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Wow!! It wasn’t but a week or two am I was thinking to myself “Wow, this game is starting to feel like one of the better Show games I’ve played” after a a month or two of thinking the excessive home runs would ruin it before we even got to the 3rd inning program.

Boy, has something gone wrong. Even games I’m winning I still can’t help but think this game is doomed in the condition SDS has left it in. Let me just bullet point all the issues I’ve encountered in the past week or so.

• Was about to win an event game. Routine grounder to the first baseman. Hit circle to end the game, but inexplicably he starts running toward home. Circle was the only button I pressed.
  -Caught stealing on several occasions. Perfect jump, but sometimes you can literally see the game slow the runner down with some janky animation that looks like he got a cramp halfway to second or third base, allowing the catcher to throw him out.
  -Lost the lead in another game when my opponent decides to run home like an idiot. He’s not even halfway there and I throw the ball to my catcher who proceeds to not even attempt a tag.
  -PCI placement doesn’t seem to mean anything. My opponents keep missing the ball or getting on top of it or under it…either some silly ground ball base hit, or bloop…or of course a home run (which are still excessive, but with the condition the game is in now it feels less egregious)
  -Semi regular errors. Ground balls are apparently hard for diamond defenders and routine throws are off target by 20 feet. Has happened enough, and always in crucial late game situations….it feels like sometimes the game is literally preventing you from winning (which after sinking 20 minutes or more into that particular game, is not what you want)

Anyone else noticed this? The game was playing so smoothly and they just went in and nuked it with the last update.

It's basically the end of the year, but I've formed my opinion of this game a while back. Assuming this isn't your first rodeo, I think anyone who is honest with themselves will come to the same conclusion. This game is bad. It really is. I know this triggers a lot of people, but The Show is approaching Madden territory.

Let me try to condense this and give my honest opinion of what I like and what I don't like.

What I Like

• Create a Stadium was much deeper than I was expecting. I don't think it's the easiest to use, but as long as SDS keeps fine tuning it and adding more customization options (and allow for nighttime) it's in good shape.
• More variety for pitching rotations and lineups. Lots of highly ranked cards for every position so you're not always facing the same lineup.
• Crack of the bat sound on perfect contact.
• The red indicator when a fly ball is dropping fast and you may need to make a diving catch.
• Showdown is a fun addition.
• Really no need to spend money with the free rewards and packs they give you.
• Not as much "grinding" as the other sports fantasy team modes.

What I Don't Like

• Waaaaaaaay too many home runs. No one should be able to hit 5 or 6 consecutive home runs. I've had it bite me over and over again, and I've also benefitted from it.
• Random results. This is a video game. I should be punished for making a bad choice or not being quick enough to press a button or whatever else I've done wrong. I shouldn't be punished just because it was randomly generated by the game. My catcher should not overthrow the first baseman on a routine play. My shortstops shouldn't be bobbling ground balls on a routine play. I totally get that "it happens in real baseball" but this is a video game. I don't want any outside sources affecting the outcome of a game. Figure out a way to make errors a part of the game, but where they are truly your fault. When it comes to pitching, if my timing is off on the meter, my pitch shouldn't land somewhere completely random. It doesn't make sense to me that a pitch I was intending to throw down and away, lands up and in because I was slightly late. This leads me to...
• No one is playing the same way. In theory, it's nice that the game offers variety for how you pitch or bat. Problem with that in a competitive environment like Ranked Seasons is that no one is playing the same way. You may be playing a guy who is using analog hitting, meaning he only has to worry about timing. Sometimes the game doesn't reward you, sometimes it does...ultimately the results are random. Why should the player who is pitching lose to a player who is only worrying about timing? Same goes for fielding. If you think the throwing meter is the best way to make errors the players fault, make everybody play that way. Also for pitching; just because I don't have time to learn a brand new pitching scheme (pinpoint) doesn't mean my user input shouldn't matter. If pinpoint is the only method to have your input matter, then make it mandatory to pitch that way. I'm sick of the randomness. It feels like the game is not in my control and the competitive aspect is tarnished.
• Scripted OR Scripted-feeling. I know this is another one that certain people refuse to believe...but I truly believe MLB The Show (and Madden/NBA 2k) apply comeback logic, or nerfing/buffing. In the case of The Show, I honestly feel like some innings, no matter what I do, my bats will be wet noodles and my pitchers will have noodle arms. Then another inning it feels like it's been pre-determined that my bats are juiced and my pitchers are untouchable. This usually occurs late in games. I know if I'm going into the last 3 innings with a 3 run lead, there is no chance I'm keeping that lead. This is especially pronounced in 3 inning event games. I don't even know how many leads I've lost. If I took a 5 run lead in the first, my opponent scored 6. If I was up 1, my opponent would get that 1 run. I totally understand that last minute wins are exciting and all that, but it truly felt like it was by design. Once again, feeling like the competitive aspect was gone and the game was the decider of who wins or loses.
• Game altering animation gaffes. Fielders not having urgency throwing the ball, fielders not knowing how to tag runners out, baserunners slowing down mid-steal etc.
• No base running consistency. When I slide, sometimes I can slide to the left or the right of the bag, but typically my runner just dives in head first...ignoring my input. Pickoffs are random. I've had 99 speed 99 steal runners get picked off with one extra step and no steal command input. 99.99999% of the time that doesn't happen. So how does one effectively pull off a pickoff play, or how does one get back to the base safely? Or is it all just random? (answer: yes)
• Terrible matchmaking. In all the years I've played this game, I've never had a below .500 record. This year, it feels nearly impossible to win 2 games in a row. I'm consistently playing guys with records like 54-26, 16-1, 350-275 etc. I'm like 5 or 6 games below .500. I guess they're only taking "division ranking" into account, but there are too many times I've played this game and go on a 10 game losing slide. Obviously not a lot of fun. Seems like something that can be adjusted so I can play other bad players.
• Too easy to stack teams. I know this one is contradictory and probably specific to me, but I didn't think team building was that fun this year. I had an all diamond squad within like, a month...and around July they were giving everyone 30 stacked cards for free (team affinity season 3 i think it was?) I loved in The Show 17 how the diamonds truly felt special when you pulled one and had a huge impact on your team. Then halfway through the season, we get a bunch of end game cards...so now that SDS is releasing 96 overall cards, there's no use for those cards and it pretty much killed the market and any interest in live roster updates. They didn't give themselves anywhere to go.
• Graphics. Embarrassing. Considering how little is happening on the screen, there's no excuse for The Show not to be the best looking sports game. I was especially disappointed in the "jump" from PS4 to PS5.
• No Tattoos. Ruins the authenticity. And no, I don't care about the neck tattoo on Felix Hernandez and Yadier Molina. You've got a lot of income via Diamond Dynasty and now expanding to XBOX...pay for the rights for player tattoos.
• Tired animations. The hitting/fielding animations have been the same for YEARS...and frankly never looked smooth/good. There needs to be more variety here.
• Stale cards. Honestly, very little has changed since 2017. I don't think a single Inning Legend excited me. Maybe Pedro, but that's it. Once gain, the game is largely the same year after year and you're making a lot of money off Diamond Dynasty...pony up for more legends. They should never lose legends, they should only keep adding.
• Small/Terrible Soundtrack + Removed Custom Soundtrack. It never made sense to me to have an 8 song soundtrack for a sports game, those songs will always get annoying by years end....BUT you always had a cool little feature that allowed you to import your music into the game. That was inexplicably removed from the next gen versions of the game. What are you...EA Sports? When you tout it as a new Feature in The Show 25, we will know better.
• Need more create a jersey choices and the option for an alternate uniform at the very least.
• I'm not even for this necessarily...I like the extra strategy, but no option for a DH?
• No custom stadiums for play vs friends? You can do it for ranked seasons, but not for play vs friends......yeah, that's stupid. No reason it should be in one mode and not another. Seems lazy to me.
• I miss the ability to use repeat cards towards beefing up my custom players stats. That was a fun way to exchange cards and incorporate a created player.
• It was mentioned before, but the bad market has made opening packs more of a chore than anything. Used to be fun, but who cares if they even pull Mike Trout at this point?
• Lack of consistency with hitting and pitching results. Once again, this feels very random. Perfectly timed swings with amazing contact should be a home run or a hit at the very least, but a lot of times it results in an out. Sometimes I won't get all of the ball and am early, but it's a home run. Same thing with pitching. Anywhere I pitch can apparently be hit 430 feet. Doesn't matter if it's low and outside. This makes it unclear to me what I need to do to succeed in this game. You wouldn't want an umpire with an inconsistent strike zone, I don't want a baseball game with inconsistent rewards and penalties.

There was a point where I thought this was the best Show game I had ever played, but as happens every year, patches ruin the game. It became almost unplayable by August. It stinks, but I really have no desire to play this game or The Show for a few years. I will eventually forget how unpleasant this experience was and my craving for a baseball game will get the better of me eventually, but I really hope the community demands better.

3/10.

What's your review?

The game should be played the same way by everyone. If tapping circle is an option for throwing to first, the results should not be randomly generated. I can understand it happening to a common fielder, but outside of that it’s just stupid. Either make EVERYONE use button accuracy, pinpoint pitching, zone hitting etc or don’t, and stop programming random outcomes.

This is the poison in the veins of MLB the Show 21. Pitching input not being respected killed MLB 19 and volume of home runs will kill this year's game. Maybe people enjoy an unrealistic arcade-like experience, but surely I can't be alone in this?

Here's my pitchers stats so far (hits allowed vs home runs allowed)
Pedro Martinez 91 overall...26 hits, 9 of which were homers.
Max Scherzer 89 overall...46 hits, 12 of which were homers.
Joe Musgrove 88 overall...21 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Carlos Rodon 88 overall...9 hits, 1 of which was a homer.
Brent Honeywell Jr. 83 overall...9 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Nathan Eovaldi 86 overall...13 hits, 6 of which were homers.
Mike Clevinger 83 overall...13 hits, 3 of which were homers.
Giovanny Gallegos 81 overall...4 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Andrew Miller 80 overall...2 hits, 1 of which was a homer.
Aroldis Chapman 80 overall...19 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Dan Plesac 81 overall...12 hits, 5 of which were homers.
Darren O'Day 76 overall...5 hits, 1 of which was a homer.
Aaron Bummer 76 overall...7 hits, 3 of which were homers.
Huston Street 87 overall...7 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Raisel Iglesias 78 overall...6 hits, 2 of which were homers.

These weren't all my pitchers, but 15 that I've used most. While it wasn't nearly as bad as I was thinking...it still equates to roughly 28% of hits resulting in homers. According to a google search, 15.9% of hits are home runs. Admittedly that's higher than I thought, but still means home runs in this game are nearly twice as frequent as real life.

Long story short, the game needs to fix this ASAP. I'm not ready to make MLB 21 a single player only experience.

I think we have to start accepting that MLB 21 is a bad game....which is REALLY confusing.

MLB 21 is like a beautiful and talented woman who just has a terrible personality OR an awesome roller coaster that's either always down with mechanical issues or is built next to a lake, so you keep getting hit in the face by seagulls. If it weren't for the over the top, cartoony amount of home runs (basically every single game is determined by home runs this year) I'd rate this game an 8.75/10, but as it currently stands, it's more appropriate to give it a 2.75/10.

Sadly, SDS is catering to the people who actually like 70% of hits being a homer.

I could literally write a thesis about all the things wrong with this game, but I'll stick to one big thing: The Show doesn't know if it wants to be a simulation game or an arcade game. Them trying to make it both is what makes this game awful. I did not like 19, I hated 21 and 25 is so bad I can't even get mad (sometimes) The only way to fix this game is to pick a lane. If SDS wants this game to be all home runs, which it basically is (I'm writing this after an all too common loss where my opponent has 5 hits and 4 of them were home runs. Only one of the balls he hit out was in the zone everything else was in the corners, out of the zone etc.) Home runs are beyond excessive and it's destroying the game. At the same time, SDS wants to give us plenty of "That's Baseball" moments. He hits a home run on a pitch he didn't square up or hit cleanly. I ground out with a perfect-perfect. Now very true.... this happens in real baseball. You know what doesn't? 5-10 home runs every single game.

So here's where they need to pick a lane. If you want the games to be high scoring, fun and arcade-y... then everything should be dependent on player skill. If I perfect-perfect a ball, that should be a hit. If I hit the yellow bar on the pitch meter, the pitch should go exactly where I commanded it. Remove bobbling errors which are random and has nothing to do with player skill and make the game full arcade. OR keep all the "real baseball" simulation elements in the game, but turn down the home run frequency by like 150%. I see more home runs than I do singles or doubles and that is a massive problem. Also... no one should be playing in a ranked / competitive environment with different settings. If I'm using the PCI with the default batter view, so should everyone else. No one using timed swinging or mega zoom batter's box... no one has a leg up through fudging the settings.

This is why the market needs games like NBA Jam and MLB Slugfest.... it gives people who like the idea of the sport, but don't actually like the sport a chance to shoot nothing but 3's and hit 15 home runs a game. Leave that cartoon-y and arcade-y garbage out of simulation games. When The Show plays well, it's so much fun. But then there's too much BS on the side which is why the user rating on Metacritic is 5.2

In my last 2 threads I've been suspended and had the other one locked. Reviewed the code of conduct, didn't see any rules I've broken, unless a moderator was really reaching . Hopefully my freedom of speech doesn't keep getting infringed upon. But regardless, I hate to see this game in the shape it's in and I will continue to speak truth on it until there's either competition or The Show reclaims its former glory. Last week I'm riding a 5 or 6 game win streak where my pitching is incredible and my bats were lively. This week, I've gotten dismantled by 5 or 6 opponents in a row that were around my skill level or worse, if stats are to be believed. So it got me thinking... we really need to lay out what's wrong with this game and hopefully if there's enough backlash, SDS will put effort into the game again.

The List (feel free to add, if I missed anything!)

• The only thing that's consistent with this game is how inconsistent it plays.
• Freeze offs are still a thing. Same problem, different year.
• No tattoos. NBA 2K + WWE games have been doing it for years. SDS has the $
• Outdated graphics. Last big update I remember was The Show 17.
• Same animations for YEARS (sliding, fielding, diving etc)
• Diamond Dynasty doesn't have option to create alternate uniforms.
• Removing features, likely to unveil as new down the road like EA does w/Madden
• Pickoffs are random. I've had Elly get picked off on more than once after taking 1 extra step in my leadoff even though I didn't input a steal request. Meanwhile, I'm struggling to pick off Pete Alonso with the same leadoff.
• Check swings are random. I often see a disparity between myself and my opponent. Sometimes it benefits me, other times it benefits my opponent.
• Errors are random. Sure, you have the option to prioritize fielding stats, but even then I've had Pete Crow-Armstrong commit back to back errors that had nothing to do with me not controlling my player properly. Something that has nothing to do with player control shouldn't be deciding who wins or loses a game you've spend 40 minutes playing.
• Sometimes I'll swing at a pitch in the zone (with timing), but my batter will only check swing, costing me a potential hit.
• Franchise players largely ignored.
• Road to the Show hasn't really evolved.
• (Highly subjective) people are in competitive matches with each other but aren't playing the game the same way (strikezone hitting, pinpoint pitching) This creates a lack of balance and there's no option to play people using your settings.
• Too much focus on gaming trends and getting people to spend money. Prioritizing bat skins, bat flip animations and unrealistic cards like ones that turn Brian Roberts into a power hitter.
• Legendary players are largely the same over the years. It's the only thing they have to sell new games, so they take their time getting names like Jeter or McGwire. Of course, once you get guys like that, they'll remove names like Ichiro or Roberto Alomar so they can use them as selling points later on.
• Stadium Creator doesn't work all that well.
• Excessive Home Runs!!! It's like they forgot that baseball has singles, doubles and triples too. I'd say 50-60% of hits I give up are home runs. Not in obvious locations either. I have pitches 2 feet from the dirt getting jacked, pitches that are a foot outside etc. Sometimes can't tell if I'm playing Slugfest or a simulation.
• Stealing is also fairly random. It can be very easy to steal with someone like Pete Crow-Armstrong or Elly De La Cruz, but on occasion they'll get stuck in mud on their way to second and get thrown out, without a clear reason as to why that happened. It's just pure randomness.

I'm sure there's so much more lol... but I think this is a pretty good start.

Just to be fair, here's what I think the game does well:

• It's easy to earn packs of cards so you don't have to spend real world money... just need to grind a little.
• Collecting cards and trying out new lineups is fun.
• It's nice that you can create stadiums.
• The crack of the bat sound is a nice addition.
• The foundation of this game is rock solid. This is the closest I've seen a game come to replicating baseball. I remember a time when no one would get walked.
• 2 v 2 and 3 v 3 can be a lot of fun.
• Supercharged cards are pretty cool.
• Home Run Derby online is fun too.

@namtrah22_psn said in Home Runs by the Numbers:

@squid_adams_psn said in Home Runs by the Numbers:

This is the poison in the veins of MLB the Show 21. Pitching input not being respected killed MLB 19 and volume of home runs will kill this year's game. Maybe people enjoy an unrealistic arcade-like experience, but surely I can't be alone in this?

Here's my pitchers stats so far (hits allowed vs home runs allowed)
Pedro Martinez 91 overall...26 hits, 9 of which were homers.
Max Scherzer 89 overall...46 hits, 12 of which were homers.
Joe Musgrove 88 overall...21 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Carlos Rodon 88 overall...9 hits, 1 of which was a homer.
Brent Honeywell Jr. 83 overall...9 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Nathan Eovaldi 86 overall...13 hits, 6 of which were homers.
Mike Clevinger 83 overall...13 hits, 3 of which were homers.
Giovanny Gallegos 81 overall...4 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Andrew Miller 80 overall...2 hits, 1 of which was a homer.
Aroldis Chapman 80 overall...19 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Dan Plesac 81 overall...12 hits, 5 of which were homers.
Darren O'Day 76 overall...5 hits, 1 of which was a homer.
Aaron Bummer 76 overall...7 hits, 3 of which were homers.
Huston Street 87 overall...7 hits, 2 of which were homers.
Raisel Iglesias 78 overall...6 hits, 2 of which were homers.

These weren't all my pitchers, but 15 that I've used most. While it wasn't nearly as bad as I was thinking...it still equates to roughly 28% of hits resulting in homers. According to a google search, 15.9% of hits are home runs. Admittedly that's higher than I thought, but still means home runs in this game are nearly twice as frequent as real life.

Long story short, the game needs to fix this ASAP. I'm not ready to make MLB 21 a single player only experience.

It's also a video game with everyone running out guys with 80+ power at every position my guy. If someone squares up a good hit its a going to be a homerun. Its a competitive video game where user input is rewarded and should be rewarded... if you want super realistic stats your playing the wrong mode. Franchise on simulation is where you are going to find a more realistic experience.

I do understand the power aspect of it, but rolling out a highly rated pitcher should even things out. Yet, I'm getting taken deep whether it's a common, silver or diamond pitcher. A bigger fire needs a bigger hose, but this fire can't be put out. I can bring in my very best reliever, fully rested and it won't matter which I find to be an issue. I'll try stacking out my lineup with player's whose power is above 80 and report back.

And I'd say it's debatable that user input is rewarded. It's completely random or nonexistent from what I can tell. I've seen perfect swings be met with ground outs and missing the ball with your cursor completely result in a homer. And pitching, apparently you have to have perfect timing or else the ball will just go anywhere. I get a "just late" plenty and will see my pitch land somewhere totally different, not even in the general area I commanded.

Maybe the problem is Diamond Dynasty should be advertised as an arcade experience meant to create high scoring games. If a dog meows, I'm confused. If a game has a realistic simulation shell and plays like an arcade game, I'm confused. They're straddling a line, not committing one way or another which is always a recipe for failure. Retro Mode was supposed to be the arcade experience.

Thanks for throwing an analogy out there to chew on, @writetoshawn_PSN . As a customer it's hard to see a restaurant serving up 9 vegan burgers and only 1 ground beef burger, especially when they don't allow substitutions. There's so many burgers myself and others would love to enjoy, but you're only catering to their vegan audience. If that's what you want to serve...fine, but you should make it known you're a vegan restaurant. Basically, I like collecting cards and building a team from scratch, I don't want to be forced to stick to other modes to avoid these problems.

@AsianJim95_PSN I hear ya, see my earlier point. Better pitchers should equalize better hitters. Maybe I'll stack my team with pitchers who have amazing HR/9 ratings, but something tells me this game is "HR>Everything"

@CubanDoctor21 You know video games are supposed to be fun, right? And I don't think I mentioned spamming high and in pitches? Maybe I did at first, but when I kept getting burnt I learned quickly. Now it appears the only lesson is the balance in this game is broken. It very well could be the sheer amount of good hitters as opposed to good pitchers, but then that says it all. NBA 2K wants their card mode to be a 3 point heavy mess, maybe SDS wants a home run heavy mess?

So based on the pushback I'm getting here, either most of you are benefitting from this game flaw or you like playing games that come down to who hits more home runs?

Little update. In a event game right now, where I gave up a 3-0 lead...due in large part to my center fielder freezing and allowing more runners to score! I wonder what else I'll encounter

Edit: I LOST!!! Had the win yanked right from under me. Good stuff, good stuff.

Also, forgot some of the other ways SDS broke their game.
-Oh great, a double! Wait a minute, he's running home! WTF, no!!! Annnnnnnd he's out.....
-Runner on second, ground ball to the 3rd baseman or shortstop, runner on second over-dramatically belly flops back on the base...meanwhile I'm instructing him to run to third. My opponent throws it to first, and guess what!? The runner from second is now listening to the command 5 seconds after the fact and is running to third at the worst possible time for the easy out!

And can the people defending this game just stop messing with us and come clean as SDS employees? Or at the very least paid "influencers" hyping up a currently terrible game.

Just won an 8 INNING events game. Should have gone 8 innings? No.

A few of the things that caused it to go to 8 innings.

-I had a runner on second and Aroldis Chapman up to bat. His pitcher is standing there for about 15 seconds, and I figure "why not pinch hit for Chapman?" So I hit L1 to back out of the box, and nothing happens. A moment later, the pitcher steps off the mound and the runner on 2nd goes for 3rd. Out

-Trea Turner steals 3rd the following inning. The classic stuck in mud animation to allow your opponent to throw you out commences. Boom. Inning over.

-Jarren Duran steals 3rd this time (successfully but in classic MLB the Show fashion, he goes for home without me putting in that command.) Out.

Also in that game. Trout hits a gapper, that is probably better off as a single. I send him to 2nd initially, then send him back. The little box that shows what your runners are doing disappears and now I have no idea if Trout is running to second or staying on first. He ultimately ran to second....didn't get thrown out, but it was close.

And of course we know about the game breaking frequency of home runs and inconsistency with hitting in general....as well as game scripting. Can't tell you how many games I've had in control and then something magical happens with my opponent in the final inning, causing me to lose the game.

Madden has a 16 year head start in becoming a terrible franchise due to lack of competition...but MLB the Show (and frankly NBA 2k) are not far off. We sports games fans deserve better.

Lots of people zeroing in on my L1 error. Also hit down on the d-pad too, but thank you for teaching me! Shouldn't have written this in a rush haha. But yes. It IS official. This game is just as bad as Madden. Didn't say "broken" but I guess you could make that argument. Tagging doesn't work. (Also tagged a runner out going from 2nd to 3rd...only to see him jump away and not be "out" and later score the game winning run.) I could honestly keep going. I've put A LOT of time into this game, so I should 100% know if things are or aren't going well. They're not going well.

Look. I get it. A lot of people in denial because the game at its core is a good baseball game. Being at bat, looking for balls and strikes, is probably the closest thing to replicating a sport in a video game. But over the years SDS has lost their way. And perhaps you're one of those people benefitting from the excessive home runs, missed tags, baserunners stopping to stretch in the middle of stealing a base, a pitch hanging over the middle of the plate because you were "slightly late" on the pitch meter that had the pitch located low and away, etc. Just know, It's people like you that have Madden in the position it's in. If YOU get complacent, the video game makers will get complacent.

SDS figures if they just release easy to get 99 cards so every person you play has essentially the same exact team, that you'll shut up and leave them alone. A lot of you are doing that. Taking it right up the [censored] and with a forced smile on your face. But for anyone that loves sports games, we call it as we see it. This game is a train wreck 75% of the time and the other 25% I'm watching the game hand me BS hits, home runs, unforced opponent errors. I can't tell you how many games I've won that I absolutely should not have. I honestly hesitate to call this a video game anymore. It's a scripted simulation with some user input.

Don't bother arguing. You know I'm right.

@lewisnadasurf1_psn said in It's Official: MLB the Show is Just as Bad as Madden:

Anyone who buys an EA game I question as a human being.

How about people who prefer cats to dogs?

Not even saying cats aren't cool in their own way....but it's not even a contest, IMO.

@dirty-shawnchez_psn said in MLB The Show 21: End of Year Review:

First bullet from What I don't Like:

To many Homeruns

Last bullet from What I don't Like:

Lack of consistency with hitting.

?????

Too*

And yes, you read that right. Too complex?

There are too many home runs. On top of that hitting is inconsistent. A perfect-perfect swing can easily be a ground out, line out, fly out etc, as well as a home run. Why doesn't this perfect input always result in a hit? Why does early timing with less than perfect contact result in home runs? It also results in fly outs, fouls etc, but hitting results are all over the place. My theory is...this is a video game. If I do something right I should be rewarded. If I do something wrong I should be penalized. Simple as that.

If I'm playing Halo and shoot the rocket launcher at my feet I always die. However if I shoot an opponent with a rocket launcher, they always die. Good actions are rewarded, bad actions are penalized. Get it?

And I have to agree with @ChuckCLC_PSN The Show at its core is a good game that needs some polish and love...but I do agree that the huge drop off in quality I'm speaking of occurs in head to head. But let's be honest, who wants to play Diamond Dynasty exclusively single player? It's meant to be a multiplayer mode. With franchise and RTTS basically getting no love and all the updates going into Diamond Dynasty, it's inexcusable to have your product in this state.

@toeter83_PSN
17 was probably the one I enjoyed most, as Griffey has always been one of my favorites. I think that's the last year where 99 or 100 was the highest power went (and it took a lot longer to fill your team out with diamonds) It seems like 18 was where more and more people started to dislike the series... also when they introduced 125 power. Now there's just too much emphasis on home runs, because I guess people think baseball is boring unless every hit is a bomb. Market is ripe for an arcade baseball / the return of MLB Slugfest.

While I understand why they did it (to make things go quicker) not having to warm up pitchers and giving everyone a DH has sucked some strategy out of the game. I'm with you, I'd like some kind of mode that caps your team's overall / live series cards and gold, silver and bronze cards are in play. Make people decide on how to deck out their lineup strategically instead of just putting 99's at every position. The strategy is part of what makes baseball great. Seems they forget that there's more to their audience than young broccoli haircut bros who want to throw gas and hit bombs.

With the Cleveland Indians selling out to a small but loud woke mob and our city no longer having a baseball team we can be proud of, I'm a little stuck on what to do next. With the Dolan's resetting 100+ years of history, I figure it's only logical to push reset myself. So I could use an opinion.

Here's where I'm at now. The Dolan's have tested a lot of people's loyalty since they took over for the wildly popular Jacobs brothers. We went from selling out 455 consecutive games to a team near the bottom in attendance. We are a farm team to the big markets and anytime we get some talent, we've learned to prepare for their inevitable departure. I stopped following baseball in general for several seasons when we traded Cy Young winners back to back years (C.C Sabathia and Cliff Lee). Baseball was always my favorite sport and I used to watch Baseball Tonight religiously. So hopefully that gives you an idea of how fed up I was. Now, we are rebuilding yet again AND they've unnecessarily stripped us of our beloved Indians, all in the name of hosting the All Star Game. I'd honestly rather they relocate the team completely. I think that's more than enough reason to move on from The Cleveland Baseball Team.

Currently, I'm between 3 options:

1. Cheer for the Reds. Firstly, another Ohio team. I used to go to Reds games with my Uncle who lived in Cincinnati and Ken Griffey Jr was my favorite player (followed by Adam Dunn) Would have considered them my secondary team, but haven't really followed them for quite some time and focused completely on the Indians.
2. Cheer for the Angels. I've lived in Southern California for 10 years now and figure I can finally embrace something from the area. I'm no front runner so I wouldn't choose the Dodgers. The Angels haven't been in the playoffs since 2014 and they do have a few of the most exciting players in all of baseball. So that remains an option.
3. Stop following the MLB in general. I can use the absence of baseball in my life as a way to pick up new hobbies. Rob Manfred is entering Roger Goodell territory, if not worse. Not only do I think he held a gun to Cleveland's head to get rid of Chief Wahoo and the Indians name...but he upheld Pete Rose's ban, then went on to completely botch the Astros scandal. How anyone in that organization is still allowed to be associated with Major League Baseball (not to mention their punishment of one dainty slap on the wrist) is beyond me.

It's really tough to move my loyalties elsewhere since I was invested in the Cleveland Indians my whole life. I'm not sure my heart will be in it, but doesn't seem like there's much choice in the matter. What do we think? 1, 2 or 3?

I was enjoying this year's game, minus the obviously terrible servers, but now that I have enough time in here are my two biggest observations and gripes with where the game currently is.

1- Matchmaking. I've been on quite the losing slide, whether it's ranked seasons, events or battle royale. I get the occasional cupcake game, but I've noticed I'm playing dudes who are 24-6, 12-2, 9-0 pretty regularly, even as my record gets worse....so my games in a nutshell are me striking out and giving up a home run every 4 at bats.

Which leads me to

2- Home Runs. These have always been a problem for The Show, since I've been playing...but this year seems extra cartoony. I've been taken yard on pitches 3 feet out of the strike zone, with pinpoint fastballs right on the corners, changeups almost in the dirt etc. It really seems like a good strategy would be to put my cursor in one spot the entire game and then hit a home run anytime a pitch goes there. Then again, the past 2 days I have been barreling up pitches so much better (with good timing), but all I get are line outs or ground balls.

I guess I'm just confused. It legitimately seems like there is a special edition of the game that gives the person who bought it an increased chance to hit home runs haha.

I was very much on the fence with getting this year's game and I really don't want to hate it...but this past week has been brutal, and if experience tells me anything it will only get worse.

Anyone else?

@dap1234567890_PSN

We got @PriorFir4383355_XBL over here adding to the conversation with rational and informative replies and you're still fixated on me and how I'm getting under your thin skin. Your tunnel vision and obsession with just my posts leads me to think you might be unhinged and I just set off a switch in you. Maybe you should talk to a professional about how a stranger online who is talking negatively about your favorite video game is affecting your mental well-being. Seriously man (or miss?) , PM that guy and make a friend. I'm not interested in your replies anymore now that I've seen what a good one looks like.

@T00MuchHam_XBL Thank you!!

@SavageSteve74_PSN

While I do appreciate the gesture, I don't think I'm the right person you're looking for. I'm a lot like you. I'm a keen observer of human behavior. Just one example being a steak dinner I had with family around New Years Eve. I saw an older gentleman at a table with 4 seats, but was there by himself. Every table was occupied with families, couples and friends, but this gentleman was the only one by himself. It kept nagging at me before I placed my order, all the way up to getting my food. I invited the gentleman over to join us, though he politely declined. On his way out of the restaurant, he stopped by our table and thanked me again for the gesture. He then told me his wife had passed away a little more than a week ago. This isn't me donating money to a cause or anything like that, but not having tunnel vision, observing people and being an empath could go a long way to directly impact someone.

That said, there are legitimate problems with this game, so could never classify it as "nothing." But I'm going to focus on what I liked about your post. I hope you do this in your regular life as well!

@yankblan_PSN
I think that's only needed for @dap1234567890_PSN at the moment. I'm on my best behavior and exercising discipline not to take his bait.

Ah yes, the game scripting element. That's a whole other topic, really, but I've definitely noticed that too over the years (every sports game really) NBA Hangtime...basically NBA Jam, would keep players in the game if the score started getting out of control. If I'm up 12, I will start missing every shot whereas my opponent will make every shot, all to make the games seem close and competitive. It worked GREAT for Hangtime and that's because it was an arcade game. While I don't think it's that obvious in MLB or other sports games, I definitely do believe the game will give you a window of opportunity to get back into the game. Like I'm never surprised if someone can't touch my pitchers all game and then suddenly in the 8th or 9th inning they can't swing the bat without the ball landing in the gap or going over the fence.

I still remember playing my friend in the Show 19. Bottom of the 9th, 2 outs and a man on 3rd. He hits a routine ground ball to my shortstop, who bobbles the ball and loses the game. There's no other way to describe it...the game decided I was going to lose.