videogames
 
 
 
 
Check out New cheap jersey from china on DHgate.com
 

Posts Tagged ‘MLB’

Video Game Review: MLB The Show 18

March 29, 2018 | by HC Green | Comments Comments Off on Video Game Review: MLB The Show 18
MLB The Show 18
Sure, the Yanks have Judge and Stanton, but the Jays have Stroman…

March is always a great month for sports fans. Free agency starts in the NFL, the NHL and NBA enter the playoff race, the NCAA tournament begins, and, of course, baseball returns. Along with all the usual accoutrements (peanuts, hot dogs, beer) comes another season of Sony’s MLB The Show, a franchise that has earned its place on the Mount Rushmore of sports games.

Armed with a brand new 65-inch 4K television and PlayStation Pro, we took the series’ newest entry, MLB The Show 18, and put it through its paces. Here’s what we found.

CONTROLS (4.75/5)

As usual with this series, The Show 18 has its players covered with multiple options for handling pitching, hitting and more. On the mound, our love affair with metered pitching dates back to the long-defunct MVP series, but true analog feels tight as well and is a bit more forgiving. At the plate, zone hitting seems to deliver the best experience with directional checking in at a close second.

While the gameplay experience has changed very little structurally, there have been some obvious under-the-hood improvements over previous years, starting with the hitting. It feels like the developer has found the right balance between difficulty and fairness, and the way the ball cracks off the bat with improved physics creates natural outcomes — in other words, things like timing and squaring up on a pitch matter.

Defense has also received some attention with loads of new animations and more weight given to the ratings, as top defenders will get to balls that average ones won’t. Tagging has been cleaned up as well, though perhaps it has become a little too efficient and needs to scale back a touch.

Errors also happen too frequently for our taste, particularly on what should be routine plays, though that could get corrected with sliders or even a patch.

GRAPHICS/SOUND (4.5/5)

As already noted, we upgraded our setup, so we were expecting the best visuals we’ve seen from the series. And while we definitely got them, it was because of more than just the hardware change. Uniform textures pop off the screen and players look more lifelike than ever.

There are more camera angles and presentation elements as well, including varying crowd sizes and increased weather effects, making for an experience that does a great job aping the real thing.

On the audio side the commentary team has been shuffled once again with Mark DeRosa stepping in to replace Harold Reynolds alongside holdovers Matt Vasgersian and Dan Plesac. In an effort to improve the flow and realism, that trio recorded a lot of lines together with largely positive results, though it’s still a little uneven and can’t match what’s done annually in NBA 2k.

In-game effects are good, whereas the recap that plays during franchise needs to be patched — it’s constantly congratulating players on breaking all-time career records for everything from home runs to strikeouts since it doesn’t recognize any non-Show history at this stage.

GAMEPLAY (4.5/5)

If there’s an area in which MLB The Show 18 lags it’s in signature improvements, but let’s set that aside for the moment and lead with this: moment to moment, pitch to pitch, this is the best and most realistic representation of the game of baseball we’ve ever experienced. Is it leaps and bounds beyond its predecessors? No, but true aficionados will appreciate improvements across the spectrum.

Circling back to the modes, Road to the Show, Franchise and Diamond Dynasty remain the game’s three main options. Gone are Season Mode and online Franchise, and although they weren’t modes we used over the years any time a title pares down its options it’s a downer.

Road to the Show has undergone some modest but noteworthy changes, starting with the creation of your player as you’re now tasked with selecting a pre-canned archetype to start your career. Your batter might be a power hitter, best suited for corner outfield and first base, or a defensive stud with speed for shortstop or centre. Pitchers can be flamethrowers, control artists and so on.

Your selection affects where your ability in various areas will be capped, all but ensuring you’ll never be able to create a truly dominant five-tool player or overpowering starter with pinpoint accuracy. The decision to have your attributes ebb and flow based on your on-field performance is a good one, and the off-day training options can grant you immediate improvement or raise your cap for later on.

Meanwhile, Franchise mode has seen minimal changes. The layout has been cleaned up a bit for improved ease of use, and breaking up the calendar into phases (spring training, the draft, free agency, etc.) helps keep your focus where it needs to be, but there isn’t a lot of meat in the bone in the areas in which we’d like to see it, such as scouting, contract negotiations and player development.

Diamond Dynasty, The Show‘s virtual card collector, has received the most attention, though said changes can be classified more as refinements alongside a core experience that remains fundamentally unchanged. You’ll still play through the tiered programs to unlock rewards such as better (or even legendary) players and various collectible souvenirs like hats, jerseys and, of course, bobbleheads.

There’s an absolute ton of stuff you can unlock in Diamond Dynasty, and if you’re willing to invest enough time you can assemble a great team. It’s never been our favourite, however, and it feels like it has consistently received more attention in recent years than its brethren RttS and Franchise. Hopefully next year it’ll be a different mode’s turn for some overdue TLC.

OVERALL (4.5/5)

While a lack of new content for two of its primary modes is a mild disappointment, MLB The Show 18 ultimately delivers in all of the most important areas to give gamers the best playing baseball game to date.

***A PS4 code was provided by the publisher for purposes of review.***

Share
Feed Burner eMail Get RotoRob by Email: Enter your email below to receive daily updates direct to your inbox. Only a pink taco wouldn’t subscribe.
PostShadow

MLB Offseason: Key Moves Ahead of the 2018 Fantasy Season

December 27, 2017 | by Simon Banks | Comments (2)
Well, Fantasy baseball fans, we are now well and truly in the middle of crazy season. Trade rumours are flying around left, right and centre and Fantasy owners will be keeping a close eye on the future of various big name stars. With a few blockbuster trades expected in the coming months, the Major League Baseball landscape may be about to change dramatically.
Share
more
Feed Burner eMail Get RotoRob by Email: Enter your email below to receive daily updates direct to your inbox. Only a pink taco wouldn’t subscribe.
PostShadow

MLB Fantasy: Biggest Booms and Busts of 2017

November 13, 2017 | by Simon Banks | Comments Comments Off on MLB Fantasy: Biggest Booms and Busts of 2017
The 2017 Major League Baseball season is officially over and the Houston Astros are World Series champions. For most of the year, it looked like the Los Angeles Dodgers were going to win baseball’s ultimate accolade but the Astros swept in with a late push and managed to take the series in Game Seven.
Share
more
Feed Burner eMail Get RotoRob by Email: Enter your email below to receive daily updates direct to your inbox. Only a pink taco wouldn’t subscribe.
PostShadow

The 2017 MLB Wire Troll All-Star Team

October 7, 2017 | by RotoRob | Comments Comments Off on The 2017 MLB Wire Troll All-Star Team
Using the wire can provide value in many ways. Sometimes, it offers a temporary fix to an injury issue or it’s simply a case of jumping on a player delivering short-term value. But when you pick up a player and he sticks on your team for all or most of the season and contributes throughout, that is the true definition of waiver wire gold.
Share
more
Feed Burner eMail Get RotoRob by Email: Enter your email below to receive daily updates direct to your inbox. Only a pink taco wouldn’t subscribe.
PostShadow

Longest Current Serving MLB Managers

December 20, 2016 | by RotoRob | Comments (2)
The former Padre player and manager has turned the Giants into perennial contenders, and nothing should change next year as they have been given 14-1 odds of winning the World Series in 2017 — chances topped by only five teams. The charitably-minded Bochy should have another great team on his hands — especially if the late-inning bullpen work improves as expected.
Share
more
Feed Burner eMail Get RotoRob by Email: Enter your email below to receive daily updates direct to your inbox. Only a pink taco wouldn’t subscribe.
PostShadow