MLB the show 23
MLB The Show 23 was released in Early Access to pre-order customers on March 24. It comes out for everyone else on Tuesday, March 28.
After spending at least a dozen hours playing the game, here’s an in-depth look at every major aspect of MLB The Show 23.
Images, sounds and sensations
While preparing for the release of MLB The Show 23, Sony San Diego did not devote any social media streams or posts to the progress of the visuals. For the most part, the visual fidelity is on par with what we’ve come to expect from sports video games released in this era.
This is something that probably won’t bother the vast majority of players, and it’s unlikely to be a major topic of discussion in most MLB The Show circles. A more active topic of discussion is gameplay changes.
Users who did not have a chance to participate in the playtest will immediately notice a change in playmaking, especially in throws. There’s more delay in the throw counter display, and the counter’s sweet spot shifts and narrows to add a bit of challenge and variation. The size of the sweet spot is dictated by the defender’s ratings and the situation (angle, body position, etc.)
While this isn’t a change that most users would describe as revolutionary, it is something that consumers will recognize when they play the game for the first time. Another notable change is what Sony has done to differentiate between different play styles.
In an effort to appease the competitive community, the settings of all online matchups have been adjusted to reduce the randomness included in the simulation settings. For example, competition settings are less friendly when it comes to making contact with pitches when the home plate coverage indicator barely touches the ball. Additionally, stronger contact will be rewarded with hits, and fewer instances of weak contact will result in success.
The simulation settings were mostly kept to mimic the randomness that sometimes occurs in real MLB games.
Sony has also taken steps to improve sound effects and audio presentation. The game has completely reworked bat sounds, designed to convey the different levels of contact made with the baseball. Other baseball sounds have also been reworked, such as slides, mitt pops and more.
The game also includes iconic crowd chants for all 30 MLB teams.
The visual presentation of the game has also seen some changes. Users can now choose between The Show theme or a regional package for each game. Regional packages include location-specific overlays and monoliths to drive home the concept of a home network like Marquee for the Chicago Cubs or TBS for the Atlanta Braves.
Negro Leagues, which I’ll talk about shortly, also has a specific audio and visual presentation associated with the mode and experience.
The Negro Leagues
In many ways, the Negro League – Storylines feature was the biggest new feature in this year’s version of MLB The Show. I spoke with Sony San Diego Studios’ Ramone Russell, one of fashion’s biggest inspirations and supporters, about the work that went into making this a reality.
Storylines takes users on an edutainment journey through the careers and impact of eight influential Negro Leagues players: Buck O’Neil, Martin Dihigo, John Donaldson, Hilton Smith, Jackie Robinson, Rube Foster, Hank Thompson and Satchel Paige.
Each player’s story is told in a series of Moments called Episodes. Most MLB the Show users will recognize the format from previous games. Episodes are almost always preceded by a short introduction (30 to 60 seconds) narrated by Negro League President Bob Kendrick. Each episode has an objective that advances you through each series and unlocks several Negro-League-related items that can be used in Diamond Dynasty.
Once the user completes all eight scenarios, which include a 90-rated overall version of each player, they obtain an overall 95-rated Buck O’Neill card for use in DD.
History buffs and those who appreciate the plight, struggles, and success of black American pioneers will greatly enjoy this experience, beyond the DD items that are unlocked for completion.
Diamond Dynasty
Sony has introduced a whole new approach to collector’s modes in this year’s version of Diamond Dynasty. With its new concept of sets, Sony is releasing cards rated 99 overall at launch. These cards serve as hunting items for 6-8 weeks until a new set is released and the cycle repeats.
However, cards that users are particularly fond of in previous seasons can be retained via the new Wild Card option, which allows users to keep their favorite options throughout the lifecycle of this year’s game.
Users only get one Wild Card option per set.
There are also Core cards that can be used during any Set all year round. Sony also introduced Captain cards designed to add some flavor to the themed team trend that has become popular in sports game collectibles.
These Captain cards also provide potential upgrades for other players on your DD team if they meet specific criteria. This feature was added to provide an additional layer to the concept of team building in DD.
Sony also introduced new layers for mini-seasons and ranked seasons. Mini-Seasons now offer three ways to play. Users can start themed seasons, which are closed in the same way as events. The first themed mini-season available is Left Loosey, which requires the user to play the entire 28-game season with all left-handed hitters and pitchers.
Team Affinity returns throughout DD, and it is used in Mini-Seasons through the use of specific series cards: Captains, Charisma, Live Series as well as Flashbacks and Legends.
The third way to play mini-seasons is in Classic mode, which is how it worked when the feature was introduced in MLB The Show 22.
One of the other major changes to DD is the progression of new programs. In this year’s game, users will be able to continue earning XP and rewards even after reaching the end of the path. MLB The Show 23 now puts users in a loop that allows them to continue collecting rewards every time they earn 25,000 XP above the designated peak of the reward path.
With the added layers, DD has more options and requires users to make more decisions regarding queues and overall approach. The game still allows users to earn XP in all game modes, which can be spent on DD.
Franchise mode and March to October
The Show’s franchise mode has drawn some criticism from the community in recent years due to what some users call a lack of depth. In order to address these concerns, Sony has made two notable changes.
The first change comes from an in-game addition.
The Show 23 amateur project has been expanded to include a detailed reconnaissance format. The new format incorporates the unknown element into the draft and scouting. The show calls it “the fog of war,” which puts users at risk for potential failures due to injury and poor performance.
There is also a way to find a diamond in the rough.
The reconnaissance process involves several steps and is designed to work as a parallel story to the narrative generated in each user’s franchise mode. These screening options also run from March to October, as Sony takes steps to delve deeper into the accelerated version of Franchise Mode.
The other addition Sony made this year was a personal decision. He hired Scott Spindler, aka Ridin, to help him create authentic minor league rosters and other franchise fashion concepts.
At launch, this year’s game had what appeared to be 75% more bona fide minor leaguers on the base roster than this time last year. Additionally, Spindler has been instrumental in adding players from the World Baseball Classic who are not on a Major League roster.
Spindler has been a popular member of The Show community for years and his Full Minors roster is a must-have for many fans of the franchise mode. It looks like The Show games in the future could have a similar level of detail in their minor league rosters with Spindler on board.
Based on Sony San Diego’s history, it’s reasonable to expect that the development team will continue to add comprehensive microfeatures to strengthen Franchise Mode in the future. Perhaps free agency and/or customization will be the areas that receive the most love in MLB The Show 24.
On the way to the show
MLB The Show 23’s single-player career mode saw the least amount of individual focus. From what I could see over a plethora of hours playing the game and going through previews, there were only slight touches of presentation in Road to the Show.
For users who enjoy playing RTTS more than any other mode, this will be a disappointment. As it stands, the mode is almost in the same position as it was in MLB The Show 22, aside from gameplay changes that affect all modes.
The essential
The Metacritic score for MLB The Show 23 was 78 years old at the time of publication of this article.
All in all, MLB The Show 23 offers an in-depth baseball simulation with a variety of new features in gameplay, Diamond Dynasty, and franchise mode, but almost nothing new in RTTS.
However, if Franchise Mode, March to October or Diamond Dynasty are your favorite modes, there will probably be enough interesting new features and improvements.
A review copy of MLB the Show 23 was provided by Sony.
