MLB The Show 19

MLB The Show 19 is a baseball video game by San Diego Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, based on Major League Baseball (MLB). It is the fourteenth entry of the MLB: The Show franchise, and was released on March 26, 2019, for PlayStation 4. Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper is featured as the cover star.[1]

MLB The Show 19
Cover art featuring Bryce Harper
Developer(s)San Diego Studio
Publisher(s)Sony Interactive Entertainment
SeriesMLB: The Show
Platform(s)PlayStation 4
ReleaseMarch 26, 2019
Genre(s)Sports
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Matt Vasgersian, Mark DeRosa and Dan Plesac call the play-by-plays. Heidi Watney joined the game as a sideline reporter and Alex Miniak replaces Mike Carlucci as the public address announcer.

Diamond Dynasty, Road to the Show and Franchise game modes return whilst Moments and March to October make their series debuts.

Features

October". "Moments" lets the user relive and recreate famous moments in MLB history. This mode will be intertwined with the MLB The Show's "Diamond Dynasty", but also can be played strictly offline. As the user complete moments, they receive rewards like diamond dynasty cards and stubs, the game's virtual currency.

The game also features an improved emphasis on defense, with updated mechanics and animations. Pitchers are broken down into three categories: "Plain Filthy" (who move the ball well), "Flamethrower" (who throw the heat) and "Control Freak" (who focus on location), while batters are broken down into five: "Pure Power" (power hitters), "Small Ball" (puts the ball in play), "Mr. Utility" (great situational player), "Rock Steady" (solid all around) and "The Anomaly" (Power hitters with great speed).[2]

Whilst legends have been an existing feature, this years edition introduced a further thirty names to the list, taking the total to 58 legends appearing in MLB The Show 19. Christy Mathewson, Ty Cobb, Jason Kendall, Rob Dibble, Willie Mays, Jimmie Foxx, Iván Rodríguez, Cliff Lee, Andruw Jones, Walter Johnson, Kerry Wood, Cy Young, Mark Prior, Rogers Hornsby, Lou Gehrig, Hal Newhouser, Bret Boone, Don Mattingly, A.J. Burnett and Rickey Henderson all feature as legends for the first time.[3] The legends are playable both online, in modes such as Diamond Dynasty, as well as offline, appearing as free agents in franchise mode.[4]

Commentary

The gameplay announcers are Matt Vasgersian, Mark DeRosa and Dan Plesac, whilst former Boston Red Sox field reporter Heidi Watney this year joins The Show series as a sideline reporter.[5] Alex Miniak also replaces Mike Carlucci as the public address announcer and Erik Braa is the narrator of the Road To The Show game mode.[6]

Franchise Mode

Returning favorites include "Franchise Mode" (in which the user can take control of any MLB team over the course of several seasons) and "Road to the Show" (in which the user creates a new player and plays out his career through Double-A, Triple-A and the majors).

Moments Mode

Moments Mode made its debut in the video game series in MLB The Show 19. This mode brings iconic baseball moments to the platform, allowing players to take part in recreating historic moments. The moments included in the game mode vary from as recent as plays by cover athlete Bryce Harper and the 2016 Chicago Cubs, to Babe Ruth and Willie Mays, requiring the user to recreate a sequence of match-winning plays pictured in black and white.[7]

Moments
LegendsMomentReward
Ken Griffey JrReenact the career of legendary power hitter Ken Griffey Jr. This moment requires the player to hit back to back home runs playing as both Ken Griffey Jr and Sr in 1990, as well as lead the Seattle Mariners to their first West Division Title in 1995.84050xp11500 stubs
Willie MaysWillie Mays’ lengthier moments require players to recreate key points of the center fielders 1954 MVP season as well as lead the New York Giants to the 1954 World Series Title. Single play moments include recording Mays’ 600th home run and 3000th hit.14000xp1000 stubs
Bryce HarperRecreating the key moments of MLB The Show 19 cover athlete Bryce Harper’s rookie season in 2012. Moments include hitting Harper’s first major league home run, playing in the right fielders debut MLB All-Star Game, as well as leading the Washington Nationals to the playoffs. 10950xp1100 stubs
Babe RuthRecreating the career of widely regarded greatest baseball player of all time Babe Ruth is completed through reenacting nine key moments of the pitchers career. Moments include pitching for the Boston Red Sox during the world series and breaking batting records.9400xp1325 stubs
2016 Chicago CubsRecreate the key points of the 2016 Chicago Cubs World Series winning season, ending the longest championship drought in MLB history, 108 years.20000xp2100 stubs

Diamond Dynasty

Once again featuring in the series, Diamond Dynasty is the online mode which allows players to construct their own team through earning and spending ‘stubs’, the online currency. The focus for MLB The Show 19's Diamond Dynasty mode is to promote the accessibility of player cards, earned through playing games, pack openings, purchased on the virtual market as well as earned through reward programs. New features to the game mode include; Team Affinity, rewarding players for using players from their favourite MLB team, Signature Series, a new set of rare player cards to unlock and Ranked Season's.[8]

March to October

March to October is a new game mode to The Show's series on MLB The Show 19. The feature differs from the traditional franchise game mode through creating a streamlined, shortened season experience. Rather than controlling the entire 162 game schedule, the season is condensed to require the player to only play the season's pivotal moments.[9]

Road to the Show

Road to the Show returns to the series in MLB The Show 19. This game mode allows players to create and control an individual pro for a multi season career. Players also have the option to prioritise personality types for their character, these are:[10]

  • Commander in Chief (team captain).
  • Maverick (lone-wolf type).
  • Lighting Rod (no-nonsense result getter).
  • Heart and Soul (tight social circle).

Release

San Diego Studio announced on the second of November 2018 the official release date for MLB The Show 2019 as well as the details regarding special editions. The 2019 edition of the series ‘The Show’ was released on March 26, 2019. San Diego Studio released a closed alpha early access to the video game between the dates of 13–19 December. The closed alpha provided fans early access to participate in game modes such as the Diamond Dynasty, Battle Royale and Play with Friends features.[11]

Since its creation, The Show series has been a Sony exclusive video game. However, on December 10, 2019, it was announced as part of Sony’s renewed deal with the MLB and MLBPA that the video game series will be available to play on Xbox, Nintendo and PC from 2021. MLB The Show will be only major baseball franchise available on Xbox, Nintendo and PC platforms.[12]

Cover

On November 2, 2018, it was announced that Bryce Harper would be featured on the cover for the 2019 edition of the game. However, since he was a free agent at the time, he was depicted on the placeholder image in a white hoodie.[13] On February 28, 2019, after Harper signed with the Philadelphia Phillies, the official cover design was released.[14]

Competitive

Sony, in conjunction with the ESL (Electronic Sports League), hosted two competitive competitions.

In February 2020, 106 professional gamers competed in a competition called the New Year’s Cup Finals. The event was labelled by professional gamer GomesDaLegend as a “disaster”. This was due to the ESL reseeding, the restructuring of the competition tree, once the event had already began, rendering the commenced competition as null and void. In response to the discontent amongst players, Sony announced a new competition would be scheduled, taking place between February 29 and March 1, 2020.[15] Rewards for the tournament were as follows: $4000 for first place, $2000 for second place, $1000 to both third and forth, and $500 for fifth to eighth.[16]

Commencing November the 17th 2019, the ESL hosted the Fall Cup Final. The competition involved 128 players competing in a 1 on 1 format on Diamond Dynasty. The winner of the tournament was rewarded with a $4,000 reward, second place received $2,000, third and fourth both received $1,000 whilst fifth to eight won $500. The final, occurring on the 16th of November 2019, was won by gamer Otoxii.[17]

Reception

Whilst previous editions to the MLB The Show series have been critiqued in reviews through failing to provide a considerate update to the video game as well as focusing on microtransactions, these issues have been addressed by the developers at San Diego Studio. MLB The Show 19 has reduced the focus on microtransactions, referring to the need to spend real money in exchange for stubs, in order to benefit in game modes such as Diamond Dyansty. Reviews have highlighted the ability to progress within the Diamond Dynasty game mode without the need of microtransactions.[22]

MLB The Show 19 received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to Metacritic.

In its 8.7/10 review, IGN wrote: "Refined gameplay, new modes, and a deep Road to the Show mode give MLB The Show 19 a promising opening day."[21] Game Informer gave the game 8.5/10, praising its graphics and writing, "After a down year, Sony delivers exciting new content and a host of fixes. The series is back on track."[19] GameSpot gave the game 9/10, praising the fielding mechanics, RPG elements of the Road to the Show mode and reward system of the game's card collecting mode.[20]

Sales

In January 2020, The NPD Group confirmed that MLB The Show 19 is the best selling baseball genre game in U.S. history.[23]

Awards
YearAwardCategoryResultRef
2020D.I.C.E. AwardsGame of the YearNominated[24]
2020NAVGTR AwardsGame, Franchise SportsNominated[25]

References
  1. Clair, Michael (November 2, 2018). "Bryce Harper is this year's 'MLB: The Show' cover star". Cut4 by MLB.com. Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  2. Petite, Steven (April 4, 2019). "Here's everything you need to know about MLB The Show 19". Digital Trends. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  3. Karbousky, Joseph (March 18, 2019). "MLB The Show 19: Legends List As Of March 21, Along With Two Must Adds". VGR. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  4. Mazique, Brian (March 26, 2019). "'MLB The Show 19': A Complete Look At All Legend Player Ratings". Forbes. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  5. Karbousky, Joseph (March 7, 2019). "Heidi Watney joins MLB The Show 19, reveals her motion capture pics". VGR. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  6. IMDb (2019). "MLB 19: The Show (2019)". IMDb. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  7. Sarkar, Samit (February 26, 2019). "MLB The Show 19 takes a trip through baseball history". Polygon. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  8. Mazique, Brian (March 26, 2019). "MLB The Show 19' Review: really good, but too conservative to be great". Forbes. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  9. Roling, Chris (March 17, 2019). "MLB The Show 19: latest trailer, 'March to October' mode info and release date". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  10. Good, Owen (April 4, 2019). "Big sticks get some soft speaking in MLB The Show 19's career mode". Polygon. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  11. Noah, Steve (November 27, 2018). "MLB The Show 19 Closed Alpha Starts on December 13 - Today is the Last Day to Sign Up". Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  12. Mazique, Brian (December 10, 2019). "'MLB The Show': The Day Xbox, Nintendo Switch And PC Baseball Fans Have Been Waiting For Is Here". Forbes. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  13. Chiari, Mike (November 2, 2018). "Bryce Harper 'Honored' to Be on MLB The Show 19 Cover; Unsure with Which Team". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  14. Chiari, Mike (February 28, 2019). "MLB The Show 19 at long last has its cover star in uniform". Polygon. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  15. Noah, Steve (February 25, 2020). "The New Year's Cup Finals For MLB The Show 19 Didn't Go According to Plan, So They Are Having A Redo". Operationa Sports. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  16. "MLB The Show 19 1on1 New Years Cup - Final - New". ESL Play. February 17, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  17. "MLB The Show 19 1on1 Fall Cup Final". ESL Play. November 17, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  18. "MLB The Show 19 critic reviews for PlayStation 4". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  19. Reiner, Andrew (April 1, 2019). "MLB The Show 19: In the Hunt Again". Game Informer. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  20. Wakeling, Richard (April 3, 2018). "MLB The Show 19 Review: Play Ball!". GameSpot. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  21. Roark, Caley (March 29, 2018). "MLB The Show 19 Review". IGN. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  22. Vahlström, Johan (April 1, 2019). "MLB 19: The Show". Game Reactor. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  23. Grubb, Jeff (January 16, 2020). "December 2019 NPD — Call of Duty, Star Wars close out 2019 on top". The NPD Group. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  24. Chalk, Andy (January 13, 2020). "Control and Death Stranding get 8 nominations each for the 2020 DICE Awards". PC Gamer. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
  25. "2019 Nominees". National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers. January 13, 2020. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
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