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Apr 21st, 2008 at 15:52:04 - Major League Baseball 2K8 (360) |
MLB 2K8 is a conundrum. I want to like the game very much, but I just can't bring myself to truly love it like I have baseball games in years past.
Let's start with the benchmark. MVP Baseball 2005 is still the clear-cut best baseball game ever released, IMHO. This game had a very pure fielding system. You felt the physics at work when you took ground balls and tried to get in the best possible position to throw a runner out at first base. The hitting mechanic was great as well, using the control stick to guide your ball wherever you pleased. The pitching system was great as well, offering a risk-reward factor that was great.
MLB 2K8's mechanics are all very different. For one, the hitting in the game uses something called a "Swing Stick", which is more or less the mechanic I outlined above. The hitting in this game produces way too many home runs. I was playing a game the other night with the Cubs and Derrek Lee had 5 HRs in 5 ABs. This is just way too unrealistic, and I was playing at a hard difficulty level. The worst part is I only used a home run swing once. The other 4 bombs I hit I swung for a contact hit to RF (the ones Derrek normally gets in bunches) and they all produced oppo-field HRs. Also, pitchers in the game never tend to throw balls unless they get in trouble. Is it realistic that every pitcher in this game will only throw strikes? Hell no.
Pitching, to say the very least...is strange. They have this new thing called "Total Control Pitching" and man, is it whack. It basically has you mimic a series of pushes, pulls, rolls, and clicks on the right control stick. ONly you must get it 100% correct and there is virtually no room for error. Thank god they let you switch off "TCP" for the more traditional break point pitching found in MLB 2K6 and MLB 2K7
The fielding mechanic is actually the game's best. Fielding feels very natural, and the throwing mechanic is a great one. You basically sacrifice power for accuracy, like in year's past. But this time you must allow yourself to field the ball in a good position to make a throw to ensure it gets there on time. Occasionally a fielder will make a great play to throw a guy like Jose Reyes out at first completely off-balance. But for the most part, the game forces you to field and then get in a position more suitable to make a powerful throw to get your man. The same is said for the outfield positions, and the game actually allows you to start your throw and get in a good position to make one before you actually make the catch.
I will be back with more about this game later.
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