MLB 2K11 News Post

MLB 2K11 Preview (Destructoid)

02:31 PM - January 21, 2011 by Flaxseed Oil

Destructoid has just posted their Major League Baseball 2K11 preview.

Quote:


	"Another change that looks to help fielding is the introduction of new animations. The increased variety, especially for bobbled balls, makes the game more fluid and realistic. It�s not 100% there yet -- I saw inconsistencies like a big step and a laser-like throw from a fielder who was maybe ten feet from his first baseman, which really pulled me out of the action -- but I�m hoping that such nagging issues can be ironed out between now and the release date. I found the game�s visuals to be alternately impressive and off-putting. Many of the player faces are accurate, while others are off -- this remains an issue across most sports games -- and all of them suffer from dead eyes and stiff mouths, irregularities that scream �uncanny valley.� Numbers on the backs of jerseys are textured to stand out from the shirts themselves, but there�s a strange upward distortion of text on players� chests. Team-specific camera angles for the behind-the-pitcher view are a nice touch, and the revamped player models look great. C.C. Sabathia is a hulking brute on the mound, just as he should be."

Game: Major League Baseball 2K11Reader Score: 5.5/10 - Vote Now
Platform: NDS / PC / PS2 / PS3 / PSP / Wii / Xbox 360Votes for game: 17 - View All

Major League Baseball 2K11 Videos

Member Comments

# 41 Knight165 @ 01/22/11 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	??? Was that a personal shot at me?

Ha....nice try, but no.
You did make a nice backhanded swipe at another game though. You should watch that.....that's edgy stuff there.
I was laughing at your notion that
-"the other game" has nothing but auto fielding...and "you're watching the game"...
..and
-no game since BBPro has given gamers a good manage only mode or realistic stats.
Both HH and The Show give you both IMO.

Did they put Manage only Mode in 2K this year?

M.K.
Knight165

# 42 SamitSarkar @ 01/22/11 09:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saberq


	Hey SamitSarkar was the graphics upgraded form last year in your opinion and does it look good overall......I dont expect WOW factor just wow this looks cool and decent

It looks good -- the jerseys and body types are a big improvement over last year, although as I mentioned, the faces are still hit-or-miss. I still don't think it looks as good as The Show, which is a game where you could occasionally fool yourself into thinking -- even if just for a second -- that you were watching a real game. But it's no slouch.

# 43 Knight165 @ 01/22/11 10:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	I wasn't talking about any other game. I wasn't aware that The Show had auto-fielding, let alone only auto-fielding. I do know that 2K used to have auto-fielding in the past. And that many felt like 2K10's fielding was everything but. And while HH and The Show are better than anything else out there in terms of manage only that isn't a text sim, neither came close to to what BBPro did. 2K had manage only at one point, but took it out. As I said, 2K seems to emphasize playing the game over the manage only mode, which is why it is no longer in the game. If I had my preference, I would only play online games in manage only mode. I don't think the lag allows for the dynamic hitting and pitching experience required to make the games compelling. But I would need the mode to be a hell of a lot beefier, and produce a lot more reports than anything I have seen outside of text sims. Regardless, there was no swipe at the other game. And as such, there was really no need for you to come here and bring it up. I'd say this little exchange says a lot about your motivations for keeping an eye on this forum. You seem awfully defensive.

Ahhh deflection.....great tactic.
But alas...no....incorrect.....no motivations.

M.K.
Knight165

# 44 PVarck31 @ 01/23/11 12:15 AM

Lets get back on topic gentlemen.

Thanks.

# 45 dodgerblue @ 01/23/11 02:52 AM

Any word on the quality of the PS3 version? I know it will never look as good as the 360 version but it's got to be better looking than last year.

# 46 HITTERSAURUS REX @ 01/23/11 06:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SamitSarkar


	(A) My name doesn't have an E in it. (B) The new fielding camera angle does a better job of allowing you to follow the ball off the bat -- a lot of times in 2K10, I felt like the camera would switch to the fielder at the crack of the bat, and the ball would already be on you, which didn't leave much of an opportunity to make a play. In terms of "vacuum" fielding, I definitely didn't notice that with fly balls: in fact, the new two-circle system really puts the onus on you to position your fielder properly -- I almost dropped a routine fly ball with Granderson.

Thanks a bunch for replying SamitSarkar:
I knew the "e" will stand out.. (it's an attention grabber

)If I continue to see your posts and I have a comment/quetion I surely will spell your name properly.. (lol) Personally to me you article was the best yet. Very informative stuff..

Also enjoyed your take on how the preview & PR thingy goes hand in hand for your write up. Again infield wise I just don't want to play the ball and find out that I barely have no movement control of the situation besides throws. Outfielding sounds night & day better than it ever was. Thanks for taking the time to answer my question. Good luck with your site

Edit post update:
Just to clear things up when I used the word auto fielding for 2k10, I really meant a auto fielding type feel. Which is what SamitSarkar above quote was exactly referring to.

# 47 rudyjuly2 @ 01/23/11 08:23 AM

Samit, I'd love to hear more about the fielding camera this year. I'm hoping we will always be able to see the ball and track it. 2K10 wasn't like that.

If you look at 2K9's angle (great look at an outfield hit at 1:15 where it's a deep fly and you see the ball the entire time), it gave you a much more zoomed out look to run down balls in the outfield.

Another 2K9 vid at 1:30 and 3:15 showing how you can see the ball the entire time. This angle is great. Why on earth did they get rid of it?

Contrast that with MLB 2K10 where it was too zoomed in. Can you indicate if it's more like 2K9 or any other comments? Here is a 2K10 hit (at 6:15 but better at 9:10).

# 48 Blzer @ 01/23/11 04:15 PM

Hmm rudy, I guess you and I don't share similar viewpoints on this. Granted, I don't like either camera angle, I'm looking for one which will be stationary like a broadcast fielding cam that you will see on TV. They normally will only pull up for things like no-doubter home runs or those fly balls which split a gap to zoom out enough and show the two outfielders chasing it. I guess it zooms out other times as well to show the ball, but it doesn't go top-down on the field and still shows the stadium's beauty.

The infield camera was always worse than the outfield camera though, IMO.

# 49 rudyjuly2 @ 01/23/11 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blzer


	Hmm rudy, I guess you and I don't share similar viewpoints on this. Granted, I don't like either camera angle, I'm looking for one which will be stationary like a broadcast fielding cam that you will see on TV.

Yeah, I have no use for a broadcast camera. I tend to prefer the zoomed out look, more like what I would be able to see at the stadium as opposed to on TV. I know that doesn't show off the graphics but that doesn't bother me.

I'm really interested in how these fielding changes allow us to actually track down flyballs with different outfielders. Nothing other than speed and arm attributes has ever mattered before.

# 50 foofighter2455 @ 01/23/11 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	One other big flaw in the hitting was the opposite field power. A guy like Johnny Damon could pull a ball 400 feet but there is no way he should generate that same power going the opposite way. The game did not differentiate between this at all. The only guys that should be hitting an even amount of bombs to all fields are the 35-50 HR guys. The 15-20 HR guy hits most of his when he pulls the ball.

I agree the opposite field power needs to be tweaked, but you are way too general on saying someone can't hit an oppo bomb just because they don't hit 30 HR's. These guys can hit opposite field home runs if they specifically try to hit oppo, so in 2K if you hold the stick that way, you should be able to do it.

Some guys have much better power when they get extended on an outside pitch and will hit it just as far to the opposite field. An example of this are guys like Juan Uribe and Pablo Sandoval on the Giants that just make a lot of late contact on fastballs that allow them to hit opposite field HR.

This is one of my biggest gripes with recent games that would add greatly to realism...
Guys that are dead pull hitters in real life should be made to play that way in this game though... meaning they receive a penalty in power.contact if the user tries to hit opposite field with them in the game.

The problem in the game isn't so much that it's super overpowered, but that the hitting mechanics don't really penalize guys for being pull-hitters or jammed enough so you can just sit back and let every ball get deep... which = opposite field BOMBS you don't normally see.

# 51 rudyjuly2 @ 01/23/11 07:08 PM

I didn't say the lighter hitting guys never hit HRs to the opposite field although my two examples showed that

. But I would rather they made it impossible for guys with medium power to hit HRs to the opposite field than make it so that it's just as easy as pulling them the way 2K10 had it. The medium HR hitter should be pulling 90% of his HRs. If they could find a way to do it the way you suggest, with a power rating to the three different fields (or something like that), that would be fantastic.

This has a huge impact on the batter-pitcher dynamic imo. It's not just that I think it's unrealistic as to how often I see it in the game. It's how much of a negative impact I see on the approach you need to have at the plate.When you are batting and if you want to hit a HR you should try to get out in front of the ball to maximize your power. This will then lead to more swings and misses on changeups and other breaking stuff as the batter (me) will be a little too aggressive. If you can just sit on breaking ball and then swing late on a fastball and drive it out the opposite field easily, it really has a big negative impact on this part of the game.

# 52 SamitSarkar @ 01/24/11 12:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	Can you indicate if it's more like 2K9 or any other comments?

Unfortunately, I don't have anything specific in my notes about the camera, and I can't recall it in my mind. I'll definitely keep an eye out for it the next time I see the game.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker;post2042058871


	SamitSarkar, can you tell us what you know about what systems this is being shown on? Do you have a choice of what to play on, do you play both PS3 and 360, or does 2K just have one system they are demoing for?

Most demos have multiplatform games running only on one platform, and in my experience, it's almost always the 360 version. In this case, the PR rep only had the 360 version on hand. However, he told me that they're going to be showing off the game's Move functionality at another demo next month.

# 53 rudyjuly2 @ 01/24/11 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by foofighter2455


	Some guys have much better power when they get extended on an outside pitch and will hit it just as far to the opposite field. An example of this are guys like Juan Uribe and Pablo Sandoval on the Giants that just make a lot of late contact on fastballs that allow them to hit opposite field HR.

By the way, I just checked these guys. It's impossible for me to tell how many opposite field HRs Pablo hit because he's a switch hitter but Juan Uribe hit 13 of his 24 HRs at home and every single one of them was a pulled HR to LF. No opposite field HRs at all in 2010 at home. You can go to MLB.com's website and check any stadium and any year. In 2009 Uribe didn't hit a single opposite field HR at home either. You have to go back to 2007 at home with the White Sox to see where he last hit a HR to the opposite field (he hit 2 of his 15 that year). He can do it but my point was that the opposite field HR needs to be rare except for the truly powerful.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/player/...hitchart/85881

http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/individual_...874&statType=1

# 54 rudyjuly2 @ 01/24/11 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	Rudy, this is an area where I am sure you are absolutely right. But I suspect it is a crazy hard thing to balance in an action game. Quite frankly, it is something that I find very easy to overlook in the scheme of things. As long as HR totals are reasonable, i can live with too many opposite field shots.

It's definitely something that you can overlook but it's something that I do find annoys me more than others. The other game had the issue up until '09. Most baseball games struggle with this. Just hoping this issue was adjusted - even if it's a little bit better.

# 55 Money99 @ 01/24/11 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	Rudy, this is an area where I am sure you are absolutely right. But I suspect it is a crazy hard thing to balance in an action game. Quite frankly, it is something that I find very easy to overlook in the scheme of things. As long as HR totals are reasonable, i can live with too many opposite field shots.

True. But wouldn't that hurt the strategy when pitching against someone like Uribe?
Knowing that he hasn't hit an opposite field HR in nearly half-a-decade, I would be pitching to make sure I kept him to the outside.
If the game allows him to hit opp-HR, then that strategy kind of takes a hit doesn't it?

# 56 rudyjuly2 @ 01/24/11 11:03 AM

At the same time Money you can still pull outside pitches for HRs unless the guy paints the corner. That's one reason I really grew to dislike MVP's hitting system. Any outside pitch could not be pulled with power. That's nonsense. If that was really true then why wouldn't every pitcher pitch outside to Uribe since he wouldn't hit a HR? Because he can still reach a lot of those pitches or they are mistakes. That's why pitchers must come inside to keep batters from cheating in a little to get those pitches.

# 57 foofighter2455 @ 01/24/11 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	By the way, I just checked these guys. It's impossible for me to tell how many opposite field HRs Pablo hit because he's a switch hitter but Juan Uribe hit 13 of his 24 HRs at home and every single one of them was a pulled HR to LF. No opposite field HRs at all in 2010 at home. You can go to MLB.com's website and check any stadium and any year. In 2009 Uribe didn't hit a single opposite field HR at home either. You have to go back to 2007 at home with the White Sox to see where he last hit a HR to the opposite field (he hit 2 of his 15 that year). He can do it but my point was that the opposite field HR needs to be rare except for the truly powerful. http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/player/...hitchart/85881 http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/individual_...874&statType=1

\
I'm sure you already know this, but there are very few right-handed hitters dumb enough to try to hit oppo at AT&T Park. A road split would be more representative for ANY righty.

# 58 foofighter2455 @ 01/24/11 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	At the same time Money you can still pull outside pitches for HRs unless the guy paints the corner. That's one reason I really grew to dislike MVP's hitting system. Any outside pitch could not be pulled with power. That's nonsense. If that was really true then why wouldn't every pitcher pitch outside to Uribe since he wouldn't hit a HR? Because he can still reach a lot of those pitches or they are mistakes. That's why pitchers must come inside to keep batters from cheating in a little to get those pitches.

What a different hitting system would reflect is how guys like Uribe sell out on an outside fastball to pull it for a HR. Just like you said, they need to find a way to allow hitters to hit the direction they want more but with more penalty.

Did anyone here use the "zone hitting" option in 2k9?
If you sold out on an outside pitch in that version, and the guy came inside, you would break your bat half the time. That kind of option with better integration would be fantastic.

# 59 rudyjuly2 @ 01/24/11 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by foofighter2455


	What a different hitting system would reflect is how guys like Uribe sell out on an outside fastball to pull it for a HR. Just like you said, they need to find a way to allow hitters to hit the direction they want more but with more penalty. Did anyone here use the "zone hitting" option in 2k9? If you sold out on an outside pitch in that version, and the guy came inside, you would break your bat half the time. That kind of option with better integration would be fantastic.

I suck at zone hitting and 2K10 was the first time I bought 2K.

Quote:

Originally Posted by foofighter2455


	\ I'm sure you already know this, but there are very few right-handed hitters dumb enough to try to hit oppo at AT&T Park. A road split would be more representative for ANY righty.

Unfortunately the site only provides stadium specific hit charts so it's just easiest to use the home stadium. I'd have to look at 29 other graphs to analyze road data and I'm simply too lazy to do that lol. I will note that all of Aubrey Huff's HRs last year at home were pulled to RF. No opposite field shots. Just way too many examples of guys that pull almost all of their HRs to illustrate my point.

# 60 Blzer @ 01/24/11 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Money99


	True. But wouldn't that hurt the strategy when pitching against someone like Uribe? Knowing that he hasn't hit an opposite field HR in nearly half-a-decade, I would be pitching to make sure I kept him to the outside. If the game allows him to hit opp-HR, then that strategy kind of takes a hit doesn't it?

Oh my, I never thought of that! We should alert the entire National League when they square off against Los Angeles this year!

My snide sarcasm inside (sorry about that

), the point is pitchers already attempt to do this. They are at times very successful as you can see from Uribe's batting average, and from his 25 home runs you can say they were often unsuccessful. They don't always paint the black, and even if so Uribe doesn't always have to go for a home run to call his at bat a success. Besides, Uribe is worse on inside pitches anyway. He has a terrible swing and approach, and most of his success is defined by his strength when he happens to get good wood on it.

If this game truly reflected the real life Juan Uribe, I wouldn't be driving outside fastballs for him unless I'm establishing a slider later in the at bat that will fall off the dish. The fact of the matter is no baseball game has had reflective dynamic push/pull and inside/outside attributes that authentically hold well with a decent physics system. We might have to settle a few more years for opposite field shots into McCovey Cove.

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