What is the difference between mlb 2k11 and the show

The safest bet in all of sports video gaming is that the annual "MLB The Show" title will be an excellent all-around product. That's due in large part to the series' propensity to play it safe with its feature set while focusing instead primarily on gameplay refinement. But once again it's the gameplay that's leaned on heavily to compensate for a lack of innovation and any areas of stagnation. To a large extent it's good enough to do just that. There weren't many gripes with gameplay to begin with, but "MLB The Show 17" addressed the main ones.

The success of bunting has been reduced and slow fielding and throwing animations that lacked urgency and would cost outs or bases have been resolved.

The biggest general improvement to gameplay, however, will be seen through increased hit variety because of the implementation of some new ball physics. Ropes down the line, bloopers between converging outfielders and infielders, and slow rollers through the infield are now possible and immediately stand out. It hadn't changed dramatically in a decade with everything in the mode based on progression on-field rather than incorporating elements of a player's life away from it.

MORE: 15 new legends found in "MLB The Show 17" It's presented as occasional documentary segments that pop up during the course of your player's career in which only a narrator speaks , so there isn't a whole lot that it does fundamentally to change the mode. Instead, it acts as a layer on top of what was already there and brings some decision-making to the forefront.

One of the first big choices to be made will be a proposed position change with options given on how to react to such a request. Franchise Mode is largely unchanged from last year, with the big new features providing more options of how to not play the games within.

It's a trend seen in most sports games now as they look to alleviate the extensive time investment needed to complete single games and full seasons.

Online Franchise is as good as dead at this point, as another year has gone by without anything being done for it. It's the most friendly for newcomers and provides the most rewards for simply playing games.

Unfortunately, one design decision has made the mode considerably worse. The handedness of the opposing starting pitcher is now shrouded in mystery until the games have actually begun, and that means there's no adjusting lineups to face a lefty or a righty. Instead, the strategy has to be all about balance at the plate. The ramifications of this were clear even before the game was released but have been seen in the early days as well.

The players with higher prices in the marketplace are those who can hit effectively against both hands. You can play with your Move controller in the Home Run Derby mode. It's actually pretty fun, though it's unclear if the way you swing--and the timing--truly correlates to how far and hard you end up hitting the ball. But it would be great if you could play the full game using the Move controller at least for batting instead of just the Derby mode. We get the feeling Move batting still needs some tweaks, but the potential is there for it to make the game more interesting--and fun--to play.

So there you have it; if you're lucky enough to own both systems, we'd recommend going with MLB The Show. Xbox owners won't be let down by 2K11, we just don't think it's a big enough jump from last year's effort. That said, neither game really makes any groundbreaking leaps. If anything, these anticlimactic offerings leave up in there air, a year where it'll truly be anyone's game. Be respectful, keep it civil and stay on topic. We delete comments that violate our policy , which we encourage you to read.

Discussion threads can be closed at any time at our discretion. Video game showdown: MLB 2K11 vs. MLB The Show With spring training under way, it's time to brush off the cleats, dig into the batter's box, and step into another season of baseball video games.

Right now, I mix the pitching between analog and meter, but bat exclusively with the old zone-based setting, getting back to the core of The Show 's great batter-pitcher duels without the needless complication of new controls. In the field, The Show makes a good representation of baseball when catching the ball, while 2K11 's throwing controls are far superior. Overall, though, fielding is made difficult in 2K11 by a bad set of camera angles which makes every infield reaction an adventure.

The same goes for baserunning -- 2K11 simply doesn't have a nice, high angle of the field like The Show does, and it impacts gameplay. Ironically, the game that gets its default camera angles right MLB 11 offers a nearly endless combination of custom camera tweaks, while the game with bad angles 2K11 has little in the way of camera customization. It's easy to get caught up in the minutia of control schemes, but looking at the big-picture, MLB 11 gives a better, more realistic on-field representation of baseball.

I will say that 2K11 shows flashes of the type of greatness MVP Baseball offered circa , so the potential is there for a truly outstanding game, but for now MLB 11 is still the on-field champ.

Each game offers similar features, including franchise, HR derby, and "build your own major leaguer" modes 2K11 calls it "My Player"; MLB 11 's is named "Road to the Show" , but the Show generally pulls these off with slightly more polish -- not that either game's franchise mode will ever be confused with Out of the Park or Baseball Mogul.

In 2K11 's favor, they offer a more exciting way to interact with the actual major leagues in real time, thanks to MLB Today which allows you to play scheduled matchups on the same day and the ability for franchise-mode player ratings to change based on real-life performance the extent of The Show 's work in this department is the typical weekly live roster update.

MLB 2K has certainly improved far more than The Show over the past few years, and in some ways MLB 11 was barely an improvement over last year's edition even considering the control-scheme changes. But while the gap has been narrowed, MLB 11 still separates itself with better graphics, gameplay, and generally a more polished game. If you have an Xbox, rejoice that your system has a baseball game worth playing again -- but if you have a PS3, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of The Show.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 30th, at pm and is filed under Bloops , Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2. Both comments and pings are currently closed. One thing that doesn't make sense is that if you go to SF and hit a ball into the water over the right field seats, it does actually make a splash sound but because of the crowd, music, and announcers, you can't hear the water splash effect. One of the best comparisons I have read out there.

As a PS3 user I went with 2K11 over the Show 11 largely because I'm a little tired of the Show after years of playing it and I prefer the gesture pitching.

A big plus for me is my slow reflexes and the slower pitch speed in 2K I actually love the default batting camera in 2K