MLB’11 The Show – Review – PS3

Ever since NHL ’02, I believe it was, I stayed away from the annual release of sports games because my interest in the genre was no longer there. Lately though, since about 2009-2010 when NFL ’10 was shown off, I started to regain interest in the sports genre. The graphics and animations were starting to have more realism and the gameplay seemed to be more refined. This year, I feel each sports game – NHL ’11, NBA ’11, NFL ’11, and especially MLB ’11 – have finally been fine tuned for maximum realism with stunning graphics, fluent controls and social features that will keep you coming back for more.

Gameplay: Aside from demos, MLB ’11 is the first time I’ve actually played a video game version of baseball. The steep learning curve and lack of information in previous games just didn’t entice me enough to buy the full game. With MLB ’11 though, and the new features including a new control scheme, I felt like it was finally time to get excited. As you start, you are given tips as to how the game is played. Personally though, I went straight into practice mode so I could familiarize myself with the controls before jumping into a full game. Since there isn’t any real tutorial at the start like I’m used to with other games, these tips acted as the tutorial as I started to play. Browsing through the pause menu, you can view a video tutorial for each thing you have trouble with as well. Since I haven’t played an MLB game for long, this was useful, but there was still quite a steep learning curve even with the new controls.

The learning curve is more about the timing as opposed to understanding the controls though. Things like when to tap the button or let go of the analog stick to swing or pitch require a lot of practice. Once I got the hang of it, playing baseball was a lot of fun. There are different preset play styles that can be set depending on how much control you want in the game. For instance, there is a beginner setting that basically only gives you control over batting and pitching with just the buttons. If you want more control, such as controlling the outfield, you can adjust it accordingly during the game and after it will ask you if you’d like to save those settings. Speaking of settings, there is no shortage of what you can change. You make the game your way. With the ability to adjust controls, HUD overlays, cameras, players, game tweaks and more, you truly can make a personalized baseball experience.

I won’t talk too much about the different game modes since they’ve all been around before. You have Road to The Show, Franchise, Season, Rivalry, Practice Mode and Home Run Derby. Additionally, they’ve added a Challenge of the Week mode where players in the US can compete for real prizes. As well, some new features worth mentioning that add to the overall experience of some of the modes is 3D and PS Move support. I didn’t get a chance to try any of these out, but I imagine the extra depth that 3D would add combined with Move would be outstanding. Move support, however, is only limited to the Home Run Derby which is fine, but it would have been interesting to see it implemented in the other modes as well. It could be tricky, but it would add that extra difficulty to the game. In addition, I really liked the social features such as viewing parts of MLB.com, getting team updates and viewing/sharing other things related to the game really added to the overall experience.

Hearing that MLB’11 The Show was introducing co-op was a big plus for me. I’m always looking for co-op games to play with friends. Hanging out with friends and watching your favourite sport such as baseball is one of the best things to do, so why not add co-op? Setting up a co-op game is easy and really fun to play. You can alternate between pitching and batting, or designate one player for each, and even choose who controls the outfield and midfield players. All settings are saved according to the player so if one player likes a certain camera angle for batting, you can save different profiles for each. Again, co-op was a lot of fun, however, with alternate batting on, it was hard to tell who was up to bat especially at the start of the inning. There was no indicator, whether it is P1-P2, or a colour, that would tell us who had control of the batter.

Graphics/audio: The funny thing about this game is, while playing my sister walked by and quickly glanced at the screen. She came back and was going to ask why I was holding a PS3 controller while watching baseball, but then she realized I was playing the game on the PS3 and not watching it. Yes, the game looks and sounds that good. I couldn’t believe how realistic it looked. From the players, animations, lighting, stadiums, broadcast overlay, announcers and cameras, you really do have to look a second time to realize it’s just a game and not a TV broadcast. Again, I really enjoyed the broadcast-like experience. From broadcast style camera angles and announcers, to real stadiums and current ads, you really feel like you are watching the game. The thing that makes the announcers believable is not only the quality of the voices, but the original content that is fitted into the game at the right time.

Although the game does look stunning, some of the things that made it look more like a game rather than real life was the lighting and animations. Yes, the lighting is really well done, but too often the lighting seemed over exposed and white areas would be blown out. I realize that sometimes that happens when the sun is directly on white, but in most cases, the full uniform would be blown out when the sun was only on the back. Otherwise though, the contrast and colour temperature were fantastic. As for the animations, they too were great and most of the time fluent, but occasionally they would appear stiff and almost robotic, especially between loop points.

Overall: Coming back to the sports genre was exciting. The new features and improvements over the past few years have been stunning. I was surprised by the realism and broadcast quality editing to make the player seem like they were at the game or watching a passerby think it was a real broadcasted game on TV. The new features and modes are great and really add to overall experience. There are some minor things that could be improved upon, but I can say without a doubt, MLB ’11 The Show is a really polished and enjoyable game that baseball fans will enjoy – even if it is from a viewing point of view.

Pros:
-Stunning, and realistic graphics
-An engaging broadcast like experience
-The ability to play co-op
-Social features
-A massive list of customization options

Cons:
-Overexposed lighting
-Occasionally stiff animations
-Potentially steep learning curve

Overall score: 9/10

Popularity: 6% [?]