Visiting Major League Baseball players try out MLB 2014 The Show on PS4 in Sydney

You’re a multi-million dollar sporting superstar visiting Australia where you’ll play the opening round of the 2014 Major League season at a converted cricket ground in front of a packed stadium – what do you do to warm up?  Play a bit of Playstation 4 of course.

I visited four of the travelling MLB players in Sydney this morning where they got hands-on with the soon-to-be-released “MLB 14 The Show” playing both the PS4 and PS Vita versions.

Hanley Ramirez and Yasiel Puig of the Los Angeles Dodgers joined Brad Ziegler and Cliff Pennington of the Arizona Diamondbacks to show off their virtual skills to the waiting media.

The boys really seemed to get into the spirit with Yasiel Puig easily the most vocal of the four showing both frustration and joy with his players in the game.

Available in Australia via online delivery only (ie: you won’t see it in-stores) via the Playstation Network it’s coming to all three Playstation Platforms.

PS3 and PS Vita versions will be available on April 3, with PS4 following on May the 8th.

The PS4 version I saw today looked simply stunning.  The detail in the stadium was fantastic.  Three-dimensional score board detail and individual movements among the thousands of crowd members.

Player movements leading up to and after each pitch gave such a genuine effect you’d be excused for thinking you were watching the TV coverage of the game.

 

One of the key new features in 2014 is the ability to play full games faster than ever.  Baseball is a long game, so making the virtual game faster by skipping the “non-play” components allows the game to be compressed down in time – this will be a big win with players.

There’s also a “Road to the Show” evolution, with a new intuitive player creation process and an all new pre-draft prospect showcase.

And in a first for a major sports game franchise, MLB 14 The Show will feature year to year saves.  So in 2015, when MLB 15 comes out – your saved progress follows through – that’s a game-changer.

The Dodgers and Diamondbacks are in Australia to take on the Aussie team on Thursday and Friday night then on Saturday and Sunday their big season opener at the SCG.