MLB The Show Series (A Love Story)

[Bgrd1080]

I can't really put into words my obsession with this game.

MLB The Show wasn't my 1st baseball game. I am 35 and go back to Sega's World Series baseball games and then All Star baseball on the Nintendo 64 and then it was Triple Play on the PlayStation. I reluctantly switched to The Show 2005 because my beloved A's were on the cover. Delightfully I've never looked back. I didn't play video game baseball nearly as much back then as I was 17 and Madden really had me hooked. For me its always been sports games. The only two I would yearn for though were NCAA Football and Madden.
But now after MLB 20 I've basically gotten to the level that these games are the best sports videogames I have ever played as far as replay ability and enjoyment.
MLB is the only game I will digitally buy because I know I wont be selling it or trading it in ever. I just rotate in the next years edition when it arrives. MLB The Show is the only game I play where I will play it non stop for 2 months and then continuously comeback to it every few weeks. I cant quiet put my finger on why, but I think it is then best simulation sports game out today and obviously Operation Sports forums keep me actively engaged in the game. I can't say that for other games though. I live and breathe soccer (LFC YNWA) but Fifa doesn't encapsulate me the way this game or the forum does. I religiously check the franchise updates of CB weekly and now Dragster with his Nats franchise. I cant get enough of seeing how everyone's franchises play out, then compare it to my own. I play all the sports games but MLB is the only one I break out my notebook for and keep track of my franchise for. I have ordered the early edition with the hat strictly so I can get the game on Friday rather than Tuesday, which I know is crazy. I will never use the stubs, I might wear the hat from time to time but rarely. Its strictly so I can get my hands on the game quicker. I know its ridiculous and yet I can't help myself. I am daydreaming about my franchise basically since last Monday or Tuesday. Who do I start with? What do I do with it? I can't wait to get back to the boards and interact with everyone in the trade ideas forum and the "CountryBoy's Annual How's Your Franchise Going" thread.

I know this post didn't really have a specific point but I guess I just wanted to speak on my love for this franchise and everything SDS has done to breathe life into OS and MLB.
Four more days ladies and gents. I can't wait! I pray CB gets another early copy this year so he can help feed my obsession with this game until my copy arrives Friday.

[johnnydrum]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bgrd1080

I can't really put into words my obsession with this game. Four more days ladies and gents. I can't wait! I pray CB gets another early copy this year so he can help feed my obsession with this game until my copy arrives Friday.

"...Never trust a man who dosnt have a hobby--as he must ultimatley be a dick!"
- Mahatma Ghandi

Lol
Love your passion buddy, never let it go!
Speaking as a 52 year old child, I repeat the same formula / cycle every year: From September to January spend the Autumn / Winter frantically editing EAs NHL Game to make it at least realistic, then spend January to March cursing EAs buggy product, to the point of a melt down.....until March April arrives with MLB The Show!
It may not be perfect but its like a breath of fresh air.

All the best from the UK buddy!

[jcar0725]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bgrd1080

I can't really put into words my obsession with this game. MLB The Show wasn't my 1st baseball game. I am 35 and go back to Sega's World Series baseball games and then All Star baseball on the Nintendo 64 and then it was Triple Play on the PlayStation. I reluctantly switched to The Show 2005 because my beloved A's were on the cover. Delightfully I've never looked back. I didn't play video game baseball nearly as much back then as I was 17 and Madden really had me hooked. For me its always been sports games. The only two I would yearn for though were NCAA Football and Madden. But now after MLB 20 I've basically gotten to the level that these games are the best sports videogames I have ever played as far as replay ability and enjoyment. MLB is the only game I will digitally buy because I know I wont be selling it or trading it in ever. I just rotate in the next years edition when it arrives. MLB The Show is the only game I play where I will play it non stop for 2 months and then continuously comeback to it every few weeks. I cant quiet put my finger on why, but I think it is then best simulation sports game out today and obviously Operation Sports forums keep me actively engaged in the game. I can't say that for other games though. I live and breathe soccer (LFC YNWA) but Fifa doesn't encapsulate me the way this game or the forum does. I religiously check the franchise updates of CB weekly and now Dragster with his Nats franchise. I cant get enough of seeing how everyone's franchises play out, then compare it to my own. I play all the sports games but MLB is the only one I break out my notebook for and keep track of my franchise for. I have ordered the early edition with the hat strictly so I can get the game on Friday rather than Tuesday, which I know is crazy. I will never use the stubs, I might wear the hat from time to time but rarely. Its strictly so I can get my hands on the game quicker. I know its ridiculous and yet I can't help myself. I am daydreaming about my franchise basically since last Monday or Tuesday. Who do I start with? What do I do with it? I can't wait to get back to the boards and interact with everyone in the trade ideas forum and the "CountryBoy's Annual How's Your Franchise Going" thread. I know this post didn't really have a specific point but I guess I just wanted to speak on my love for this franchise and everything SDS has done to breathe life into OS and MLB. Four more days ladies and gents. I can't wait! I pray CB gets another early copy this year so he can help feed my obsession with this game until my copy arrives Friday.

I'm right there with ya buddy.

Sent from my thoughts

[Bgrd1080]

[quote=
Speaking as a 52 year old child, I repeat the same formula / cycle every year: From September to January spend the Autumn / Winter frantically editing EAs NHL Game to make it at least realistic, then spend January to March cursing EAs buggy product, to the point of a melt down.....until March April arrives with MLB The Show!
It may not be perfect but its like a breath of fresh air.

All the best from the UK buddy![/QUOTE]

Just got into NHL myself. Games fun but don't know enough to stay engaged in the franchise aspect.

Where abouts in the UK? My parents are from Liverpool. Was basically indoctrinated a Red. Miss my annual trips across the pond. Got too expensive.

[Caulfield]

Sox are red,
Base balls are blue.
I might not get to first base,
but I still love you.

[KnightTemplar]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bgrd1080

I can't really put into words my obsession with this game. MLB The Show wasn't my 1st baseball game. I am 35 and go back to Sega's World Series baseball games and then All Star baseball on the Nintendo 64 and then it was Triple Play on the PlayStation. I reluctantly switched to The Show 2005 because my beloved A's were on the cover. Delightfully I've never looked back. I didn't play video game baseball nearly as much back then as I was 17 and Madden really had me hooked. For me its always been sports games. The only two I would yearn for though were NCAA Football and Madden. But now after MLB 20 I've basically gotten to the level that these games are the best sports videogames I have ever played as far as replay ability and enjoyment. MLB is the only game I will digitally buy because I know I wont be selling it or trading it in ever. I just rotate in the next years edition when it arrives. MLB The Show is the only game I play where I will play it non stop for 2 months and then continuously comeback to it every few weeks. I cant quiet put my finger on why, but I think it is then best simulation sports game out today and obviously Operation Sports forums keep me actively engaged in the game. I can't say that for other games though. I live and breathe soccer (LFC YNWA) but Fifa doesn't encapsulate me the way this game or the forum does. I religiously check the franchise updates of CB weekly and now Dragster with his Nats franchise. I cant get enough of seeing how everyone's franchises play out, then compare it to my own. I play all the sports games but MLB is the only one I break out my notebook for and keep track of my franchise for. I have ordered the early edition with the hat strictly so I can get the game on Friday rather than Tuesday, which I know is crazy. I will never use the stubs, I might wear the hat from time to time but rarely. Its strictly so I can get my hands on the game quicker. I know its ridiculous and yet I can't help myself. I am daydreaming about my franchise basically since last Monday or Tuesday. Who do I start with? What do I do with it? I can't wait to get back to the boards and interact with everyone in the trade ideas forum and the "CountryBoy's Annual How's Your Franchise Going" thread. I know this post didn't really have a specific point but I guess I just wanted to speak on my love for this franchise and everything SDS has done to breathe life into OS and MLB. Four more days ladies and gents. I can't wait! I pray CB gets another early copy this year so he can help feed my obsession with this game until my copy arrives Friday.

Very nice. I go back even further and I loved all the games, even Interplay Baseball. Looking back at how pixelated most of these games were I get a good chuckle and “how could have I enjoyed THAT, but…..I did. I’ve just been a baseball nut, or just a nut, lol.

Thursday night at 9PM PST is my Christmas, as have been all release dates of this game. It only gets better. Does it take gigantic leaps? I don’t care. I’m not entitled enough, I guess. Thank you SDS. Looking very forward to your hard work and dedication to this game…..yet AGAIN.

[Madden08PCgmr]

I played a TON of World Series baseball on Sega back in the day.

I remember throwing a perfect game with John Smoltz.. didn't even realize what it was at the time. As I recall, I don't think there was even any mention or recognition of it on the game playthrough.

MLBtS is the best baseball game ever made.

I just want more retro options. Wish they could do the same thing OOTP does with baseballs rich history in their game.

[thescoop]

Quote: Originally Posted by Bgrd1080

I can't really put into words my obsession with this game. MLB The Show wasn't my 1st baseball game. I am 35 and go back to Sega's World Series baseball games and then All Star baseball on the Nintendo 64 and then it was Triple Play on the PlayStation. I reluctantly switched to The Show 2005 because my beloved A's were on the cover. Delightfully I've never looked back. I didn't play video game baseball nearly as much back then as I was 17 and Madden really had me hooked. For me its always been sports games. The only two I would yearn for though were NCAA Football and Madden. But now after MLB 20 I've basically gotten to the level that these games are the best sports videogames I have ever played as far as replay ability and enjoyment. MLB is the only game I will digitally buy because I know I wont be selling it or trading it in ever. I just rotate in the next years edition when it arrives. MLB The Show is the only game I play where I will play it non stop for 2 months and then continuously comeback to it every few weeks. I cant quiet put my finger on why, but I think it is then best simulation sports game out today and obviously Operation Sports forums keep me actively engaged in the game. I can't say that for other games though. I live and breathe soccer (LFC YNWA) but Fifa doesn't encapsulate me the way this game or the forum does. I religiously check the franchise updates of CB weekly and now Dragster with his Nats franchise. I cant get enough of seeing how everyone's franchises play out, then compare it to my own. I play all the sports games but MLB is the only one I break out my notebook for and keep track of my franchise for. I have ordered the early edition with the hat strictly so I can get the game on Friday rather than Tuesday, which I know is crazy. I will never use the stubs, I might wear the hat from time to time but rarely. Its strictly so I can get my hands on the game quicker. I know its ridiculous and yet I can't help myself. I am daydreaming about my franchise basically since last Monday or Tuesday. Who do I start with? What do I do with it? I can't wait to get back to the boards and interact with everyone in the trade ideas forum and the "CountryBoy's Annual How's Your Franchise Going" thread. I know this post didn't really have a specific point but I guess I just wanted to speak on my love for this franchise and everything SDS has done to breathe life into OS and MLB. Four more days ladies and gents. I can't wait! I pray CB gets another early copy this year so he can help feed my obsession with this game until my copy arrives Friday.

This is such a great thread. I wanted to add to it since I’m much older (47). My first baseball game I remember was RealSports Baseball for the Atari 2600. My brother got it. It wasn’t a great game at all but it was still cool to see a field with all the position players. However, its controls were a mess.

Then when the NES came and renting games became a thing we rented RBI baseball and had all the real players. Nevertheless, that wasn’t the game that defined my love for baseball games. No, that would be the original Bases Loaded. That game had the best graphics for the time and was fun. It was a huge game in our neighborhood.

Once we made the move to Sega Genesis, I tired Sports Talk Baseball and loved it. But LaRussa Baseball (which changed to MLBPA Baseball in a future edition after LaRussa 95 I think. In addition, eventually Triple Play), Hardball and RBI’s 16 bit efforts all got a spin. However, once World Series Baseball came out, I was hooked. World Series became my first annual purchase.

Then once the PS1 came on the scene, we got into the golden era of baseball video games. Triple Play got really good (before it became too arcade) but VR Baseball was a personal favorite for me. I know some that didn’t care for it but I was a fan. High Heat kept coming on strong and Sony got rolling with the MLB series. We finally started to see what baseball video games could be.

I never was into the N64 so there is no Ken Griffey baseball love from me but it deserves a mention due to how loved that game is. I have friends that swore by that title.

Of course, as we got into PS2, the era started very strong. All Star Baseball become of my go to games every year. Sega had World Series back. MLB Slugfest was a fun arcade title. Sony was still kicking with MLB until the 2006 version added the “the Show name. In addition, of course, after Triple Play went too arcade for most, EA returned with the MVP series that made huge improvements and made one of the best baseball games ever in MVP 2005.

Then the NFL decided to sell an exclusive rights agreement to EA for NFL video games. This made MLB offer one for third party manufacturers. (First parties like Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo could still make MLB licensed games.) Sega having lost their NFL game won the MLB third party rights. This meant no more All Star Baseball, no more MVP, and no Slugfest. We were done to two MLB games.
EA kept the MVP series going for two more years with MLB NCAA Baseball, which both were underrated titles, but we only had two MLB options now, Sega’s Major League Baseball 2K or MLB the Show. This was even worse if you had an Xbox because there was only one game in town.

The move to next gen saw Xbox 360 owners stuck with Sega’s offerings, which started off ok, but once they got bugger and even one year launched with bug that wouldn’t allow you advance your game until they released a patch a month or so later. Still, it was an ok game. Moreover, 2K8 introduced analog pitching that I thought would keep me with the series. However, a funny thing happened just a short time later.

I finally got a PS3 to play the new Metal Gear Solid 4 and I decided to get the Show just to try it out. I was blown away. Commentary was on point. The game was hard but solid. It was an amazing game. I have been with The Show ever since. It saved me from a few years of terrible Sega released titles.
This title appeared to be listening to its fan base. They added things like the Rule 5 Draft. And they worked on updating stadiums and Sounds of the Show was amazing and still missed to this day.

The Show has had some issues in recent years but nothing that has made me not want to pick it up. My love for baseball games runs really deep. And this title has really helped get me a great fix. (Just keep working on improving Franchise after a few years off from making it a focus.)