Out of the Park Baseball 15 will release on April 18 for those who pre-order the PC management sim and go wide to all on the 21st. It can still be pre-ordered to get the early access. It will also be available through Steam, Amazon, and the Mac App Store at a later date. The mobile version of the game, iOOTP 14, will be out on the app store around April 17 with that date dependent on the approval process.
New features were announced earlier this year and include changes to the ratings system, updated rosters, revamped interface, additional international leagues, support for 3D ballparks and ball flight, and much more.
The mobile version of the game includes new features like Retina display support, a redesigned interface, updated rosters, player editor, and AI improvements. An Android version is being worked on and planned for release this summer.
The recent video showing off the in-stadium experience provided an opportunity to see the extensive visual enhancements coming with the PS4 version of MLB 14: The Show. Even more footage has shown up today courtesy of IGN with three short clips of the game in action. Though the feature sets between PS3 and PS4 may be the same many technological improvements can be realized with the advanced hardware and some of that is evident already. Read more
MLB 14: The Show arrived last week but the usual roster update that accompanies sports games for release was absent. That left consumers waiting yet another week for the latest rosters and having to consider whether to delay starting up a Franchise or Road to the Show or getting stuck for the entirety of their careers with the base six week old rosters.
SCEA has now released the first update and that includes players who made their MLB debuts early this season. The biggest name is Masahiro Tanaka who comes in with an 82 overall and “A” potential. Click the two thumbnails below to see all the changes that have been implemented in the update including added players and movement.
RBI Baseball 14 will release as a digital download on PSN for PS3 and XBLA for Xbox 360 on Wednesday. Xbox One, PS4, and Android versions are expected to arrive in May. MLB Advanced Media has treated RBI 14 very much like they would any mobile game by not offering much in the way of details or media prior to release and the lack of it resulted in the complete dissipation of the hype from when it was initially announced in January.
As far as the price goes the Xbox 360 and PS3 digital downloads will be $20 and the mobile version will be offered for $5. Those are both outrageously high. The consoles are getting a port of a mobile game that doesn’t even have online play while there are several good options for baseball games on mobile that have not only been around and proven themselves over time but are free. It’s a good example though of the regard in which MLB places on the value of its license which has prevented EA Sports and others from developing another game.
SCEA today released a new video for the PlayStation 4 version of MLB 14: The Show. The focus is on some of the improvements that will be realized visually in the game – specifically the new lighting engine and enhancements to the fans and stadiums. The PS4 version of The Show is now four weeks away with release set for May 6.
EA Sports has been teasing the addition of a mystery fighter for the upcoming launch of the UFC franchise and the clues made it immediately obvious that it would be Bruce Lee. Today the company confirmed that Lee will be on the roster available immediately to those who pre-order (unlockable by completing Career mode for those who don’t) and playable in four different weight classes (Fly, Bantam, Feather, Light). The deal is being offered through all retailers including Amazon however nothing has been mentioned pertaining to digital purchases. Read more
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦Bruce Lee is expected to be announced as a roster addition to EA Sports UFC tomorrow.
♦Check out the latest fighter screenshots for EA Sports UFC in the FB album.
♦Still lacking a release date here is the official box art for EA Sports UFC.
♦Another developer blog discusses telemetry from the open beta for The Golf Club.
♦New video tutorial demonstrates how to change course lighting in The Golf Club.
♦EA Sports has released the full soundtrack listing for 2014 FIFA World Cup.
♦EA Sports has released a video showing off new celebrations in 2014 FIFA World Cup.
♦SCEA released a developer video about Community Challenges in MLB 14: The Show.
♦Polygon takes a look at all the work that goes into creating uniforms in sports games.
♦SB Nation has debuted NBA Y2K which is a spin-off of the hilarious Breaking Madden series.
♦Data from Facebook shows the favorite MLB team for every county in the nation.
♦Amazon has added a pre-order bonus of in-game gear for Kinect Sports Rivals.
♦Blu-ray/DVD releases this week are headlined by The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.
♦Amazon has released their own set-top box w/gaming capabilities called Fire TV for $99.
Though it may not qualify as a pure sports game Super Stickman Golf and its sequel have been recognized for being among the most fun games for mobile devices. The developers of SSG, Noodlecake Studios, recently released a spin-off called that goes by two different names: Flappy Golf for iOS and Golfy Bird for Android.
As the names would suggest it takes elements from the insanely popular (at least for a few weeks before the creator pulled it from the store) Flappy Bird and combines it with SSG. Two on-screen commands move the ball left or right with the goal to hole it in the least number of “flaps”. All the assets for the game are pulled in from SSG but the new way to play makes it feel like a whole new experience.
The popularity of the game has already prompted Noodlecake to work on an update that is expected to release within the next week on iOS with Android following later. That will deliver the ability to pay to be ad-free and real-time multiplayer with up to eight people involved.
Flappy Golf/Golfy Bird is free can be downloaded for iOS devices through iTunes and for Android from Google Play.