Realism of MLB 10: The Show

Hey everyone, Greg Batalucco here to bring you the next installment of MLB 10: The Show posts. This entry will focus on the realism and experience within our stadiums.

Beginning with last year’s version of The Show, we wanted to make the game even more accurate. In MLB 10: The Show, we have taken it further and added more to your gaming experience. New for this year’s edition are real-time players in the dugouts and bullpens, fireworks, rally towels, thundersticks, working digital and analog clocks, and much more. All these realistic enhancements to the game make MLB 10: The Show feel and sound like you are actually at the ballpark. Throughout this post we will focus on the stadium enchantments and how they make The Show come alive!

Real-Time Players in The Dugout and Bullpen
New to this year’s version of The Show is having the dugouts and bullpens full to capacity in real time. What this means is that players will be seen in actual game time sitting on the bench, standing, leaning on the railings and moving around. The players will even react to the action on the field, so if a foul ball comes in the dugout, they will quickly move out of the way. You’ll also see bullpen activity – with pitchers getting up, stretching and starting to loosen up. Managers will be seen giving instruction to the bench players and calling out to the fielders in play. This realism gives you, the user, the element that you are involved in a real-life baseball game.

Stadiums Experiences (Fireworks/HR/splash counters/clocks)
Last year we added quite a bit to the stadium experience, but this year we wanted to make MLB 10 stand out even more. We set out researching how the stadiums looked, finding the little nuances of each stadium. If you’re going to include fireworks, they have to look and sound real. Each fireworks explosion is designed to recreate the actual fireworks display that is seen when the home team hits a homerun or wins the game.

Another area of detail with the stadiums was adding in the famous Home Run Splash Counter in San Francisco. This also includes a special Splash Camera which follows the ball as it splashes into McCovey Cove. Also added to our stadiums are working clocks which show the actual time from game start until finish. There are digital and analog clocks throughout the stadiums, so check out the time as you play the game.

Crowd Detail (Reaching over the rails, thundersticks, rally towels, detail)
This year we added so much more to our crowds and their animations. The crowd in MLB 10 will now react to a ball hit into the stands either on foul balls or home runs. They will also reach over the railings to try and grab a ground ball that is hit into foul territory. Play The Show and you may actually see a fan take a tumble over the wall. Another thing we wanted to spruce up is crowd accessories. We decided to add in thundersticks, rally towels and the ever-present “cowbell” in Tampa. These little touches of realism add up to make MLB 10: The Show a home run!

Final Thoughts
As you can see, we went into the making of MLB 10 asking the question, “What can we do to make this game more realistic?” Our community and fans wanted even more detail and realism. If your favorite team, stadium, or crowd does things a certain way, we want to make sure it’s reflected in The Show. This attention to detail is what makes us stand out. From new fireworks, splash counters, thundersticks and more, we want you to feel the sights and sounds of real live baseball. We appreciate your feedback and will always listen to our fans as we try to make the best game possible. Thanks for your time and we hope you enjoy MLB 10: The Show and the realism we bring to you.