as they will on the fantasy ones. With no choice in the play, most RB gains will be best to play those cards. If you have defense, on short carries, the person making the tackle is better.

Here is the catch – DO NOT SWITCH OUT GUYS UNTIL THE POINTS ARE REGISTERED. The only way you can get points in the game is if the guy is saved in your lineup at the time the API loads the scoring in. You can refresh your point total easily, so dont mess this up. I have lost contest championships because I wasnt keeping track and switched out too early.

If you arent switching your guys in and out with every scoring play, you will not do well. On Monday and Thursday, this should be pretty easy, but for the all day Sunday contest, not so much. This is why Red Zone is essential for seeing which guys will be scoring and what lineup to use.

Bottom line, these tips will hold true even as the boosts get super high by the end of the year. Keep on top of your sheet, and you will be able to gain advantage over people who are not too aware of the scoring rules. Huddle contests are the most fun of any app, in my opinion, and I spend more time watching football than I should, as a result. If you have any questions, let me know on Twitter or in game.

I remember back to 2012 and 2013. I started playing the apps because it combined card collecting with fantasy sports. You opened packs of cards to get players that you can use in a way that coincides with the live games. It was a revolutionary concept for me, and something that really got me interested in digital. Since that point, the apps have kind of broken from that formula, focusing more on deriving value in the cards and less in making gameplay the focus of each of the apps. Im sad about that, and from the way revenue has been performing according to public tracking aggregators, it looks like this might be a way to right the ship so to speak.

Revenue is generated in app from buying bundles. Bundles that include coins or bundles that include cards. Because users get daily coins, spending only occurs when someone wants coins that they dont have. There are a handful of users who will buy cards because they have already broken the normal spending cycles, but for the normal non-whale, spending is about coins, not cards.

Because contests are usually not purchased bundles, the revenue derived from their participation is likely viewed as passive. Im also guessing it can be hard to track, because in a lot of ways, its a multi touch attribution model. User A is participating in Contest A. He buys packs of product A to get better cards. Tying all the As together might be difficult, especially if it can be a lot of different products the person buys.

It can also be as complicated as User A wants better cards for Contest A, so he solicits User B to trade him what he wants. User B sees value in the trade and wants to acquire more bait, so he buys in further to open more packs. Its passive, not direct.

I will say the ripple effects of contests being amazing can be huge. Topps doesnt seem to want to put a ton of effort into the daily contests, as we have seen in Bunt this year. They are much more interested in releasing cards than being innovative with the gameplay, and I believe they are wrong in doing so. Very wrong.

Recently we saw new contest types added, but as I said at the time, that cant be the end of it. With more focus, all those ripple effects are greater, and greater ripples from the contests means more revenue for Topps. Plus, the users are more entertained in the mean time.

For whatever reason, I feel like Topps doesnt think this way. Because they cant see the lift a contest advanced plan would have directly, they dont want to invest. Its funny that this is the case, because contests are literally one of the main advantages Topps has over any competition. I also think the short term plan of trying to squeeze more out of the big spenders instead of creating new ones is horrible idea. Its the same approach that got physical cards into the unsustainable situation they are in currently. You need to grow the pie, not get more out of what you already own. Growth of population, not growth per capita.

I wholeheartedly believe that more innovation in gameplay will have a hugely positive effect. This begs the question, how do you do that?

1. Rewards – contest rewards have to be better. Reward the effort needed to place high with some great cards. More cards should have signatures, cost to enter should be low or free, and more highlighted content around winners should be in place. The app should showcase the contest as the peak of the mountain
2. Variety – It can just be the same contests every day and every week. More special contests need to be instated. The app team should have weekly plans to make each day of the week special, and the better the exclusive reward, the better the participation and ripple effects will be in place.
3. Communication – Blow it up on Twitter. Blow it up in the app. Show the commitment in a way that equates fame with winning.
4. Embrace criticism – The app should be its own biggest critic. It should also solicit ideas and crowdsource solutions. Let the fans tell you what they want!
5. Rewards – so important its on here twice. Think outside the box. Physical rewards are not out of the question, but there are enough ideas that havent been used that the team can still save physical rewards for the playoffs.
6. Rewards – Yup, still that important.

Again, contests are in a funk, and I dont see the team really taking a stance to making them better across the apps. We havent seen what Huddle has to offer, but there is a huge need to take contests and dedicate more time and resources to making them SPECIAL. Trust me, I know that this is a way to bring back some of that magic we have lost in Bunt and Huddle.

Now that Huddle has launched and there is a lot of changes implemented from the builds of other apps, I wanted to make sure I had a chance to dive in before doing a full write up. I have had some time to get acquainted since Wednesday night, and here are a few things that are worth your time to consider.

#1 – Content

Right now, Huddle has no physical cards that they can use for digitization. The physical side is no longer NFL licensed, andthat means digital is tasked with carrying the brand name beyond the post. The base design is our first look at that venture, and it is refreshing to see what the team came up with. Not only did they create a great looking base design, but they found ways to highlight a digital format, instead of building off an existing design and finding ways to fold it into the needs of the app.

We are going to get a lot of BRAND SPANKING NEW DESIGNS from Huddle this year, and from what Neil Kleid was saying on Twitter, they might not be giving up on those fan favorite set names. If we will get new takes on old favorites, im completely on board. Things like Inception, Fire, and Museum all deserve to be carried on, so why not build a digital brand out of the history we love?

At the same time, physical football is gone. I sincerely hope Topps Digital is not going to come around and say “FOOTBALL IS STILL HERE!” because that isnt the approach I would take. Make digital into the brand it has always deserved to be. Invest in creating an experience that preserves the history, but doesnt try to recreate it.

#2 – Levels

We saw the level system in Bunt get introduced, and honestly, I thought it was an AWESOME idea. It didnt turn out to be all that important in the grand scheme, mostly because it just became an award delivery device.

I think there are a lot of reasons why this needs to be expanded, and the Huddle Greats set that are delivered through this level system is really cool. Its a perfect way to breed exclusivity into leveling up, especially if the players continue to get better as the levels increase.

I just hope that we also start to see level exclusive access to parts of the app that make it worthwhile outside of rewards to chase additional progression.

#3 – Contests

The simulated contests are a fun and interesting way to whet our appetites for the season. It also institutes the potential for a ticketing system that I hope stays around for the rest of the season.

Basically, it would be cool to win tickets that can be exchanged for any kind of loot, especially loot that is applicable to better performance in contests. Think about saving tickets and exchanging for exclusive boosts, or a pack that is built around players who are top point scorers? Possibilities are endless through card exchange.

Similarly, with fewer contest weeks available than Bunt, hopefully things wont be as stale here as they got mid season in baseball. At the same time, contest prizes need to reward effort over luck, and really deliver in a similar fashion to what we saw in the playoffs.

#4 – Communication

Huddle has been notoriously quiet in communicating with the users, and that just cant happen here. If they are the brand for football, they really need to ramp up the engagement on social media.

Topps as a whole needs to get behind Huddle and showcase that digital remains a powerhouse worth people’s attention. We see rankings across all the apps coming down to earth, and I believe its a combination of poor sales strategy and poor communication as a whole.

You rarely see the main Topps account tweet about digital, and that is really unfortunate. Without full support from all aspects of the business, Huddle will not reach the potential it could. Same goes all around. Not saying they need to tweet every release, but definitely showcase more often what digital brings to the table.

#5 – Rookies

Right now, the rookie crop is getting a lot of attention because Dak Prescott is lighting it up in the pre-season and the season is getting closer to launching. Im guessing with Panini in control of the rookie premiere, they likely didnt give huddle the access they probably would have gotten in previous years.

This means rookie content could be sparse until they can pull and process photos from the preseason. I havent seen any rookies in the base set yet, but that doesnt mean they will be absent forever.

Hopefully Huddle finds a way to incorporate the rookies earlier rather than later.

Again, this could end up being a make or break year for the app. If things live up to the hype, they are in for a banner season. If not, its going to fall on the team to figure out how to improve and quickly. The NFL is not a cheap organization to do business with, and Im sure the brass wants big numbers and fast. Based on the offseason setup holding true for 2017, I am confident they can make a splash.

With the NFL season kicking off in September, Huddle has already tweeted out that the new build will launch this week. Basically that means we can all start revving our engines to get ready for what is coming. With this being the first year that Topps will have a digital license but no physical NFL license, this can be a game changing opportunity for the brand. They will be able to build things specifically into the cards for a digital landscape, and that could be HUGE.

NOTE: I call it 2016 because its the 2016 season. Huddle is using the Madden nomenclature and going with the year the season ends.

As we approach launch, there are a number of things that need to be considered. I would love to walk through them all, but I chose the most important things that have made successful over the years.

Old Insert Value in 2015

To be honest, the 2015 insert landscape changed DRAMATICALLY over the offseason. With so many low count inserts, the normal approach might not be successful. It used to be that the sigs and low count stuff like limited would have extreme value, but that might not be the case with the way the 2015 season wrapped up. Things like Fire, Supreme and Museum might not hold the value they had long term, so dont expect to pick up top cards of 2017 easily with a 1:1 trade of that type of content. More importantly, the higher the count on the insert, the more likely it will not be very valuable in the new season. In the 2015 Huddle launch, the change to NFL licensing brought about a significant shift in value. A similar shift will be taking place with the offseason approach, and its going to be very interesting to see how those cards fare. Im not saying to dump all your cards now, but use this opportunity to trade up if you can. Package some cards together to see if someone will be more likely to give you a shot at some really nice inserts. Sometimes, nice inserts will have carryover value because they look cool or are rare enough to make a difference.

Also worth mentioning that your collection score will drop significantly once the new cards hit the sheet, so dont be alarmed. Once you collect the base and some of the other releases, it will start to creep back up in direct correlation to the rest of the users in the app. I would guess your score should hover around 80+ depending on how much old stuff you have.

First Day Planning

When Huddle starts up, there will be packs to buy and there will be a crap load of 2016 base cards to collect. However, I am going to urge you to wait to buy packs until the first inserts hit packs. Base cards will rarely ever sell out, which means that wasting coins on empty packs is probably not the best plan. I would guess there will be a number of sets that will be released in the first few days:

• Kickoff cards (day 1-2 likely)
• Signature Series (day 2-3 likely)
• First non-marathon insert set (day 1-2 likely)
• First marathon inserts (day 1-2 likely)
• Go Boosts (Wed-Thur of release)

With so much content likely planned, its in your best interest to survey the scene before diving in. You do not want to miss out on a sweet card just because you got trigger happy on the first base packs of the year.

Hitting the Fan Feed

Get ready to trade and trade hard. There will be HUNDREDS of people who will jump onto the feed and post “Trading 2015 for 2016” the second the new app launches. Even though you will be one of those individuals, I would definitely find a way to get some trades done. Try to unload 2014 and 2015 cards that have no value to get higher boost cards of players who might not be the top guys. Use the red paperclip technique to parlay them into some trade bait you can use to get some cards of people you actually want. It wont be easy, but it will pass the time until the real inserts hit packs and you can finally dive in. Expect to enormously overpay for 2015, and that should not be a concern. Most people have a TON of 2015 boosts and stuff to unload – even singles – and I would advise giving up what you cant use to get cards you can use.

Scoring

If 2016 is anything like 2015, the contests will launch a few days before that Thursday game. playable Broncos and Panthers cards will be in high demand, and that means they might not be ones you can trade for easily. Remember, this is one game of hundreds, so dont liquidate your collection of new cards to get the ones for this particular game.

If you really want to get ahead, start looking at the teams that have a LOT of nationally televised games. Having a lot of those team’s cards will give you a significant advantage in getting top performance in contests.

Position Scoring Value

Last year, all offensive skill position guys were worth picking up as long as they were starters. Here are how I thought the breakdown went, in order of value:

1. Wide Receiver
2. Running Back
3. Quarterback
4. Tight end
5. High tackle count defensive player
6. High sack count defensive player
7. Kickers
8. High interception count defensive player
9. Punters

Outside of that, its basically a jumble of other defensive guys and players that dont score. Dont get caught up in getting a top QB, because the way scoring was set up in 2015, the receiver almost always scored a ton more points for any nice play. DESPITE what people believe, RBs and WRs are much better for you if you are going to be participating in the weekly grind.

Based on what we have seen, here are my top players at each of the most important positions.

• QB: Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Andrew Luck
• WR: Dez Bryant, Odell Beckham, Antonio Brown, Julio Jones
• RB: Adrian Peterson, Jamaal Charles, Todd Gurley
• TE: Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham, Travis Kelce

Not all of these individuals will have cards from day one, so pick out the ones that will likely be your top targets.

Contests/Boosts

Bottom line, Contests and Boosts are ingrained in Huddle’s culture. This means there will be a lot of boosts to play in the many contests that will be available as the season progresses. Some will likely be in packs, some will be purchase only. It might be available day one this year, but I would doubt it. Basically, if you arent ready to buy into the boosts, dont. I have seen people do extremely well in contests with no boosts, I have seen people win contests because of boosts. Both work. There will be a place for everything, and Boosts are a thing that make Huddle fun. 

If Huddle 2016 is anything like last year, the contests will have a Thursday contest, a Sunday Contest, a Sunday night contest, and a monday night contest. Be prepared to play as many of them as you can, not only because of the rewards, but also because of how much more fun the game is.

Get Excited!

Bottom line, this is going to be a banner year for Huddle if they can do it right, and that means that they will be focused on the parts of the game that drive participation. Being that Huddle is my main app, this is the time of year that I live for. If you have any questions, shoot me a tweet at @SCUncensored or shoot me a message in game.

Looking forward to seeing a big piece of awesomeness this week.