About NVGA
Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer and baseball ambassador Ernie Banksfamously said, “It’s a great day for a ballgame; let’s play two!” Thisquote sprang to mind as I recorded the final out in my MLB 2K10 debut.For some of you, this quote may fall into the category of “well, duh,who doesn’t play two games in a row?”. For those of you who spent timewith MLB 2K9 – a game that helped increase the sales numbers of rivalproduct MLB: The Show – this quote brings hope back to a series thatwas in danger of becoming an unintentional parody of the sport…likeRoger Clemens.
In Visual Concepts’ second year of developmentwith this series, a firm foundation is established in both the featureset and gameplay. The biggest addition, which happens to be my favoriteaspect of this game, is a new mode called My Player. While My Playerdraws heavy inspiration from MLB: The Show (I’m talking Pablo Sandovalheavy), player development isn’t a guided tour like it is in thecompetition’s game. Your player doesn’t have to complete goals thatwork against his true strengths. Rewarding different experience pointsfor pitching, batting, fielding, and baserunning allows gamers tosculpt a player’s attributes the way they want. This is a subtledifference between the two games, but My Player’s approach speeds upplayer growth and rewards the gamer with a great sense of ownershipover the experience.
I should point out that My Player managerlogic needs serious work. Most of my pitcher’s appearances ended incomplete games (even with 130-plus pitches). In one outing, the faultylogic led to my pitcher being sent to the plate during a ninth inningtie with two runners on and only one out recorded. Other than this, MyPlayer shines.
Franchise mode incorporates 40-man rosters andMinor League play into the mix, but still struggles with simulatedstatistics. Every pitcher has a bloated WHIP, and every batterridiculously high stolen base and home run totals. Regardless, I didenjoy injecting prospects into my season play.
That brings us togameplay. Visual Concepts has done a phenomenal job capturing bothpitching and batting. The additions of a defensive swing and batter’seye allow players to work counts, and if they use them to their fullestextent, actually draw walks in a video game. The refinements made tothe series’ trademark gesture-based pitching translate to a higherlevel of finesse (and hardly any meatballs).
Fielding remains amajor sore spot. The AI has problems recognizing what plays to make –instead of turning an inning-ending double play, they’ll throw the ballhome to get one out. The game also does too much fielding work for theplayer. Whether it’s a soft grounder or a popped up bunt, your playeris always in position or breaking to make the play before you give himinput. In most cases, I just threw the ball. While many of theanimations are lifelike, most games bring hilarious moments where aplayer initiates a flashy move in an ordinary situation. Derek Jeter’sleaping sidearm toss is seen just as frequently as a standard throw.
MLB2K10 is heading in the right direction, but it’s not quite where itneeds to be yet. If you only have an Xbox 360, don’t hold back fromdiving into My Player. I had a blast with this mode. Since the focus isjust on one player, the fielding annoyances are rarely seen. If thesystem doesn’t matter, and your interest lies solely with gameplay, TheShow is still the way to go.
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