MLB 2K11 News Post

MLB 2K11 Demo Impressions Roundtable

12:28 PM - March 4, 2011 by RaychelSnr

Chase Becotte: Every time I think I'm out, they pull me back in.

Most of my initial thoughts about MLB 2K11 can be found in the preview I wrote a couple days ago, but this demo basically serves to cement a lot of those impressions.

Christian McLeod: For once, I'm with Chase. If you can look past some of its rough graphical and animation edges, the MLB 2K11 demo plays a very solid game of hardball.

Caley Roark: I'm with you guys: I think there is a fun game of baseball buried somewhere in 2K11. However, I'm not sure the demo reflects that. I saw too many flaws in the demo to truly say that 2K11 has improved a great deal over 2K10. (For the record, I thought 2K10 was much better than 2K9.)

Chris Sanner: If you are not as into realism as a hardcore baseball guy is, and if you are willing to overlook some pretty dumb AI moves, I think MLB 2K11 is going to be your type of baseball game. The Show can be a bit overwhelming to the casual baseball player, and I think 2K has wisely tried not to copy The Show's success verbatim.

Read More - MLB 2K11 Demo Impressions

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

# 81 bigfnjoe96 @ 03/05/11 12:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nemesis04


	The problem I have with this game is it struggles at times with the core fundamental rules of playing the game of baseball. When it stumbles out of the gate with the basics, its sim persona is definitely in question imo. I don't want to hear sliders will fix things because there are AI things going on which tell me there are not baseball savvy people involved with certain key elements of the game.

Though I understand what your relaying Nem, I doubt everyone working on this game has no basic knowledge of the game of baseball

Sent from my Awesome Phone via tapatalk

# 82 econoodle @ 03/05/11 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by serialmke


	Why are posts like this not removed and the user reprimanded. This is the 2k demo impression thread not the show anything thread. I have been reprimanded for much less than this. Please remove this garbage.

agreed. that was unnecessary.

# 83 ericdrum @ 03/05/11 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nemesis04


	The problem I have with this game is it struggles at times with the core fundamental rules of playing the game of baseball. Put aside the meter graphics, the hitting, fielding and pitching etc. When it stumbles out of the gate with the basics, its sim persona is definitely in question imo. I don't want to hear sliders will fix things because there are AI things going on which tell me there are not baseball savvy people involved with certain key elements of the game.

It's become a common thread here for people to play the elitist card when discussing this game. State direct facts in a polite way. Why make a nebulous generalization? If this game doesn't have any appeal for you, that's cool. But your condescending attitude towards the fans of the game is uncalled for. Enough of the 'baseball "lite"' attitude. Please.

# 84 Picci @ 03/05/11 12:42 PM

Sroz39, SoxFan01605, and Kernel Pie nailed it for me regarding my thinking. There good reasons to debate, and you all captured my thinking in an excellent way. I knew there's a reason this website can shine.

All in all, we have 2 real good games to play, depending on our mood. For Sports gamers, specifically baseball gamers, we will be envied.

Now, I have to admit one thing. I am a baseball gameaholic. And I'm battling my demons regarding 2K. I'm a covert from the "Damn You cheated me 3 X's 2K"! style-of-thinking. You know 3-strikes and your out.

I look forward to hearing your reviews regarding this game to help me decide. Money is tight, and gas and food prices are soaring, however to all of us baseball gamers this coming Tuesday, "PLAY BALL"!

# 85 nemesis04 @ 03/05/11 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericdrum


	It's become a common thread here for people to play the elitist card when discussing this game. State direct facts in a polite way. Why make a nebulous generalization? If this game doesn't have any appeal for you, that's cool. But your condescending attitude towards the fans of the game is uncalled for. Enough of the 'baseball "lite"' attitude. Please.

Condescending? First of all if you read my demo impression I said there were two viable games this year. If you don't like my baseball "lite" term tough, too bad get over yourself! Next time I will put a lot of smiley's and fluffy clouds in my post so everyone does not cry, seriously people!

Anyway to entertain you, here are some just to name a few I have problems with so far:

-Fielders not in the correct position to back up plays. Pitcher is the biggest culprit.

- CPU outfielders and cutoff men not throwing to the correct base. Especially when trying to contain the lead runner.

-CPU runners running when the ball is hit in front of them resulting in them running themselves out of innings.

-With runners on first and second 2 outs and 3-2 count the pitcher pitched out and the catcher threw to third when my runners took off. Really?

I'll stop why keep pounding? Anyway in my opinion the game at face value has a certain fun factor to it. If you look deeper a lot of things come into question.

# 86 ericdrum @ 03/05/11 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nemesis04


	Condescending? First of all if you read my demo impression I said there were two viable games this year. If you don't like my baseball "lite" term tough, too bad get over yourself! Next time I will put a lot of smiley's and fluffy clouds in my post so everyone does not cry, seriously people! Anyway to entertain you, here are some just to name a few I have problems with so far: -Fielders not in the correct position to back up plays. Pitcher is the biggest culprit. - CPU outfielders and cutoff men not throwing to the correct base. Especially when trying to contain the lead runner. -CPU runners running when the ball is hit in front of them resulting in them running themselves out of innings. -With runners on first and second 2 outs and 3-2 count the pitcher pitched out and the catcher threw to third when my runners took off. Really? I'll stop why keep pounding? Anyway in my opinion the game at face value has a certain fun factor to it. If you look deeper a lot of things come into question.

That's all I was asking for, minus the condescension. 'Get over yourself' is just an acknowledgment, btw.

# 87 Heroesandvillains @ 03/05/11 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	Nice way to slam the developers without actually pointing anything out. Well done.

2 posts above yours.

# 88 ChubbyBanana @ 03/05/11 04:18 PM

Knock off the back and forth bickering and keep to comments about the article. If you guys want to compare games, go to the Baseball-Other Subforum.

Final Warning.

# 89 DirtyJerz32 @ 03/05/11 04:48 PM

It amazes me to see so many people who have no intentions or buy 2k11 commenting on this game. I understand the "I have a right to comment thing" but, if you have no desire to buy it or play why come over here and start arguments with people that want to buy it.

I don't get it! This is why threads get locked all the time. It's like when I have to yell at my 6 month old male black lab for taking a treat from my older female yellow lab. They both have the same treat but, he wants hers. We're all here to enjoy the site and voice our opinions, but if you don't want the game then leave the others alone.

Anyway, I thought the roundtable was a good read. Each statement their opinions and back them up with what they wanted to see in a baseball video game. How can some of you guys knock them for their opinions? There's no need to discredit anyone's opinion or thoughts on how they thought the game played.

Sorry for the rant, I just get tired of seeing good threads get locked by others who have nothing else better to do with there time.

# 90 blueduke @ 03/05/11 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	You might have wanted to mention that to Chris Sanner who instead of talking about the demo decided to use his opportunity to slam 2K11 as a casual game. He just felt the need to let us know that The Show was for the hardcore baseball fans. What did Sanner use support this opinion? the lifting of a starting pitcher in a three inning demo in which he admitted affected the AI. He doesn't believe that this is something we would see in the final product, and was not something we've seen before. It was completely outside the bounds of responsible editorial. And it directly led to all of the Show vs. 2K talk that ensured. I thought the other three did a great job summing up their opinions about the demo, and what it might mean in terms of a final product. But their work was undercut by someone that used the roundtable to promote Sony's PR spin.

^^ THIS. I'm with Jayhawker on this one. "Casual game" is a code phrase for arcade which 2K isn't. How could one come to this conclusion playing a 3 inning demo on the lowest difficulty setting?

# 91 Knight165 @ 03/05/11 08:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jayhawker


	I wouldn't say that. But they are pretty much meaningless when the AI cannot make smart basic roster decisions. As I've said before, this is not an issue for The Show specifically, as I have yet to see an AI be capable of the kind decision making required to makes trades, draft players, cut players, and sign free agents in any sports game. Including it is just more style over substance. It makes gamers think the game is deep, so they can brag about their dynasty in which they laid waste to a feeble AI. But seriously, this notion that 2K11 is just for casual fans, while The Show is for hardcore fans is just PR spin from Sony to deflect the advances 2K have made in player differentiation. 2K11 has been stats heavy, and has made the game deeper from a strategic standpoint. Instead of discussing that, community day guys have run with the casual game spin. I appreciate the criticism of the demo that the other guys have made, as they are based in the reality of playing the game. These are things that either need to be fixed, or we have to weigh how much they impact the overall game experience. I'd be a fool to say that the demo came off as perfectly polished. And some of the stuff may be part of what we have to live with in this version. I'm just objecting to the fanboyastic take Sanner had. It didn't relate to the game in hand, and just served as PR spin for Sony. It felt out of place in this roundtable.

WTH does Sony have to do with any of the roundtable discussions?
You cannot be serious in thinking they are even thinking about anything that you are implying.
Honestly...I don't know how you keep getting a pass with some of the things you post.
You know what feels out of place? YOU getting to call people out left and right. Three times in this thread alone.
What community day did Chris Sanner attend? 2K's?

M.K.
Knight165

# 92 tvman @ 03/05/11 08:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knight165


	WTH does Sony have to do with any of the roundtable discussions? You cannot be serious in thinking they are even thinking about anything that you are implying. Honestly...I don't know how you keep getting a pass with some of the things you post. You know what feels out of place? YOU getting to call people out left and right. Three times in this thread alone. What community day did Chris Sanner attend? 2K's? M.K. Knight165

Guess you must have missed post #98.

# 93 Knight165 @ 03/05/11 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tvman


	Guess you must not have seen post #98.

Why?
Does it say which community day Chris attended?
I'm seriously curious.

M.K.
Knight165

# 94 RaychelSnr @ 03/05/11 09:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knight165


	Why? Does it say which community day Chris attended? I'm seriously curious. M.K. Knight165

Sony gave me a Porsche, 2K only gave me a Chevy Impala.

Case closed. Didn't you hear?

# 95 The Bimmer @ 03/05/11 09:01 PM

Face the facts, this is "Roundtable Impressions" of the 2k11 demo PERIOD! Once the word SHOW enters the mix, intentionally or not, what in the world would one expect. I am surprised this didnt get locked down 35 posts ago. Fact: nothing really is being added to this thread, is there?

# 96 rugged0shrew @ 03/05/11 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MMChrisS


	Sony gave me a Porsche, 2K only gave me a Chevy Impala. Case closed. Didn't you hear?

+1

I Usually only troll the forms looking for whatever I am interested at the time, I think I may need to use that for my sig.

Anyways. I'm getting this game day one reguardless, I was impressed with pitching and the battle at the plate last year; this year is no different. Add some great feilding to that? You have yourself a game. I loved the demo. I am holding my breath for franchise improvements though. I sim more games then I play and the progression killed me last year.

Seriously though. 2k is releasing a quality game this year in my opinion. I don't see what is up with the people getting personal here. . .

# 97 sroz39 @ 03/05/11 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rugged0shrew


	+1 I Usually only troll the forms looking for whatever I am interested at the time, I think I may need to use that for my sig. Anyways. I'm getting this game day one reguardless, I was impressed with pitching and the battle at the plate last year; this year is no different. Add some great feilding to that? You have yourself a game. I loved the demo. I am holding my breath for franchise improvements though. I sim more games then I play and the progression killed me last year. Seriously though. 2k is releasing a quality game this year in my opinion. I don't see what is up with the people getting personal here. . .

One thing I've been curious about...2K8 had a set of four sliders for regression and progression. I never got far enough into any franchise in that game to see how effective those were. Anyone have any first-hand knowledge of these sliders? And if they were good, wouldn't they be the answer to all our problems?

Personally, I think every game should just include progression and regression sliders but really expand it i.e. progression and regression sliders for A potential prospects, progression and regression for B potential players etc. Another way for the developers to give us the control over how we want our franchises to play out.

Sent from work...or my bathroom using Tapatalk

# 98 rugged0shrew @ 03/05/11 11:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sroz39


	One thing I've been curious about...2K8 had a set of four sliders for regression and progression. I never got far enough into any franchise in that game to see how effective those were. Anyone have any first-hand knowledge of these sliders? And if they were good, wouldn't they be the answer to all our problems? Personally, I think every game should just include progression and regression sliders but really expand it i.e. progression and regression sliders for A potential prospects, progression and regression for B potential players etc. Another way for the developers to give us the control over how we want our franchises to play out. Sent from work...or my bathroom using Tapatalk

The sliders worked really well in my experiences. I liked to jack up progression to simulate top ranked prospects burning through the minors. It only took a season or two that way from being drafted for the top picks to hit the show. On a negative note, by doing that the young pitching talents (Timmy, Webb, ect) often maxed out their pitch ratings when CPU controlled. I didn't touch the regression so I can't comment on that.
On the note of prospects. The speed/Acc of generated players is always low for any generated class. I know in 2k8 it hamstringed the longevity of the game, because the top pics I mentioned earlier usually came in (If they were a pos. player) with F/D speed. You got the occasional burner, but his bat and fielding were usually not up to par. At least thats how it was in my experiences. It is one of my biggest complaints in franchise.

# 99 ChubbyBanana @ 03/05/11 11:36 PM

Why can't you guys follow instructions?!?!?!?

Next comment not related to the article/roundtable or personal attack = ban.

You've had plenty of warnings.

# 100 ryan36 @ 03/06/11 01:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blueduke


	^^ THIS. I'm with Jayhawker on this one. "Casual game" is a code phrase for arcade which 2K isn't. How could one come to this conclusion playing a 3 inning demo on the lowest difficulty setting?

There isn't a "casual game" , there's a game marketed to the pick up and play crowd. Madden isn't arcade...yet they gear it toward the pick up and play crowd.

Again , my opinion is that 2k11 will be fun, I had fun with 2k10 last year...it was realistic enough for me...baseball is my #1 sport, I played and coached high school, and used to broadcast college games on the radio. I enjoy both titles...they offer different things.

What I personally have not seen from either demo, is $60 worth of improvements. SCEA's game offers some new models which make it nicer...the accompanying animations, and re-done fielding ratings- the animations I can see in the demo, the new ratings, etc, which I can also see. In 2k11 , I have not noticed many changes, but I didn't play 2k10 a TON- so I am not the best source on this.

Again, I want to say the heat 2k is taking for the demo is from people who ARE interested in the 2k title. Nobody downloads the game just to troll a forum.

I can see where and why each of writers said what they did, and that to me makes it a legitimate article.

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