In a recent Developer Blog on theshownation.com, the team at Sony San Diego outlined two new features for its upcoming release, MLB 14: The Show. The first feature introduced was a new form of universal currency called “stubs.” Stubs will basically work the way VC does in the NBA 2K games; players will earn stubs by playing various modes of the game and can cash them in for things like Road to the Show Training Points, Franchise Budget and Dynamic Dynasty Budget.
As with previous versions, players will still be able to purchase these upgrades through the Show’s store. Gamestop is offering $19.99 worth of this universal currency as incentive to pre-order the game through them. The blog stresses that no features have been removed or altered in order to drum up more micro-transaction sales. Stubs are simply meant to reward players for various achievements within the game. The payment alternative is designed to be an option for those who lack the time or desire to grind the training points out in the minors.
The developers also hint at a new Community Challenges mode in which players will use the same tools as the developer to design challenges for other players. Stubs can be earned through this mode as well. The blog also announces an update to the Universal Profile system. The game will now keep in-depth numbers on player tendencies in a variety of areas. As you can see, there are four tendencies tracked in both hitting and pitching, in addition to four general stats that record things like a player’s feelings towards playing with a DH or with the quick count feature enabled.
The new tendency screen.
The hitting tendencies take typical stats like walks, strikeouts, home runs, slugging etc. and generate general tendencies that can be viewed by the player or by online opponents. The difficulty mode that these tendencies were accumulated on is also tracked and available for viewing by the public. The most important aspect of these tendencies is that they, in conjunction with a player’s attributes, dictate the probability of certain events on the field. For example, a player with a high power tendency and good power attributes is more likely to hit a home run than a player with a low power tendency and the same power attributes.
The bottom section deals with frequencies. Frequencies in MLB 14: The Show represent a player’s in-game choices, such as bunting or stealing bases. These will also be visible to the public, so players are able to review a sort-of digital scouting report on one another before playing an online game.
These stats can also be saved and applied to an AI version of your player. The Online Franchise and Diamond Dynasty modes allow other teams to challenge your team in various mini-games while you are not online, so an accurate portrayal of your star player is important for dictating the outcomes of these games. It is not yet clear if the tendencies will have any influences on your player’s stats when simulating on offline modes like Road to the Show. Gamerheadlines asked for clarification on this point. These features will be available on all three platforms (PS Vita, PS3, PS4). The only wrinkle is that PS Vita users will not be able to use the AI controlled tendency features.
MLB 14: The Show will drop on April 1 for PS Vita and PS3. The PS4 version will hit stores sometime in May.