It has now been four months since MLB 09: The Show was released. When the game was released, it received rave reviews from a number of different sources and still is generating passionate discussions on forums across the Internet.

But now that consumers have been able to reflect on "The Most Realistic Baseball Game Ever," what are some aspects of the game that are already polished and excellent, and what are some aspects that still need to be worked on for next year?

To begin with, MLB 09: The Show is still the best baseball game on the market. The few positives I will mention in this article only scratch the surface of what this game offers to both hardcore and casual fans of the sport, and the nuances that are only discovered after playing scores of games really set it apart from other baseball games available.

Road To The Show (RTTS): Become a Star without Leaving the Comfort of Your Couch

One of the most exciting and fun modes to play in MLB 09: The Show is Road to the Show (RttS). It gives gamers the chance to make their way through the minor leagues to the MLB before attempting to make it into the Hall of Fame. RttS is also a very popular mode because it allows consumers to simply focus on their player, without having to delve into things like free agency and the trade deadline.

Also, because users are instantly fast-forwarded to events that their players are involved in, it reduces the time involved in playing a single game, allowing consumers to play a few games in a short amount of time.

The Most Realistic Baseball Game Ever? It’s Certainly a Strong Contender

Very few baseball games have done as good a job with the gameplay as MLB 09: The Show. The pitcher-batter duel is the best of any simulation game available. I say that because it forces the gamer to think about what pitch and location is being set up by the opposing pitcher. When a game transcends the television screen and begins to make you guess -- and second guess -- yourself, it is an extraordinary representation of the real-life sport.

A Thing of Beauty: Presentation Is Second To None

Another top-notch aspect of MLB 09: The Show is its presentation. From the look of the stadiums -- especially with the new dynamic-lighting system that transitions games from dusk to darkness -- to the look of the fielders and their sleek new fielding animations, there isn’t a prettier game of baseball available. While some people may notice problems with the player’s body proportions, it isn’t anything detrimental to the overall look of the game and the fluidity with which it plays out on the television screen.

The new lighting engine makes the stadiums in MLB 09: The Show incredibly realistic.

While many aspects of MLB 09: The Show are very impressive, there are still a few rough spots that prevent it from being the be-all-end-all in baseball videogaming. With a few changes to the Road to the Show mode, and minor fixes to the gameplay engine, Sony’s premier baseball title will be poised to leave the competition even further behind next year.

The Check-Swing System Appears to Be a Game of Chance

One of the most frustrating aspects of the core gameplay in MLB 09: The Show is the check-swing system. While it appears to be much more accurate than it was in previous versions of the game, it is still not as accurate as it should be. It’s very frustrating to suddenly be down in the count 0-2 because there was a bad check-swing call. I understand that mistakes are made on check-swing calls in real life, but sometimes the bat has barely even left the batter’s shoulder, and yet the umpire says that the batter did not check his swing.

On the other hand, the barrel of the bat sometimes ends up facing the pitcher, and yet the umpire says that the batter did not swing at the pitch. It’s a minor problem when looking at the big picture, but with a game that is already as realistic gameplay-wise as MLB 09: The Show, this fix would add even more authenticity to the experience.

Fix the Artificial Intelligence in Road To the Show

As I’ve previously said, Road to the Show is an excellent mode in MLB 09. However, there are still a few changes and fixes that can be made to make the mode even more enjoyable for consumers. Chief among these changes is improving the artificial intelligence of a created player’s teammates.

There are a number of times where I have been pitching and a fly ball has been hit to the outfield. The outfielder seems to be able to get to the ball in time to catch it, but then the animation suddenly causes him to move very slowly and eventually miss the ball by inches. Sadly, this is scored in the game as a hit because the fielder never touches the ball (and it is the right call), causing my pitcher to fail some of his goals and lose training points. This is a frustrating occurrence that happens more than I would like to see, and if it can be fixed, it would make the mode even better.

Incorporate More Fielding Opportunities Where the Player Is Not Involved

In MLB 09: The Show, SCE Studios San Diego decided to give consumers more control of their created players on the basepaths -- giving them the option to bypass part or all of their teammates’ at bats when on base. This was generally well received because gamers got to avoid a lot of the boring situations they used to experience in the previous games -- they would be on base and nothing would happen for five minutes or longer.

My criticism with the fielding aspect of the mode is that it is too easy to prepare to field the ball in the mode’s current state. I say this because whenever the game fast forwards to the created player, the users know that there is going to be some kind of play involving their player.

Why not give consumers the option to play the entire game, or at least more of it, from their created player’s perspective? This would certainly slow the games down a bit, which wouldn’t make everyone happy, but it would also make users focus on what was happening during each pitch so that they can react realistically if the ball is hit in their direction.

Allowing users to play an entire game from their created player's point of view would become tedious for some, but others may enjoy feeling like they are more involved in their team's games.

Will MLB 10: The Show's Tagline Be "Baseball Perfected?"

SCE Studios San Diego seems to have nearly perfected its baseball series, and with rumors of new player models and more training exercises for Road to the Show in next year’s version, a few of the aforementioned changes could leave other companies struggling to keep up. The developers have not rested on their laurels in the past, so it seems likely that next year’s version will be better than the already-stellar MLB 09: The Show.

The main question really is how much better can the game get?