Major League Baseball 2K9 Review

[VDusen04]

Quote: Originally Posted by CubsNBroncos

I picked up MLB 2K9 despite the reviews just yesterday. I started playing and immediately thought "OMG....what have I done?" Then I gave the game another chance with some tweaks here and there, and now I'm having fun.

I went through this exact scenario. I initially had a severe case of buyer's remorse but the more I played, the more fun and passable it's actually turned out to be. There are clearly so many things that could be added, fixed, or changed but I also agree with the point that I don't find this game nearly as bad as seemingly everyone has made it out to be. After reading reviews I was prepared for a Superman 64 experience but it has turned out pretty well for a 360 owner like myself.

With The Show being as great as I've heard it is, I'm sure it only amplifies the void between these two releases. In the recent NBA and NHL releases, I don't believe the gap has been quite as severe, both companies are putting together solid releases. MLB 2K seems to still be struggling to find an identity. But again, I'm satisfied with MLB 2K9 at this point, so go figure.

[SoxFan01605]

Quote: Originally Posted by VDusen04

I went through this exact scenario. I initially had a severe case of buyer's remorse but the more I played, the more fun and passable it's actually turned out to be. There are clearly so many things that could be added, fixed, or changed but I also agree with the point that I don't find this game nearly as bad as seemingly everyone has made it out to be. After reading reviews I was prepared for a Superman 64 experience but it has turned out pretty well for a 360 owner like myself. With The Show being as great as I've heard it is, I'm sure it only amplifies the void between these two releases. In the recent NBA and NHL releases, I don't believe the gap has been quite as severe, both companies are putting together solid releases. MLB 2K seems to still be struggling to find an identity. But again, I'm satisfied with MLB 2K9 at this point, so go figure.

You bring up some good points.

I think the thing with reviews that many people forget is that they (normally) cover the broad scope of the game's content with the slant of the writer's personal experience with the game.

Meaning that a review can be 100% fair and you can actually 100% disagree with the slant/viewpoint. I've played plenty of games where I enjoyed them much more than the review. I've seen plenty of movies that were "horrible" yet I loved them.

From a review standpoint, this game falls short in many areas. It's a mess of bugs (great and small), it misses the mark on the pitcher-batter confrontation (key to a great baseball "sim"), downgraded in textures it seems (though, overall the graphics improved), stripped down it's customization options, etc, etc.

This things all make up for a poor review...and rightfully so. What the reviews can't ever cover accurately, IMO, is "fun-factor." That's wholly subjective. While I may get comepletely turned off due to the games issues, plenty of others can ignore them (or at least look past them) and have an enjoyable videogame experience.

OS is typically considered a "hardcore" sport's gaming fan's site. It's to be expected that many of us would have a hard time rectifying the mess of issues in 2K9. I think for most (obviously excluding the people with an odd fixation on bringing everyone down with them...lol) it's not hatred, just disappointment with a game they were hoping to see something better from.

In the end (and I've said this before) there will be plenty of people who enjoy this game on it's own merits...no matter if other's can agree on what they actually are...lol.

If people's thoughts on the game (one way or another) are based off of reviews, then they will likely miss out on a lot. I'm not talking about agreeing/disagreeing. I'm talking about taking them as gospel rather than just another source of information and a potentially useful consumer tool.

[VDusen04]

That was well said and I think that I might agree with just about everything you touched on.

[Player9]

Mlb 2k9 is a Bad game for me.Baseball simulator 2000 with the 6 team without specials powers is more simple and more realistic than mlb2k9.Forget the graphics and the huge stadistics or deep roster of mlb2k9 the pitching interfase is a joke.The movements of players needs atention.The 2k team needs help from the nba2k series team to improve the baseball series.The only one and an excellent option is The show.I waiting for MVP in the future.

[SoxFan01605]

Quote: Originally Posted by Player9

The 2k team needs help from the nba2k series team to improve the baseball series.

The irony of this statement is they DID have help from the VC basketball team...lol. That was part of the logic in breaking up 2KLA (Kush) and bringing them "home" again.

[brahmagoul]

Quote: Originally Posted by DMB82

Personally I want a realistic experience from my baseball experience right down to allowing me to control everything all 30 teams do with their rosters (thank you The Show!)

So, you can do this in MLB 09, but not MLB 2K9? That would be the clincher for me!

[The Gamer]

You can do this with 2k9 as well.

[JayBruce32]

MLB 2k9 is the WORST game I've ever played, from a simple standpoint of I've never had a game I've bought frustrate me and leave me cussing out loud and cracking my joints and in a terrible mood and turning it off in the middle of a game because of the stuff that happens until I owned this game.

Video games are supposed to be fun. I go from a good mood to a terrible mood after i play the game. It accomplishes the opposite of what its supposed to do. Everything feels backwards in this game. It feels like baseball with funhouse mirrors, and the more you play the worse and more distorted and bottled it really feels.