MLB ’06: The Show – PSP – Review

In an EA
Sports-dominated field, it’s great to see a first-party Major League Baseball on
Sony’s PlayStation 2 as well as its portable entertainment machine the PSP.
Sure, we’ve experienced MLB on the PSP before and yes baseball fans loved
the game but with a new baseball season right around the corner MLB ‘06: The
Show is a welcomed addition to the lineup. So put on your ball cap and grab
your PSP because this time it’s all about you, slugger.

Don’t get me
wrong, MLB for the PSP was a nicely packaged ball game but it was missing
a few gameplay and game mode options that would have made the difference. This
year, though, our prayers have been answered and new additions as well as a
Season Mode and a Career Mode have been added. If you’re thinking the game went
through a major gameplay change, though, you’ll be a bit disappointed. The core
gameplay mechanics are still present but with some additional batting and field
options … but we’ll get to that in a moment.

The real meat of
this year’s game is its Career Mode, a mode that was missing in MLB. For
starters, it’s all about you, or a player you create through the game’s creation
options. You can even decide on your athlete’s batting stance, arm accuracy or
bunting strength and walkup music (rock, Latin or even country). From there you
assign the team you want your created player to play for and go through the 2006
spring training until you win a permanent spot on the team. You’ll have access
to your own locker room where you can spend points “training” your player to
throw more accurately or bunt more effectively. You’ll even be rewarded for
completing a number of different goals like collecting three or more total bases
in a game or hit one or more doubles in a game. You can play the games on your
team’s calendar or choose to sim the game or your at-bats even if the game’s in
the ninth inning. The most interesting new feature with Career Mode is the
ability to complain to your manager of a number of topics and go from rookie to
the Hall of Fame to retire with class.

This year’s game
also added a deep Season Mode that pretty much has you following your team
through a lengthy season as you manage nearly every aspect of your franchise’s
business. It’s a much welcomed mode, to say the least, as is the Home Run Derby
mode you’ll want to play with a friend. New to the series is King of the
Diamond, an arcade-styled mini-game that offers a timed pitcher/batter duel
between the Crimson team and the Cobalt team comprised of your favorite batters
and pitchers. If you’re looking for a good distraction from the great Career and
Season Mode, King of the Diamond will win you over. There’s a Quick Play and
Exhibition mode that includes various teams including the option to play as
legendary players of yesteryear.

As I mentioned
above, the gameplay has gone through a few changes but nothing that should be
considered dramatic. The core gameplay from last year is intact and that’s not
bad considering MLB played considerably better than MVP Baseball
for the PSP. The few changes, though, are very welcomed features that add more
depth to the field and batting aspects of the game. For one thing, there are now
user-controlled slides, allowing you to inch your way to the next base without
automatically just going for the next base and hoping for the best. You can
still make diving catches and the Field Zone Marker plays to the attributes of
individual fielders so the size of the zone becomes bigger and more noticeable
for certain players. This makes it easier for highly ranked fielders to
determine where the fly ball will land.

Pitching feels a
lot more complete in this year’s edition thanks to the Release Point Pitching
feature that makes it return as well as the Confidence Meter. A pitcher’s
confidence plays a big role during a game and if it’s low you’ll start seeing
more mistakes and even wild pitches that will have you pulling out the pitcher.
You can attempt pickoffs and pitch outs far more easily in this game. Batting is
handled a lot better as well. You have better freedom to influence the direction
of your bunts and you can even attempt to guess the pitch type before the ball
leaves the pitcher’s hand. These are great additions considering the fact that
the opponent AI is pretty sharp and accurate when it comes to player performance
(watch out for David Ortiz in this game, he’s on fire).

For the most
part, the roster is pretty accurate and SCEA San Diego deserves a round of
applause for including the NEWS2GO Offline Reader, an online news service that
offers a scroll with updated information. It’s actually a dream come true for
ball fans who want to keep updated on that trade or tidbits that pertain to
their favorite team or player. I’ve been online just reading the various news
items (I counted 27 items including an interesting tidbit on the Dodgers front).
This feature goes excellently with the online multiplayer mode (you can play
wireless through the Ad-Hoc Mode or online through Infrastructure Mode).
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to really test the Ad-Hoc Mode but online the game
ran decently.

On the visual
front, MLB ‘06 doesn’t look too different from last year’s game but then
again when it comes to the player models you’ll certainly notice the
differences. The players look amazingly detailed and their movements are much
more fluid and natural. There are even more animations that make each play stand
out (bats break and batters recoil from wild pitches). The fans might still look
like a blocky pixilated mess but it’s hard to complain about a game that makes
each stadium look particularly gorgeous and the overall presentation look like
it belongs on a television set.

The game’s sound
is particularly well done when it comes to the detailed stadium sounds. Even
without ear phones you’ll notice the chattering of excited fans, the hecklers,
the stadium PA announcers pointing out that Monday is Ball Cap Day. It’s by far
better than MLB’s decent stadium sounds and there’s even a better
assortment of tunes from the likes of Dilated Peoples, Story of the Year and the
MIDI Mafia. There’s a 3-Man commentary team that includes Matt Vasgersian, Dave
Campbell and now Rex Hudler. Their commentary is fresh and hardly repetitive
although it’s not as on-the-spot as it should be.

MLB ‘06: The
Show feels
like a more complete version of last year’s game so if you missed that one you
seriously should consider buying this one right away. Then again, if you’re a
fan of the sport you’ll want to pick it up anyway seeing as the new Career Mode
alone is worth the purchase price. With more field and batting options, crisper
visuals and fun new features, you do not want to miss this one.

Gameplay: 8.5
Control-wise,
the game hasn’t changed considerably and that’s not a bad thing at all but
thankfully there are some new additions that make this a more complete portable
ball game. Career Mode is a dream come true and the new King of the Diamond mode
will not fail to keep you entertained.

Graphics: 8.2
Far more
sharper than last year’s graphically pleasing game, MLB ‘06 sports some
sharper player models with realistic and far more natural movements and nicely
detailed stadiums. The fans still look awful but with loads of animations and a
crisp presentation it’s easy to ignore that eyesore.

Sound: 8.0
There are rock
tunes and some hip-hop decent enough to make the main menus and pause menu
bearable but the best audible feature here are the incredibly detailed stadium
sounds. Really, play this one with the PSP ear buds because the sound will make
you feel like you’re sitting with the fans. The three-man booth commentary is
far better than last year’s game but just a tad on the slow side.

Difficulty:
Medium
The opponent
AI will not fail to challenge even the most seasoned veteran and most star
athletes will play like the real deal. Both Season and Career Mode will provide
enough challenges for any fan of the sport.

Concept: 8.5
It’s great to
see returning favorites like the Release Point Pitching and the Pitching
Confidence Meter but its even better to find new features that add more sizzle
to the game such as user-controlled slides. The game’s Career Mode is the real
star of the show but King of the Diamond and the wonderfully deep Season Mode
will feel like you’ve died and gone to Baseball Heaven.

Multiplayer:
7.5
At the time of
this writing, I was only able to find a single player online (using
Infrastructure Mode) and the game moved along quite decently despite a few
stutters here and there. You can play with a friend using Ad-Hoc connectivity
and go head-to-head in various different modes including Homerun Derby.

Overall: 8.5
A minor change
over last year’s game, MLB ‘06: The Show is quite simply the best
handheld baseball game you’ll own on the PSP. Think of this more as a tighter,
extended version of last year’s game with shaper visuals, better sound and a
Career Mode anyone who calls themselves a baseball fan will simply go bonkers
over. Is this a Must Have PSP game? You better believe it, sports fan.