Sony delivers another quality
baseball title with MLB 07: The Show. This edition includes many new modes
and features. The most impressive of these allows you to create a player
and use them in an elaborate career mode. Expanded online offerings,
including live stats updates and additional multiplayer modes add depth.
MLB 07's basic play mechanics have also been tweaked with improved
pitching and batting interface. The game's excellent visuals, intuitive
controls and realistic play make this the best PSP baseball title yet.
While there have been loads of sports
titles released on the PSP in the past two years, one of the more
surprising things is how consistent Sony's first-party releases have been.
The latest release from the company, MLB 07 - The Show is no exception.
MLB 07 offers many of the traditional modes of play, but includes enough
improvements and changes to be a worthy addition to the series. The game
offers several unique modes, the most impressive of which is Road To The
Show. This is an elaborate player-focused career mode where you can take a
created player through the ranks from spring training to the big leagues.
In this mode, you control that player, and only that player as you work
through each game. As you play through the mode, you'll need to take
advantage of the manager's advice and perform specific tasks for them so
you can move up the ranks. It's a lot more interesting than many of the
statistical management modes many other baseball titles offer and feels
almost like a role-playing game. MLB 07 also includes several other
standard modes including single match, season and series modes. For online
players, the game now includes Leagues, which lets you play a season of
games against online opponents which is really impressive. Online players
can also follow their team live with the game's new MLB Broadcast mode
that updates your team live as you play the game. Players can also choose
to compete in a home run derby, or for sheer fun, can also play the arcade
style King of the Diamond mode, which makes a welcome return from Sony's
previous edition of MLB.
MLB
07's basic gameplay mechanics shouldn't really bother veteran gamers,
since the controls and basic play is fairly straightforward. Sony has
improved the game's base running which gives you better control over your
runners on base. The game's basic pitching and batting interfaces are
fairly good and the fielding play is fairly decent and allows you to make
great catches or throw the ball easily. Two of the biggest changes play a
significant role in how MLB 07 plays this time around occur on the
pitcher's mound. When you are deciding which pitch to throw, you can look
at the new "Pitch Command System." This allows you to see how
your pitcher is doing psychologically and includes a confidence meter,
which rises as you deliver strikes with that throw but declines when you
give up hits. It's very easy to use and allows you to see at a glance
what's working. This is an important tool which helps you to decide which
pitch to throw, and which will be the most effective. Its surprisingly
easy to use within the standard context of the game and makes MLB 7 much
easier to play. The other main new feature of the game this time around is
the new catcher AI which uses sophisticated AI to tell you which pitch to
use in certain situations. This is really sophisticated and lets you
battle hitters much more effectively. The advice you get is more
consistent and useful than in the past and makes it easier to figure out
what to thow. When you use these features together, they can act as a kind
of advanced tutorial that helps you become a more dangerous and effective
pitcher on the mound. Taken together, these improvements make for a much
better game that's more sophisticated, flows better and offers a deeper
simulation than last year's installment.
One of the more interesting online
features is the ability to create a unique playing card for your created
player. This can be viewed and used by other players in the lobbies to get
to know you, which allows you to add even more interaction and immersion
into the gameplay. Other online modes let you download realtime stats in
your game, update rosters and trades as the season progresses. MLB 07 also
includes an extensive set of options. When you get into the menus, you can
use this to adjust your difficulty, management system, and game length.
You can adjust MLB 07 in a number of different areas including playing
fast games, set-up your rotations and other options for a single game,
full season and management modes, along with online play. The game
includes a complete license for all Major League teams and players, along
with stadium and even spring training leagues. What's really impressive
about the game is its realism and depth. The level of detailed stats at
your disposal is impressive and helps to lend MLB 07 a much deeper replay
value than you'd expect on a handheld.
MLB
07's presentation is superb with an excellent graphics engine that creates
a realistic sensation of an actual ballgame. The player models look great
and move naturally as they move around the field. Its standard
presentation gives you an excellent viewing angle on the field and the
menus and interface can be set in such a way to become quite unobtrusive.
You can also change the angles in the pitcher/batter mode to different
perspectives as well. The game does an excellent job of recreating the
sound of baseball as well, everything from the crack of the bat to the
roar of the crowd has been faithfully recreated in the game. An excellent
play-by-play commentary adds even more flavor to the game's atmosphere and
creates a sense of actually watching a televised ballgame. Overall, MLB 07
- The Show delivers a surprisingly robust and deep gameplay experience
that shows of the PSP effectively. Its improved gameplay in the pitching
system helps to improve things dramatically, and helps to increase the
tension and strategy of a professional game. Excellent on-field controls
make playing the game intuitive with actions like running, fielding and
throwing simple to learn. The game's production values are superb and help
make MLB 07 one of the best looking and playing PSP sports titles to date
and a fine addition to any sports fan's handheld library.
- Michael Palisano
Grade:
B-
