Now that i've had ample time to play the game.... And by ample time I mean hours and hours on end sitting on the couch glued to the controller.... I can better serve a review of this game. I can pretty much sum it up in one statement. "MLB 08 The Show is without a doubt the best baseball game ever created". And I mean this even grading on a scale in which you take the available technology of any given year and licensing features. There have been some great baseball games in the past. RBI Baseball. MVP Baseball 02/03. This one just blows all of them out of the water.
The one thing that no game can ever come close to replicating is the gameplay. I cannot explain the difference coming from the MLB 07 in the 2K series to The Show. Worlds apart for next gen gaming. It's very smooth with absolutely no frame freezes. The camera angles do great at transitioning and makes it seem like you're watching a real baseball game. It also does a great job at portraying an actual baseball field and it's sheer size. The player movement is crisp and has no hints of robotic movement at all. Even on the road to the show the gameplay is superb with my only complaint being minor. The movement to the bases do seem a bit "scripted" if you know what I mean. Not much deviation or freedom to move around as i'd like although that may be related to the difficulty setting I have on (Veteran). On a scale of 1-10, gameplay easily tops off at 9.
The presentation definitely takes the cake in this game. The cut scenes, animations and commentary are second to none. If you choose to have all the presentations turned on in the settings section, you'll be treated to a much richer game experience albeit a slightly longer game. The animations after a homerun are fantastic and make it seem like you're watching Sportscenter. Replays of good plays are also realistic. On a scale of 1-10, presentation would soar above a 20 if I allowed it but i'll just leave it at 10 to be realistic.
Graphics are nice and crisp and player faces occassionally look like their human counterparts. The music is okay, but could use more variety in selection. I like the inclusion of game audio being replayed as it adds a nice touch of nostalgia, although they could have included plays from previous seasons also. Currently it's limited to last season's highlights. The learning curve is a bit steep and would be the only thing i'd change on the controls of the game. It's a bit difficult to get all the button combinations memorized and some aren't finger friendly if you ask me. My biggest gripe on this is when you advance runners. Moving the joystick to where the runner is supposed to be and then pressing a corresponding button to which base you want him to go to is an imperfect science to put it mildly. There is even a different combination for advancing a runner 2, or even 3 bases. Something I don't even want to try and learn. Sometimes they runners are non responsive because they have yet to reach an area where they can be considered the guy on that base for you to advance. There have been many times i've been caught in a rundown due to this confusing setup. The pitching meter could also be fine tuned a bit. There is an option to go to a "classic" setup, but it's neither fun nor challenging. The default is definitely a bit harder but isn't necessarily enjoyable. It's much too difficult to perfect. The one thing i'd take from the MLB 2K series is their pitching meter with the realism of The Show. Although it's frustrating to call for a pitch low and outside only to find it right down the middle that's crushed, it does add a bit of realism to it considering it factors in the pitching meter and where you hit it, and the pitcher's actual attributes. I would like to see a happy medium when it comes to that though. I do believe a lot of pitchers will miss their mark, but when you hit the meter dead on, as I have on more than a few occassions, it shouldn't be a 50/50 chance you hit where you aimed. It should be dead on. That's the reward you get for being good. That's a good indicator of using human skill to improve a less than quality player. Perhaps incorporate that to the game's AI where the pitcher improves with good human gameplay.
Despite my misgivings on the controls, this game is still superb. By far the best baseball game i've ever played. If I had the time, I might even play this game more than Madden, which would be quite a feat. It's very addictive, extremely fun and highly entertaining. Pretty Girl thought I was crazy when I started jumping up and down after winning my first ever game on a walk off homerun in the bottom of the ninth. Overall, this game gets a 9.5 out of 10 and is a must buy for any baseball fan. Provided you have a PS3. Hell, if you don't own a PS3 and like baseball, go out and buy the console. I did, and don't regret it one bit.
Recent Comments