MLB 2K8 News Post

Major League Baseball 2K8 360 Impressions

01:24 AM - February 26, 2008 by Steve_OS

Matt Blumenthal had an opportunity to demo Major League Baseball 2K8 this afternoon. His official writeup of the event will be up later this week, but we wanted to get some quick thoughts up here for you guys.

This game looks beautiful, the player models have improved but the real leap is in the animations. The animations move silky smooth and there is no need to worry about herky jerky animations of the past anymore.
I'm impressed with how intuitive and fresh the analog controls are. The pitching takes a little time to get the hang of but the new mechanics add a whole new dimension to the pitching model.
The baseball cards feature is surprisingly cool, expect me to have more on that later on this week.
In-game saves are officially in the game this year.
Check swings don't seem to be a chore anymore. They are now accomplished by pulling back on the right analog stick - no more right trigger necessary.
Stadium-specific animations are in. The Yankee Roll Call was mentioned specifically.
There should be plenty of foul balls this year. I saw several in the few at-bats I played.
No spring training games this year.
I counted eight unlockable classic stadiums. I think more might be available by default as well.
No co-op play
You will have the option to make trades for CPU-controlled teams in franchise mode, but you won't be able to edit their rotations and lineups.
It was suggested to me that the demo is done and has been submitted. If that's the case, it's in Microsoft's hands now.
I will hit on a few of the big questions from the forum here.

Game: Major League Baseball 2K8Reader Score: 6/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS2 / PS3 / PSP / Wii / Xbox 360Votes for game: 74 - View All

Member Comments

# 1581 sportyguyfl31 @ 03/07/08 08:41 PM

Okay, I just sat down and played 2 games with my mets ..really bearing down on my pitching.

I played 2 Mets-Yanks games on All star

1st game with Pedro: 5IP, 7H, 3ER, 5'ks...but then I completelly screwed up the game with my bullpen..as I accidently Intl. Walked a batter and the floodgates opened.

2nd game I just lost 3-1.

I used Santana..his line was 7 IP, 7H, 3ER, 1K
Duanar Sanchez: 1 IP, 1K

For the CPU:
Wang: 8IP, 4h, 1ER, 0 k's

I enjoy the game a lot..I dont get the negative gripes. I'm struggling hitting more then 2k7 though..and Im not sure why..the swing stick seems a lot more sensitive..I'm constantly getting "Late Step-Late Swing"..and that hardly ever happend (the late step) with 2k7..and I played 2k7 with the pitch speed maxed out.

I also noticed that when pitching..I was able to pinpoint my pitches much better with the circle fully expanded or near close to it. It's when I tried to take something off, and just lay a ball in there..is when my meatballs are occuring. Is anyone else noticing this? As a result,im going max effectiveness on darn near all of my pitches.

The one glaring thing for me though is that it is impossible to work a count. The CPU just hardly ever throws a ball out of the strike zone, so the game basically comes down to the CPU pitcher's pitch ratings vs. your reaction, since you are more then likely going to get pitches to hit every at bat.

# 1582 bigfnjoe96 @ 03/07/08 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diesel3649


	This game is better than 2K7 in almost all areas, but there are a few things that are bugging me. The AI pitchers not throwing enough balls is iritating. I have all three throw strikes sliders at zero, and in the three games I have played since, Joba threw 81.6% strikes, John Patterson threw 77.2%, and Roy Oswalt threw 79.4%. Thats simply not enough balls. Part of the problem, in my opinion, is a lot of the BS strike calls that the umpires make. My other main issue is that, again in my opinion, like last year, the computer has a great deal of difficulty scoring without hitting homeruns. I have raised the AI's batting skill, and contact sliders, while lowering their power. I want the computer to hit, singles, doubles, triples, and homeruns, I want them to string together hits in order to manufacture runs, and they simply can't, and believe me, it's not my brilliant pitching. In the three games I have played using BFJ's slider set, I have given up 22 hits, 7 of them homeruns, now 2 where on meatballs, ohh well my bad there, 5 where not. It's not the amount of homeruns that bothers me, I can lower the power slider more, but without those 7 hr's, the computer would have only scored 3 runs in three games. That's not enough runs that did not come by way of the hr. That raises a red flag to me.

Diesel, try these settings for AI Batting:

Skill: 75
Contact: 30
Power: 60

Remember: Skill affects Hit Variety. Power affects how hard your hits are. Contact is about hitting the ball. Don't worry to much about about the CPU Power Slider, remember there is no more POWER SWING..

I'll be looking for your feedback

# 1583 Diesel3649 @ 03/07/08 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigfnjoe96


	Diesel, try these settings for AI Batting: Skill: 75 Contact: 30 Power: 60 Remember: Skill affects Hit Variety. Power affects how hard your hits are. Contact is about hitting the ball. Don't worry to much about about the CPU Power Slider, remember there is no more POWER SWING.. I'll be looking for your feedback

I will definetly try these, but I do have a question, if skill affects hit variety,and power affects how hard my hits are, and contact is about hitting the ball, with these settings wouldn't I get a better variety of hits, hit harder, but fewer of them?

Maybe I'm reading the sliders wrong, I want to see more hit variety, and more hits overall, but with fewer homeruns.

# 1584 Cardot @ 03/07/08 09:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cheeser12


	Same here....only been able to work 1 walk in 4-5 games with all sliders at 0.

Out of curiosity, have you tried raising those sliders? I don't have the game, but in years of video gaming, I do seem to recall some instances where sliders did the opposite of what they were suppose to....or were other-wise "wacky".

It probably won't help, but might be worth a shot?

# 1585 bigfnjoe96 @ 03/07/08 09:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diesel3649


	I will definetly try these, but I do have a question, if skill affects hit variety,and power affects how hard my hits are, and contact is about hitting the ball, with these settings wouldn't I get a better variety of hits, hit harder, but fewer of them? Maybe I'm reading the sliders wrong, I want to see more hit variety, and more hits overall, but with fewer homeruns.

I tried these VS the Dodgers & got killed. Mind you I use Total Control Pitching. Most of the Dodgers hits were all over the field. Furcal & Pierre were slapping the ball every where (7-13) Down the Line, Gappers & and singles. The only HR's I gave up were to Kent & Nomar. The hits all seemed very realistic

# 1586 bravosfan @ 03/07/08 11:24 PM

Not saying this game is without its faults, but I just finished the most intense game I've played probably since MVP.

Minor league game, default settings, Mississippi Braves vs. Oklahoma Red Hawks. Still trying to get the hang of the pitching, really I'd been slaughtered going into this game.. somehow I held the CPU to one run going into the 9th, but I was still down 1-0. Top 9th, finally got a hold of one to tie it up. Goes to extras, I take a 2-1 lead in the 10th, they tie it up in the bottom half. The curser was jumping all over the place, I thought for sure I was gonna lose it there. I get nothing in the 11th, and work out of another jam in the bottom half. Goes to the 12th, I double leading off. Sacrifice, then a single, and I'm in the lead again 3-2. Bottom 12, leadoff single. Sacrificed to 2nd. Grounder to short, runner holds at 2nd, 2 away. This is it... base-hit to left, I come up gunning. Play at the plate, he's out! Game over, and I finally get my first win. Whew.

# 1587 MizzouRah @ 03/07/08 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bravosfan


	Not saying this game is without its faults, but I just finished the most intense game I've played probably since MVP. Minor league game, default settings, Mississippi Braves vs. Oklahoma Red Hawks. Still trying to get the hang of the pitching, really I'd been slaughtered going into this game.. somehow I held the CPU to one run going into the 9th, but I was still down 1-0. Top 9th, finally got a hold of one to tie it up. Goes to extras, I take a 2-1 lead in the 10th, they tie it up in the bottom half. The curser was jumping all over the place, I thought for sure I was gonna lose it there. I get nothing in the 11th, and work out of another jam in the bottom half. Goes to the 12th, I double leading off. Sacrifice, then a single, and I'm in the lead again 3-2. Bottom 12, leadoff single. Sacrificed to 2nd. Grounder to short, runner holds at 2nd, 2 away. This is it... base-hit to left, I come up gunning. Play at the plate, he's out! Game over, and I finally get my first win. Whew.

..and that's what gaming is all about, having fun! Sounded like a great game!

# 1588 Marino @ 03/08/08 12:48 AM

i agree i almost sold my xbox bc this game was so frustrating at first...sooooooooo glad i didnt do that now!!! this game is fun and amazing...just gotta remember to save during the game to just in case of a freeze

# 1589 metal134 @ 03/08/08 02:04 AM

Is anyone else throwing a lot of wild pitches and hitting a lot of batters? I'm past throwing a lot of meatballs, but when missing just a little on the, for lack of a better term, meter, I'm throwing an awful lot of both.

# 1590 Marino @ 03/08/08 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by metal134


	Is anyone else throwing a lot of wild pitches and hitting a lot of batters? I'm past throwing a lot of meatballs, but when missing just a little on the, for lack of a better term, meter, I'm throwing an awful lot of both.

you have to make sure your catcher is set up with where your pitching and it will cut out all the wild pitches...i had the same problem earlier

# 1591 sportyguyfl31 @ 03/08/08 02:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkEagle18


	Is it just me or are people starting to get into this game very heavily now, some even praising it. I think all the naysayers and negative comments were very premature and though I admit some problems, I think this game will prove to be a fine one. Anyone agree? Or Disagree?

I agree. I'm having a good time with this game...pitching takes some time..and there are some pitches that I dont get a good feel for at times..but isnt that baseball?? Last game I just could not snap off Josh Beckett's 12-6 curve consistantly, so I didnt throw it all that often.

I think sometimes we get a little spoiled, which causes us to go bonkers over a games friggen frame rate and we forget that the game plays a good game of baseball out of the box.

Now if there was a way to get the CPU to throw some balls every now and then.

# 1592 metal134 @ 03/08/08 02:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marino13882


	\ you have to make sure your catcher is set up with where your pitching and it will cut out all the wild pitches...i had the same problem earlier

I'll try that. It's only been in the last couple of games that I've accepted the idea of throwing what the catcher calls for. I'm still hitting a lot of batters, though.

# 1593 orthostud23 @ 03/08/08 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sportyguyfl31


	Now if there was a way to get the CPU to throw some balls every now and then.

After I asked a quetion on here I tried BFJ's sliders and the only thing that I DIDNT like was that it felt like all my hits were bullets (I am using the BoSox). I didnt have anything weakly hit. There was one instance where Chacin fromt he Jays thru a slider low and out of the strike zone and PAPI still ended up hitting it for a HR. For the pitching it was the first in 8 games were I actually drew more than 1 walk!! I face Burnett in my next game so it will be interesting to see if he throws as many balls as the 4th and 5th starters. for 2 games I think the AI had under 70% strikes.

# 1594 truckie16 @ 03/08/08 09:03 AM

Well, my 360 arrived from the shop yesterday. Just before my gamefly copy of 2k8 arrived. Played about 2.5 games yesterday.

First off: framerate, while not great, is nowhere near as bad as some make it out to be IMO but every one sees things a little different.

This game is vastly improved over 2k7. If judging from the demo.... don't. The final build is quite a bit better.

Pitching: While I don't think its quite as engrossing as a lot you do( at it's core it's still a meter), I have no real issues with it either. Definitely takes some practice. I love the in game tutorial. Makes it feel very realistic, like I'm throwing my warmup pitches with each guy I bring into the game.

Batting: Much like in MVP 06 I gave up on the hit stick and went back to classic. I just feel like I have no control when using the stick.
Classic is very much like MVP's hitting ( a very good thing to me).
Hit variety is fantastic with balls being sprayed all over the ballpark. I've scored 7 runs in my 2.5 games with no HRs by me. The CPU has hit 4( 2 solo) but they've scored 48 runs int the two+ games. WOW they hit a ton of doubles(fielding issue for me). CPU tends to hit a lot of fly balls...too many. Slider adjustments might fix this.

Fielding: 1MILLION times better than 2k7. I love the throwing meter. Offline throws for both me and the CPU. I've had an issue with the computer giving me control over what I feel would be the wrong fielder. Example: When the CPU does hit it on the grounder toward short, I'm thinking easy play, only to have the CPU switch me from the SS to the CF'er. So now my CF is going the wrong way. Easy double for the CPU. I think there is an option to change it to manual though. So it may not be an issue after that.

Presentation part 1: Commentary-It's pretty bland and on occasion totally wrong. This section needs a complete overhaul next season.
TV style- It's ok nothing great but not bad either.

Presentation part 2: Atmosphere- Improved over past games. The crowd has more buzz throughout. Could be significantly better.

Graphics: Stadiums need some serious work. Something to do with the crowd/seating sections that just looks off. Even though the field has been toned down I actually think its looks better than last year. In 2k7 the fields had this glow to them that looked to bright.
Sig stances and windups are phenomenal!!
I've seen some great ball physics as well.
Animations for fielding are very good. I had one where there was a ball hit towards the wall in Fenway and Manny tried to make a jumping grab at the bottom of the wall only to have the ball bounce off of his glove. Manny then smashed into the wall and fell to the ground. It was so Manny. I must have replayed it 15 times just saying... wow!

# 1595 mkharsh33 @ 03/08/08 10:49 AM

^ nice, truckie. i like the objectivity. i finally picked this game up - haven't played it yet as i'm awaiting rosters and a patch, but i'll start tinkering around with it to get a feel for it. but i wanted to wait out these "i hate this game..." stuff until i saw some actual objective breakdowns of this game by some of the posters whose judgment i trust and value.

# 1596 Cardot @ 03/08/08 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkEagle18


	I think all the naysayers and negative comments were very premature and though I admit some problems, I think this game will prove to be a fine one.

Yeah, that is often the case here. Folks tend to be pretty jacked up when a game first comes out, and opinions are pretty polorized and exaggerated.

Things tend to be a bit more objective after a week or two. The haters have moved on, and you also get some trends in the game that you can't notice in just a couple games.

# 1597 MizzouRah @ 03/08/08 11:11 AM

I'm enjoying the game, but I wanted to vent/rant.

[rant]
One thing I wanted to vent about with sports console gaming is I'm sick and tired of games being released so gosh darn early nowdays. It's stil 20 degrees here and out comes two baseball titles. I would be VERY surprised if many people actually start a franchise before opening day.

The Show benefits from their game only needing to fix some things and enhance the graphics, commentary, etc... MLB 2k series went under the knife once again this year and I scratch my head wondering who they paid to come in and test their game? You have to be a moron to NOT to notice the framerate and choppy presentation in the first 5 minutes of playing the game. Did they tell 2k this and the big wigs said, "We don't have time to fix those issues"? I just don't get it.

Is is absolutely necessessary to release the game the same day as The Show? Would they really lose tons of money if it came out on opening day? I like the game, but the finished product reeks of incompletion.

You turn off the ticker and it still displays (I know there is a workaround), commentary at the beginning of each game gets cut off as well as replays during the game. What happened to the player highlights from a previous inning when the player is up to bat again? I just don't get this early release bs!

I would bet $1000 that another month of tweaking/fixing some of the code in this game would have done wonders for it.

For me, 2k is lucky there is enough in 2k8 for me to keep my $400 in my pocket.. but I just don't get why more and more sport games seem to release way to early.

I will tell you this, once consoles start installing full games on their HD's, we'll be back to the pc days where games will require release day patches before they are playable - heck, we are almost there now.
[/rant]

# 1598 HealyMonster @ 03/08/08 12:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MizzouRah


	I'm enjoying the game, but I wanted to vent/rant. [rant] One thing I wanted to vent about with sports console gaming is I'm sick and tired of games being released so gosh darn early nowdays. It's stil 20 degrees here and out comes two baseball titles. I would be VERY surprised if many people actually start a franchise before opening day. The Show benefits from their game only needing to fix some things and enhance the graphics, commentary, etc... MLB 2k series went under the knife once again this year and I scratch my head wondering who they paid to come in and test their game? You have to be a moron to NOT to notice the framerate and choppy presentation in the first 5 minutes of playing the game. Did they tell 2k this and the big wigs said, "We don't have time to fix those issues"? I just don't get it. Is is absolutely necessessary to release the game the same day as The Show? Would they really lose tons of money if it came out on opening day? I like the game, but the finished product reeks of incompletion. You turn off the ticker and it still displays (I know there is a workaround), commentary at the beginning of each game gets cut off as well as replays during the game. What happened to the player highlights from a previous inning when the player is up to bat again? I just don't get this early release bs! I would bet $1000 that another month of tweaking/fixing some of the code in this game would have done wonders for it. For me, 2k is lucky there is enough in 2k8 for me to keep my $400 in my pocket.. but I just don't get why more and more sport games seem to release way to early. I will tell you this, once consoles start installing full games on their HD's, we'll be back to the pc days where games will require release day patches before they are playable - heck, we are almost there now. [/rant]

agreed and i just dont understand why they didnt leave the garbage that happens at the end of the game out. i mean its supposed to some replays and commetary but all i get is a stuttering pile of crap that i have to press the button to get out of for fear of my xbox crashing out or freezing or something. why not leave it out ofthe game? idk i think the brains behind this game doesnt have a clue. when the wrong people are making important decisions you get bad/unfinished product regardless of what your selling, in this case id bet thats the problem with 2k baseball.

# 1599 brendanrfoley @ 03/08/08 01:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MizzouRah


	I will tell you this, once consoles start installing full games on their HD's, we'll be back to the pc days where games will require release day patches before they are playable - heck, we are almost there now. [/rant]

Mizzou, this is my biggest problem with 'next-gen' gaming. I've chosen console gaming over PC gaming because I just want to pop a game in and play. But now, that's becoming increasingly difficult to do.

Not only to some games require instant patching. But now, some PS3 games require mandatory 5 gig install processes that take 20 minutes. It's a joke.

Developers and console manufacturers are losing sight of what console gaming was about in the first place. Going to the store, buying a game, and playing the heck out it instantly. Now we're waiting for patches, turning off graphic effects to get a smoother experience, etc.

Hell, it's become PC Gaming Lite.

# 1600 MizzouRah @ 03/08/08 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brendanrfoley


	Mizzou, this is my biggest problem with 'next-gen' gaming. I've chosen console gaming over PC gaming because I just want to pop a game in and play. But now, that's becoming increasingly difficult to do. Not only to some games require instant patching. But now, some PS3 games require mandatory 5 gig install processes that take 20 minutes. It's a joke. Developers and console manufacturers are losing sight of what console gaming was about in the first place. Going to the store, buying a game, and playing the heck out it instantly. Now we're waiting for patches, turning off graphic effects to get a smoother experience, etc. Hell, it's become PC Gaming Lite.

Agreed.

I fully support Ben as I know he knows baseball gaming, I just wish some more development time would have went into this game. They have a great game once you get past all the goofy issues that to me, could have been cleaned up before release. (I could be wrong here, I'm not a programmer)

I do think one more month would have equalled at least 1.5-2.5 points higher in reviews. Not sure if that also means tons of revenue lost though?

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