Baseball games have always been sort of oasis to me. I start to get excited by February, then buy a game by April. Inevitably, I play about 30 games before realizing 'this is too much', then I simulate and test my owner skills by siging free agents and making trades and let the computer play the games. A game like baseball, which is so stat heavy in the real world, figures to translate to the game world very well. But more often than not, I become bored of actually playing the games. 162 games in a season is ridiculous, and playing 9 innings each would drive someone crazy. Of course the option is always available to play as little as 5 inning games, but then you lose the realism in the most important aspect of baseball-the stats. So having basically complained for a paragraph, on to MVP.
Gameplay: 9
There are so many positives this year in MVP. The pitching interface is perfect. Its just about the same as the kick off meter in Madden. The meter rises. Theres a sweet spot where you want to tap the button, however, if you miss it, you deliver a very less than perfect opitch. As the meter comes back down, it determines the speed, or power of the pitch. You then tap the button when the meter is to your liking. Very user friendly for those of us who have played Madden. The hitting is just as intuitive. Now with 'freestyle control on the right control stick, you can determine if you want to hit it on the ground, in the air, to the left , to the right or up the middle. The fielding controls range from okay to good. There are problems picking up exactly where the ball is hit sometimes. But you do get the freestyle control on defense as well, such as sliding and diving. Baserunning is actually great. The freestyle control allows you to determine if you slide or not, and what type of slide you want. Headfirst and to the outside of the bag? No problem, just push the control stick up and to the right. Very easy. Now, onto the Dynasty, perhaps the most important aspect for sports fans. This years game has gone above and beyond in terms of depth. You can control your major league team, as well as your AAA and AA teams for 120 seasons. And i mean total control. Drafting , signing free agents, cutting players, promoting or sending down players. Its all at your disposal , if you want it to be. You can also choose to control just your MLB team, and let the computer control the rest. But there are Happiness ratings, and team chemistry ratings, and team goals that determine your budget, and next contract. So, I havent left anything up to the computer. The game is also fully customizable. Anything you want to happen or not happpen can be adjusted with 'sliders' . There are so many options in this game, I could literally go on for another 1000 words, but I won't. I'll just say, MVP is the best baseball game, ever.
Graphics: 8.5
Graphics are good. The animations are very good. The stadiums are nicely rendered, as well as the backgrounds. The crowd is pretty hideous up close. Overall, good representation of the sport.
sound 7.5
The announcers are good, but repeat themselves often. The crowd is very cool, coming up with 'overrated' chants. You can hear many different things in the crowd. When a pitch is borderline, you'll hear soemone scream 'Are you blind?!', and things like that. Its also THX certified. The music=crap. Pop rock crap. Plus theres only about 10 songs. Thankfully, you can turn them off, or the ones you hate off.
Overall: 9
I've enjoyed this game very much. I still simulate a lot of the games, but now its just as fun because of all the duties you have in the off season. Trying to work within a budget, like the Phillies at 39 mill. for instance, can be tough, but rewarding. Of course, you can turn the budgets off and just sign whoever the hell you want, but thats not realistic, even the Yankees have a budget. For realism, this game can't be beat. And the realism part is what will turn many of the sports haters off. But for people who love the actual game of baseball, there is no other option.
Topic: MVP Baseball 2004 (Read 2203 times)
