With the release of NBA 2K11 and NHL 11, all of the major sports titles have now been released for 2010. And rising from the dust of a lot of busted franchise modes is SCE San Diego Studio's MLB 10: The Show.

Here are five reasons why The Show possesses the best franchise/dynasty mode on the market.

1. Simulation Realism

It's really very simple for number one. You don't see random guys consistently performing at a higher level in this game. Sure, there are fluke seasons in The Show, but there are in real life, too. Jose Bautista is a great example of this. If you have a good team with good coaches, you are going to perform well. It's as simple as that.

A player with a high plate discipline and plate vision is going to draw more walks. A pitcher with good stuff and low control is going to strike out a lot of people but walk his fair share of batters as well. Performing based on attributes is something that has apparently fallen out of favor with many titles this year, most notably in Madden 11 and NHL 11.

2. Presentation

The Show's presentation beats out any other franchise mode at this point. Commentators react when you reach a seasonal, career or game milestone with specific statements. If you make a trade, the details of it pop up on your screen in-game.

The developers made a tremendous effort over the past couple seasons to develop the commentary as it relates to your franchise. This was done to help you feel more immersed as a season goes along, and it has paid off big time.

Joe Mauer thinks The Show's Franchise mode is even more awesome in 3-D.

3. Options

Another reason why The Show's Franchise mode stands out is because of all the options that you can choose between while running your team. Do you want to control EVERYTHING, even things like ticket prices, fan amenities and marketing campaigns? Do you want to leave all of that stuff aside and simply take control of baseball operations? Either way, you can do what you want to do and not be annoyed by certain aspects of the game if you don't feel like it's necessary.

4. Authenticity

The game follows the real MLB collective bargaining agreement. This just adds to the realism of the mode itself. You have to make legitimate decisions regarding arbitration, player control, free agency and long-term contracts much earlier than you would in older baseball games.

Do you have Buster Posey on your team? Do you want to pay Posey $6.5 million over the next six years and buy out his arbitration years, or pay him $395,000 for three years and then $15 million after for the rest of his career? Do you want to sign Francisco Cordero to become your team's closer at the risk of giving up your first-round pick because he is a Type A free agent? These are decisions that real MLB general managers have to make every year, and it's no different in this game.

5. Simulation Speed

This is a relatively minor detail, but The Show is one of the fastest at simulating games. Remember the days of MLB 2K6 where if you wanted to simulate an entire season you had to wait an hour for the sim to finish? I would switch my TV to cable and let the sim run because it took so long. This is not the case in The Show.


The Show is one of the biggest reasons why I sold my Xbox 360 and bought a PS3. It has been one of the best decisions I've ever made. So let's hope the developers at SCE San Diego Studio can build on this year's solid title and take the next step in the future.