News Post

MLB '09: The Show Preview with Screenshots (ESPN Videogames)

12:24 PM - December 19, 2008 by iamemmittsmith

ESPN Videogames have posted their exclusive first look at MLB '09: The Show, including some new screenshots.

Quote:


	"Think A-Rod chokes in the clutch? Ever shout "Dodgers suck!" or yell "Drewwwwwww" when J.D. walks up to the plate? MLB 09 is about to bring out the crazed fan in all of us as not only can you record your voice screaming anything from "Where's Madonna?" to "we want a pitcher not a belly itcher" and put it in the game thanks to peripherals like the Rock Band mic and wireless headset, the fan yells will sound like your voice actually coming from the stands. You can even assign the recordings to be part of a chant and your voice will be put through a new process so that it sounds more like a crowd chanting "over-rated" and not just a single person yelling."

Game: MLB '09: The ShowReader Score: 9/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS2 / PS3 / PSPVotes for game: 90 - View All

MLB '09: The Show Videos

Member Comments

# 161 pfunk880 @ 12/20/08 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blzer


	Like many things, sometimes you don't know what is inferior (on a sensual basis) until you experience an improved version of that same thing.

You really need to consider your word choices more carefully.

Although you did make a true statement.

# 162 Knight165 @ 12/20/08 01:56 PM

One thing I hope they expanded, or will eventually expand is the scouting and coaching area of the game.
Major league managers and GM's rely heavily on scouts and coaches to help them sort out just what kind of players they have(this is much more true for GM's.....but if you are the MLB manager.....you really don't have a great feel for the players in the minors you might eventually get on your squad)
One important aspect is the scouting reports...they are very generic and repetitive.
I would really like to see your scout put a more precise opinion of that players abilities in regards to not only your system but league wide.
For instance....in a scouting report you might get the lowdown on his hitting and fielding....but I would also like to know...does my scout think he's the best fielding SS in the league?.....does he consider him the 30th best?
It should go something like what OOTP has now....I would request a status report on a player....if I want to see something more specific than his generic scouting report(which would always be available)...and a couple of days later I would receive the report. Obviously this would take a certain amount of time and I would be limited in just how many I could ask for at one time.

Another thing I think would flesh out players is what I think of as modifiers.
Player A is a above average hitter...and excellent fielder and an average baserunner. At age 24 he gets a hidden modifier of +10 to his hitting for a random amount of years which boosts him to an excellent hitter. But his viewable rating remains the same(for that year...it might increase in subsequent seasons...and the modifier would still add to that number...if it decreased..the modifier would be gone)....It would be up to you and your coaches/scouts to see that he is playing at an elevated level. Other managers/GM's/coaches would notice his elevated play at the plate and they may or may not take a chance to trade for this player, hoping to get him while he remains hot. You won't know when this modifier "expires" and the modifiers can go in both directions.....(in other words...a guy could be in a funk for a year or two and a team may look to trade him....and then he "snaps out of it" and goes back to his rating.
I would limit the amount of players this would happen to in order to try and replicate that "lightning in a bottle" player you see every year.
I say this....because as it stands now.....you get a player like Fernando Tatis...who kind of came out of nowhere to have a pretty plus game for the Mets.....but you would have to give him inordinate ratings to replicate this in the game.
With my system...I could make Tatis a 45 power....55 contact and then give him a +15 to power and a +10 to contact as a modifier and he would play at a 60 power and 65 contact for a year...a year and a half or two years...then drop back down to his real ratings.(I'm just making up the ratings.....as an example...before someone says "Tatis should have nowhere near a 60 power

)
My scout might say something like "He's an average hitter, who seems to be playing above his level right now".....or something to that effect.
On the scouts....we definitely need more variety in what they say about the players regardless.....

M.K.
Knight165

# 163 green94 @ 12/20/08 02:08 PM

Wow. Pretty much all I can say.

# 164 kt-od @ 12/20/08 02:59 PM

Sorry I didn't read through this whole thread. A little overwhelming. With the addition of fans wearing weather related clothing, that must mean that weather was added.

Any body know of heard if there will be retractable roofs?

# 165 SoxFan01605 @ 12/20/08 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knight165


	One thing I hope they expanded, or will eventually expand is the scouting and coaching area of the game. Major league managers and GM's rely heavily on scouts and coaches to help them sort out just what kind of players they have(this is much more true for GM's.....but if you are the MLB manager.....you really don't have a great feel for the players in the minors you might eventually get on your squad) One important aspect is the scouting reports...they are very generic and repetitive. I would really like to see your scout put a more precise opinion of that players abilities in regards to not only your system but league wide. For instance....in a scouting report you might get the lowdown on his hitting and fielding....but I would also like to know...does my scout think he's the best fielding SS in the league?.....does he consider him the 30th best? It should go something like what OOTP has now....I would request a status report on a player....if I want to see something more specific than his generic scouting report(which would always be available)...and a couple of days later I would receive the report. Obviously this would take a certain amount of time and I would be limited in just how many I could ask for at one time. Another thing I think would flesh out players is what I think of as modifiers. Player A is a above average hitter...and excellent fielder and an average baserunner. At age 24 he gets a hidden modifier of +10 to his hitting for a random amount of years which boosts him to an excellent hitter. But his viewable rating remains the same(for that year...it might increase in subsequent seasons...and the modifier would still add to that number...if it decreased..the modifier would be gone)....It would be up to you and your coaches/scouts to see that he is playing at an elevated level. Other managers/GM's/coaches would notice his elevated play at the plate and they may or may not take a chance to trade for this player, hoping to get him while he remains hot. You won't know when this modifier "expires" and the modifiers can go in both directions.....(in other words...a guy could be in a funk for a year or two and a team may look to trade him....and then he "snaps out of it" and goes back to his rating. I would limit the amount of players this would happen to in order to try and replicate that "lightning in a bottle" player you see every year. I say this....because as it stands now.....you get a player like Fernando Tatis...who kind of came out of nowhere to have a pretty plus game for the Mets.....but you would have to give him inordinate ratings to replicate this in the game. With my system...I could make Tatis a 45 power....55 contact and then give him a +15 to power and a +10 to contact as a modifier and he would play at a 60 power and 65 contact for a year...a year and a half or two years...then drop back down to his real ratings.(I'm just making up the ratings.....as an example...before someone says "Tatis should have nowhere near a 60 power) My scout might say something like "He's an average hitter, who seems to be playing above his level right now".....or something to that effect. On the scouts....we definitely need more variety in what they say about the players regardless..... M.K. Knight165

Clearly you and I speak the same language when it comes to franchise stuff...lol. I agree with this 100%. Maybe your scout's ability could determine the likelihood of you catching on to these hidden modifiers (meaning your "A+" scout lets you know a player on team x has a player that might be a steal while your "D" scout may miss on these guesses more frequently)? Just an idea. Anyway, good stuff as usual Knight.

As for this info, I'm hyped. Pretty much everything I wanted seems to be in, at least in a base form. I honestly didn't expect this much in one year. The potential depth for franchise alone has me doing backflips. This game cannot get here fast enough

# 166 jaguar8311 @ 12/20/08 04:19 PM

Knight, before we talk about all that stuff lets get Player Progression right!

As a co-op franchise junkie this is all good news to me, but I would rather see better AI and Progression than Arbitration and 40 man rosters. Lets just hope they fixed both

# 167 bluengold34_OS @ 12/20/08 04:25 PM

Wow, I have not been on here a lot lately and I just spent the last 45 minutes reading through this whole thread. I actually have to sit down and wipe the tears from from eyes. My Wife walked in and I was in the fetal position in the corner with tears of joy( she didn't understand). I hope all the guys from SCEA understand how good it feels to have things implemented, that we actually want, instead of just what they think we want. I would travel to Dayton, back to Cleveland, back to Dayton, and back to Cleveland , just to get this game early.........oh wait

Time to dust off the PS3..................and maybe retire MVP05(pc)

# 168 ARMORALLL @ 12/20/08 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kt-od


	Sorry I didn't read through this whole thread. A little overwhelming. With the addition of fans wearing weather related clothing, that must mean that weather was added. Any body know of heard if there will be retractable roofs?

I have my heart set on rain and retractable roofs atleast in the future!

# 169 green94 @ 12/20/08 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kt-od


	With the addition of fans wearing weather related clothing, that must mean that weather was added.

I wouldn't necessarily correlate the two.

# 170 slyfox @ 12/20/08 07:41 PM

The fact sheet states an unrivaled player creator, does this mean the roster-makers won't have to jump through hoops anymore to create a new roster set? I'm sure Knight and Jim would appreciate this, as well as the rest of us.

# 171 SoxFan01605 @ 12/20/08 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crash Davis


	Although I can respect this request I dont agree, keep that stuff in OOTP/Front Office Manager/Baseball Mogul. Some aspects could be a little more detailed in the show towards scouting, but it shouldnt be a main focus. Personally I'd like it alot but think about the people who just want to "play the game" this would turn them off by being overwhelmed. Plus personally I'd rather them focus and work on other things first such as the new player models theyre working on. However all in all its a great idea, for 09 at least i hope they made it a little easier to see players potential ratings as opposed to only having it on the back of there player cards...

See, I don't agree with some of your reasoning here. I don't think people who "just want to play the game" are going to be negatively impacted by a feature like that at all. In fact, it's something that could be automated if a more casual player wanted to jump into a franchise anyway. Baseball fans (generally speaking) are a bit more detail oriented with their sport in a lot of ways. Anyone even wanting to dive into a franchise is likely doing so with the more detailed stuff in mind. I think the more detailed the franchise the better. Again, most stuff can realistically be automated so the peopel can avoid the micro management if they so desire.

As far as focus, I do mostly agree with that. I don't think that kind of detail would detract too much from things like the player models you mentioned, but I do think there are probably more pressing things. It doesn't hurt to have dialog about it though as it keeps the devs abreast of what some of the more hardcore features we like are.

If it wasn't already addressed in some fashion I don't think, especially at this point (09 isn't even out yet...lol), that we need to concern ourselves with how they prioritize for the next interations. I think they've shown a pretty good feel for how to balance the features and the subtleties.

In any case, I'm pumped for the franchise depth they seemed to have added already, so anything else they snuck in to 09 would be icing, IMO. I do hope things like AI logic, fatigue/injuries, and ratings adjustments were toyed around with a bit too though

. The best part of all this is, the game looks like something still very much on the rise and not just trying standing pat, which is a big part of my own excitement

# 172 atlbravesws05 @ 12/20/08 09:50 PM

All these little features are nice, but they just don't make the game. All this audio recordings are gimmicks and people will grow tired of using them. I just hope the core gameplay is different (pitching, hitting, fielding) because i need some new refreshment. I dont want to play MLB 08.5 The Show.

# 173 JBoo2911 @ 12/20/08 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atlbravesws05


	All these little features are nice, but they just don't make the game. All this audio recordings are gimmicks and people will grow tired of using them. I just hope the core gameplay is different (pitching, hitting, fielding) because i need some new refreshment. I dont want to play MLB 08.5 The Show.

Gameplay wise, I would expect nothing, "Refreshed"... just the gameplay will be highly tweaked and I expect to see a lot of new, nice realistic animations during the game for our eyes. Don't fix something thats not broke, just make it better!!! The gameplay is very solid is The Show '08.

# 174 countryboy @ 12/20/08 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scottdau


	Then this is not the game for you. Why correct perfect. I hope they keep it the same. To me changing the core is like "Gimmicks". You add more animations and more little things and this is game will be even better. So I disagree with you, but I respect your opinion.

I tend to agree with Scott here, but will say this. I'm ok with them implementing new pitching techniques or hitting mechanics so long as they allow me to use the "classic" versions of these things.

I don't like changing things just for the sake of change. The one reason I love sports games and tend to stick with games I know is due to the familarity of the controls. I don't want to have to learn new controls and such each year I pick up the game. Stick with what works, and as Scott said, add in new animations, fix what needs fixin', and tweak what needs tweakin' to bring about a "freshness" to the game.

# 175 countryboy @ 12/20/08 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crash Davis


	Although I can respect this request I dont agree, keep that stuff in OOTP/Front Office Manager/Baseball Mogul. Some aspects could be a little more detailed in the show towards scouting, but it shouldnt be a main focus. Personally I'd like it alot but think about the people who just want to "play the game" this would turn them off by being overwhelmed. Plus personally I'd rather them focus and work on other things first such as the new player models theyre working on. However all in all its a great idea, for 09 at least i hope they made it a little easier to see players potential ratings as opposed to only having it on the back of there player cards...

I have to agree with Knight, though I understand where you're coming from. To me, if they want to make the game more "casual friendly" for those who may not want to get that detailed into the franchise mode, then have the option to turn it off. They already allow you to let the cpu handle all your "non field" duties, so why not just add this to the list so to speak.

# 176 atlbravesws05 @ 12/20/08 10:56 PM

Its not for the sake of changing. Everything gets old evenually no matter how good or popular it was before. The one song you loved as a child no longer interests you because it got old, the food you eat, evenually you grow tired of eating pizza no matter how much you loved it, etcc.. My point is i want to experience something new from the same awesome developers. The core gameplay hasn't changed at all and no matter the countless features they keep adding on every year, the core gameplay feels exactly the same. It feels like you are playing the same game except with add ons. I think its time for them to try out something more innovative.

# 177 countryboy @ 12/20/08 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by atlbravesws05


	Its not for the sake of changing. Everything gets old evenually no matter how good or popular it was before. The one song you loved as a child no longer interests you because it got old, the food you eat, evenually you grow tired of eating pizza no matter how much you loved it, etcc.. My point is i want to experience something new from the same awesome developers. The core gameplay hasn't changed at all and no matter the countless features they keep adding on every year, the core gameplay feels exactly the same. It feels like you are playing the same game except with add ons. I think its time for them to try out something more innovative.

I understand what you're saying thats why I said that I'm fine with it so long as I can use the "old" system they replace. I'm not a fan of changing something for the sake of change and don't care if its considered old or whatnot. I stay with a series due to knowing the controls and the ebb and flow of the game. I don't want them to change that. Yes, maybe I will like the new thing, I mean I adapted to pitching meters and a few other things, but I've also had the ability to use the old, more familar controls, if necessary.

I guess what I'm saying is that I don't want to be "forced" to change or "adapt" to a new system. I'll try it out, but if I don't like it, I want to be able to play with a system thats more comfortable to me.

# 178 atlbravesws05 @ 12/20/08 11:20 PM

well i wasnt trying to convince you lol. I was just stating my opinion. I just hope the developers at least consider imprementing new mechanics to the core gameplay.

# 179 atlbravesws05 @ 12/20/08 11:56 PM

Yes, i see where you going but think of it like this. Baseball games come out yearly. I don't want to wait a year just to see that all the new things they impremented are audio recordings, new animations, and like. All these features that are included to enhance the franchise and like, are features that could have been already done in MLB 07: The Show. What I'm saying is I expect new advancements and more unique aspects with given time. The Show has been on next gen for 2 years already and I'm not seeing anything that i could point out that stands apart from this outing to the PS2 versions. The core game play is the same as the PS2 version and i dont find that intriguing. Again, opinions vary and i do agree that they should leave the classic controls for those who dont prefer to adapt to new control scheme. Plus if you dont at least attempt to innovate, then how would you know if its good or not? Maybe you will like the new control scheme. You have to experience it first hand before coming to a conclusion that it will "not work" or is unneccessary."

# 180 atlbravesws05 @ 12/21/08 12:01 AM

they do have in game saves for exhibition.

I also love when they say, "next year." Every year before the new version releases, every time someone asks for something new thats vastly changes the the game, I always hear, "next year."

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