MLB '09: The Show.........

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Got some juicy info and videos finally rolling out for this game. New blog detailing the enhancements to the '09 version of the game. Some of the nice new features are 40 man roster, waivers, arbitration, and Rule 5 drafting......

PlayStation.Blog » MLB 09 The Show - Franchise Mode Enhancements

Video tours of new Yankees and Mets stadiums.......

Exclusive Virtual Tour of New Yankee Stadium via PlayStation 3 | Video | MTV

MTV Multiplayer » Exclusive: Virtual Tour Of New Mets Stadium, Rendered On PlayStation 3

[RainMaker]

That sounds real nice. I'm looking forward to it. My only gripe with the franchise modes in baseball is that they can't get the full minor leagues. I'm assuming it's a player rights issue, but it would be nice to have the entire minors for every team in the game.

[Radii]

There's a fair chance that this game coming out will be the tipping point that finally pushes me to buy a PS3.

[Logan]

Two of my roommates have PS3s now, and they get absolutely no play outside of Blu Ray watching, so might just pick this up.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

That sounds real nice. I'm looking forward to it. My only gripe with the franchise modes in baseball is that they can't get the full minor leagues. I'm assuming it's a player rights issue, but it would be nice to have the entire minors for every team in the game.

To clarify, do you mean getting the real names of all minor league players or do you mean all of the teams going down to A ball/Rookie league.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Logan

......and they get absolutely no play outside of Blu Ray watching.....

Anyone else read this differently than it was likely intended?

[Icy]

Really looking forward for this game, as every year.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Anyone else read this differently than it was likely intended?

They both have serious girlfriends, so...yeah.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Logan

They both have serious girlfriends, so...yeah.

Good. Glad to hear they're getting plenty of 'play'.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

To clarify, do you mean getting the real names of all minor league players or do you mean all of the teams going down to A ball/Rookie league.

All the minor league players. Or at least more than what is currently offered. They should have the top 15 prospects for each team.

[Ryan S]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

All the minor league players. Or at least more than what is currently offered. They should have the top 15 prospects for each team.

I would be surprised if they could add anyone who has never been on a Major League 40 man roster, as they will not be members of MLBPA.

[Icy]

Originally Posted by Ryan S

I would be surprised if they could add anyone who has never been on a Major League 40 man roster, as they will not be members of MLBPA.

Exactly, they do free weekly roster updates (EA learn from this) and only those players who have ever been in the 40 men roster are included.

The good news are that a couple of guys nicknamed Knight/jim416 over at OS forums, work every year on a full roster set with all minors included and it's usually released early in the season.

[rowech]

I plan on waiting until April as I've read many places that an expected Sony price drop is coming with the PS3. This game is the one game that would make me finally pick one up.

[FBPro]

Gotten it for PSP the last 3 years, still the best game on PSP for my $$. Yes, it is even worth it on a handheld.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Ryan S

I would be surprised if they could add anyone who has never been on a Major League 40 man roster, as they will not be members of MLBPA.

Even some guys who have been on 40-man rosters aren't part of MLBPA. Not a lot of 'em, but they're out there.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by FBPro

Gotten it for PSP the last 3 years, still the best game on PSP for my $$. Yes, it is even worth it on a handheld.

I love the option of moving your career between the PSP and PS3. Great thing to have if you travel regularly and don't want to lug your PS3 along for the ride.

[Icy]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I love the option of moving your career between the PSP and PS3. Great thing to have if you travel regularly and don't want to lug your PS3 along for the ride.

Umm that option was not there past year as they said it was impossible to use as much stats data in the PSP from a PS3 export.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Icy

Umm that option was not there past year as they said it was impossible to use as much stats data in the PSP from a PS3 export.

I thought it was coming this year. Is that not the case?

[CraigSca]

Absolutely psyched-psyched-psyched for this after reading the updated MLB blog where they focus on the AI. The one major gripe I had with the game last year was the need to change the fielder's attributes because of the perfect cut-off angles. Now, the fielders will curve towards and behind the ball on hits to the outfield meaning there will be more extra-base hits!

check out the video here: PlayStation.Blog » MLB 09 The Show – New and Improved A.I.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

More drool-worthy information. First, another blog post detailing the changes in the RTTS mode. TroyF is going to be pretty happy about these developments........

PlayStation.Blog » MLB 09 The Show – Road To The Show Enhancements

Second, a good interview by Operation Sports that gives more game info........

Interview With MLB 09: The Show Online Producer Jason Villa - Operation Sports

[CraigSca]

My favorite part is that I get to dress-up real major leaguers in the socks I want them to wear! I'm going to be up all night mixing and matching!

[SunDevil]

So the new title will start with the word Maximum?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by CraigSca

My favorite part is that I get to dress-up real major leaguers in the socks I want them to wear! I'm going to be up all night mixing and matching!

Yeah, I don't get the the whole 'Are the official red wristbands that Manny Ramirez wears only on his left arm in the game?' crowd that seems to frequent the Operation Sports forums. With that said, the changes in baserunning are moreso what I was referencing.

[Icy]

Love the RTTS changes, specially all the fast forwarding options so if i'm an slow slugger who get in first base, i don't need to painfully watch all my team mates full at bats while slowly moving one base.

The same about fielding that was fun at first but ended being repetitive.

Can't udnerestand how some guys are complaining that they would like to be on defense for every defensive play. Can't see where is the fun watching balls flying over you if you are an infielder for example, and how much real life hours would you need to play a few seasons?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Icy

Can't udnerestand how some guys are complaining that they would like to be on defense for every defensive play. Can't see where is the fun watching balls flying over you if you are an infielder for example, and how much real life hours would you need to play a few seasons?

I don't see any problem with them including that as an option if people really want it. But I agree with you that I've got better things to do with my spare time.

[Godzilla Blitz]

You know, as I read their blog posts, I really get the sense that these guys want to make their game better, whereas when I read the new features about Madden and such, I always get the feeling that they want to impress me so that I buy the game. The difference is subtle, but I like the former approach a lot better.

I just got a PS3 a month ago. I'm really looking forward to this one.

[TroyF]

Thank God. If I create a speedy basestealer, then fine, I'll run the bases. If I create a power hitting corner outfielder, I have zero desire to add 10 minutes a game to me going from station to station.

That one thing alone sells the game for me.

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Godzilla Blitz

You know, as I read their blog posts, I really get the sense that these guys want to make their game better, whereas when I read the new features about Madden and such, I always get the feeling that they want to impress me so that I buy the game. The difference is subtle, but I like the former approach a lot better.

I just got a PS3 a month ago. I'm really looking forward to this one.

They give off a vibe that you'd get from the High Heat group back in the day. Just a group of developers who love the sport and want to make it more realistic. That's a very good thing.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Blog from the developers about the new training modes in the game........

PlayStation.Blog » MLB 09 The Show – Road to the Show Training Modes

PastaPadre has some screenshots from their hands-on session.......

MLB 09 The Show Event Screenshots #1 | pastapadre.com

[Ryan S]

There are rumors about the demo being released tomorrow...

EDIT - IGN: MLB '09: The Show Preview - IGN have a hands on with the demo

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Ryan S

There are rumors about the demo being released tomorrow...

EDIT - IGN: MLB '09: The Show Preview - IGN have a hands on with the demo

Yep, PastaPadre and a few other sites have confirmed it. Demo will be out later today. Can't wait to get home and load it up.

[RainMaker]

This is a mini rant about baseball games in general. Why don't they put old stadiums in the game? Heck, even make them cost money. I'm talking Polo Grounds, Ebbets Field, Sportsmans, Crosley, and the Baker Bowl. Baseball games never seem to embrace the rich history that makes it so special.

BTW, this was my favorite part of the old Earl Weaver games.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

This is a mini rant about baseball games in general. Why don't they put old stadiums in the game? Heck, even make them cost money. I'm talking Polo Grounds, Ebbets Field, Sportsmans, Crosley, and the Baker Bowl. Baseball games never seem to embrace the rich history that makes it so special.

BTW, this was my favorite part of the old Earl Weaver games.

A lot of the PC games do it. Never seemed to catch on with console games.

[Ryan S]

The Demo is online, and it weighs in at just under 1.6gb.

The demo did not appear to be in the new releases section, but you can find it in the demo section of the store.

[Philliesfan980]

Originally Posted by Ryan S

The Demo is online, and it weighs in at just under 1.6gb.

The demo did not appear to be in the new releases section, but you can find it in the demo section of the store.

Grabbing it now, only about 6% done, I'm surprised the servers can handle this kind of action.

[SunDevil]

[SackAttack]

Augh. There are at least three things I want to download from this update.

MLB 09 the Show demo, NHL 3 on 3 demo, Phantasy Star Portable demo.

This is gonna be a late night.

[darkenigma510]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

This is a mini rant about baseball games in general. Why don't they put old stadiums in the game? Heck, even make them cost money. I'm talking Polo Grounds, Ebbets Field, Sportsmans, Crosley, and the Baker Bowl. Baseball games never seem to embrace the rich history that makes it so special.

BTW, this was my favorite part of the old Earl Weaver games.

Get MVP 2005 for PC,,,if you can find it..or afford it

[CraigSca]

Played my first game (or half of one, anyway).

So far, I've seen 3 things I like better than last year:

1) I hit a ball into the gap for a double! I hit a ball down the left-field line for a double, too (Ryan Howard, opposite field). Both these extra-base hits would have never happened last year.

2) I've found, especially with curveballs, if you're not dead-on with the pitching meter, it has a higher tendency to go in the dirt. That's a good thing - as generally the accuracy of pitchers was overdone in previous iterations. I've only had Cole Hamels as my pitcher thus far, so I look forward to seeing the behavior of other pitchers.

3) In the 3 innings I've played, I've had an overthrow from the outfield (that didn't make it into the dugout, so I was thrown out trying to take the extra base) and a dink ground ball that was misplayed by Longoria as he was hauling it to get it to first in time (overthrow, advance to second base). It just feels like real fielding - not everyone is perfect.

I had to turn it off leading 1-0 in the 3rd - my run scored on a double and a single - no homeruns as of yet.

Oh, and my 10 year old asked why there are shadows on the field this year - and yes, as the game progressed, the shadows moved.

If you care about baseball, you owe it to yourself to get a PS3.

[Logan]

How the hell do you switch defenders? Didn't seem to be listed in the on-screen controls.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

Augh. There are at least three things I want to download from this update.

MLB 09 the Show demo, NHL 3 on 3 demo, Phantasy Star Portable demo.

This is gonna be a late night.

There was a new Hot Shots course as well. Ridiculously good update yesterday.

I was only able to play a couple of innings of the game, but I didn't see anything that would change the fact that this is by far the best sports game on a console. One new thing I noticed was the announcers calling out an umpire by name when he blew a call. I'm sure there's plenty more new stuff, but parenting duty called, so I was limited to two innings of play.

[Philliesfan980]

Originally Posted by CraigSca

Played my first game (or half of one, anyway).

So far, I've seen 3 things I like better than last year:

1) I hit a ball into the gap for a double! I hit a ball down the left-field line for a double, too (Ryan Howard, opposite field). Both these extra-base hits would have never happened last year.

2) I've found, especially with curveballs, if you're not dead-on with the pitching meter, it has a higher tendency to go in the dirt. That's a good thing - as generally the accuracy of pitchers was overdone in previous iterations. I've only had Cole Hamels as my pitcher thus far, so I look forward to seeing the behavior of other pitchers.

3) In the 3 innings I've played, I've had an overthrow from the outfield (that didn't make it into the dugout, so I was thrown out trying to take the extra base) and a dink ground ball that was misplayed by Longoria as he was hauling it to get it to first in time (overthrow, advance to second base). It just feels like real fielding - not everyone is perfect.

I had to turn it off leading 1-0 in the 3rd - my run scored on a double and a single - no homeruns as of yet.

Oh, and my 10 year old asked why there are shadows on the field this year - and yes, as the game progressed, the shadows moved.

If you care about baseball, you owe it to yourself to get a PS3.

I would like to echo Craig's thoughts. I bought last years game, but because of a lack of time, I didn't get around to playing it much. This demo is absolutely amazing. Of course, time will tell if there are any bugs in other aspects of the game (FA, Progression, Fatigue, etc) but so far, this is the best console sports game I've ever played.

I might actually finish a 162 season for the first time since High Heat.

[Icy]

Played one game as Phillies in All star and won it 0-2 (2-5 hits).

- In the second inning, got an empty bases HR with Victorino when i waited patiently to get 3-1 ahead in the count and hit hard a low ball.

- In the third inning got another empty bases HR with Howard.

- I got hit by pitch once, was a nice animation.

I love the graphics and animations, need to play more games to see if i just were lucky with those 2 HR or if i'll need to move to HOF level.

[Logan]

What are the level of bugs that usually show up in demos? Saw two in two games yesterday. One occurred when my buddy hit one into the gap with a runner on 1st, that guy stopped at second, the batter lapped him and went to 3rd and kept on running all the way home. I threw it to second base thinking that would get the out and nothing happened, run scored.

Later, I was on 3rd and hit a fly into the outfield. Tagged up and the throw came in and I was safe. Problem was I 100% left early and my buddy noticed it. He threw to 3rd and nothing. Then he threw it to 2nd and the ump made the out sign, and the inning was over.

Should these be fixed once the game is out? And seriously...is there a way to switch fielders?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Logan

What are the level of bugs that usually show up in demos? Saw two in two games yesterday. One occurred when my buddy hit one into the gap with a runner on 1st, that guy stopped at second, the batter lapped him and went to 3rd and kept on running all the way home. I threw it to second base thinking that would get the out and nothing happened, run scored.

Later, I was on 3rd and hit a fly into the outfield. Tagged up and the throw came in and I was safe. Problem was I 100% left early and my buddy noticed it. He threw to 3rd and nothing. Then he threw it to 2nd and the ump made the out sign, and the inning was over.

Should these be fixed once the game is out? And seriously...is there a way to switch fielders?

The developers have already noted that this beta is several weeks older than the current development build. It's a beta at best. Last year's demo was the same way. I wouldn't read too much into those bugs at this point.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

The developers have already noted that this beta is several weeks older than the current development build. It's a beta at best. Last year's demo was the same way. I wouldn't read too much into those bugs at this point.

Would you show this generosity if it was an EA Sports demo? Personally, I would find it concerning that bugs are in any build that was released for mass public consumption.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Would you show this generosity if it was an EA Sports demo? Personally, I would find it concerning that bugs are in any build that was released for mass public consumption.

No, I wouldn't extend this generosity for an EA game because they have a history of putting out lousy games in regards to incomplete features or bugs.

I certainly agree that they need to fix it, but similar concerns were raised last year and they were resolved in the final build. The quality of this game has been award-quality over the first two iterations. Until they prove otherwise, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, especially since they've admitted already that it is an early build.

[Logan]

Really not picking on you MBBF, but the RTTS was completely broken in the 2007 version. I found my guy demoted despite being an All-Star closer at 20 years old. Other people had similar problems with hitters (I remember Troy and myself going back and forth with our problems). When the main feature of your game doesn't work, it shouldn't win an award.

That being said, I realize that issue doesn't have anything to do with the on-field gameplay but it shouldn't be given a free pass (honestly don't know if it was fixed in 08, but I thought I remember seeing some similar issues, just not as bad).

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Logan

Really not picking on you MBBF, but the RTTS was completely broken in the 2007 version. I found my guy demoted despite being an All-Star closer at 20 years old. Other people had similar problems with hitters (I remember Troy and myself going back and forth with our problems). When the main feature of your game doesn't work, it shouldn't win an award.

That being said, I realize that issue doesn't have anything to do with the on-field gameplay but it shouldn't be given a free pass (honestly don't know if it was fixed in 08, but I thought I remember seeing some similar issues, just not as bad).

You're absolutely right. As you mention, it doesn't have anything to do with gameplay, but the promotion ladder was based on ratings rather than performance. It wasn't a realistic measure of promotion. That was tweaked in the last version and it seemed to help quite a bit, but there's always room for improvement. No one is giving anything a free pass. It should just be recognized that it's a beta for all intensive purposes.

I do think your point makes a great argument regarding demos. I've always thought that releasing a demo too far in advance is a really lousy idea. It leads to things like what you've mentioned that won't likely be in the final build and provide a negative perception of the game. Release date is always on a Tuesday. A demo for the game should never be put out there earlier than the Thursday (PSN update date) previous to the release date or Wednesday if we're talking about the 360. That's still plenty of time for people to play the demo for a couple of hours and get a feel for the game before they buy it.

[Logan]

I do agree. I was playing against my roommate last night and seeing the bugs he was saying that there was no way he was gonna buy it. I figured that this was at least a few weeks behind current development and told him I'm sure it wouldn't be in the game (especially something like a batter being able to overrun a baserunner -- I've never seen that in a game even on purpose so it seemed like a glitch). But yeah I could see it pushing people away...who knows.