MLB The Show 18 is the official video game of the MLB and enters the new season with new, partly long-awaited features and improved game modes. And the greatest of all time is also there. SPOX has tested the baseball simulation and gives first impressions.
Disclaimer: SPOX is not a gaming site, although eSports could certainly play a greater role for us in the not too distant future. For the moment, however, we are primarily interested in sport, which is why this review, for which Sony colleagues have kindly provided us with an advance copy of the game, will not go into the smallest detail. The focus is on the highlights of the new version of this successful franchise.
What does “MLB The Show” stand for in the first place? If you ask me, clearly for realism. It’s one, no: it’s the baseball simulation on the market. If you look at the ratings of the series over the last ten years, you will notice again and again that the gameplay, the graphics and the general presentation are particularly praised.
The Show is one of the world’s leading sports games and does not have to hide from NBA2k or FIFA – or Madden. In many respects it is even far ahead of the titles known in Germany.
The biggest challenge for developers for years has therefore been the question of how to make an outstanding product even better. And after a few days I’ve now spent with The Show 18, it can be consulted that it has succeeded.
For more details on all game modes, features, etc. I refer you at this point to our info article. This review is about what has changed in the game. As someone who is primarily interested in franchise fashion, I started with it, of course.
Here the new, tidy interface stands out directly. Basically, you can spend your entire GM career on the home screen. First you see the window with the new “phases”, the 19 phases of a franchise each year. Let’s start with the Spring Training and it will end sometime in December with the Rule 5 Draft.
Each of these phases can be simulated or played through, and the games can be played in several ways. It is possible to play a game normally from start to finish, it can simply be played in Manager Mode or you can limit yourself to a key moment in the game.
In the mode itself, aspects such as trade logic – always a hot topic in virtually all sports games – have been improved. Now it’s no longer easy to get a superstar off another team – or a super talent, which has been too willing in recent years.
The draft for which players must be scouted remains a central theme. Unfortunately, the possibility to engage international amateur players separately is still missing. These are still part of the drag. But at least the two Competitive Balance Rounds found their way into the game for the teams from the ten weakest markets!
Another showpiece of The Show continues to be “Road to the Show”, the mode in which you play through a single player’s career. You can either choose a player based on an existing player or create a completely new character. First you define your position and then choose a so-called archetype. Do you want to be a control freak pitcher like Clayton Kershaw or more of a power pitcher? Should it be a defensive strong infielder or more of a power hitter?
Based on this first decision in the career, the development potential of a player is also regulated. Power hitters are rather defensively limited, top defenders usually have less power. Control pitchers throw less hard, but have better values for breaking pitches etc.
Once these basics are established, the player begins with a showcase event of his choice and is allowed to present himself to the scouts for the first time. Afterwards there are a few more show games before the draft. Afterwards the journey through the Minor Leagues to the Big Leagues begins, if you are good enough.
Initially, the player is advised by his former high school coach, but eventually he has to hire an agent. Again and again there are discussions with coaches or the manager of the respective team about the current role of a player or certain training sessions. Training and performance in the game are the only ways to develop a player.
The system known from the previous years, with which training points were earned, which were then arbitrarily put into attributes of the player to improve him, was completely abolished – too unrealistic.
Page 1: Franchise phases and RTTS improvements
Page 2: Control variants, legends and the rain