If you haven’t had a chance to read our review of MLB ‘09 The Show (The Show), then I would advise giving it gander. Like most franchises, and in the sports genre in particular, The Show’s yearly release schedule means that much of the game is the same as the year before, and our coverage of 2009 will serve as an excellent introduction to the series. Now, then, on with the show (ha!).
For many people, and I would argue for the industry itself, The Show has become the baseball game franchise. Not only does it provide solid pitching, batting, and fielding mechanics, in addition to a new a catchers mode, it also offers several downright awesome features: online stat tracking, an online draft, home run derby, customizable juke box, custom crowd chants and taunts, accurate day-night cycle, real-time MLB scores and MLB.com Headline News updates. But even with all of this, the most important feature remains the game’s namesake, the Road to the Show mode.
Going through a Road to the Show session is, as best as I can explain it, like playing a role-playing game set in a baseball sim. It is as heavily customizable as ever, with a wide breadth of physical features – complexion and color, head, face, nose, cheek, eyes, etc. – and accessories that can be adjusted by sliders and designated spots – extremely robust and easy to use. There are also dozens, if not hundreds, of pre-recorded first and last names, as well as nicknames, so that you can make a player as similar or different to you as you wish. Afterwards, you are given a set amount of experience points to allocate to different abilities in order to customize your player’s skill set: batting strength by pitcher’s arm, plate discipline, bunt ability, etc.
For myself, I created Steve “Cobra” Franklin. Cobra, what the announcers (hilariously) refer to him as, is a moderate prospect with a focus on accuracy and speed. Not a terribly impressive player, but everyone has to start somewhere.
As for the Cobra, his aspirations to become a player for the Houston Astros led him to begin his career in the minors for the Corpus Christi Hooks. The minors are set in the same mold as the majors, with the ability to request contract extensions, switch field positions, and allocate earned experience to further improve your skills. In addition to starting out in the minors, this year’s version adds five new minor league stadiums, complete with the customizable crowd responses and play-by-play commentary found in the majors.
Unlike in the majors, minor league players will often find themselves shifting roles. Instead of being a one-man show, you will go to wherever you are needed; despite being a shortstop and catcher, I found myself in the outfield a few times. But the lion’s share of your time on the field will be in your selected role(s). I have to say, my time as a shortstop was great, making the called double plays and snatching bullets out of the sky. However, my time as the catcher wasn’t quite as enjoyable. It’s not that the new catcher mode is poorly implemented because it’s actually quite well done, with the ability to play on a pitcher’s strengths and work with them by choosing a strong pitch and a zone they are comfortable with – the strike zone is broken up into squares – by following their nods and arm movements. Working in tandem with a solid pitcher can be enjoyable, but in the end you are always at the mercy of the pitchers. And when you’re on the Corpus Christi Hooks, being at the mercy of the pitchers is a scary, scary thing. Depending on a pitcher’s skills, you can have a great game or a grueling slog as you marvel at your partner’s inability to get anywhere near the strike zone. Just like real (painful) baseball.
Your career will consist of a series of seasons, filled with contract negotiations, emails from the coach, practice, and games. Seasons can be simulated so that you can skip downtime until your next appearance, whether that’s starting in a game, stepping in, or practicing. During these appearances you can upgrade your standings, attracting the attention of scouts, or falter and watch as your errors pile up. As a fairly competent shortstop and catcher, and the occasional pinch runner, I was called up enough to stay active but without feeling bogged down. But as one of the team’s better catchers, I found myself being drug through long games filled with frustrated innings and mind-boggling performances. Oh, how I longed for the pros.
As a true rookie, it can take a while to be deemed worthy of a professional contract and called up to the big leagues. To increase your chances of being noticed by your coach and the scouts, you can perform certain assigned tasks, such as getting a run in or maintaining a certain batting average. Successfully completing a goal will win you praise and extra experience while failure will result in stagnation and angry emails from the coach. There are also additional chances to improve your skills during practice sessions that are, unlike the easy pre-game warm-ups, accurate challenges that can quickly net some valuable experience points. I really appreciated these opportunities for advancement but they were far too few for my struggling minor leaguer’s liking. With a system as complex as those in The Show, and with skills as rusty as mine, I could’ve used some more practice.
With every move eyed and graded, it’s crucial to stay on your game. Unfortunately, like last year’s release, and despite steps taken to answer players’ complaints, The Show still struggles with training players. There is indeed a Practice mode that allows access to tips and in-field play, as well as a Tips mode with text and in-game pop-ups during play that explain how to pull off moves. This all helps, greatly, but aside from the information being funneled into areas there is no real unity. The aids might suffice for most games but for The Show, where just batting on the second-to-last difficulty level has a two-activity sequence before the pitch is even throne, there needs to be something more comprehensive. The system is that you play the various modes to learn what to do and utilize Practice to brush up on what you’ve learned, but it takes a long time to really get into the system and requires a lot of losing and wading through menus. The thing that gives the game so much staying power, its plethora of options, is also its biggest hindrance in trying to create a comprehensive training system; it’s a lot of information to tackle. Just off the top of my head there are multi-step batting and pitching actions, three new pitcher pick-offs, base leading and stealing, field depth, bullpen management, two fielder control options which can differ from the catcher controls, etc. But there is no doubt that the developers have made great strides here, far beyond anything offered before, and will be invaluable to new and old players alike.
Unlike in Road to the Show, the other modes give you control of whatever player has the ball. That means you’ll pitch, pick off a runner as a recovering catcher, and jump for low homers as an outfielder. The other modes also allow you to play as a pro without having to wait. If you want to hop on for a single game, then you can play a Quick Game or an Exhibition. For something more involved, there are on- and offline Seasons. Franchise mode takes seasons a bit further by allowing for greater control over a team, including setting ticket prices, promotions, and applying for loans. For those wanting something a bit more removed, there is a Manager Mode. Each mode is fully realized and feature rich, and as you would expect. Quick Game offers the fewest options, just pick two teams have at it, while Exhibition opens up a few additional options, such as the stadium, time of day, and cloud cover. As mentioned, Franchise includes the ability to schedule promotions, administer the staff (coaches, scouts, and trainers), and manage the facilities - who hasn’t wanted to schedule a Bobblehead Night?
The other main modes, Home Run Derby and Rivalry, are fun novelties. Home Run Derby is available for those just wanting to bash the ball with one of the best, testing themselves against the records. Rivalry is an extended grudge match with two teams playing several games against each other, back-to-back. Each mode allows for numerous handy options, such as pulling pitchers, managing the field, fantasy draft, and a much-used fast-forward option.
As robust as the single-player portion is, so is the multiplayer component. In addition to the real MLB news and stat updates there are a ton of options for players, including player stats, the aforementioned online draft, news, and leagues. Up to 30 teams can now compete in online leagues, with their own tracked stats and customizable schedule. Seasonal leagues will allow for 40-man rosters to be fully played with injuries, trades, and status updates. Every game played can also be viewed at a later date, with game logs offering additional details. Aside from the in-game lag meter not quite one hundred percent, online play is as exciting as ever, with rooms for rookies and veterans to chat and set up games, updates on hot players, and a variety of options to set when scouting for suitable opponents.
Of course, the features wouldn’t mean much if the core game wasn’t enjoyable. As the series goes, the core is top notch. Although pitching is the same, with a three-point meter that has you start, stop at strength, and release at an optimal point at a manually designated target over an overlaid catcher’s glove. Pitchers will become more adept at a pitch type the more they use it but also lose their touch if they become neglectful, which can also lead to a loss of confidence if they continue to perform poorly. Pitchers did get one interesting addition, and that is a set of three options to pick off baserunners: casual, quick, and deceptive. I still enjoy the mechanics, which have been standard for a while now, and find myself still being immensely satisfied when I burn one over the plate or trick a batter into a wild swing. Although there was an odd tendency for an input-perfect pitch to go astray, which was frustrating, but not nearly as much as the AI batters who kept hitting fouls. I understand anything can happen and that’s what makes sports so exciting, but after the fourth foul with two strikes, I start to think something’s up.
Batting, like pitching, has remained largely the same. Batters have the chance to guess the pitch type and strike zone, which can affect hit strength, as well as attempt to influence ball spin and direction. Additional information is made available to improve your game, including pitch history, analysis of the batter’s swings, and a strike zone whose borders and zones light up when zone or pitch are correctly guessed. When not in Road to the Show, players at bat will also have to direct the team’s baserunners by using the shoulder buttons and analog stick to instruct who should lead off, steal, or hang back.
Of all the positions, I am most fond of fielding. There is a certain rhythm to a solid throw that makes fielding addictive, and double plays all the more satisfying, that occurs because of the one-button system. You must press the button of the base you intend to throw to pick the ball up and then release to throw, but the strength of the throw is determined by how long the button is held; the stronger the throw, the more likely you’ll overshoot your target. The same time-sensitive aspect is also present when sliding or jumping for a fly, with a miss resulting in players having to reorient themselves and losing valuable time but catches leading to some spectacular plays. And if you happen to make a great play, you can record it and edit it in a new Movie mode. I always found myself in movie-worthy moments while as shortstop. But you can still make the highlights as an outfielder, denying a homerun by leaping and snatching a ball just above the wall or making a dramatic slide for a last-minute catch. In contrast with my position as catcher, which I was successful at but found tedious after a few games, the fielding spots always held great times.
As solid as the mechanics are, I did encounter some technical and AI problems. In addition to the odd trade, whether it be the computer other players or for your Road to the Show character, where you’re promptly benched, some users have experienced crashes. Two 300-plus meg patches have been released to address such issues, and this review was written after the second patch. Even after the patches I still experienced one freeze during loading, and thankfully only one, which didn’t turn out bad thanks to the game recognizing the previously played game and loading to the results screen. There are also numerous minor graphical issues: polygon seams appearing near the stands, players walking through one another during downtime, and a severe case of jaggies. The seams and specter players were nothing more than random eyesores since they didn’t affect gameplay, either occuring off the field or during short sequences when players are getting into position. The jagged edges were a bit more prominent, especially with the lower-res game logo that splashes between scenes, as stadium corners, seats, and objects were really rigid. The edges really stood out in stark contrast to the smoothly animated and detailed players and overall outstanding presentation.
The soundtrack again features licensed tracks in addition to your own stored music, as well as classic running commentary and ‘live’ stadium commentary. The licensed tracks were better this time around but, like the classic commentary, there wasn’t a large variety. Similarly, the ‘live’ commentary is also limited, which actually does have an impact on your game, as it will drive you insane. Music and classic commentary are prominent during loading, menus, and pre-game warm-ups, but the announcers - Dave Campbell, Rex Hudler, and Matt Vasgersian - are constant throughout with play-by-play commentary. Sometimes you will get some helpful advise, possibly a hint as to what might come next – ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if he went with a slider.’ – but often you will just want them to stop talking. After hearing the same canned comment on how poorly you’re doing or how watching baseball is a great way to spend a Sunday, you’re looking for anyway to shut them up. It’s a decent start that has a lot of potential, and I can definitely see how much it’ll add to the series once ironed out, but it’s not quite ready. And to Rex: one more nonsensical comment, poor attempt at humor, or pointless ‘tip’ and you’re fired. On the plus side, the effects are great, and with regards to the classic commentary, all I could want is more.
Overall: 9/10
MLB 10 The Show is a strong reminder why this is the premier baseball series. I freely admit to being, at most, a passive fan of the sport, but this series has had its hooks in me ever since last year’s release. This year’s version includes a lot of great additions to both off- and online single- and multiplayer that fans will enjoy, as well as some much-needed practice modes. There are a still few rough spots, from the odd trade to at times fishy pitcher-batter AI, despite two 300-plus meg patches. The problems I ran into were minor, especially when compared to just how enjoyable the game is, particularly the Road to the Show mode. Whether you’re a long-time fan or someone just looking for a solid title, you would do well to check out The Show.
(This review is based on a copy provided by the publisher.)
