MLB 09 The Show – Road To The Show Enhancements

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Hey everyone, Aaron Luke (Designer) here to bring you the next installment of the MLB 09 The Show blogs. This entry will focus on the enhancements to Road To The Show. This year’s edition of RTTS has received enhancements to nearly every aspect of the mode.

Starting with the front-end aspects, the PS3 Create Player system has received some new additions that will allow you to customize even more aspects of your player. With the new Sounds Of The Show feature, we’ve been able to support audio customizations that will allow you to pick not only your batter walkup music, but also your reliever entry music and a home run celebration song. In addition to editing custom music, you can also create custom fan chants, cheers, and jeers to assign to your player (or any other player using the Edit Player feature). The player accessories have also seen upgrades to support a variety of new items including: wrist tape, batting gloves in pockets, glasses, eye black, baggy pants, and stirrup socks for your old schoolers. But the player customization doesn’t end with the Create Player process — we’ve also added in the ability to edit your player any time after creation. You won’t be able to edit his position or attributes, but you will have full reign on editing his appearance, accessories, and the all-important player number.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Create Player

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Create Player 2

Once you’ve settled on your player’s look, you now have a choice – enter the draft and let your fate be decided by the powers that be, or for those OCD heads not willing to let fate decide, you will still have the ability to select your favorite team.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Enter Draft

Another new, yet subtle addition sure to make an impact is RTTS specific fast-forwarding options. We’ve heard your calls and answered by giving you more control over the appearances you take part in. The new options include the ability to set how many fielding opportunities you take part in, with settings ranging from: All = same as before, you’ll take part in all fielding opportunities, Half = you will only participate in non-routine chances, or None = any fielding for your player will be skipped.

You will also be able to set what types of baserunning opportunities you’d like to participate in: All = you will participate in all baserunning opportunities for your player, Lead Runner = you will only be involved in situations where your player is the lead runner, or None = all your opportunities will be fast-forwarded.

Lastly, to allow you to control how much CPU teammate hitting you want to watch, we’ve given you the option to choose between the following settings: All = you will see all pitches of the at-bat, Half = half the at-bat will be fast-forwarded, and Quarter = three-quarters of the at-bat is fast-forwarded.

As some of you may have read in the first blog: Franchise Mode Enhancements, we’ve made several roster related additions this year, including 40-man rosters, Arbitration, Waivers, and more. These additions will also be a part of the Road To The Show experience. Your player will be subject to exposure to these elements, just as the real-life counterparts have to deal with. Now managing your contract negotiations will be even more important as a club may try to undercut you, offer you a contract to buy out some of your arbitration-eligible years, or even string you along until they are able to simply renew your contract.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Arbitration Offer

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Arbitration Counter

Moving on to the gameplay portion, one of the big goals this year for the in game aspects was to provide the user with a more immersed experience by incorporating RTTS player-oriented presentations. Now when you win a big game, you’ll be able to see the team celebrations. The presentation aspects aren’t just focused on winning big games — we’ve created custom game intros for your player as well. So if you’re a shortstop starting on defense, you’ll see an intro of your player warming up on the infield. We’ve taken the presentations even further to revamp the in game goals so that it too is presentation based. You’ll now see your goal, or situation, but you’ll also get player specific stats relevant to the situation you are in.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Goal Pres

The gameplay experience itself has also seen one major new addition. The baserunning controls have been customized to use the left analog stick to control all your runner movements. No longer is baserunning as simple as a single button press. Now you will have to maintain his movement by pressing on the analog stick in the direction you’re heading (or retreating). If you’re in the old mind frame of looking for the CPU to take over your runner at a certain point, you’ll keep looking, as that won’t happen now. If you’re on first and the CPU attempts a pick off, you are responsible for getting him back. On a ball hit in play, your runner will be left out to dry if you’re not paying attention and sending him yourself.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Baserunning Controls

To round out the gameplay experience, we’ve also made improvements to the training points you receive. The stats in the past were a little too simple and needed more depth. This year, we’ve included conditions to certain stats so that getting 1 hit in 1 at-bat is worth more points than getting 1 hit over multiple at-bats. This is especially important for a pitcher in that working deeper in the game will reward you higher points than before. The training area has received a major improvement above just the points you’re awarded; we’ve created an all-new training mode for batting and base stealing. I’m not going to divulge much on the topic here, as Eddy Cramm (Senior Designer) will be elaborating on this in a blog post to come soon.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Training Points

As you can see, Road To The Show in MLB 09 promises to be a different experience than before with both major additions and minor subtleties to round out the mode. Thanks for your time and good luck with your Road To The Show.

MLB 09 The Show screenshot - RTTS Celebration Pres

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104 Comments

17 Author Replies

  • I’m sooo excited!! I’ve bought “the show” for psp for the past 3 years and this is my first year with ps3.

    Aaron 2 questions.
    1.Playstation 3 Eye used this year?

    1.And I know about Yankee Stadium but what about Royals Stadium Update, smaller markets dont get love in real life, but I’m hoping they do in Show09!!

  • just wondering, if your RTTS player did better than his big league competition at the same position in spring training, shouldn’t your RTTS player be offered a big league contract and let your RTTS player play himself into super stardom or play himself to the bench in AA? Love the game dearly, but it bores me that i’m playing really well on all levels of the game and I can’t get to the majors, then SCEA drops MLB RTTS 10 and my 09 player haven’t even smell the big leagues and can’t be imported to the 10 version, hope they fix that on 09. What are the goals for if you reach them surpass them but at the end of the period nothing but more AA or AAA play?

  • will the show support a USB mic

  • This looks to be a major improvement for RTTS, I shall like playing it more.

  • Are you guys considering an option for taking a picture with a PS Eye and using that for your character’s road to the show face? I think that would be an interesting idea, and would save me time from trying to get my RTTS character as accurate as possible.

    Now if only you guys could make an NHL game, my life would be complete. =)

  • hey i was wonderin if mlb 09 or u would consider doin brands of stuff like shoes and bats like player can choose he wants a pair of nike shox in team colour with a rawling gold glove and some bat and stuff like that

    thanx johno

  • I can’t wait for this game i just brought me a ps3!!!!!!!!!! i use to play 2k series after reading this and seeing the videos I laugh at 2k lolol

  • Last year’s game had too much non-controlled play. For example, HR’s went right into a trot (which shouldn’t be part of the game to begin with…) and you couldn’t see the ball leave the yard. Just seems like there is too much non-baseball play to this game….MVP games were better.

  • Hi guys, when does the MLB 09 demo come out as I can’t wait.

  • MLB RTTS 09 Development Team,

    My name is Michael and I am a firefighter from Indiana and first off I wanted to thank you for creating a game(RTTS 08) with such a great replay-value to it, I can honestly say that after the “bad days” at work it helps me to get my mind on less tramatic things. So that aside I have already pre-ordered
    RTTS 09 and I saw that in the blog you posted something about changing player numbers? Im curious about this because I have played in a RTTS season where my number was changed by a player being traded to my team… in the new version will I be able to change it back if this happens again?
    Thank you for your time,
    Michael

  • Can you tell us about any improvements to online play, and would it be possible to have the computer play a game for a team that drops out of an online league?

  • Hey Aaron,

    Just wondering of we are going to be able to choose to play as a desighnated hitter in 09 the show. Also, I would like to know when the game comes out in March. Finally, i never retired as a hall of famer in 08 the show, but if I do in 09 the show will there be a ceremony to show my plaque as a hall of famer, but if not just tell me and think about doing next year in 2010.

    P.S. please write back.

  • Whoops, my mistake on grammar on the third word I meant IF.

    Sorry, but once again please write back.

  • hey mr.luke & mr.launchbaugh i just wanted to know if you guys were ever gonna add the eye toy to ps3 version. i really enjoyed playing as my self in the ps2 version. it made me feel like i was actually in the game. i hope you guys bring this feature back it was sooooooo much fun.

  • hope to hear from you guys soon.

  • Wow Amazing,But to give you a guys a suggestion i think you should allow us players to add music from our ps3 to our created player’s at-bat that would be cool.

  • man. it would really be cool to have glasses on my star player

  • Can we finally get PSP/PS3 cross-compatibility? I would love to be able to continue my PS3 season on my PSP and vice-versa?

  • I thought I had read that this year when you want to spend your training POINTS you could actually do the batting practice instead of them just being simulated. I think that would be a great idea! Anyone have any info on that?

  • Hello Mr. Luke i got one question for you:
    are any of these changes on the ps2?
    because i’d like to see custom faces and heads on my carrer player, or at least broadcast names, because the game is kinda boring withouth all that funny stuff, it just makes it better.

  • If I choose to be a catcher in RTTS can I call the game? I don’t beleive this was the case last year.

    Thanks.

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