MLB 2K9 News Post

Major League Baseball 2K9 Hands-On Preview

10:51 AM - February 16, 2009 by Steve_OS

I have played quite a bit of our beta copy of Major League Baseball 2K9, so I will give my impressions of what I have seen so far. Just keep in mind, some of the issues I have witnessed will not be in the final retail version, according to the developers of the game.

Some Unanswered Questions

The biggest question has to be the frame rate and the A.I. swinging at anything remotely close to the strike zone. After multiple games, I can definitely tell you there are some issues with the frame rate, but those issues are not consistently popping up. For example, here are some instances where I have seen hiccups in animations one time, and then a few innings later, seen the exact type of play and not seen any hiccups.

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Member Comments

# 101 rckabillyRaider @ 02/22/09 07:25 PM

Does this game have dynamic attendance? One thing that was pretty cool in some of the game cinema videos is when the opponent hit a HR, the crowd would chant "throw it back!". The crowd does seem to have a bit more of a "human" feel to them than the other game. 2k9 on 360 and show on ps3 for me.

# 102 BrianFifaFan @ 02/22/09 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by K_GUN


	was NBA2K9 upgraded to 60fps? it seems that's the Lowest Common D in all these issues

I don't know what happened. I never played NHL2k9, but I'm really less than pleased with NBA2k's framerate. And MLB2k is on a 2-year run of bad framerates. But I'm finding myself confused, as I watched the other vids from the other site (GCHD) and the gameplay seemed to flow fine. Maybe it's intermittent, as opposed to being pervasive. I'll handle the stutters, on occasion. But if it's like NBA2k9 and the 2k and Drive Cams, I just can't do it. NBA2k9 actually gave me headaches from the framerate issues. Loved what the game did well, but that's too big of an issue to deal with. I was worried that I might have a seizure at some point....

# 103 MattyAction @ 02/22/09 11:47 PM

has anyone heard if the cpu will be taking any strikes? It seems like they swing at everything in the zone. I'd really like realistic pitch counts. Or maybe theres a slider for this? Thanks in advance.....

# 104 Bigtonyclark @ 02/24/09 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bigtonyclark


	Random question that I don't feel deserves a thread, but is a Live gold account required to use 2kshare?

Anyone?

# 105 NumberOneRB @ 02/24/09 11:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bigtonyclark


	Anyone?

I know from experience that in NBA 2K9 you do not need a gold membership to utilize the 2K Share feature. Playing online, yes, but if you are just utilizing the 2K Share feature then a gold membership is not necessary. I would suspect that since this is the same 2K Share used in VC's NBA title, the same stipulations will apply.

# 106 JoshCA916 @ 02/25/09 12:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bigtonyclark


	Anyone?

if it's anything like the EA locker then i wouldn't think you need a gold to do so, i haven't played a 2k game that had 2k share but from what i read it is the same thing as EA locker so it has to do with the game not MS Live in general

# 107 sportyguyfl31 @ 02/27/09 10:08 AM

Okay, SO I have heard about the CPU hack fest in a couple of posts. Do they actually swing and miss at some, or do they ALWAYS make contact?

Does this hacking apply to balls outside the strike zone? Is it possibly to get the CPU batter to go fishing after stuff off of the plate?

What's the homeruns like? More realistic? or still a bit of a slam fest?

CPU baserunning. More aggressive? LAst year the cpu stolen base was a non factor.

# 108 SoxFan01605 @ 02/27/09 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sportyguyfl31


	Okay, SO I have heard about the CPU hack fest in a couple of posts. Do they actually swing and miss at some, or do they ALWAYS make contact? Does this hacking apply to balls outside the strike zone? Is it possibly to get the CPU batter to go fishing after stuff off of the plate? What's the homeruns like? More realistic? or still a bit of a slam fest? CPU baserunning. More aggressive? LAst year the cpu stolen base was a non factor.

1. No, they don't make contact on everything. In fact, it's quite easy to get them to miss...especially on breaking balls.

2. Yes. You can get them to fish on pitches outside of the zone.

3. On default, it's still a bit easy to jack HRs still, but the bright side is that the CPU will get more hit variety and can score on other stuff besides HRs. In fact in the bunch of demo games I've played, the CPU has yet to jack one out.

4. CPU WILL run on you. Baserunning threats feel like threats. Crawford and Upton ran all over me. That said, pickoffs are a bit easy, so we'll see how that turns out.

Bear in mind this is all based on the demo. The logical thinking is that you can adjust some of this in the final retail version.

# 109 sportyguyfl31 @ 02/27/09 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoxFan01605


	1. No, they don't make contact on everything. In fact, it's quite easy to get them to miss...especially on breaking balls. 2. Yes. You can get them to fish on pitches outside of the zone. 3. On default, it's still a bit easy to jack HRs still, but the bright side is that the CPU will get more hit variety and can score on other stuff besides HRs. In fact in the bunch of demo games I've played, the CPU has yet to jack one out. 4. CPU WILL run on you. Baserunning threats feel like threats. Crawford and Upton ran all over me. That said, pickoffs are a bit easy, so we'll see how that turns out. Bear in mind this is all based on the demo. The logical thinking is that you can adjust some of this in the final retail version.

Yeah, the one pain in the behind last year was the CPu offense being dictated on whether or not they could jack one out.

I'd pitch a 3 hitter and have 3 of the hits be solo shots.

Im also hoping that the cpu and the user can work the count some as well

# 110 Money99 @ 02/27/09 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrianFifaFan


	Thanks Steve for the preview, and thanks for talking about the framerate. This seems to be a problem with 2k's games as of late, NBA2k9 was just a mess in this regard. I just don't get how they went from buttery smooth framerates early in this gen, to the herky-jerky mess it is now. Maybe they need to stop adding "sig styles" until they get a decent rendering engine. I'm gonna take a "wait and see" on this one......

It's been speculated that NBA2K is still on a last-gen build. I wonder if all 2K sports games can say the same.

Maybe it's time they rebuilt their engines from scratch specifically for the 360 and PS3?

# 111 acarrero @ 02/27/09 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Money99


	It's been speculated that NBA2K is still on a last-gen build. I wonder if all 2K sports games can say the same. Maybe it's time they rebuilt their engines from scratch specifically for the 360 and PS3?

Sure seems that way. I would say EA's NCAA Football and Madden are also based on last-gen builts. The leap from PS1-PS2 was much greater for sports games, IMO, than the leap from PS2/Xbox to PS3/360.

I played the Show 08 last night for the first time. It felt like...the first The Show on PS2. Graphics and colors obviously better, though I never got a feeling close to what I experienced first time I played Madden on the PS2. Obviously more details and textures in the PS3 versions of the Show, but the gameplay is the same, and if you ask me, it's getting old. As a 360 owner, I find myself still playing MVP 06 on my PS2 - it's still as good of a game as anything out there. While I enjoyed the 2k09 demo and will buy the game, I can't say it's more fun or a more realistic representation of baseball within the lines than MVP. Just better graphics, not even better animations. At least 2K has upgraded their controls over the years, the Show has been the same game with a few tweaks. Overall, the "next generation" sports games have been a disappointment inside the lines compared to last gen's games.

# 112 PVarck31 @ 02/27/09 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by acarrero


	Sure seems that way. I would say EA's NCAA Football and Madden are also based on last-gen builts. The leap from PS1-PS2 was much greater for sports games, IMO, than the leap from PS2/Xbox to PS3/360. I played the Show 08 last night for the first time. It felt like...the first The Show on PS2. Graphics and colors obviously better, though I never got a feeling close to what I experienced first time I played Madden on the PS2. Obviously more details and textures in the PS3 versions of the Show, but the gameplay is the same, and if you ask me, it's getting old. As a 360 owner, I find myself still playing MVP 06 on my PS2 - it's still as good of a game as anything out there. While I enjoyed the 2k09 demo and will buy the game, I can't say it's more fun or a more realistic representation of baseball within the lines than MVP. Just better graphics, not even better animations. At least 2K has upgraded their controls over the years, the Show has been the same game with a few tweaks. Overall, the "next generation" sports games have been a disappointment inside the lines compared to last gen's games.

Madden and NCAA are NOT based on last gen builds.

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