MLB 2K9 News Post

Major League Baseball 2K9 Hands-On Preview (IGN)

08:49 PM - January 27, 2009 by lived

IGN has posted their hands-on preview of Major League Baseball 2K9.

Quote:


	"The all-important franchise mode is also borrowing from NBA 2K9 and is home to a similar MLB.com home display. I didn't find the presentation of NBA's franchise to be all that inviting. Here's hoping that it has made some advancements. Sabermetrics are in, crazy as they may be; simming games is now faster than ever; and team and player records can be erased one at a time so you can leave your own mark on the franchise. Player ambition -- another feature that started in NBA 2K9 -- is now in MLB 2K9's franchise mode. There are four types of concerns that you'll need to monitor: financial security, team prestige, playing for a winner, and their desire for playing time. These four meters are said to have a direct impact on a player's likelihood of accepting a given deal."

Game: Major League Baseball 2K9Reader Score: 6/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS3 / Xbox 360Votes for game: 38 - View All

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Member Comments

# 21 jeffy777 @ 01/27/09 10:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shakedowncapo


	Every year the previews hope the framerate gets cleaned up... Just saying.

Well, thankfully we're aren't dealing with Kush again this year, so this year certainly has more potential for the framerate and the whole game in general.

# 22 bukktown @ 01/27/09 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EnigmaNemesis


	The only concern I have, is there were no framerate issues in 2K8's demo, and it was galore in the final product.

I thought the framerate in the demo was terrible. (I only played the demo on 360)

# 23 King Gro23 @ 01/27/09 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bukktown


	I thought the framerate in the demo was terrible. (I only played the demo on 360)

it was terrible

# 24 Mercury112491 @ 01/27/09 10:32 PM

ok so after reading both of the impressions I don't see how their could be anything for anyone to complain about with the exception of two things.

the framerate hasn't been adressed yet and no one has been able to test the online to see if thats been fixed.

every other worry or complaint people have had has been adressed either as a default or an option(third step for pitching)

the framerate is a dealbreaking problem if they don't get it fixed but other than that very very very excited about what we could be getting this year

# 25 SoxFan01605 @ 01/27/09 10:44 PM

Well, this was a mostly useless interview for me...lol. The only two things I gained from it were that:

1: the 2K8 pitching system is there for those who like it (though my concern is they didn't polish it as it wasn't their focus...hope I'm wrong though)

2: the presence of what seems like a version of "batter's eye" from MVP (which I liked in theory, but didn't like the extra "indicators"...it was a solid system though and I suppose actually trying to guess the pitch off of animation is still a few years away).

It really seems as though they've geared this game, at least at default, to the more casual "pick up and play" type player. This is fine, as long as the sliders function well. Plus, we can seemingly make the mechanics more demanding, which is good.

The fact that the reviewer thought it was good that he was able to start jacking balls out and setting guys down after a short while due to the control changes is a bit frustrating...lol. That's what you seem to get from Gamespot and IGN, unfortunately.

The framerate....well, we'll see. I'd like to think that with it being VC and with all the gripes about it last year, the issue wouldn't repeat. We'll just have to wait and see.

# 26 drterb @ 01/27/09 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skyboxer


	Plus as the game go on and pitchers tire and or they get rattled the pitching gets harder. Seems fine to me. That plus cursor+swing stick etc.. has me a tad more excited that a few days ago. Just fix the frame rate issue! Despite The Show being my #1 game, I love baseball and will support 2K if they improve and give an honest effort.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffy777


	Plus there are probably difficulty sliders to make the pitching even more of a challenge.

As long as the balls and strikes ratio is realistic and the pitch count is realistic, I don't have a problem with VC removing the third step of the pitching motion.

However, if I can aim the pitching cursor low and away and go straight back and straight forward for a fastball and hit my spot, then that is a broken pitching system IMO.

Once I learned 2k8's pitching mechanic, I was able to put the ball wherever I wanted. Couple that with an over sized strike zone, CPU batters rarely swinging at balls, and CPU pitchers rarely throwing balls.......and you have a broken pitching system IMO.

Don't get me wrong, I loved the idea of different motions with the right analog stick but there just wasn't enough ball/strike variety. I could locate pitches with Joel Pineiro just as good as C.C. Sabathia. That ain't right.

I have more confidence in VC than I ever did with Kush, so here's to hoping for a solid 60fps in the final version.

And hope that the pitching experience is completely revamped....

# 27 sportsdude @ 01/27/09 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shakedowncapo


	Every year the previews hope the framerate gets cleaned up... Just saying.

yeah I felt the preview was pretty disheartening. No gameplay screens or videos, still, and that was a 90 percent build. Next thing they'll say is that online is still laggy.

I was holding out hope for this year's game but not so much anymore. My roommate's got a PS3 so I think I'll be looking elsewhere for my baseball gaming this year.

# 28 bodhiball @ 01/27/09 11:15 PM

think about this guys....the biggest complaint about 2k8 was the frame rate, and in some cases it made the game unplayable.

How and why on earth would they produce a demo for these companies to review that STILL had a frame rate issue, knowing that it would be reported on and drastically reduce the confidence (if thats even possible) even more for the consumer??

I dont know enough about programming to know how possible it is to fix the frame rate of a game thats only 90% done, but it seems like a dangerous thing to hope for. Remember, last year the way they tried to make it playable was to slowly reduce the crowd, take out the grass texture, and downgrade the stadium and player graphics...all in hopes that the frame rate could then keep up. And it still didnt.

So if its already chugging, we may see a reduction in graphic quality by launch.

# 29 EnigmaNemesis @ 01/27/09 11:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bodhiball


	think about this guys....the biggest complaint about 2k8 was the frame rate, and in some cases it made the game unplayable. How and why on earth would they produce a demo for these companies to review that STILL had a frame rate issue, knowing that it would be reported on and drastically reduce the confidence (if thats even possible) even more for the consumer?? I dont know enough about programming to know how possible it is to fix the frame rate of a game thats only 90% done, but it seems like a dangerous thing to hope for. Remember, last year the way they tried to make it playable was to slowly reduce the crowd, take out the grass texture, and downgrade the stadium and player graphics...all in hopes that the frame rate could then keep up. And it still didnt. So if its already chugging, we may see a reduction in graphic quality by launch.

Very good point. As we did with 2K8. I would not be shocked if they went with 30FPS like they did with 2K7, if they are not able to achieve 60 smoothly.

# 30 NumberOneRB @ 01/27/09 11:36 PM

I hate to sound like a pessimist, but it seems as though the more previews I read, the more I feel that gameplay mechanics weren't necessarily improved as much as they were "cleaned up" or dumbed down. They have removed a lot of mechanics to certain parts of the game (namely step influence and pitching timing) that made the game more challenging.

Sure, the default settings can be reverted back to those used in last year's version, but doing so (in combination with the knowledge that this year's framerate is still having stability issues) gives the impression that this is just 2k8 with freshened up graphics and dumbed down gameplay mechanics. I know they've included options such as 2K Share and Living Rosters, but it appears from a gameplay perspective nothing has really been dramatically improved per se.

# 31 jeffy777 @ 01/27/09 11:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NumberOneRB


	I hate to sound like a pessimist, but it seems as though the more preveiws I read, the more I feel that gameplay mechanics weren't necessarily improved as much as they were "cleaned up" or dummed down. They have removed a lot of mechanics to certain parts of the game (namely step influence and pitching timing) that made the game more challenging. Sure, the default settings can be reverted back to those used in last year's version, but doing so (in combination with the knowledge that this year's framerate is still having stability issues) gives the impression that this is just 2k8 with freshened up graphics and dummed down gameplay mechanics I know they've included options such as 2K Share and Living Rosters, but it appears from a gameplay perspective nothing has really been dramatically improved per se.

Even if it were just 2K8 with better graphics and some gameplay refinements (and AI improvements), I'd be happy, because with the right sliders, 2K8 actually played a pretty decent game of baseball, and the framerate was much better once they finally patched it.

However, I'm pretty confident that this is going to be more than that......I have a feeling it's going to be a vast improvement over 2K8 is just about every way. Plus Jon and Joe are finally gone, and that's definitely a reason to rejoice

Gamespot and IGN both seemed quite positive when talking about the gameplay this year, so that's a good sign. So If VC can just get the framerate up to snuff (the build was only 90% complete, so let's see what happens), then I think we're in for a good game from 2K this year.

# 32 Artman22 @ 01/27/09 11:53 PM

IDK but after reading this preview i lost some hope for this game. I'm getting the show without a doubt but i was expecting this game to be very smooth. It's really sad honestly if VC can't get this game to be 60fps. This game just went from a first day purchase to wait and see now

# 33 NumberOneRB @ 01/27/09 11:55 PM

"Only 90%" is pretty far along. I'm kind of confused when people on this forum have said the game is "Only 90% done" as if they were saying its "Only 50% done." Having a game that is that far along, I dont' think its conducive to any dramatic changes besides some bug fixes, so I'll be interested to know just how much of the framerate they can actually clean up when they've gone through 90% of the development cycle already and still are having relatively major stuttering issues.

# 34 lived @ 01/28/09 12:03 AM

It's kinda funny how the framerate is plunging even though 70% of last year's complaints were on the framerate. And then you get comments like these

For starters, the team on-hand for our demo said that 60 frames per second was very important to this year's game;

Will just have to wait and see.

# 35 Motown @ 01/28/09 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Art1bk


	IDK but after reading this preview i lost some hope for this game. I'm getting the show without a doubt but i was expecting this game to be very smooth. It's really sad honestly if VC can't get this game to be 60fps. This game just went from a first day purchase to wait and see now

Keep the faith Art

# 36 King Gro23 @ 01/28/09 12:15 AM

You can fix a framerate with that granite 90% is far in the cycle first off. Second NBA 2K9 had stutter problems at 90 % too, it faired off well. Worst Case scenario you download the game to your harddrive to help IF their is a framerate issue. i dont think their wont be and he said "with pans of the field during a hit and shots of the crowd sending the framerate plunging" Thats fixable with 90% build
MLB 2K8 was framerate problem from Jeannie's pre game

# 37 Artman22 @ 01/28/09 12:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Motown


	Keep the faith Art

I'm trying but it's discouraging to hear that this game is not at 60fps at this point with about 1 month left

# 38 Artman22 @ 01/28/09 12:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by King Gro23


	You can fix a framerate with that granite 90% is far in the cycle first off. Second NBA 2K9 had stutter problems at 90 % too, it faired off well. Worst Case scenario you download the game to your harddrive to help IF their is a framerate issue. i dont think their wont be and he said "with pans of the field during a hit and shots of the crowd sending the framerate plunging" Thats fixable with 90% build MLB 2K8 was framerate problem from Jeannie's pre game

not doubting you but show me a link or preview that said 90% build of nba2k9 had framrate issues?

# 39 NumberOneRB @ 01/28/09 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by King Gro23


	You can fix a framerate with that granite 90% is far in the cycle first off. Second NBA 2K9 had stutter problems at 90 % too, it faired off well. Worst Case scenario you download the game to your harddrive to help IF their is a framerate issue. i dont think their wont be and he said "with pans of the field during a hit and shots of the crowd sending the framerate plunging" Thats fixable with 90% build MLB 2K8 was framerate problem from Jeannie's pre game

Don't get me wrong I'm pulling for VC to get the framerate issues taken care of, and if there's a company that can do it, its certainly them. I have very high expectations for this game because I absolutely LOVED the pitching and fielding mechanics last year (amazing that more games don't use the MVP style fielding because its SO much fun).

I'm very hard on this game because if everything is improved gameplay-wise (animations, batting, framerate) I'll purchase this game over the Show without even hesitating. The Show is the most polished baseball game around no question, but the developer's lack of desire to improve the fielding mechanic of the game really frustrates me (still using that same one button mechanic that's been around since the Nintendo) and lessens the experience for me.

# 40 BadKermit @ 01/28/09 01:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NumberOneRB


	"Only 90%" is pretty far along. I'm kind of confused when people on this forum have said the game is "Only 90% done" as if they were saying its "Only 50% done." Having a game that is that far along, I dont' think its conducive to any dramatic changes besides some bug fixes, so I'll be interested to know just how much of the framerate they can actually clean up when they've gone through 90% of the development cycle already and still are having relatively major stuttering issues.

Yeah, but think about it this way. Assume a sports game basically gets a 1-year development cycle. That's 365 days of development (I know, weekends, holidays, etc.). Divide that into 10 segments, and even at 90% complete, they have about 37 days to work on that final 10% (again, I know, testing, pressing discs, shipping, etc.). If all they have left to work on is improving the frame rate in that last 10%, they probably have over a month to work on it exclusively.

10% of a game certainly isn't an insignificant amount.

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