Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

[Lisac]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

If thats what Judge looks like Id hate to see what a slimmer Matt Adams and Kyle Schwarber look like

[Turbojugend]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

As someone who's had every iteration of The Show since 07, I think listening to some of the "gripes" people have are very important. Although I wouldn't consider the game "stale", I can definitely see why some people are saying that.

Hey man, nothing wrong with griping, I gripe about games all the time. But to state that you're not buying a game when the feature list hasn't even been revealed because you somehow already know you'll be disappointed... well, okay.

[WaitTilNextYear]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

It always cracks me up when people make protest posts about a game we know almost nothing about. I will guarantee-damn-tee you these same people will be on this board when 19 rolls around. It's like clockwork.

I definitely wouldn't be taking anyone for granted. You'd have to hope SDS isn't because it would ultimately be their undoing. There is a trope that all of the complainers buy the game every year anyway, but we know that's not true. Some do, some don't.

As for complaining about something before you even know the details, yes that's a bit emotional and ridiculous. I agree with you there. At least wait until the stream that addresses what you care about rolls around, right? Then feel free to cheer or boo.

[Caulfield]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Are they broke? People just don't like the colors they chose for the sunsets. It's subjective.

I mean.. who's to say what the "correct" color is for a sky at sunset?

Bob Ross. If he can tell when trees are happy, he can easily tell if the sky is right.

A 6 second video and 3 screenshots from the 6 second video and people are like...

Forgive Blzer, he forgot this is the time of year the sky falls.

The sky is not viewed with a magnifying glass.

I beg to dicker, ants do it all the time, though I think they're mostly looking for the sun.

[breakfastcat]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Forgive Blzer, he forgot this is the time of year the sky falls.

I mean, that's literally what it looks like is happening in those screenshots.

[RogerDodger]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

I'm waiting until I see hi-res screenshots or even better, until I play the game, before I make a judgement on graphics or anything else for that matter.

Presentation this year is a big one for me - I love the MLB Network package and wanted them to add a second hi-fidelity broadcast package alongside the other existing spring training/minor league packages.

Time will tell but I'm not rushing to judgement on anything yet.

[Blzer]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Presentation this year is a big one for me - I love the MLB Network package and wanted them to add a second hi-fidelity broadcast package alongside the other existing spring training/minor league packages.

Time will tell but I'm not rushing to judgement on anything yet.

I think it's safe to say this won't happen. I don't know how many hours of audio this game already has, but in expanding that amount without them just saying the same line over and over for every action, it's just not going to fit onto the disc.

This doesn't pertain exactly to your issue, but the Vita version of The Show cut lots and lots of corners. Many were for good reason to make the experience a lot more streamlined and faster, and I won't disagree with a single one of them, especially since for many items they were able to kill two birds with one stone by decreasing the overall game data size while doing that. I don't think they'll ever admit it, but it's definitely true.

For example, in the Vita version they cut out all replays and post-play cut scenes. Who speaks during those moments? Yep, the color commentators. Watch the Vita version be played and notice that they can save so much storage if they just delete all of those comments. They aren't needed. Vasgersian is nearly a one-man booth in the Vita version, because the others aren't really needed to be called upon given the game's briskness. It's probably just as easy to say those lines simply aren't in that version of the game.

Another easy way to tell is by playing Remote Play on Vita with my headphones and listening to the audio quality of my PS4 stream versus the Vita's audio quality. In the PS4 version, sounds are still very pleasant to the ear. In the Vita version, everything is compressed to its core, especially Vasgersian who is choked of all bits per line. All of this is in order to save memory.

Anyway, the point of my digression is that although a PS4 disc already holds significantly more data than something like a Vita media card (and could capably hold up to like 50GB given the right disc), they just can't expand more than they would want to and still be able to get another commentary team there. If they truly wanted to be able to add another commentary team, at least two of any of these options would probably have to happen or be considered:

- Expanding the disc they have from 25GB to 50GB if they haven't already (and in Japan they do the 100GB disc I believe).

- Hire in-house talent for that crew (let's face it, other personnel would be way too costly).

- Cut out a color commentator from the current crew.

- Completely restructure all of the lines that Matt, Harold and Dan already do if they could develop a way to make run-on sentences not completely prerecorded (I know I've made mention of this before, but this would be so damn hard to do).

- Scrap other game modes entirely (Retro Mode probably almost cost them nothing in the resource department, so it would have to be much more than something like that). Anything else that takes up a lot and lot of space.

- They could also scrap every historic/alternate uniform, bonus stadium (including the closed/open roof options for certain parks), lower the resolutions of the current ones to boot, remove many batting stances/pitching motions... the list goes on. Those would only do so much against audio anyway. I think the classic stadiums already are not on the disc but are instead downloaded to the HDD.

Many of these things really require another commonality if it's not sacrificing too much game data, and that is cost-benefits. They were able to do another presentation package because they had enough people able to make a couple of new graphics (plus include Showtrack), and one would argue that was beneficial to add. Many people would just not go for a generic commentary team as the other option more often. It would not be of benefit for them to add them.

Trust me when I say that if money, data storage capacity, development team size and time were complete non-factors in something like this, they would have all thirty teams represented with their own broadcasters like nothin'. But it just can't fit within their plans for way, way too many reasons.

Just for good measure, I just did a silly little side project where I recorded a mono track of myself with my computer microphone for about ten seconds of random Show babble, and duplicated it up to 100 hours. Saving that as an MP3 at no more than 170kb (not saying they use that exact format, bit rate, or that many hours of commentary because frankly I have no idea how much is used), that audio takes up 4GB. You can bet their audio is with not as starved values as those (not to mention how lossy of a format MP3 is to begin with). If they had to add even 30% more commentary to their set, you can tell that resources would have to be completely reallocated. None of those parameters include the actual monetary costs of that either.

It's a pipe dream, really. It's a great thought, but it wouldn't turn out as great as people would want it to even if they did it. Too many cut corners would have to occur.

[RogerDodger]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

I think you misunderstood what I meant by presentation package. I simply meant a more broadcast slick style of presentation, overlays, replay packages and so forth. I'm not expecting an entirely new commentary team. The MLB Network stuff last season had the same commentary as other broadcast packages but had additional content to the other broadcast styles. Likewise, any new broadcast presentation this year would be the same.

[Blzer]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Oh, psh my bad! Then yeah, that's entirely possible.

Well then... at least I can debunk whichever optimists do want that dream.

[breakfastcat]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Oh, psh my bad! Then yeah, that's entirely possible.

Well then... at least I can debunk whichever optimists do want that dream.

Haha, I'm sure someone will mention a second broadcast team at some point in the upcoming promotion cycle. Your work will not go to waste.

[tnixen]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

I always hear lighting is the last thing to kick in, but I don't know if skies qualify.

It is one of the most disappointing things that baseball video games didn't really get right for quite a while. I understand the lack of day-night progression in the older generations, but it took 2K forever (until I think 2K10 or so) to get the right color, and now that series has been scrapped... and The Show never got it right.

I'm going out on a limb to say only about 35% of baseball games are played during the day: Saturdays (not all), Sundays, and getaway days. The rest are pretty much all at night, except for Chicago Friday home games. That makes its significance pretty noteworthy if you ask me. I don't even play with one of those fisheye lens cameras like some of you do, so the fact that I'm still coming at ya'll with this is pretty telling of its significance. I mean unless you're playing at Tropicana Field, you have to see that "eyesore" of a backdrop every pitch of every offensive at-bat.

I mean this isn't perfect, but can we please someday go from this...




To this... ?




I do believe the shots in the preview are of an older build, but I don't believe that outside of PS4 Pro enhancements we are expected to see any more major overhauls. No more new player model skeletons or anything like that, at least. I'm sure they're still working on things regarding PBR, skin colors, maybe even more fan variety... but I'm losing hope on new sky colors.

What makes matters worse is I think they and many are satisfied with it.


EDIT: Extended side-note on the subject matter...

Spoiler

I won't pretend like I know that just changing the sky color is very easy. We have seen how tough it was to change the colors of surfaces for uniforms, grass, walls, and overall color palettes in the past, so I'm not asking them to just change the hex codes there. I think my last point sticks largest, though: when they have acknowledged people's qualms regarding it, they merely have defended the seemingly "intended" look. I guess that's totally their prerogative, but it's just unfortunate to me.

Again, same thing with their broadcast camera: they may argue it simulates what you see on television or that an actual broadcast camera won't allow you to see certain action (same thing with minor camera transition delay after ball-in-play contact). To that, I'd love to see if that's true or not, but I can't deal with that broadcast camera they have anymore. I'm so glad they have the retro mode cam, because outside of home runs that is easily the best playable cam they ever made in the history of their game.

Anyway, the reason for this side-note is I wanted to say that while the colors may already be hard, I can't begin to assume that this next item I mention would be any easier... but night games need more luminescence with objects, specifically signs that can light up. Let's say the sky thing was addressed. Okay! Then the next "lighting" issue would be whether or not they can really address those other items.

Like, here is an actual Busch Stadium dusk photo (speaking of night skies):





For comparison's sake, I lit up some signage and environments on the field to slightly match that shot more. Just to kind of bring us to that feel a little more. I didn't brighten the seats much though. Imagine the future of going from something like this...






To this...






To this...






This may have to wait for something like next-gen, but I think inspiration can be derived from such examples so that seed can be planted in their vision. The lighting has gotten so much better on so many fronts, but this is part of the beauty of baseball and I think we all agree that it can be reflected so much more.

That blue sunset sky looks so good!

I wonder if this change is not in 18 is it because it takes way to much development time to change or is it because the developers think the brown sunset sky looks better? I know we have been asking for this change for over 3 years+ already I think.

[Caulfield]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Haha, I'm sure someone will mention a second broadcast team at some point in the upcoming promotion cycle. Your work will not go to waste.

Yeah, I'll go ahead and jump on the Kuiper/Krukow bandwagon early.

But I will say I'd take Vasgersian and *insert Campbell/Hudler/Karros/Lyons/Reynlds/Plesac*
over say, maybe Hawk Harrelson and John Sterling.

But how great would it be if SDS could cull a lifetime of calls by Mel Allen and Red Barber
or Vin Scully and Bob Uecker into another version of sounds of the Show?

[a bit outside]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

Don’t forget about Harry.

[Blzer]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

If you're like me and you didn't see the quick clip of the trailer preview, I just made a slow-mo GIF of it:

[JoeCoolMan24]

Re: Screenshots From Preview of MLB 18 The Show Preview

SDS didn’t release them. An OS member took screenshots of the the 6 second video attached to the announcement of the trailer coming on Monday


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

Fair enough, I rescind my displeasure then.