Major League Baseball 2K6

"Good, but can use a little touching up"

Personally I hated to see EA get knocked out of the MLB game competition. MVP was a really good game, and I didn't think it could be beat. While MLB 2k6 is a very good game, I still don't think it matches up completely with MVP. The presentation is good, and the actual "baseball" feel to the game is a lot better than MVP, but it still is a little glitchy and the controls don't always feel natural

Gameplay: 9

This game has a whole lot of stuff for you to do. There are numerous modes and the Franchise Modes are really in-depth. In the game, making decisions about your team really adds to the feel of being an actual manager. There is even a World Baseball Classic mode which has all of the actual teams' logos and jerseys. The announcers are interesting, though they can get kinda repetitive and say the same things over and over.

Graphics: 7

This game looks good in some parts, and not so well in others. The stadiums look great, and the players look good for the most part, but there are some glitches. Sometimes your players just don't look very natural and almost seem to have their faces stuck in one expression. Also, this game just doesn't look as well polished as it could have, as sometimes the game looks a little dated at times.

Controls:7

I like the fact that 2k tried to use the analog stick to bat. EA introduced it with it's college baseball game, but 2k actually pulls it off better. There is also classic swinging which is just like hitting in the last 2k baseball game. Pitching is also an area in which 2k took a new approach. Instead of filling up a meter and then trying to get it to stop in a green area, 2k now lets you decide how much brake to put on the ball. When pitching, when you press a button to pitch, the longer you hold that button down will cause a circle to appear and get bigger the longer you hold it down. After you get your circle to the desired level, you let go of the button, and then quickly hit it again when the circle rapidly shrinks. It takes some getting used to but it's affective when it works. Other than these new features, the game still feels really clunky. Your fielders don't like to respond as quickly as you would like them to, and sometimes they don't catch balls that are hit at them. Base running is good for the most part, as you can now tap the A button after you hit the ball to get your player to try and beat out the hit.

Intangibles: 9

MLB 2k6 has a lot of great things going for it. The on-line mode is especially cool. You can form leagues or tournaments that the 2k server will run for you, setting up your schedule and keeping your records. Also, a really cool thing with joining a league is the ability to trade players during your "season". Aside from on-line mode, MLB 2k6 really does a great job in capturing the feel of being a GM by allowing you to purchase actual stats on players of various teams. Knowing what to throw A-Rod when he's behind 2 strikes, based on actual statistics, is really innovative. It gives you a whole new way to see the strategy of the game like the actual players do. Also, you can now control the catcher on steals, or control the base runner and let the CPU hit for you. This is especially effective for calling the hit-and-run, and can really help you out in tight games.

Difficulty: N/A

This game has several levels of difficulty which can be adjusted to your liking. Also, the game has so many sliders that it's hard not to get the difficulty level to just where you like it. The only problem is that the Pro, or default difficulty, allows for a lot of hits, so most people will probably have to change the sliders around to get the game just right for them.

Replay Value: High

The amount of offline modes, and the on-line mode with it's various features should have you playing for a very long time.

Overall this is a good game that has many interesting features, but just doesn't pull them off completely. The new features are good, but the lack of polish and the clunky controls can sometimes spoil gameplay. Also, I wouldn't recommend this game if you like to play 2 player against somebody. Most of the new features really cater to only 1 person playing, unless you choose to hit or pitch with some odd camera angles. If you're looking for a single player baseball game with some new features, and a pretty deep franchise mode, I would recommend buying this game and giving it a try.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 04/06/06