MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

[drsonoma]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Because I was able to get the Vita version early I had it with me with waiting out the Mass Effect crowd at Gamestop tonight. Managed to finish one game and get another 4 innings in on another one while waiting it out. While there may not be "presentation" on the Vita, having the "Show on the Road" is worth the price of admission, IMO.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

I'm assuming I don't need to provide a picture at this point. I'll gladly delete this post if I'm still supposed to.

Question: How on earth do you check your swing using Timing hitting?

I can kind of check using Analog; but no matter how hard I try (even trying to do it on purpose) I cannot cause a check swing using Timing Only hitting on the Vita.

I wonder if there's a pressure sensitivity option I'm missing?

[fishepa]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

I'm assuming I don't need to provide a picture at this point. I'll gladly delete this post if I'm still supposed to.

Question: How on earth do you check your swing using Timing hitting?

I can kind of check using Analog; but no matter how hard I try (even trying to do it on purpose) I cannot cause a check swing using Timing Only hitting on the Vita.

I wonder if there's a pressure sensitivity option I'm missing?

The Vita doesn't have pressure sensitive buttons.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

The Vita doesn't have pressure sensitive buttons.

Do you know whether or not that means there's no checking your swing with button hitting? Honestly, I'm not sure that it can be done.

[bcruise]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

And so my first impressions come from the Vita - I was playing it while letting the PS3 run CPU games.

Had a great first game of Cubs-Cards, winning 4-2 thanks to a 3-5, 2 RBI day from David DeJesus.

The fact that one can actually compare it to the PS3 version is amazing. Gameplay-wise, it's a dead ringer - It seriously felt like playing a PS3 version of the Show, and that's just something I could never say about the PSP game.

The framerate is noticeably 30 FPS as opposed to the PS3's near 60 almost all the time, but it didn't really detract from the gameplay at all. It didn't feel like there was any button lag at all in Zone hitting (I went for the Experienced Preset), although it took me several innings to get the hang of the Pulse Pitching. It seemed like I had to press the button earlier than I wanted, but my brain might not have been registering the meter quite so well at 5:30 in the morning.

The analog sticks will take some getting used to (especially if you have twitchy thumbs), but they're so much better than the PSP nubs it's not funny, for a game like this. I had no problems hitting at all, but Pulse again gave me some early trouble because I had to hold the stick in place while I waited for the meter. May give the touch controls a go when I try it again.

The only thing I thought was lacking was, as has been said many times already, the presentation. It really is a game of speed baseball, with virtually every extraneous scene from the PS3 cut out. I realize it's a design decision and I respect that, but it is jarring to see it stripped down that much and I hope it could at least be expanded upon for next year. In the end it's not really that much different from the PSP version in this department, save for a lack of auto-replays. Also cut seems to be a lot of the "story" commentary the PS3 gets, how they'll talk about a certain player, team or situation in-between pitches. Everything they say on the Vita has to do with what's going on on the field.

Great first gameplay experience on the handheld all in all, with my only complaints being in the presentation department (and one odd throwing bug that I've already documented). If the Vita version's aim is to deliver a streamlined version of The Show's PS3 gameplay experience, it appears to do it very, very well.

[bcruise]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Do you know whether or not that means there's no checking your swing with button hitting? Honestly, I'm not sure that it can be done.

Not a problem here - I was checking swings all throughout my first game using Zone.

[Flightwhite24]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Not a problem here - I was checking swings all throughout my first game using Zone.

Same here I have had no problems with check swings.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Same here I have had no problems with check swings.

Thanks guys.

I need some help then. I went into batting practice for 2 rounds for the sole purpose of trying to do this.

I mean I literally took 40 pitches worth of check swing practice. Nada.

Are any of you using Timing hitting? Again, I had no problems with Analog. I guess I'm confused, because if there's no pressure sensitivity, how does the Vita recognize a check swing? Am I supposed to tap the button twice? I'm so lost!

(Mods, I will delete these posts once I figure this out. Sorry, but I don't see a Vita Q&A thread)

[bluealtoid]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Thanks guys.

I need some help then. I went into batting practice for 2 rounds for the sole purpose of trying to do this.

I mean I literally took 40 pitches worth of check swing practice. Nada.

Are any of you using Timing hitting? Again, I had no problems with Analog. I guess I'm confused, because if there's no pressure sensitivity, how does the Vita recognize a check swing? Am I supposed to tap the button twice? I'm so lost!

(Mods, I will delete these posts once I figure this out. Sorry, but I don't see a Vita Q&A thread)

No problems check swinging at all via zone hitting.. Have you tried zone hitting just to see if check swinging works? If you can't get it to work by lightly / quickly tapping then something is wrong.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

No problems check swinging at all via zone hitting.. Have you tried zone hitting just to see if check swinging works? If you can't get it to work by lightly / quickly tapping then something is wrong.

I'll try it and report back.

Could someone load up a game and try to check using Timing for me in the meantime? I'm losing my mind!!! Well sort of. I'll be back. I'm sure I'm just doing something wrong, but what it is I am unsure.

[metal134]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Picked this up on my way to take my car in. Only got in about 15 minutes worth while waiting for my car, but here are some observations. Mainly, I focused on pitching. I only played a few innings, but I switched around between pitching modes just to get the feel for them on the Vita. First, I tried analog. I thought analog would be more difficult on Vita because of the stubbiness of the analog sticks. This was not the case. It was fluid and accurate. Then I tried meter. Playing this on PSP in the past, the meter was always kind of difficult to see. But in the Vita version, it was very clear and the sweet spot was easy to see. Then I tried pulse. I only played an inning with it, so I can't really make a judgement/differentiation from classic just yet.

Some other quick observations.
Loved the graphics. Not quite even early PS3 quality, but close enough.
I tried fooling around with rear touch pickoffs, but couldn't figure it out. I will have to check the manual or try a tutorial or something.
Maybe I'm missing something, but I can't figure out how to turn off menu music. I know Sounds of the Show isn't in here, but I was still hoping for custom menu music or at the very least, being able to turn off the default soundtrack because, to be perfectly honest, I hate it and, if I can't use my own songs, would rather have silence.

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

The first thing I did last night, until freaking 1:00 AM, was try to figure out how to turn the menu music off too. The only way I could accomplish this was by going to audio settings and turning off all of the music.

[bcruise]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

I'll try it and report back.

Could someone load up a game and try to check using Timing for me in the meantime? I'm losing my mind!!! Well sort of. I'll be back. I'm sure I'm just doing something wrong, but what it is I am unsure.

I went into practice and had no problems checking my swing on timing either.

Try this: Go into practice mode and try playing the Timing or Contact games. Everything you'll see will be a strike, so try to practice checking against those (even if you won't actually do that in a real game).

Reason being, when you time a swing on an offspeed, out of the zone pitch badly you'll often get those lunging, off-balance swings (it tells you as much in the analyzer). Those are almost impossible to check, even for good hitters. When your timing is good you should find it a lot easier to check.

Also, I'm sure you know this, but it's easier to check a normal or contact swing than a power swing. Good luck!

[Heroesandvillains]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

I went into practice and had no problems checking my swing on timing either.

Try this: Go into practice mode and try playing the Timing or Contact games. Everything you'll see will be a strike, so try to practice checking against those (even if you won't actually do that in a real game).

Reason being, when you time a swing on an offspeed, out of the zone pitch badly you'll often get those lunging, off-balance swings (it tells you as much in the analyzer). Those are almost impossible to check, even for good hitters. When your timing is good you should find it a lot easier to check.

Also, I'm sure you know this, but it's easier to check a normal or contact swing than a power swing. Good luck!

Thanks for the advice. Practice, here I come!

I was checking like a machine - one specifically programmed to be a check swing master - last night on the PS3 version. So I know I can do it (forgive my little pep talk to myself)!

You're probably right. I'm sure it's just me trying to adjust to the new console.

[bcruise]

Re: MLB 12 The Show - Vita Impressions Thread

Heads up for the guys who skip a lot of games - the Vita's sim speed is considerably slower than the PS3. I was just skipping to a random game in Season mode in July on both systems, and it took around a second to sim each day. That might not seem like much of a big deal, but consider that Franchise mode has 3 times the games as season mode and things might start getting a little slow in that mode.

Just setting expectations a bit.

Edit: Ooooh....Even with the presentation as bare bones as it is, one thing did make it over from PS3 - the franchise ticker!