[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"similar-games-mlb-the-show-16":3,"game-mlb-the-show-16":5},{"similarGames":4},[],{"game":6,"hasUserReviewed":22},{"id":7,"name":8,"summary":9,"cover_image":10,"header_image":11,"trailer_url":12,"release_date":13,"avg_score":14,"igdb_id":15,"slug":16,"steam_app_id":17,"companies":18,"genres":27,"platforms":29,"reviews":32,"coverImage":10,"headerImage":11,"trailerUrl":12,"releaseDate":13,"criticReviewCount":123,"userReviewCount":124,"previewCount":124,"publishers":125,"developers":126,"userReviews":127,"hasUserReviewed":22,"steamAppId":17},88785,"MLB The Show 16","Baseball games don't get much better than this. MLB The Show 16 continues Sony's acclaimed slugger series in triumphant fashion, where every strikeout feels like a monumental feat, and a grand slam is just as glorious as in the real world. It's all about the details here: your pitcher's fatigue is tracked and actually factors into their throws, your team's morale will affect your performance during a season, and scouting new players is an impressively multifaceted process (while still being accessible).","88785\u002Fmlb-the-show-16-cover.jpg","88785\u002Fmlb-the-show-16-header.jpg","https:\u002F\u002Fyoutu.be\u002FpORq20S6r38","2016-03-29",84.33,2212,"mlb-the-show-16",null,[19,24],{"company":20,"developed":22,"published":23},{"name":21},"Sony Computer Entertainment",false,true,{"company":25,"developed":23,"published":22},{"name":26},"SCE San Diego Studio",[28],"Sport",[30,31],"PlayStation 3","PlayStation 4",[33,49,64,79,95,110],{"id":34,"author":35,"outlet":38,"summary":44,"review_url":45,"review_date":46,"original_score":47,"normalized_score":48},27542,{"id":36,"name":37},2871,"Brett Todd",{"id":39,"logo":40,"name":41,"website_url":42,"score_format":43},28,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.criticdb.com\u002Fstorage\u002Fv1\u002Fobject\u002Fpublic\u002Favatars\u002FOutlets\u002FGameSpot-Logo.jpg","GameSpot","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gamespot.com","10","Hitting ’em where they ain’t, one more time.","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gamespot.com\u002Freviews\u002Fmlb-the-show-16-review\u002F1900-6416405\u002F","2016-04-12","8.0",80,{"id":50,"author":51,"outlet":54,"summary":60,"review_url":61,"review_date":13,"original_score":62,"normalized_score":63},38508,{"id":52,"name":53},3751,"Dean James",{"id":55,"logo":56,"name":57,"website_url":58,"score_format":59},50,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.criticdb.com\u002Fstorage\u002Fv1\u002Fobject\u002Fpublic\u002Favatars\u002FOutlets\u002FAttack-Of-The-Fanboy-Logo.jpg","Attack of the Fanboy","https:\u002F\u002Fattackofthefanboy.com\u002F","5","While last year’s game may have been really one of the first outings for the series that felt like little more than a roster update, the series has truly returned to form once again this year with MLB The Show 16.","https:\u002F\u002Fattackofthefanboy.com\u002Freviews\u002Fmlb-show-16-review\u002F","4.5",90,{"id":65,"author":66,"outlet":69,"summary":74,"review_url":75,"review_date":76,"original_score":77,"normalized_score":78},73377,{"id":67,"name":68},5706,"Mike Mitchell",{"id":70,"logo":71,"name":72,"website_url":73,"score_format":43},69,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.criticdb.com\u002Fstorage\u002Fv1\u002Fobject\u002Fpublic\u002Favatars\u002FOutlets\u002FIGN-logo.jpg","IGN","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ign.com\u002F","Simply put, MLB The Show 16 is the best baseball game available on any current-gen console. It looks, plays, and feels amazing, offering many ways to play the great American pastime. Franchise and Road to the Show modes have made incremental but impressive improvements, while Diamond Dynasty offers entirely new ways to play. Not every mode works, but it’s encouraging to see such a radical new mix of gameplay.","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ign.com\u002Farticles\u002F2016\u002F04\u002F01\u002Fmlb-the-show-16-review","2016-04-01","9.3",93,{"id":80,"author":81,"outlet":84,"summary":90,"review_url":91,"review_date":92,"original_score":93,"normalized_score":94},36599,{"id":82,"name":83},3524,"Trevor Houston",{"id":85,"logo":86,"name":87,"website_url":88,"score_format":89},7,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.criticdb.com\u002Fstorage\u002Fv1\u002Fobject\u002Fpublic\u002Favatars\u002FOutlets\u002Fcog-connected-logo.png","COGConnected","https:\u002F\u002Fcogconnected.com","100","Fans who exclusively play The Show year after year who have already purchased the game will be happy with the upgrades and additions this year. Familiar modes like Road to the Show and Diamond Dynasty received upgrades. A couple of new modes have been added this year (Conquest and Battle Royale). Franchise mode also received a glut of new features and improvements. The core gameplay received some significant improvements. Last but not least, there is a host of new animations and the game looks better than ever. It even has some personality.","https:\u002F\u002Fcogconnected.com\u002Freview\u002Fmlb-the-show-16-review\u002F","2016-04-03","88",88,{"id":96,"author":97,"outlet":100,"summary":105,"review_url":106,"review_date":107,"original_score":108,"normalized_score":109},67760,{"id":98,"name":99},1867,"Steven Hansen",{"id":101,"logo":102,"name":103,"website_url":104,"score_format":43},10,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.criticdb.com\u002Fstorage\u002Fv1\u002Fobject\u002Fpublic\u002Favatars\u002FOutlets\u002FDestructoid-Logo.png","Destructoid","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.destructoid.com","If MLB The Show‘s new MO is just coasting on the good gameplay and providing minor tweaks to disparate modes, each with their own appeal (or lack thereof, depending), then there’s no greater candidate for games-as-service that I can see. Because there’s good money in it, however, I doubt we’ll drop the yearly release format. It would at least be nice to cut the PS3 version, provided that the freed-up resources would make the yearly changes a little less incremental. Still, the baseball itself is as good as ever, and one of the better modes, Road to the Show, is far less clunky this time around.","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.destructoid.com\u002Freviews\u002Freview-mlb-the-show-16\u002F","2016-04-20","\n\t\t\t7.5\t\t",75,{"id":111,"author":112,"outlet":115,"summary":120,"review_url":121,"review_date":76,"original_score":122,"normalized_score":48},104253,{"id":113,"name":114},9098,"Andrew Reiner",{"id":116,"logo":117,"name":118,"website_url":119,"score_format":43},141,"https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.criticdb.com\u002Fstorage\u002Fv1\u002Fobject\u002Fpublic\u002Favatars\u002FOutlets\u002Fgameinformer.jpg","Game Informer","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gameinformer.com\u002F","When you attend a game of baseball in MLB The Show 16, you’re not just going for the peanuts, Cracker Jack, or thrill of seeing a batter demolish a searing 97-mph fastball; you’re going to watch a player disprove Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. Thanks to a new ability called “Showtime,” used exclusively in any player-lock mode like Road to the Show, the fabric of reality can unravel at any given time, gifting your player with the god-like ability to slow time to a crawl. With Showtime active, that 97-mph fastball ends up looking like a lazy balloon floating to the plate. For a series that I applaud annually for getting baseball’s smallest details right, The Show now appears to have its sights set on mimicking popular video game conventions. Last year, players could wear gear to artificially reward ability bumps. This year, the Showtime mechanic smacks of a mutant gene from a superhero game. While I like the spectacle of Showtime, such as seeing my fielder dive for a ball in super slow motion, it’s more of a misrepresentation of the sport than anything. It feels cheap. Showtime doesn’t guarantee success, but there’s obviously less of a chance of a strike out, error, or poorly struck ball. Although a limited resource, it is cheating in the most video game way possible. Road to the Show also stumbles mightily with its Showtime-based perk system that guarantees outcomes like flyballs or all pitches being in the strike zone. Couple these additions with the returning trading card system, and suddenly, skill doesn’t matter that much anymore. This year’s takeaway: Build your baseball Iron Man, select his powers, and you’ll make it to the big leagues in no time.Diamond Dynasty, Sony’s online-focused mode in which you are tasked to create a fictional team and build its roster through collectible player cards, has received a fair number of notable additions this year. This is where I ended up spending most of my time, willingly and having a good time doing so. For first time in Show history, Diamond Dynasty is the mode I recommend players invest their time in. Through the new avenues of play, I was pleased to find I was earning new cards left and right, and I could fly through match-ups almost as quickly as a player-locked game.","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.gameinformer.com\u002Fgames\u002Fmlb_the_show_16\u002Fb\u002Fplaystation4\u002Farchive\u002F2016\u002F04\u002F01\u002Fwhen-authenticity-isn-t-enough.aspx","8.00\u002F10",6,0,[21],[26],[]]