MLB The Show 16 Review

The Show Proves It’s the Greatest Baseball Sim Ever

There’s something so pure and beautiful about the game of baseball that other sports can’t quite capture. The crack of the bat, the smell of the freshly cut grass, the hotdog vendors, and even the strange allure of coaches wearing uniforms all add to the mystique that surrounds the game. MLB The Show 16 certainly captures the essence of America’s favorite pastime – so much so, that this might be the best baseball simulator to ever hit the video game platform.

After logging some serious time with MLB The Show 16 , at least 50 games and nearly 30-35 hours of gameplay, I’m really impressive with the tile from top to bottom. The amount of depth contained within this year’s title is absolutely ridiculous. Not only did San Diego Studio add hundreds of new player animations, home run and team celebrations, more authentic fielding mechanics, a stunning set of visuals, and a wealth of baseball legends, but they also beefed nearly up every game mode.

The most exciting revamped mode within this year’s title is, without a doubt, Road To The Show. This upgraded experience allows gamers to create a player from the ground up, customize his skills and abilities through in-game earned credits, and take him from Single-A ball all the way up through the majors. Gamers can also earn and activate unique gameplay perks all while experiencing MLB The Show 16 ’s new, streamlined gameplay logic. It lets you simulate unnecessary parts of the game that don’t involve your created player, so you can spend more time shelling opposing pitchers and less time watching the bottom of your team’s lineup whiff at pitches in the dirt.

Conquest mode adds an entirely new layer to your Diamond Dynasty franchise by allowing gamers to take your custom team through all of North America in an effort to become America’s most popular ball club. The main objective of Conquest is to beat teams around the US in an effort to gain as many fans as possible. Once fans have been acquired, players can position their fans into specific territories across the US, all in an effort to blanket the entire country with your specific team’s fans.

If baseball’s version of Risk isn’t quite your cup of tea, then perhaps Battle Royal is more to your liking. Once again players can take their hard earn franchise form Diamond Dynasty on the road. However, this time players will take their squad into a series of online tournaments. Earn rewards, additional players, and team items with each victory on the diamond. Fight your way through the PSN community on your way to become a dominant franchise both online and off.

The game modes’ improvement and the addition of mini games are always a nice to see from a yearly released franchise. However, if the stellar game modes didn’t have a rock solid set of gameplay mechanics backing it, then they would have been nothing more than a beater with nice rims and sweet sound system. The good news is, MLB The Show 16 controls well. The batting and pitching mechanics are highly intuitive and change depending on the particular situation. For example, if your pitching with a guy like Jake Arrieta, but you’ve managed to load the bases up with no outs, your ability to throw strikes becomes increasingly hard as a result of the stressful situation. The same can be said if you’re up to bat with runners in scoring position, and you’re down by a few runs. Getting a base hit becomes much more difficult. The game seems to bend a flex depending on what’s happening and how you respond to each situation that’s presented.

Yes, MLB The Show 16 truly has something for everyone, regardless of your level of baseball fandom and your skill when it comes to playing virtual baseball. One really intriguing aspect of the game comes in the ability to adjust the difficulty settings on the fly. If you’re new to the series or game of baseball, it allows you to get in at the ground floor with the Beginner and Dynamic settings. Beginner features pitchers throwing nothing but strikes over the plate, while the Dynamic difficulty will adjust to your playing ability and progressively increase as your skills and knowledge of the game develop over time. Players can also opt for fielding and baserunning assistance until they get their feet firmly planted.

Needless to say, I haven’t been this excited for a sports game in a long time, especially when it came out of nowhere. I was completely blown away when I fired up MLB The Show 16 game for the first time and haven’t been able to put the thing down. Developer San Diego Studio clearly pulled out all the stops on this one with the amount of detail and thought that went into crafting this simulator of perfection.

The visuals and upgrade player models, beautiful broadcasting packages, improved game modes, and the epic homerun celebrations are just a few of the reason this game is truly awesome. There’s no better way to get amped up for the upcoming baseball season than with MLB The Show 16 . This year’s version is worth every penny and will go down as the best baseball simulator ever created. It will hold you over until the Cubbies hoist the World Series trophy in October.

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 4.8 Graphics
The essence of baseball is beautifully captured in the well-defined visuals. Player models, stadiums, classic stadiums, and the broadcast package are perfectly done. 4.8 Control
No more clunky base running mechanics or stiff batting controls. The movements are intuitive and feel like an extension of the player. 5.0 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
Sheer brilliance. All the small auditory nuances of the game are on full display, even the broadcasting voice-overs are spot on. 4.8 Play Value
A huge amount of replay value in the revamped game modes and the online offerings. 4.9 Overall Rating – Must Buy
Not an average. See Rating legend below for a final score breakdown.