MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

[Gagnon39]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I remember years ago when Madden moved to the XBox 360 how upset player were that EA completely re-worked everything and basically made an entirely new football game. Madden 06 on XBox 360 was bare-bones because, essentially it was a brand-new game that had a relatively short development time. Tons of people, especially here on OS, were wondering why they didn't just keep their existing engine/game and make improvements to it. Well fast-forward to The Show and that's exactly what we have. They had a solid base that is unquestionably the best baseball game I've ever played. Each year it's been essentially the same game with some tweaks, which is exactly what people were calling for back when Madden was so terrible.

So is a completely re-worked game really what we want in The Show? I for one do not. Of course, being an offline franchise guy, I get super frustrated with the fact that franchise mode is basically untouched year, after, year, after year, after year. But when it comes to wanting SDS to do something completely different... no thanks. Unless is noticeably better than what we have now.

[Junior Moe]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

No, not for me. I would describe myself as a casual baseball fan, but every single year The Show provides me with dozens if not hundreds of hours of enjoyment. It's a staple of my gaming lineup. My biggest issue with the series at this point is immersion. Thats about it. I get the gripes about wanting more, and I feel like if I were a bigger fan of baseball in general, they would resonate with me more. But as is, I personally think the product is a 60$ buy each year.

[Caulfield]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I remember years ago when Madden moved to the XBox 360 how upset player were that EA completely re-worked everything and basically made an entirely new football game. Madden 06 on XBox 360 was bare-bones because, essentially it was a brand-new game that had a relatively short development time. Tons of people, especially here on OS, were wondering why they didn't just keep their existing engine/game and make improvements to it. Well fast-forward to The Show and that's exactly what we have. They had a solid base that is unquestionably the best baseball game I've ever played. Each year it's been essentially the same game with some tweaks, which is exactly what people were calling for back when Madden was so terrible.

So is a completely re-worked game really what we want in The Show? I for one do not. Of course, being an offline franchise guy, I get super frustrated with the fact that franchise mode is basically untouched year, after, year, after year, after year. But when it comes to wanting SDS to do something completely different... no thanks. Unless is noticeably better than what we have now.

Yeah, I think if they just add a ****tonne of "little things " , enough to add up and overwhelm us, it could make the Show like a virgin again.

[DamnYanks2]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

They spend too much damn time on Diamond Dynasty. It's a fun mode. But they put it all into that.

I love this series. I always have. But I was pretty damn annoyed they stopped updating the real time stats with the daily rosters. Especially when they crafted out new challenges every week for DD.

They've done a poor job recently with non DD players. That's just the truth.

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[Armor and Sword]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

Not at all for me in terms of gameplay. I love...absolutely love 18. I think core gameplay won't change very much so it comes down to franchise mode. Will it get some much needed TLC.

If not The Show 19 is not a day one purchase this cycle. I am loving 18 that much.

[Padgoi]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I remember years ago when Madden moved to the XBox 360 how upset player were that EA completely re-worked everything and basically made an entirely new football game. Madden 06 on XBox 360 was bare-bones because, essentially it was a brand-new game that had a relatively short development time. Tons of people, especially here on OS, were wondering why they didn't just keep their existing engine/game and make improvements to it. Well fast-forward to The Show and that's exactly what we have. They had a solid base that is unquestionably the best baseball game I've ever played. Each year it's been essentially the same game with some tweaks, which is exactly what people were calling for back when Madden was so terrible.

So is a completely re-worked game really what we want in The Show? I for one do not. Of course, being an offline franchise guy, I get super frustrated with the fact that franchise mode is basically untouched year, after, year, after year, after year. But when it comes to wanting SDS to do something completely different... no thanks. Unless is noticeably better than what we have now.

I agree, we definitely don't want a reworked game. What we want is smarter AI, better animations and updated graphics. I honestly think all of that can be had without reworking the entire game.

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[Armor and Sword]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

They spend too much damn time on Diamond Dynasty. It's a fun mode. But they put it all into that.

I love this series. I always have. But I was pretty damn annoyed they stopped updating the real time stats with the daily rosters. Especially when they crafted out new challenges every week for DD.

They've done a poor job recently with non DD players. That's just the truth.

Sent from my SM-J337VPP using Tapatalk

I can't disagree with this. Unfortunately it is the new reality. We are dinosaurs. The kids today.....all they play is Diamond Dynasty. Except my son. He plays franchise mode. He obviously is learning from an old timer. But to tell you the truth he prefers Super Mega Baseball. And he loves Baseball Stars on the old NES....anyway back on topic.

Kids today and the new generation of sports gamers are all into the E-Sports and card collecting modes.

Make no mistake though. IMO Diamond Dynasty is by far the best "ultimate" team mode of any sports game. I like it. But I wish they had more guys working on Franchise mode. I really believe it is simply a matter of resources.

I am not in the camp the gameplay is dated. I actually think the gameplay has never ever been better. I am highly addicted to playing The Show and the team did an outstanding job addressing a lot of the warts on 17 that kept it from being fantastic. 18 really got a lot of things right. And again it is all dependent on your playing style.

I play with a totally clean screen and auto field and manual button throw (no meters or any of that stuff). The game shines with this random dice role "strato-matic" approach based on player ratings. User skill is still highly prevalent for me in timing my swings, swing types, working counts, sitting on pitches and with classic pitching....pure heaven for me. Setting hitters up, pitch sequencing.....this game does this aspect amazingly well.

Do we need better AI? Oh hell yes. Always. We all want better AI. I don't think there is any debate. Both on and off the diamond.

Let's put it this way......IMO The Show is the most complete sports game on the market for my buck. Can it be better? Always. But they do a hell of a job.

[KnightTemplar]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

Yearly purchase. Thought 18s gameplay was great. Have zero interest in DD, RTS and Matt should have been gone long ago. What a fun factor boost expansion mode would be, customize the leagues, etc., etc. We’ve wanted it for years, but don’t think we’ll ever get it, instead.....RETRO MODE, ugh.

This is the first year I couldn’t finish my franchise. I’ll eventually sim it thru, then have to create some guys who they will retire (Pujols for one, already ran tests checking this out), then be ticked at all the REAL players that disappear from the teams because they just won’t/can’t leave some of these fringe players in the game.


I enjoy the game, will enjoy what comes and hopefully will be surprised. They DID do a good job w/added animations/presentation this year. But, if they start advertising stuff about more DD, etc., I certainly won’t be overly excited about other possibilities.

[Bigwebb48]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I will still buy day 1 as I'm a glutton of punishment..


But, I did find myself playing mostly DD, but not online much. I loved to play vs the CPU and grind to get the cards etc. Spent no money on stubs and still enjoyed myself so much. I continued my braves franchise and got through a couple years, but it was just play and make roster changes, I wish there was more invasiveness.

[tabarnes19_SDS]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

The last Major update to franchise mode was in 09. They added waiver trades, rule 5, arbitration, financials .....there are still legacy bugs, but that was an exciting time.

I hope they take the leap again because all star baseball had a deeper franchise. I really need to see these changes this year and a focus on franchise. The last 10 years we were promised that "NEXT year" we will see more time devoted.

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[Jeffrey Smith]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

Still a day one purchase for me. But put me in the camp hoping for franchise improvements. AI is much better than previous years but still see too many contenders selling star players.


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[Peter_OS]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I feel the same way too. First time in years I will not be putting down a pre-order for this game. Need to know more about improvements and additions (franchise mode and gameplay.) before i fork over that kind of money for a game. Could care less about DD and RTS. Never played through any of them. Just not my cup of tea. The last several years have been mediocre at best with this franchise. To be honest it feels like the same game year in and year out.

We seriously need another baseball game on the market. 2K and EA are you listening???

[DamnYanks2]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I can't disagree with this. Unfortunately it is the new reality. We are dinosaurs. The kids today.....all they play is Diamond Dynasty. Except my son. He plays franchise mode. He obviously is learning from an old timer. But to tell you the truth he prefers Super Mega Baseball. And he loves Baseball Stars on the old NES....anyway back on topic.

Kids today and the new generation of sports gamers are all into the E-Sports and card collecting modes.

Make no mistake though. IMO Diamond Dynasty is by far the best "ultimate" team mode of any sports game. I like it. But I wish they had more guys working on Franchise mode. I really believe it is simply a matter of resources.

I am not in the camp the gameplay is dated. I actually think the gameplay has never ever been better. I am highly addicted to playing The Show and the team did an outstanding job addressing a lot of the warts on 17 that kept it from being fantastic. 18 really got a lot of things right. And again it is all dependent on your playing style.

I play with a totally clean screen and auto field and manual button throw (no meters or any of that stuff). The game shines with this random dice role "strato-matic" approach based on player ratings. User skill is still highly prevalent for me in timing my swings, swing types, working counts, sitting on pitches and with classic pitching....pure heaven for me. Setting hitters up, pitch sequencing.....this game does this aspect amazingly well.

Do we need better AI? Oh hell yes. Always. We all want better AI. I don't think there is any debate. Both on and off the diamond.

Let's put it this way......IMO The Show is the most complete sports game on the market for my buck. Can it be better? Always. But they do a hell of a job.

No I agree DD is fun. I refused to play it at first. But I ended up really liking it. Played the hell out of conquest mode.

But that doesn't mean they should ignore other areas. Franchise needs a revamp for sure. I can understand people annoyed it hasn't gotten one yet.

I like the gameplay. I dont believe we need a overhaul in that department necessarily. But I do feel it could benefit from some tweaking.

The commentary needs to be scrapped and redone. They've had some of those same lines for years lol.

The game just needs a fresh new look. And new things to do. Throw us some fun mini games in. I would say give us a create a stadium. But we aren't gonna see that this life cycle.

I truly loved 18 but unless there is something worthwhile and not just upgrades to DD. Its probably not worth it.

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[MLB14]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I can't disagree with this. Unfortunately it is the new reality. We are dinosaurs. The kids today.....all they play is Diamond Dynasty. Except my son. He plays franchise mode. He obviously is learning from an old timer. But to tell you the truth he prefers Super Mega Baseball. And he loves Baseball Stars on the old NES....anyway back on topic.

Kids today and the new generation of sports gamers are all into the E-Sports and card collecting modes.

Diamond Dynasty is still built on the gameplay engine everyone wants them to work harder on, so they shouldn't ignore that, but I guess they can since most of the people who play Diamond Dynasty aren't actually true fans of baseball and couldn't care less about the core gameplay of The Show.

[countryboy]

Re: MLB 19: Anybody else feel this is the make/break year?

I am not in the camp the gameplay is dated. I actually think the gameplay has never ever been better. I am highly addicted to playing The Show and the team did an outstanding job addressing a lot of the warts on 17 that kept it from being fantastic. 18 really got a lot of things right. And again it is all dependent on your playing style.

I play with a totally clean screen and auto field and manual button throw (no meters or any of that stuff). The game shines with this random dice role "strato-matic" approach based on player ratings. User skill is still highly prevalent for me in timing my swings, swing types, working counts, sitting on pitches and with classic pitching....pure heaven for me. Setting hitters up, pitch sequencing.....this game does this aspect amazingly well.

Do we need better AI? Oh hell yes. Always. We all want better AI. I don't think there is any debate. Both on and off the diamond.

Let's put it this way......IMO The Show is the most complete sports game on the market for my buck. Can it be better? Always. But they do a hell of a job.

Agreed. The gameplay in '18 is damn good. Are there still things that need to be tuned, tweaked, and worked on? Sure, but there is nothing in terms of gameplay that feels a step behind. And judging from the twitch stream announcing the alpha, they are working on some of those things (bunting).

Franchise mode though, I really hope we get new things this year. Like I said, last year they introduced PHASES which I really didn't care for, but it was done to help attract new users to the mode. Ok, I get that. They introduced CPU teams being better at roster building, which they are and was something that I've wanted for a while (I don't play and won't play with 30 team control)

But as Tbarnes mentioned, I want a franchise improvement year like '09. I want multiple fixes/additions to carry this mode forward. Franchise mode is something within the game that feels a step behind, or further. With each passing year, it gets a little more frustrating seeing this mode basically left on the back burner.

As I said in my previous post, I'll get '19 simply because I believe at the very least, the gameplay changes will be worth it. But it sure would be nice as a franchise only/avid player, to have that mode brought up to speed. If its not, I'll still carryover my save and continue my franchise because I don't think that franchise mode is bad, just dated.

Guess we'll find out in about 3 months.