Major League Baseball 2K8 Review

[bulls23]

Id give the game a 7/10 and if they fix the framerate 8/10. I agree about most what was said, but I think the pitching aspect of the game and the throwing meter save the title for now. You also have to give 2k some credit for fixing most of the annoying glitches that were in 2k7 (fielding hiccups, bad lineups, rain in domes, cant change CPU jersey), although its true they have created a couple of new ones. I really do miss the graphics from 2k7 and the little things like the fans and vendors.

[Triggerfish]

when is the 2k contract with mlb up? I thought it was better then last year...which is ez...i really dont think they have the resources for the game. I am enjoying the pitching though...the "show's" old school buttons are getting real old and boring. I agree with the 6.

[Radja]

i actually think the score should be lower if you do not have a gold xbox live account. the frame rate issue will never go away. i fortunately, do have online support so it is a six to me.

the game play may be in the 8 or even 9 if it is fixed. but the overall problems really drag the score down.

[Brophog]

Quote: Originally Posted by Triggerfish

the "show's" old school buttons are getting real old and boring. I agree with the 6.

It's all in your mind. The sticks are just buttons that work different with pluses/minuses as psuedo-buttons. You'll just get bored of them too, as the mechanism is essentially the same. Heck, take away the step process in swinging and it IS the same. Pitching is still essentially a meter. Throwing is the same metered throwing we've had for a while, with an accuracy penalty that doesn't seem to really exist unless you constantly REALLY botch it up. Whose that bad on throwing with the sticks?

That has nothing to do with the game, fwiw. The real reason you're bored is the fact we've been using the same controller designs now for a very long time. We have buttons, and imprecise sticks that act like buttons.

For the review, I agree that a 6 is a tad harsh, but I don't know his scale.......everyone has a different 1-10 scale. On mine, it's a tad harsh. On his, it may be generious. To me, though, the review focused too much on the framerate, which while annoying, is almost definitely to be fixed via a patch. And I know that there are still those out there that don't have broadband for their console, but the reality of console gaming in this generation is that a lot of games now require patches, however unfortunate that is for the end user.

So, to me, in terms of reviewing a game, the fact something like this framerate issue exists is merely annoying, I don't think I would put nearly the attention into it. I would have focused on the hitting engine, the variety, the animations, the feeling of if the ball is organic or on rails, the controls, the presentation, the sim engine........those kinds of things. And then I'd hope that something that sticks out like theframerate would be duly fixed.

Given that, what I would like to see from OS is a second review post patch. In fact, given how buggy The Show is, I'd hope both games got patched and both games got 2 reviews, to try to show how good they really are.

[crumpled_heap]

This game does not deserve a six. All the negatives you gave it had nothing to do with gameplay. Who cares about the commentary, who cares about the presentation, who cares about online play. The gameplay is good therefore it does not deserve a six.

[gallandro]

Quote: Originally Posted by gilgamesh348

This game does not deserve a six. All the negatives you gave it had nothing to do with gameplay. Who cares about the commentary, who cares about the presentation, who cares about online play. The gameplay is good therefore it does not deserve a six.

Huh? It's part of the game isn't it? Commentary and presentation is part of the overall package, isn't it? How can you avoid those issues and call it a comprehensive review. A 6 is more than fair for 2K8. The gameplay is pretty good, but seriously, beyond the gimmick of a new controller configuration (and it is a gimmick), 2K8 has problems out of the box, and a comprehensive review should reflect that.

I was a looooong time apologist for 2K Baseball (helped bfnjoe with some slider sets and discovered a workaround for the passed ball bug from 2K6), I loved World Series Baseball 2K3 and have steadily watched this franchise go downhill. There have been positives along the way, but all in all 2K has really just gotten stuck in a rut as of late.

Fortunately I rented 2K8 (MLB2K7 was the final straw for me buying 2K Sports games sight unseen), and will be passing on this year's version... I'll stick with The Show.


Yancy

[ChaseB]

So we talked about a re-review type deal post-patch Brophog, but I actually think that's a bad idea and I don't think we'll do something like that. I'll explain my thought process on that though:

In the same way it's shaky ground to criticize a game for something it's not, it's also shaky ground to praise a game for what it could be. That's my general philosophy at least, and I think since the game comes boxed one way, that means some people won't be able to get a patch etc.

Now all that being said, I do agree it would make sense to take a second look once patches and all that come out, and I think we certainly will. But I just don't think it will be under the guise of a re-review.

[gallandro]

It's MLB2K6 all over again. Remember they had to release a patch to fix a freezing and frame rate problem??? Which again seemed to stem from an issue with the way VIPs loaded (just like this latest glitch).

Yancy