Pre launch DD Grades
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Pointless, and obviously highly subjective to change
And no one likely cares but hey I am killing timeNew UI: B+ pleasantly surprised what I saw of it. LS collection screen is awesome
Mini Seasons: B we didnt see what the base mini season. WBC is great but the repeatable collections are a bit overtuned. 57 runs in a 7 game season? 200 hit repeating?
DQ: D cards look good but no announced changes to a mode that desperately needed them
Conquest: B nothing new, doesnt need to be, repeatable mission is a little weak but it exists so Ill take it
Ranked track: B looks better than last year, tough to tell for sure without all the missions revelaed
Events: B+ I know most people will dislike not having Events always active but I really like the style of program here, and wins still matter for multiplayer program, at least for now
BR: F no reason to play for most people, no henchmen
Inning Track: C+ looks better than last year, but still more of the same and not very exciting
WBC Programs: A+ Well done with these
TA: D Saved from being an F because the captains themselves are good, but with no future drops I cant score it any higher.
Live Series: C-: The Felix card is great, and the divisional cards look solid but this is not the place to put lower tier new legends like Burnitz and Figgins. Pujols card underwhelming compared to his career, Tulo underwhelming name for top reward
Oh! almost forgot Parallel mods: A+...love this idea and I rarely P5 my cards
Overall B Would be a A-/A with a 21/23 style TA
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Going into MLB The Show 26, based on everything I’ve seen and read so far, I’d give the game an overall B+ heading into launch.
Starting with the Live Series collection, I’d give that a B-. It’s hard not to compare it to past years. Felix Hernandez and Tulo just don’t really stack up with some of the elite collection rewards we’ve had before. When you think about Roger Clemens and Carlos Beltrán last year (with Beltrán being a switch hitter), or even going further back to rewards like Mickey Mantle or Chipper Jones, this year’s feels a little underwhelming by comparison.
That said, there are a lot of changes I really like.
One big one is events having real meaning again. In recent years they felt pretty pointless, so having actual incentives to play them should be a nice improvement.
I also really like the addition of Parallel Mods. That’s a feature the game has desperately needed for a while because it finally gives players some customization. Other sports games have had similar systems for years — for example, NBA 2K had a shoe upgrade/customization system at least as far back as 2K19 (which is the first year I played, and it might have existed even earlier). So it’s good to see The Show finally moving in that direction.
Another positive is that Team Affinity won’t be the main content drop anymore. Dropping 30 cards all at once was never a great idea because it overshadowed everything else in the game. It basically reset everyone’s teams overnight and made a lot of other content feel pointless. Spreading content out more should make the progression feel better.
One underrated improvement might be the overhaul to attributes. Pitchers will now have different ratings against right-handed vs left-handed batters, and fielders will have directional fielding ratings instead of one blanket attribute. Hopefully this helps balance gameplay — especially in the outfield, where defenders have felt overpowered in past years.
We’ll have to see how it plays once the game actually releases, but overall I’m feeling pretty optimistic with a B+ grade going in.
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Live Collections rewards are brutal this year. From the team, to the division, to the collection. Team affinity choices are better.
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@NWOStunna_PSN yeah I’m not thrilled with the choices. Even Pujols, he’s a big name and great attributes on paper but I didn’t love his swing in years past enough to warrant what he’s gonna cost.
Oh well. I wasnt excited for Gil Hodges last year and he ended up being awesome for me so we’ll see.
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I’m in the minority but I’m happy with King and Tulo, couldn’t care less about Pujols.
New UI for collection looks awesome and saves clicks, new mini-season options are great for grinding in a 9 innings game that COUNTS.
Happy to have Burnitz in the game, and like always I’ll try to play more online but end up not playing by May because of a lack of time.
Some interesting TA combos to chase. So tonight at midnight and working tomorrow, I’ll probably knock off as many Moments as I can to unlock lower cards and Hiram Bithorn Stadium in each program.
