Making the Leap From MLB The Show to Out of the Park Baseball

[Steve_OS]

If you’re a true die-hard baseball fan, one video game simulation just isn't enough. As someone...

Written By: Kevin Scott

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[Peter_OS]

Great article Kevin!

I made the leap to OOTP and have never looked back. Give this game a chance and you'll be hooked too. Love the ability to manage a baseball team and the strategy on the field. The depth of this game is incredible...

[michdb8]

if OOTP have just a 1/4 of the gameplay of the show  ill awesome cause have the best sport franchise mode

[ttrobbins84]

I have owned nearly every version since the first OOTP release. They have made a ton of strides through the years, and that's putting it lightly. The depth that you can experience when playing this is crazy. I love creating a new fictional league in the early 1900's and letting it simulate until the 90's. Then I take over and be a GM of whatever the worst team in history is. Over the past few years they've been working on giving some graphical look to the on the field game play which just makes this feel even better. In the past you'd see the text "Back, back, back..." on a long hit. Now you see the ball in flight. Like Peter_OS said, the depth and strategy of the game makes this engrossing. If you're a fan of baseball I strongly suggest it. You can find free versions online of their older games. You'll miss out on the in game graphics but you'll still get a taste of the management aspect. It's unlike any other game on the market. I know once upon a time they were developing a football game, however the lead had health issues and haven't seen anything further on that. Sorry for the long post. 

[ijac]

OOTP and The Show need to have a baby. When I play The Show I’m miss the in depth team management of OOTP.   When I play OOTP I miss controlling the on-field action.  Both great games. 

[GWPump23]

Appreciate where you’re going here but comparing these two title  aren’t apples to apples.  The “if you’re willing to sacrifice this for that etc” argument is crazy.  Yes, franchise mode is crazy awesome in OOTP but OOTP’s gameplay rivals PONG...

neither title perfect, both amazingly in their own ways but really not playing on the same playing fields IMO... completely different experiences.

-GW-

[ttrobbins84]

ijac very well said. 

[KennyJ1976]

Well, if you don't mind the Japanese language barrier, Pro Yakyuu Spirits 2019 will be available in July.  

[KBLover]

Re: Making the Leap From MLB The Show to Out of the Park Baseball

*Yes, franchise mode is crazy awesome in OOTP but OOTP’s gameplay rivals PONG...

I wouldn't go that far.

I guess it depends on what you define as gameplay.

To me, making strategic moves is gameplay. Just like in a empire-building game like Romance of the Three Kingdoms or in a lot of respects Total War when not in PvP.

I'm not controlling how each individual soldier in my army fights, I'm controlling the composition, the resource management, the strategy, the leadership that will go into that army's performance on the field.

OOTP is a baseball version of that.

[canes21]

Re: Making the Leap From MLB The Show to Out of the Park Baseball

I don't remember the first OOTP I bought. I haven't been with the franchise as long as many here, but I've been playing it for sometime now. Once they added the 3D on field stuff I've loved the game even more. I am someone that really gets immersed more with visual representation of what is going on and the 3D gave me that. I haven't bought The Show for 2 years now and a big part of that is OOTP. While The Show continues to change the minimal amount with their franchise mode, OOTP already offered huge amounts of depth and customization for the franchise. They continued to make strides yearly and I just don't see myself going back to The Show until their franchise mode can match the depth of OOTP.

[beastmode2013]

Re: Making the Leap From MLB The Show to Out of the Park Baseball

I really hope sports titles take a cue from OOTPD and continue to push their games, instead of getting fat and happy with only monetized gambling modes. I would love for developers to soon be able to support and create more complex games and give us

Out of the Park: The Show

[kamackeris76]

i really want to get into it but as a newcomer i find it very daunting to get started !!

[canes21]

Re: Making the Leap From MLB The Show to Out of the Park Baseball

I really hope sports titles take a cue from OOTPD and continue to push their games, instead of getting fat and happy with only monetized gambling modes. I would love for developers to soon be able to support and create more complex games and give us

Well, OotP has added Perfect Team to the game which is similar to Ultimate Team. Also, OotP probably doesn't make close to the same type of money the bigger name sports games do. I'd say part of that is being PC only. Part of it is not having any traditional on-field gameplay. I do wish every sports titles out there had a franchise mode as deep and feature rich as OotP at the minimum, but they focus on their Ultimate Team modes for a reason.

[dukefan123a]

Re: Making the Leap From MLB The Show to Out of the Park Baseball

So I bit the bullet and bought OOTP 20. I've been an avid player of MLB the Show and enjoy Franchise Mode the most, making trades, drafting prospects and trying to rebuild teams.

For those that are familiar with the game, what would you recommend I do when I start? Is there a franchise mode you can jump right into? Any suggestions that you think would help me dive into that simulation experience and help me learn the game would be great.

[CujoMatty]

I’ve been playing OOTP for probably 5 years or so. I have always liked it but never got too deep into it. I always felt a disconnect just simming games and it’s way too much work to play all the games out. Ultimately I just didn’t ever feel very connected to my team.

This year however I figured out a way that has me way more invested. Instead of just playing the games or just simming through time quickly I go into the “play games from league schedule” section, check hide scores then do a quick sim and then watch highlights. I get to experience my team this way and because I hide score I don’t know how the game is going to unfold. It’s also not anywhere near as time consuming as playing out full games. It’s really helped me care more about my team and the players.