Metareview - MLB '06: The Show (PS2, PSP)

Baseball season is nearly upon us, and if third-party publishers can't make an MLB game due to Take-Two Interactive's exclusivity deal, then let first-party publishers continue to do so. That said, Sony has released MLB '06: The Show for both the PS2 and PSP with some critics calling it a worthy replacement for EA's MVP series. Here's what the reviewers are saying with a Game Rankings composite score of 84% at the time of writing:

• GamePro 80% - "Because the game engine is basically the same, we see just about all the same hitting and fielding animations in The Show, with fielding animations near top-notch in the baseball genre. The fluidity with which fielders can step on a bag and throw, or make running throws for that matter, is surprisingly realistic and accurate."

• GameDaily 90% - "MLB 06 features the best commentary in a sports game, period, but it's also loaded with cool animations as well, so players make less awkward catches. But beyond the actual games there's also a hell of a lot of modes to play around with, such as King of the Diamond, the all new Rivalry mode, a retooled Franchise mode, and the ability to play as the Cooperstown legends."

• Yahoo! Games 80% - "After all the small additions and mode debuts, it's also nice to see that Sony has finally started to apply some moxie to the online aspect of baseball. The new lobbies, matchmaking, and friend lists are all excellent, as is the option to play King of the Diamond online."