MVP Baseball 2004

"Baseball Sweet Baseball"

Baseball season is upon us and as always EA brings it's best to the plate.

Graphics: 10/10
There's really nothing wrong here, the player's are amazing, almost all of them look exactly like the do in real life. Also the staduims are wonderful, the green monster in Boston, the new look Petco, it all fells like you're really there.

Sound: 10/10
From the fans chanting 1918! *clap clap clap* 1918! *clap clap clap* to peanut vendors in the stands, it's all good.

Controls: 8/10
The controls are quite tough to learn at first, but about a week of playing and you'll get used to them. One thing most people have trouble with is running bases, and I must admit it' quite hard if you've never played 2003. You see one button controls a certain runner all others are CPU controlled and if you're new its hard to run, my brother who never played 2003 got picked off a lot at the beginning just because he didn't know which runner he was controlling. But a great new addition is Big Play Control. Going for that grounder but know you won't reach it? hit the right analog and dive for that orb! Running the bases also uses the control stick for the best slides I've seen in a game. Need to break up that going to be double play? use the stick and slide into the 2B's legs. Need to hook away from a tag? Use that stick and they'll be tagging air.

Gameplay: 7/10
This is where the game hits a snag. First off the fielding is quite frankly dumb, seeing outfielders dive for a ball is great the first time you see it, but considering it happens about 5 to 6 times a game it just becomes idiotic. Also the no doubt worst part of this game, is the lefty glitch, now some people seem to have it, some don't. I do and it's how can I say this...a pain in the ass. For one it is impossible to hit HR's with lefty's at a even pace. When your 52 power righty shortstop has more homers then your 89 power lefty something's wrong. It's not all bad however the pitching is brilliant. No longer are you simply the catcher telling the pitcher where to throw, you are the pitcher. From judging how much break a ball has to how fast you can get your heater its all up to you.

Gameplay modes: 10/10
This is the real meat of the game. First off there's a 120(!)year dynasty where you must monitor your players happiness which effects how they play, to making sure you stay under budget while still keeping that key guy, you'll feel like you do indeed run the show. Add in the very cool HR durby and Pitcher showdown where you can earn points to unlock legendary player's, to your favorite retros and I doubt you'll be bored.

Replay Value: 10/10
Here's a game where you'll want to play all 120 games. It's so great when you sweep that rival, or get a heartbreaking loss that you'll never want to stop.

Overall: 9/10
While the lefty glitch is a problem and the controls take some getting used to, this is still one of the best baseball games I've played. Well worth $50.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 04/16/04