Fact or Fiction: Baseball Games Cometh Edition

The one thing I think MVP did so well, and better than any game to date, is the way it felt to hit a baseball. It's tough to explain, but man, the second I hit a homerun in that game I swear I could just feel it. The way it sounded, the way it looked, I think the controller rumbled a little too... It was so awesome. It was the same with a rocket shot for a double, or a soft grounder, anything, I could just tell I barely connected, or made solid contact. I don't know if that makes any sense, but I definitely miss the way that felt... Jackin' the ball out of Wrigley with Sosa was just fantastic.

[nemesis04]

Quote: Originally Posted by dickdalewood

The one thing I think MVP did so well, and better than any game to date, is the way it felt to hit a baseball. It's tough to explain, but man, the second I hit a homerun in that game I swear I could just feel it. The way it sounded, the way it looked, I think the controller rumbled a little too... It was so awesome. It was the same with a rocket shot for a double, or a soft grounder, anything, I could just tell I barely connected, or made solid contact. I don't know if that makes any sense, but I definitely miss the way that felt... Jackin' the ball out of Wrigley with Sosa was just fantastic.

There was a visual connection to what you were actually doing when you swung. The system had good feedback in that regard. I did not like the whole up for a fly ball, down for a grounder nonsense but the other stuff was good.

The other hitting systems which currently have improved seem to still have a little bit of a disconnect to the overall hitting process. You are doing it but the visual feedback you get is not necessarily representative of what you actually did with the controller.

[sgthalka]

Quote: Originally Posted by The Bimmer

The devs at SECA know baseball and hopefully we all will learn how to play and watch baseball better in the future, because lets face it the SECA teams goal is total SIMULATION.

The sad thing is, how many people try The Show and give up because "the hitting is too hard"? Or complain about the lack of Home Run Derby and trade it in?

The hitting isn't "too hard," it's just realistic to the actual game of baseball. But we have an entire generation of gamers who expect baseball games to be all about home runs and strikeouts.

I'm a pretty huge baseball nut, and even I started out as a HR/K type of player. I've learned more about the actual game -- small ball, working the count, manufacturing runs, working hitters, using your bullpen effectively -- from The Show than any series I've ever played in the past.

[ehh]

Quote: Originally Posted by hukasmokincaterpillar

I dunno, I think some of you guys are selling Show's ball physics and hit variety rather short. Maybe in '07 and years past, but the last few iterations have caught up IMO (if not surpassed). Its early to say but going by the '09 demo it seems they've made another considerable leap in this category.

I've learned that if you don't use the L-Stick in The Show you really miss out on the hit variety and ball physics. The swing analyzer in '09 is going to help people understand this alot better. I was a time-only guy for a long time and I pretty much hit weak grounders, line drives that were either base hits or caught by the OF's and the Action Cam homers (that were mostly line drive HR). Sure, they'd go to all fields and down the line, etc but I'd never see pop-ups, bloopers or towering HR's.

Once I started using the L-stick all that changed.

Quote: Originally Posted by dickdalewood

The one thing I think MVP did so well, and better than any game to date, is the way it felt to hit a baseball. It's tough to explain, but man, the second I hit a homerun in that game I swear I could just feel it. The way it sounded, the way it looked, I think the controller rumbled a little too... It was so awesome. It was the same with a rocket shot for a double, or a soft grounder, anything, I could just tell I barely connected, or made solid contact. I don't know if that makes any sense, but I definitely miss the way that felt... Jackin' the ball out of Wrigley with Sosa was just fantastic.

You hit the nail on the head, though I think 2K4's cursor system did this just as well. There is no mistaking that MVP's hitting system was arcade, but the feel of it was phenominal. I've mentioned this the last few years, both The Show and 2K are lacking in this department. Even playing the '09 demo I don't get that great feel, it's like, "Well, I made contact - now let's see where the ball goes." I mean, it's not bad by any means, it's just not great.

[slickdtc]

I still play MVP 05 to this day and it's tiding me over until I MLB 09 The Show releases. I agree it's not the pure simulation that MLB 09/08 is. But that's what happens in 4 years. When MVP came out, it was realistic.

[Bumble14]

Quote: Originally Posted by sgthalka

The sad thing is, how many people try The Show and give up because "the hitting is too hard"? Or complain about the lack of Home Run Derby and trade it in? The hitting isn't "too hard," it's just realistic to the actual game of baseball. But we have an entire generation of gamers who expect baseball games to be all about home runs and strikeouts. I'm a pretty huge baseball nut, and even I started out as a HR/K type of player. I've learned more about the actual game -- small ball, working the count, manufacturing runs, working hitters, using your bullpen effectively -- from The Show than any series I've ever played in the past.

Hey guys- Christian McLeod here from the article (just thought I'd throw that out there for the guy who asked for forum names).

Anyhow, I had to weigh in on this discussion after reading the quoted post. As someone who is a diehard baseball gamer since RBI on NES, played high level baseball, and is an absolute slappy when it comes to the game, I have to disagree that the hitting system in The Show is realistic.

To me, I feel a great disconnect with my bat on ball contact in The Show. The physics are pretty good, but there is something missing. Someone nailed it when they mentioned that there was some type of connection you got when hitting in MVP. It's so hard to explain for someone who didn't play the game religiously like many of us did, but there was no greater hitting system in any baseball game to date.

In MVP, you really felt like the contact being made on the ball was due to your adjustments in the box/arm extension/avoiding getting jammed, etc. There was also something to be said about the color changing ball pitch dynamic that no one ever seems to remember, that made reading a pitch, and going with it in that game one of the greatest feelings ever.

For those of you who played baseball in real life, you know you are taught to be relaxed in the box, adjust to the pitch thrown to you, and to adjust your mecahnics to take the ball where it is thrown. Too often in The Show and the newer 2K games do I feel like I make a simple button press that based on timing, results in contact in the zone. I do not get that feeling of complete control using the left stick as I got in MVP.

Sure, MVP 05 had it's quirks that people want to hit on to justify that it is not the greatest baseball game ever, but they always fail to mention the same level of quirks in games like The Show. I'm not saying The Show is a bad game by any means, it is just that it still has not filled the void left by MVP 05 in terms of a complete baseball experience.

[Bumble14]

Quote: Originally Posted by GTheorenHobbes

I think MVP was vastly overrated. It didn't even have signature styles, for crying out loud. Any baseball game without signature styles keeps my attention for 20 minutes or so, tops.

Really? So you clearly aren't a hardcore baseball gamer that grew up with RBI, Bases Loaded, etc.

If the game plays great who cares about sig styles. Some of the greatest games in baseball gaming history did not include sig styles.

[rudyjuly2]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bumble14

To me, I feel a great disconnect with my bat on ball contact in The Show. The physics are pretty good, but there is something missing. Someone nailed it when they mentioned that there was some type of connection you got when hitting in MVP. It's so hard to explain for someone who didn't play the game religiously like many of us did, but there was no greater hitting system in any baseball game to date. In MVP, you really felt like the contact being made on the ball was due to your adjustments in the box/arm extension/avoiding getting jammed, etc. There was also something to be said about the color changing ball pitch dynamic that no one ever seems to remember, that made reading a pitch, and going with it in that game one of the greatest feelings ever.

It's been so long since I've played MVP that I can't even remember the feel of the ball on the bat. I will concede that the feel of hitting the ball in the Show isn't perfect. It does feel a bit strange in the demo since the bat speed is so different from '08.

I also really liked the hitter's eye in MVP. It did help read pitches a lot easier and I think it would be a really cool option to add next year for the Show.

But MVP's restrictive hitting system where you had to go with every pitch on the outer half of the plate wasn't realistic. You CAN pull outside pitches in baseball WITH power. Plus you couldn't hit any pitch outside the strike zone. Those were the things that the Show did very well.

I clearly remember walking into Future Shop and I played a kiosk version of the Show '06 on the PS2. After playing for two minutes I just fell in love with the game. It just felt like baseball. Clearly you had that feeling with MVP but the overly restrictive hitting system and too easy pitching system didn't feel right to me.