For better or worse, professional baseball is coming back and Fox Sports — again, for better or worse — has decided it needs to “fill” empty stadiums with Sims-esque virtual fans.
I’m not exactly sure why we needed this. I’m pretty certain we did not need this. And yet, Fox Sports rolled it its virtual MLB fans with great fanfare.
“No fans? Not on FOX Sports,” the TV station’s official account wrote in a tweet. “Thousands of virtual fans will attend FOX’s MLB games this Saturday.”
A video in the tweet, featuring the blaring sounds of Fox Sports’ famous theme song, shows the video game-like avatars filling stands and kind of just … standing there. If you’ve played sports video games, the virtual fans look a lot like the “fans” in any game. Text in the video promises the fans will cheer, boo, and wear team colors.
Well… OK, then.
Reactions to the virtual fans online were mixed at best. Lots of people wondered how odd things would get if the virtual fans glitched out.
Lmfao this is the worst idea I’ve ever seen and I cannot WAIT for this to turn into some sort of disastrous meme
— chris proposes alternatives (@crhhudson) July 23, 2020
Do people really care that much?
I honestly don’t understand the hype with virtual fans or cutouts. Just play the game and watch from afar.
— Sean Halbmaier (@shalbmaier) July 23, 2020
This so dope!! I think it’s a great idea and I can’t wait to see the first glitch where the crowd is standing in front of the batter lol
— Dan I (@ItsMe_R_D) July 23, 2020
Wow what a terrible idea.
Why not just broadcast two twelve-year-olds playing MLB The Show on their PS4s?
— MPS, Esq. (@mpsever) July 23, 2020
Thursday is MLB’s Opening Day, which, of course, has been long delayed because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The league will play a shortened season and, while travel will be more limited than usual, MLB will not be in a so-called bubble like the NBA.