Pitchers and Catchers report in just 19 days… which means the 2017 Major League Baseball season is right around the corner. That also means that Sony San Diego is putting the finishing touches on MLB 17 The Show, which will launch exclusively for the PS4 on March 28.
And like any good skipper, Sony San Diego’s Ramone Russell wants his players to be ready to step into the batter’s box on Opening Day, so the Community Specialist took over the PlayStation Blog to deliver a few more details on the SNES-styled Retro Mode:
Retro mode is pretty much a one-button mode, but with surprising depth, and all the new animations, gameplay additions, and improvements found in the regular version of the game.
For example, in an effort to simplify the batter vs. pitcher battle, we’ve taken all the pitching attributes out and boiled them down to velocity, break, and control. Because there is no high and low in the strike zone, you have three pitches at your disposal that you can trigger with the touch of one button. To throw a fastball you hold down on the left analog stick and press X. To throw a changeup you hold up on the left analog stick and press X. And to throw a slider you press to the left or right on the left analog stick after the pitch is released.
One of the wrinkles we’ve added is that velocity is controlled by holding down or up on the analog stick just before the pitcher releases. In closing, you choose velocity before the pitch is thrown and you can affect movement (left or right) after the pitch is thrown.
Russell also revealed that Sony San Diego will provide a full scouting report on MLB The Show 17’s new modes and features with weekly livestreams on Twitch and Developer Blogs on YouTube beginning February 7.
Finally, if you’re planning to purchase MLB The Show 17 in Canada or Taiwan, Sony also revealed the special cover athletes for those regions. The Canadian cover will feature Aaron Sanchez of the Toronto Blue Jays. Meanwhile, Wei-Yin Chen of the Miami Marlins will appear on the Taiwanese cover.
