MLB 11 The Show a quick tidbit

[dbdynsty25]

It's not really a complaint of the game but this is just how baseball have always been. The only one I ever felt was small enough and hard to hit was High Heat.

The exaggerated trajectory of the pitches had a lot to do with that...but you're right, it was quite a bit smaller overall.

[GTHobbes]

What cameras do you guys find helpful. I just can't get one that let's me see the ball and the strike zone better. I wish they'd make the strike zone smaller but that's just me. Because the difference between a great pitch is inches but it feels like feet. It would also make pitching harder to it the zone. Right now it's too easy to throw a strike and your misses are a strike.

It's not really a complaint of the game but this is just how baseball have always been. The only one I ever felt was small enough and hard to hit was High Heat.

JRod, I was messing around with one of the new zoomed in camera angles from behind the catcher and thought it helped me to lay off more pitches in the little bit of time that I played. Gonna try some more angles tonight and see how they feel. (Last year, surprisingly, I got quite good at hitting from the behind the pitcher camera, but I'm not sure I'll be able to do that again this year with the rock and fire hitting.)

I also agree about the strike zone -- wish they'd make it belt-to-the-knees, like it's called in real life, rather than letters to the knees as it's written in the rule book. Maybe it's an option they could add in future years.

[10spro]

For hitting I am using catcher 5 angle and I went back to zone. Pitching wise I like the outfield camera but I am still tinkering around.

[Diablo25]

For hitting I am using catcher 5 angle and I went back to zone. Pitching wise I like the outfield camera but I am still tinkering around.

10spro, thanks a ton dude. Catcher cam 5 is awesome. I'm seeing the pitches so much better. Superb camera.

[sportdan30]

Yep, catcher 5 is indeed nice. I find that I'm not overly aggressive for some reason. Probably because I'm seeing the ball better.

By the way, I'm enjoying tracking fly balls in the outfield a whole lot better than last year. There was a blog from the devs about how they said there would be more area to cover than ever before. It adds a little more challenge which is nice.

[Gurantsu]

Yeah, Catcher 5 makes hitting much better for me.

[JRod]

Catcher 5 is good.


I still wish The Show could get the physics better. What are the chances you are going to have a hard pull on a pitch on the outside part of the plate. That just doesn't happen that much, yet it does in The Show. Just an annoying thing in baseball since I try to pitch strategically.

I like how I don't screw up fielding as much because of the much stronger fielding assist. It gives me time to figure out who's selected rather than last year where I would think I'm 3B but I'm really the SS.

I've yet to hit a homerun as the Giants.

[GTHobbes]

[GTHobbes]

[GTHobbes]

[GTHobbes]

Anybody else try messing with the camera editor yet? Not perfect, but overall just a great, great feature.

[Rodster]

Is analog hitting easier to pull off or become more consistent with the Move controller? These types of analog interfaces hitting/pitching/throwing would be really cool if they could make them work with motion controllers like Kinect or Move.

Even after watching the batting video I could still see myself having problems with it. I remember similar problems with 2K7 and I tried to pull off the perfect motion swing and all I got was a whiff and a strike against me. That made me go back to button hitting.

[Diablo25]

After playing several games with the demo I am on board with the analog pitching....awesome. Analog throwing is nice also but it wouldn't kill me if it was not in the game. Analog hitting is another story. I am not a huge fan. I don't hate it but I feel much better with the old scheme...with the addition of the contact swing (O button). Check swings are huge to me and it is damn near impossible with the analog swing. After switching to Catcher 5 hitting cam (thanks 10spro) I am where I need to be with hitting. I'm seeing the pitches better than I ever have in a Show game. Definitely still excited to get the full version on the 8th.

[10spro]

After playing several games with the demo I am on board with the analog pitching....awesome. Analog throwing is nice also but it wouldn't kill me if it was not in the game. Analog hitting is another story. I am not a huge fan. I don't hate it but I feel much better with the old scheme...with the addition of the contact swing (O button). Check swings are huge to me and it is damn near impossible with the analog swing. After switching to Catcher 5 hitting cam (thanks 10spro) I am where I need to be with hitting. I'm seeing the pitches better than I ever have in a Show game. Definitely still excited to get the full version on the 8th.

I find myself on the same boat. Just love pitching with the analog sticks but went back to classic zone hitting with the buttons. Tried infinite camera angles when hitting and Catcher 5 just plainly let's me see the trajectory of the ball a bit better than the other angles.

For pitching I am still deciding between the outfield camera angle and catcher which let's you see nailing the angles better. One thing from the videos that GT posted, I didn't know about the throw fake and I like it. I wa going to pass on this years' version but the more I play the demo, the more inclined I am to buy it.

[ScoopBrady]

I downloaded the demo and still have not even checked it out. I guess that should tell me where I am with baseball games now. I will be passing this year.

[matthewk]

There's one thing I don't like about the analog hitting. It seems like the left stick only influences the swing prior to the forward motion of the right stick. A lot of times I used L3 to check the previous swing, my "zone" was in the middle, and not where I ended up with the left stick.

If this is really the way analog hitting works, I'm disappointed. I like the fielding and pitching so far. The pitching can be simplified by leaving the cursor in the middle and adjusting your release to where you want to place the ball.

The only other thing that's bugging me is the sound. I am sick of hearing Matt V's voice, so I turned off all the announcers. There's not any real life to the sounds other than the crowd and PA announcer. I'd like to hear some individual crowd noises like hecklers, organ music, and the ump calling balls & strikes. Maybe that's just missing due to the demo. Were these things in last year?

[Rodster]

I for one am not sick of Matt's voice. In the past it came off as a radio broadcast of a real baseball game. They did a nice job with it until they started to add layers and layers of different voices and adding to the booth.

I think Campbell and everyone else needs to be removed and just have Matt calling the game. I hate that these games try to mimic a 3 man booth. To 2K's credit THEY pulled it off but then again they are known for stellar presentation in their Hoops games so no surprise.

I think the Sony devs should concentrate on the core game and RTTS and more RTTS development please. That mode is awesome. Unfortunately game design is much like the NFL copycat league where if someone does this you need to copy it and for the most part it comes off forced, out of place and doesn't work well.

The Show's gameplay wipes the floor with 2K baseball. The only things 2K has going for it are presentation, MLB Today and fun factor. But as a true baseball game it doesn't come close to The Show.

[Aristo]

The Show's gameplay wipes the floor with 2K baseball. The only things 2K has going for it are presentation, MLB Today and fun factor. But as a true baseball game it doesn't come close to The Show.

I would at least say it hasn't yet. We know 2K has retained it's superior presentation and beefed up MLB Today. I have a hard time believing it will not retain its fun factor (and really don't know why this doesn't rump almost everything else, anyway). With a long list of improvements designed to make the gameplay even more realistic, it is conceivable that it could surpass The Show for "trueness."

Where The Show will destroy 2K, as it has for years now, is in graphics and animations. Seriously, it is leaps and bounds beyond any sports game in this area. It really is an addictive thing to stare at. But from reading how many folks at OS play the game, that's pretty much what they do.

But the presentation is still really, really bad. It's not disjointed and broken like Madden is, but it just feels bland and boring. And it is not just the commentary. Eve the overlays and crowd noise contribute to a sterile feel of a game. There is a reason why so many folks will admit that while The Show is a near perfect game, it boring to play.

Apparently presentation is harder to do than I would have thought. 2K has been knocking it out of the park for years now in many of their games. But NHL 11 is the only other game in which I feel like the presentation is a plus.

[backbreaker]

There's one thing I don't like about the analog hitting. It seems like the left stick only influences the swing prior to the forward motion of the right stick. A lot of times I used L3 to check the previous swing, my "zone" was in the middle, and not where I ended up with the left stick.

If this is really the way analog hitting works, I'm disappointed.

Left stick isn't used in analog hitting. Too influence a hit, you must hold down R2 and push the Right stick up, down, left, or right prior to the pitch.

analog works as advertised, Push up for down the middle of the plate, push left or right if the ball is on those sides whether high or low. The part that is exciting too me is the stride variance. All players have different strides so the end-user has to adjust according to the where the ball is in flight. Its quite a joy to learn the strides of players and time the hitting just right.

[GTHobbes]

The Show's gameplay wipes the floor with 2K baseball.

Something I noticed in one of the 2k videos was that baserunners still stop halfway to first when getting thrown out on a grounder, rather than running through the bag like guys do in real life. Hope that's not in the final. Those are the kinds of small gameplay details that stand out and indicate (to me anyways) that a dev team aren't HUGE fans of the sport they're making.

[Rodster]

The Show's gameplay wipes the floor with 2K baseball.

Something I noticed in one of the 2k videos was that baserunners still stop halfway to first when getting thrown out on a grounder, rather than running through the bag like guys do in real life. Hope that's not in the final. Those are the kinds of small gameplay details that stand out and indicate (to me anyways) that a dev team aren't HUGE fans of the sport they're making.

I get where Aristo is coming from if you look at both games at face value. That would be true if it was just that, animations and graphics because those are the most glaring. But it's also the little things that The Show does that isn't even in MLB 2K. I like the warm up of the pitcher prior to entering a game or watching pitchers warming up in the bullpen. The crowd looks amazing.

I also like the emotions of the umps as well as catchers and umps getting hit with foul tips. Umps being announced in the game. Yeah it sounds like trivial stuff but when you add it all up then compare it to 2K it's clear MLB The Show does more to add to the experience of a baseball game than 2K. RTTS mode is incredible in it's crude underdeveloped form. 2K now has a mode like that but it's no where near the scope of RTTS.

True, I did have more fun with 2K last year especially with MLB Today but I gotta tip my hat to The Show as the better game overall.

[GTHobbes]

I'm with ya, Rod. The little things, like catchers throwing off their masks, outfielders ducking to let another throw over 'em, etc., keep getting better each year in The Show and, unless 2k has made huge strides, it's not even really close in that department.

[Rodster]

I'm with ya, Rod. The little things, like catchers throwing off their masks, outfielders ducking to let another throw over 'em, etc., keep getting better each year in The Show and, unless 2k has made huge strides, it's not even really close in that department.

I'm sure we could have two pages of the little things wrt The Show. What 2K does real well and excels at is presentation and it revolves around MLB Today mode also live roster updates 2K does real well. As of now The Show has no answer for that.

The one thing I do take points away from The Show is the interface. It's still a clusterf##k but nowhere as bad as the right stick interface 2K Sports has used the last 5 years. The Sony devs need to streamline their interface. We are onto year #4 and it still takes some doing trying to figure out how to do some things.

[Aristo]

I like the warm up of the pitcher prior to entering a game or watching pitchers warming up in the bullpen.

2K has this, but I hadn't thought of it as a cool feature.

It seems like The Shows biggest strength is in excelling in the kinds of things I find are the most annoying requests by certain part of the sports gamer demographic. I'll just call it the hand towel crowd from Madden. And the game really does crank out the little things, while producing a game that a ton of folks find boring to play.

But man, if you have a friend over and what to show off how awesome your TV and the PS3 is, The Show is amazing.

[toonarmy]

I went ahead and tried the demo of the Show. Despite all the cool stuff I find it to be very boring to play. I will try out the demo of 2K when it comes out, but doubt it will win me over either.