MLB 09: The Show Review
- Posted March 2nd, 2009 at 16:08 EDT by
- 28 Comments
Review Score
- PSU Review Score
- 9.0
- Avg. user review score:
- 9.6
Summary
MLB 09: The Show improves on enough aspects of its predecessor to warrant its yearly purchase. With advancements in the Road to the Show and Franchise modes, gamers will be playing this title all year.
We like
- The new training modes for Road to the Show
- The hot shot and bobble fielding situations
- The lighting and precise detail of the stadiums
We dislike
- That online play isn’t as fluid as it needs to be right now
See PSU's review on Metacritic & GameRankings
It’s that time of year again when the snow trickles away, the air warms up, and parents bring their kids to Spring Training to get a first glimpse at the superstars of tomorrow. Baseball season is right around the corner, and with it comes the annual release of what has quickly become the gaming industry’s greatest baseball franchise, MLB: The Show.
Last year’s release, MLB 08: The Show, corrected some of the series' minor flaws while delivering a simulation baseball experience unlike any other. SCE San Diego did a fine job re-tuning the fielding and pitching mechanics by listening to fans of the game over the developer’s off season. This year is no different. Due to the time spent conversing with the community, MLB 09: The Show actually raises the bar from past installments, which very few people thought possible.
Outside of the developers bringing in Dustin Pedroia for some serious motion capture sessions, the team has added in a substantial amount of unique player styles, as well as new tag and gameplay animations in order to polish the simulation experience. Furthermore, a new collision detection system has been implemented to remove the unrealistic plays of the past. Baserunners no longer freely run into defenders standing and waiting for the ball; instead, they try to circle around them to avoid the tag. These are just a few examples of technical changes to the gameplay that SCE San Diego produced for MLB 09 to turn it into an authentic baseball experience.
It’s no secret that The Show franchise has always and should always revolve around one of the best game modes of any sports title, Road to the Show. This mode allows gamers to create a custom player of their choice to play any position on the field. The objective is to play as your created player, turning him from a minor leaguer into a baseball legend. MLB 09: The Show gives you the option of entering your player into the first-year player draft or selecting a team of your choice. Once this is done, you’re given a variety of settings to configure to create a more enjoyable experience.
Much like last year’s title, Road to the Show is primarily played on the field. You're given goals to complete by your coach, like striking out a batter or throwing a runner out at home. All tasks result in one of four different outcomes: Goal Complete, Goal Failed, Goal Canceled and Positive Result. Depending on which goals you complete or fail, you’re given points at the end of each game that you can distribute to progress your player’s skills, which range from arm strength to contact against left-handed pitchers. When it comes to distributing training points, it’s always good to take note of what type of advancement goals have been set forth.
Advancement goals are periodic objectives that your manager or coach gives your player. This could involve something as simple as maintaining a .300% batting average over the next five series of games, or it could be a training objective like increasing your bunting ability to a certain point. These objectives help you move up the ranks as a player at a quicker rate.
One of the new implementations to Road to the Show 3.0 is the addition of training sessions. The developers have created special training sessions that focus on your batting techniques and base-running in order to improve your abilities in a different way than just dishing out training points. In these two mini-modes, players have the chance to gain plate vision, discipline, power and contact improvements in batting, or base-running aggression, speed and base-running ability in the base-running training mode. These are welcomed inclusions as they add an extra amount of authenticity while also providing gamers a nice change of pace from the games. They also offer another way to improve your player without having to dish out the training points to areas you may not be too concerned with.
Outside of these additions, Road to the Show provides a similar setting and gaming experience that fans of the series have come to love. This is also, once again, the mode you should and probably will spend the ... (continued on next page)
Comments
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superbeast1370 |
superbeast2000- 4:25pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 3
Great! can't wait to get it! *waiting for Tax check*
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O_G_H
- 4:32pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 5
What does a sports game have to do to get a 10? There's NO WAY to make this game better. And after reading this...
http://biz.yahoo.com/ibd/090227/tech.html?.v=1
("Hit Franchises Key" section, 4th paragrapgh of the section)
*
...Sony might want to think about dropping the paradigm of the annual sports game and just charge for a roster/feature update. Maybe release The Show every 4 years or so...
Anyway, there is an obvious bias against sports games where even the best Sports game cannot crack a 9.0. 9.0 is the new "10" for a Sports game. Meanwhile, a so-so FPS automatically scores an 8.0 TO START.
At any rate, I'm just glad that the "Madden of Baseball" is a PS3 exclusive.
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Prayer350z |
Prayer350z- 5:34pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 8
must get this. 08 was amazing, and im loving the show.
The only baseball game series that gets its mostly right.
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JMelillo57 |
jmelillo57- 5:52pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 10
Cant wait to pick this up tomorrow. I just hope the blizzard we got yesterday and today doesn't delay any shipping of the game.
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darthrazorback
- 7:23pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 15
I stopped playing MLB 08 about a week ago. This is by far the game I played the most last year. Though, I do wish they had fixed a few visual problems that I noticed are still in the demo. They could have added a few different fan characters and spaced them out a bit. Plus, the catcher still throws right through a batter who is in his way. And the animation of a first baseman deciding to keep the ball and not throw it to the pitcher, at a play on first, is still jerky. Otherwise, the game will be amazing, I am sure.
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!aaf |
Roper316- 7:44pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 16
O.G.H.: I'm pretty sure HAZE didn't get at least an 8.0 in several sources, including PSU.
Most shooters rightfully get their score. On the flip side, although shooters really are more or less the same across each game, it would also be a crime if an otherwise enjoyable modern shooter suddenly gets deducted points just because it didn't completely re-invent the wheel.
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radgamer420 |
mistercrow- 9:02pm GMT - March 2nd, 2009
- 17
I loved the demo and the graphics and animations look amazing. I'm definitely buying this.
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darthrazorback
- 7:12am GMT - March 3rd, 2009
- 19
X-Play continues to hate anything created by Sony. I say "hate" even though they gave it a 4 out of 5 because they KNOW this is a 5 out of 5 game, but just can't bring themselves to give it a perfect score. What was their argument against it? That The Show still does not use the analog sticks for pitching and swinging. Well, X-Play, perhaps had you read the manual you would KNOW how to use the analog sticks when batting. As for pitching, THANK GOD The Show does not do this. The competition game is ridiculously tiring BECAUSE of the analog pitching routine. The Show creators know that baseball fans play the game for hours and hours a day, not once a day like the X-Play reviewers. When you play game after game after game, and use the analog sticks for pitching AND hitting, you fingers and hands become more sore than 10 hours of Killzone 2.
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residentevilrocks91 |
videogameman6- 7:05pm GMT - March 5th, 2009
- 24
Shes a keeper in my book. Love baseball but boy this was probably the best game out there for the ps3(in the sports catagory)
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Silv3rBack
- 11:05am GMT - March 10th, 2009
- 27
best sports baseball game EVER,and has the BEST GRAPHICS EVER! for any sports game.
i didnt even like baseball and the last baseball game i played witch was my 2nd fav (mlb 09 bieng 1st) was MLB 98 for ps1.
i did however play the 08 demo and thats how i amediately got back into the MLB series again.
never had enuf money to grab myself mlb 08 but once i heard 09 was commin out soon,i saved my mula and now im COMPLETLY satisfied for a long @zz time and could not be more happier with my MLB Maddness.
game gets a 10/10 in my book.
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SixEightSix18 |
SixEightSix18- 12:33am BST - April 4th, 2009
- 28
Hands down the best baseball game ever made. The only flaw I have on this game is the Be-A-Pro baserunning. It takes some time to get used to. If you like MLB 08 The Show buy this game. There arnt to many new features but its still good. 10/10 for Baseball/Sports games.
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