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Imagine there's a big-league game going on. The PlayStation 3 is down by a few runs, but the bases are loaded. MLB 07: The Show strides up to bat, exuding confidence. It's the hometown boy, and had its share of success in the minor leagues (PS2). The pitch comes, right down the middle. MLB 07 swings. It didn't strike out like the mythical Casey did for Mudville, but this game is no home run, either. Let's call it a sacrifice fly.

Contact Hitter

MLB 07: The Show's appearance on the PlayStation 2 left nothing to be ashamed of. It was competent at worst, and delightfully innovative at best. The positives definitely find their way onto the PlayStation 3. If you're looking for good, solid baseball, you'll find it here. Both pitching and batting are intuitive without being overly complicated. Guess where the opposing pitcher is going to hurl for a boost at the plate, or absorb some good advice from the catcher while on the mound.

Fielding is basic and base-running can be confusing, but you get used to them over time. Sliders allow you to tweak gameplay at will. MLB 07 does a fine job of manufacturing drama, like when you're pitching to a power hitter with the bases loaded. Conversely, it feels a little devoid of interaction at times: Listening to your catcher takes yet another aspect of the game out of your hands -- joining things like fielders that go AI-controlled after you make a catch to create an experience you watch as often as you play.

The "I" in PlayStation

While you can micromanage to your heart's content in franchise mode or just play a hell of a lot of games with stats tracked with a season, career mode is the true star of this title. All the fat is trimmed so you only see and play in moments of the game that involve your created player.

This often involves a different perspective, like going over your shoulder while on base. The defensive aspects vary wildly whether you're a pitcher or right fielder, but most of the formal goals occur when you're at bat. The Show adds a much-appreciated role-playing element to sports games, and is one of the few truly creative additions to sports gaming in the last few years.

Next-Gen Season

None of this is new to those who dropped $40 on the PS2 version of MLB 07. So, what's the beefed-up (and $20 more expensive) PS3 version have on top of that? Surely, like a Major League player, the added steroids give it a power advantage. Sadly, there's not much extra in the game, as it feels near identical. The motion-control is defaulted to "off" which should tell you something. Being able to tilt the controller to jump or dive in the outfield isn't very reliable (head, meet wall), and it's basically useless while stealing bases.

That puts the pressure on presentation. This is a prettier game than the last-gen iteration, to be sure, but it sure doesn't hold its own when compared to Major League 2K7. MLB 07's characters are just a little shinier and sharper than on PS2. The crowd does look nice, animations have been added, and the presentation has been spiced up; but not to the point where this looks anything close to next-gen. The audio doesn't add much, either -- save for some radio clips of important baseball moments interspersed with the licensed music in the jukebox.

Away Games

Staying so close to its PS2 sibling isn't such a bad thing when it comes to online: Internet leagues, instant messaging, and chat are all here. Force faraway opponents to use your sliders, or check out actual MLB scores from just about any menu. Heaped upon all the single-player modes and the local multiplayer rivalry mode, baseball fans won't get bored with The Show any time soon.

It's painfully obviously that Sony just took its PS2 game and jacked up a few stats here and there. Fortunately, the base game is solid, but PS3 owners and their $60 deserve a little more. It looks like they'll have to wait until next season to get it. This next-gen rookie needs more time before it earns a spot in the big leagues.

Article by: Justin Leeper
Video produced by: Paul Bonnano