2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

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VideoGameCritic
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2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby VideoGameCritic » April 26th, 2016, 6:22 pm

Here are two new PS4 reviews for you to comment on.

Herschie
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby Herschie » April 28th, 2016, 1:12 pm

I know that pretty much everything I post here is The Show this, The Show that, but I'm really not enjoying 16 much. The graphics aren't as good and sharp as 15, and the lighting isn't as good. Plus in all the previews, the developers said that they were going to fix a lot of the fielding issues with the urgency of throws and things like that. And nothing much has really changed. Too often I've asked myself what the hell Sony has been up to since last year. I do, however, love the return of Sounds of the Show, and one nice thing about it is being able to cue the music at different points in the track. As such, my game sounds like a Fox broadcast, though I use the old MLB song because I liked that one better.

Still, I'd rather be playing a good, solid game with default music. This exclusive crap has really been destroying the sports genre. It started with Madden which has been subpar for over a decade, and now I'm afraid it's creeping into The Show.

jon
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby jon » April 28th, 2016, 2:22 pm

This whole exclusive thing is just ruining sports games. It's better to just play games from the old days when there were a lot of choices. I feel like we're being told what to play. I'll never forget the hopelessness I felt in the late 90's when all my favorite developers were going out of business one by one. That paved the way for the unfair wasteland we call modern gaming.

Breaker
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby Breaker » April 29th, 2016, 1:56 am

I'm no fan of the exclusivity on sports games either. I can still remember the anxiety as I stared at Hardball 94, World Series Baseball, and La Russa 95 and tried to decide which one to drop my $50 or $60 on. So worried I'd choose...poorly.

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scotland
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby scotland » April 29th, 2016, 5:32 am

The issue is as much the gamers fault as exclusive contracts. Many sports, like tennis games, or racing to Mario and Sonic do the Olympics, are not affected by these exclusive contracts much because fans are not that invested in the actual athletes, but just want a fun video game about the sport. Big ticket team sports are more like reality tv where the cast seems more important than the content.

There is nothing to stop a company making an American football game, even if they don't have the NFL and NFLPA licenses.

Such an unlicensed American football game could be creative too. Can you change the rules of football like play with a rugby ball? Or allow tripping? Or play 7 on 7? Or use high school football teams? Or have to count 5 mississippi before rushing the qb?

Even today with its the hyper focus on realism and photorealistic graphics, people could play a football game with thkngs like the USFL teams. Or a basketball game playing as the Harlem Globetrotters versus the Washington Generals. Or a baseball game with players from the Negro league versus the ladies from A league of their own, or whatever.

So don't put all the blame on EA buying up licenses when the fans are more interested in the players than the game.

Breaker
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby Breaker » April 29th, 2016, 8:55 pm

Very true, Scotland. Lots of old games would have ONLY an MLBPA license. Real players, but no team names or stadiums. I could see an NFL Blitz type game with no licensing. Or an NBA Jam type game without real players. Arcade style fits better with that, imho.

jon
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby jon » April 29th, 2016, 10:35 pm

The problem with an unlicensed sports game, is that for it be on the PS4/XBONE it would have to be ultra realistic, and hence, it would cost an insane amount of money to produce. The barrier to entry is so ridiculously high. And if it's not that, then what, for mobile gaming or whatever? We've seen how much of a joke that is. Most games look like 1 or 2 guys made them their free time. I'm afraid we're stuck where we're at. I've been a proponent (maybe the only one, lol) of a modern 2d system, incorporating all of the advancements in technology. If that happened, games wouldn't cost a kazillion dollars to produce and there could be (gasp) imagination in video games. That'd at least be a good start.

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velcrozombie
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby velcrozombie » April 30th, 2016, 2:35 am

jon wrote:The problem with an unlicensed sports game, is that for it be on the PS4/XBONE it would have to be ultra realistic, and hence, it would cost an insane amount of money to produce.


Why would it have to be ultra-realistic? The PS3 and XBox360 had a lot of downloadable games with either cartoonish or retro-style graphics, and a number of them looked great; I don't see why that would have changed in the new generation. There's a middle ground between AAA and one-man mobile game territory.

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scotland
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby scotland » April 30th, 2016, 7:08 am

velcrozombie wrote:
jon wrote:The problem with an unlicensed sports game, is that for it be on the PS4/XBONE it would have to be ultra realistic, and hence, it would cost an insane amount of money to produce.


Why would it have to be ultra-realistic? The PS3 and XBox360 had a lot of downloadable games with either cartoonish or retro-style graphics, and a number of them looked great; I don't see why that would have changed in the new generation. There's a middle ground between AAA and one-man mobile game territory.


Right. There should be a middle tier. Right now, mobile graphics are about PS2 level polygons, but sprites are popular as being cute, retro, phone screen friendly, and allow for gameplay experiments. Even minecraft level graphics are popular. Nintendo's whole schtick is lesser graphics with solid gameplay, whether its splatton instead of fallout or mario kart instead of forza. The only thing stopping that for big time US sports in video games is that 'gotta be AAA photorealistic with all the licenses' attitude. Its exactly what EA promoted for years with 'if its in the game its in the game'. EA has built that expectation to do exactly this, kill competition. Put on that Guy Fawkes mask and work for change.

There probably are retired engines - 2D or 3D - that could be used as a starting point to create an unlicensed game that was fun and creative. People will buy cartoonish Mario and Sonic this summer for the Olympics, but spurn a cartoonish football game. Thats the issue, not the license monopoly.

Herschie
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Re: 2016/4/26: Playstation 4: Call of Duty: Black Ops III, MLB The Show 16

Postby Herschie » May 1st, 2016, 9:23 pm

They just released a patch for The Show. Seems to be playing a lot better.


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