Official PYS4 Release Thread

Having never played PYS in any iteration before, some of these questions might not be what you intended to be asked, but they're questions I have anyway haha:

1.) How does the pitching control work? Is it similar to MLB 2k7 where you push once to set effectiveness and then a second time to set accuracy once you've located the pitch? Or is it a completely different system of control? Also, do catchers call pitch locations or is it left up to the player?

2.) Have you played around with MVP mode yet? Maybe I'm wrong, but based on the videos it would seem that MVP mode is reminiscent (if it wasn't a precursor to) the Road to the Show mode in PS2 MLB The Show 07. If this is the case, do you create your own player and start off fighting for a job with the team, or do you take control of a pre-existing everyday player?

3.) Are there overall ratings for each team on a team select screen or anything like that? I've read the newspaper articles this year predicting the league finishes, but it would be interesting to see what opinions the game has on the teams.

That's all I can think of for now. Extremely jealous that you're playing any version of the game haha, but *fingers crossed* it won't be too long before the PS3 version gets here.

1. You pick the pitch, press X, locate it while winding up, and press X again to determine accuracy and effectiveness. It's kinda similar(I think 2K7 ripped off Konami) but it'll take you a while to work 2K7 timing out of your system. Locations are left up to you. Catchers don't move around like 2K7.

2. You can pick a real player, create your own guy and work your way up as a rookie, or pick a fictional rookie. I haven't had time to mess with it yet.

3. Nope. You'll get to know the teams as you play.

Thanks for the info on the game zam!

Okay, sorry to corner the market on questions, but I just remembered something I forgot to ask in my first reply.

A lot has been made in the pre-release information about how much work the team put into atmospheric and weather conditions for the game. That said, again as a newbie to the PYS series, are there actual rainouts and games affected by inclement weather? To my knowledge, I've yet to play a baseball game that featured real-time rainouts and the like--maybe some games have you on the calendar page and then it says, "The game has been rained out, rescheduled for xx/xx/xx.", but I can't remember actually beginning a game, getting a few innings in with the rain starting, and then having it called.

I could understand where people playing the game would be upset with such a feature anyway, especially if they had just started to rally for a comeback and the rain came in and called the game before they could finish it off. But it would be a heck-of-a-lot more realistic, especially when we look at the real-life 2007 NPB season and the Fighters-Marines game on opening day.

MLB2K7 has in game rain delays. I haven't seen one in the PS2 version. There is no rain outside of the Pawapuro series from what I can tell.

I like to watch games. Is it possible to have the CPU play itself? If so, can I still select any camera angles that I want? Speaking of which...what are the camera angle options??

Yes, you can watch CPU games. i answered this before, so I don't know if that was you or not. There aren't that many camera angle options. Basically what you see on the official site is all there is.

just curious

since both ps2 and ps3 are both released on the same day, how did you manage to get the ps2 vers in advance?

maybe you could shed some light to those who want to play it in advance too

I' don't want to get anyone in trouble, so I'm not going to possibly share with Konami Corp. about how I got to play the game before the street date. I hope you understand.

Ok, time for more observations from the game.

As I mentioned above, getting perfect timing on your pitches is really important this year. Perfect timing on a pitch is the difference between giving up a double and getting a pop up. Mental concentration is key. As a piece of advice, don't get caught up in just timing pitches in your head. Look at the pitch cursor and time the release perfectly using your eyes. This helps me a lot. I also advise you to practice in training mode, as well as use your warm up pitches well. You can also practice timing when throwing out of the strike zone. Messing up timing inside the strike zone on higher difficulty will get you hit every time. As challenging as this is, it's probably the most fun I've had pitching in any game.

The regular fastball drops a little bit when you have pitching set to real pitch cursor, but Kyuji Fujikawa's jumps up and down slightly. Very nice touch. I advise everyone to buy the advanced options in VP Shop(100 measly points) and set pitching to real pitch cursor. It'll result in giving up more walks, hence more realistic stats.

I'm still trying to figure out the best settings for me to have a fun and realistic match. Basic pitch movement isn't doing it for me, so I'll have to bring down pitch speed to Basic and make the movement Real so I strike out more, but also don't get only 2 hits a game. I've been playing with these CPU levels...

Batting: Hard
Pitching: Spirits
Defense: Perfect
Running: Perfect

I think the computer AI uses way too many pitchers and hit and runs.

Defense can be very frustrating if you've been playing the series for a while. What used to be easy outs just dribble past your reach now. You didn't really have to dive in order to get tough grounders. Seems like it's required to dive to get those grounders now.

PYS3 save file was a massive 4500k on your PS2 memory card. Well, now it's 175 for system data, 1000 for each Pennant.

I played Management Pennant a little. It's ok, I guess. Not really my thing. It just seems like a lot of work to just watch the computer play the game.

MVP Mode is cool, but it seems like it'd take forever to play. There's just a lot of loading of game simulations that you don't even play in. My Life in Pawapuro, at least before Pawapuro turned to absolute garbage, was a lot more efficient. Regardless of efficiency, the atmosphere of farm games is too cool. I just hope the PS3 version has a more realistic crowd. PS2 has packed crowds in every game I played. Not realistic at all.

PS2 version even tries to simulate the fans and vendors walking in the stands. Doesn't look too great, though. They're basically sliding cardboard cut outs.

There are some really nice small touches in this year's game. For example, in big situations they show new stats like a pitcher's strike/ball ratio. There are a few other new stats than I can't remember right now. Another cool new addition is the generic batter box entry. You'll see different styles for pitchers, like they are totally lost up at the plate. There is another style for foreign players, too. It adds to the overall feel of the game.

nice observation!

i like the part where fujikawa fastball varies =)

nice touch by konami and pys team

I am on the fence about this game it costs over 80 dollars to import for me.

Is it really that much of abeeter baseball game then MLB 2k7 is for the 360? the videos do look outstanding though.

It's better than 2K7, but you have to ask yourself. Do you care about gameplay or the star quality of MLB and the circus atmosphere of the ballparks. If you're in it just for the gameplay, PYS4 is well worth it. Besides, how many amazing games have come out for the PS3 so far? If you like baseball, this should be a no brainer. I've yet to play the PS3 version, but with as much as I'm enjoying the PS2 version, I can only imagine how good it is.

and one other thing

do you prefer the mlb roster or japanese team roster

if you like japanese baseball, this is a must get.

just like the winning eleven series vs fifa

I like the atmosphere of both the broadcasts

I just want to make another post about pitching.

So now you know how important it is to mix speeds/location as well as have perfect release timing. I just found out, however, a critical flaw I had in my pitching. See, I started games out pretty well. I'd give up maybe a couple hits within 3 or 4 innings and give up a single run at most. The problem was that I'd get hit hard later in the game. I thought this was a lack of concentration on my part, so it was driving me mad. Well, guess what I just figured out...

THE ROSIN BAG!

Yes, it has a purpose other than to make pitches look pretty. As your pitch count increases, you'll lose grip on the ball. This actually causes release timing to get a lot tougher than it normally is. You'll get hit hard if you don't have perfect timing. The solution is to press down on the right analog stick to touch the rosin bag. This restores the grip on your ball and you can get back to mowing down batters. I figured this out while pitching with Kazumi Saitoh and I threw a 6 hit shutout. He had 9 Ks. I'll post all sorts of tricks like this on the guide, so don't worry.

This game is deep, guys. Can't wait to pitch online with 95% best pitch timing. Hehe.

EDIT: I can also confirm that the animation used in the trailer of Fujimoto being mowed over at second base is in the game. It doesn't happen often at all(good thing), but it's in there. I also want to point out that throwing guys out from the outfield is basically as impossible as it is in real life. The only guys who will be able to do it are the rocket arm players. With average players, you have more of a chance throwing to the cut off man.

Thank you to responding to my initial "guest' question about the MLb 2k7 comparison.

I am tomba321.

I completely understand what you mean by the WE analogy.

u r welcome

hope to play you online soon =)

I wish i had this game now. my ps3 is waiting for some baseball action. bigman do you have a guide to set the setting sor psy2. thats how long since i have bought an import. so glad we have region free system now.

so, that rosin bag effect sounds good...but would it decrease the realism of pitching?
coz that rosin effect sounds very much like a "potion" (sorry, rpg analogy)

so, let say my starting pitcher is pitching close 100 pitches and his stamina is almost depleted...so, if i let my guy touch the rosin bag and his pitches can still dominate regardless his stamina?

i hope that will not overshadow the "reliefing" prospect of baseball

Ok, here is how it works...

1. Rosin only helps you get better timing to throw more "best pitches" which are the perfect release pitches.

2. Best pitches can still get hit hard if you don't mix up pitches or if you're throwing with an average pitcher.

3. You only really need to touch the rosin bag if you're having trouble getting perfect timing. This can happen anytime in the game, from what I can tell so far. Technically you can touch it all the time, but it's only going to waste time. It's not going to make you some unhittable machine. It's NOT a power up. It's just like a normal rosin bag. It gives you better grip on your pitches. It's not going to turn some crappy slider into a magic pitch.

4. I was pitching deep into a game with Kazumi again. His pitch count was around 130, gave up only a run, had 8 Ks, and his stamina was getting really low. Well, I tried to push him to a complete game and used rosin as much as I had to in order to get best pitches. Well, he lead off the 8th inning with two straight hits, despite perfect pitches, so that should answer your question. They were hit hard, too. It was probably the hardest he was hit all game. So the lower your stamina is, the harder and more frequently you get hit. This is why you have to make smart bullpen moves.

so....since you say that touching the rosin bag would improve the grip(ie: release timing) of the pitcher

so,,,,would it make a difference if i let my pitcher touch the rosin every inning or every pitch?

is there a limit number of times you can use the rosin effect ?(hahah, that sounds like the powerup shot effect in mingol =P )

Have been playing the PS3 version since yesterday.

It's a very, very, very good game.

maybe could you post your impression on the game?

how about online?

have you tried? and what is your impression?