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MVP Baseball 2003 for Xbox Videos >>
MVP Baseball 2003 for Xbox
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MVP Baseball 2003 for Xbox
27 reviews   4.52 of 5

Product Description

Sound

This is the only game, other then Madden games, that had sounds that matched everything that was happening. This is also the first game that makes realistic sounds depending on how hard the ball was hit. Not only were the sounds in the game great the music was top knotch. Sometimes you even waited to select your option so that you could here the rest of the song.

Gameplay

The creaters of the game did an extremely good job of making the game play as real as the games we see on TV. This is the first baseball game I've ever seen that gives you the full controll of your pitches. You could put as much spin on a curve as you wanted and change speeds on your fastball. Even better then having full controll on the mound was having full controll on the field. You could field you position then put as much power as need on your throws. That made the game more realistic. When turning a double play on other games your ss(2b) would fire the ball to second when they were only three feet away from each other. This is also the only game that has even had broken bats when your jammed inside.
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Sound

I didn't notice any sound and I simply don't care. I only care about the actual game.

Gameplay

The gameplay is very fluid and the pitching and throwing meters are very revolutionary. I would hope all baseball games in the future use these meters. Pitching is the best part of the game. The meters get harder and harder to control as the game goes on and your pitcher wears down and there is nothing like hitting the meter in the perfect spot and pitching a perfect strike on the corner. However, the batting interface leaves a lot to be desired. I personally don't like the whole timing thing. It seems like with the batting interface being just a timing issue that you would nail the ball every time, but that is definitely not the case. Me and my friend played well into 13 innings and both of us had a combined total of 6 hits. Pushing and pulling the ball are the only options.
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Sound

Sound is perfect, just like I am at Safeco field. No need for improvements there.

Gameplay

The gameplay is almost perfect.If you keep it on the lower skill levels (ex. Rookie) then you will be able to hit doubles and HR's all day long. If you increase the skill level this game is almost like the real thing. When I made the change in skill level to the highest, my batting averages went from around .600 to between 250-400. Some people complain about never being able to steal a base. I'm 3/4 of the way through the season and I have a 70% of steals. I have one player with 43HR pushing 100 RBI's and three others in double digits. Strikeout's are not impossible if you switch up your pitches to throw off the batters timing. If you know a change up isnt meant to be thrown as a strike it helps you place the ball to confuse the batter. A hint for you all, if you want the K's. If you get two strikes and want a K then place the pitching cursor with the bottom of the ball level with the top line of the strike zone. If you place it correctly and throw some heat you will get the batter to strike out 80% of the time. The game does switch between night and day games and the season goals are outstanding. The base control is the best design ever using the d-pad to resemble the diamond. Having the liberty to lead the baserunner one or two steps is great. If you want to inentionally walk a player....you can do it. Need a sac fly? Pop up a pitch. Nothing was overlooked in this game.
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Sound

sound was really nice, i would like to hear the fire works and some music in the stadium when a homerun was hit, and even a sound when a run scores, just a little more in game music in the stadium, but other than that, its stellar. i love the bat sounds, you know when you caught it all, and i love it!! nice job!!! commentators are great, just fix the problem where they say the wrong person, and thats good too!!! great job!

Gameplay

Gameplay is great, the best, by far, I have bought allstar every year for x-box, allstar is boring, i cant bring myself to play it anymore, this game has everything, the pitcher batter interface is so good, they did well with this, i like the throwing on defense, in reality, you have to get your weight moving to get anything on the throw, and some times you have to make off balance throws, i only wish you could dive!!! i love the indicator when you miss the zone, you see the red, your eyes light up when your hitting, and if you see it when your pitching, you look away! animations are smooth, but not as good as they could be, but it's still gorgeous, i like the total control hitting as well, and i dont know why some of these guys cant steal, take a lead bro, and you can do it! lol i also hate watchin texas leaguers fall over the infield cuz nobody went to get it, MVP eliminates this, the perfectly places ones fall, but you know a pro will flag a weakly hit pop up over the infield, they they do it on this game, gosh i wish i could dive! im stillmatering the double plays, but im gettin there, i like the base running, this game isnt easy, and i like EA for that. great game, tweak some things next year, and your in bizness EA. GReat game!!!!!
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Sound

The sound in MVP Baseball is great .I like the crack of the bat , it is great .Also the crowd is great .It's funny to hear the crowd taunt or cheer the players on , it's like your at a real MLB game .The two announcers are good they tell just whats happening in the game at perfect timing .Even though the announcers repet a few times , it's still great compared to other games sound such as , AllStar Baseball , World Series Baseball , High Heat , or Inside Pitch .

Gameplay

The game play is Great in MVP even though it has on little flaw .The flaw is you can't totally control your players diving or jumping , but still that dosent really take away from the gameplay .The hitting in MVP is great it is like your playing in the majors with full swing control .Also the throwing meter is very useful it helps you throw harder and more accurate .Baserunning is very good in this game you have total control of your runners .Pitching in this game is the best around it is very true to life because of the throwing meter. MVP has the best game play around.
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Sound

Sound is nice, but glitchy at times. I have noticed on three occasions so far that names get screwed up. One one occasion, Minnesota shortstop Guzman lined out to my diving SS, Angel Berroa. The announcer said what a great catch by Guzman! This seems to happen if you make a good play with the batters counterpart.

Gameplay

At first, I liked it a lot. However, after playing several games, the weaknesses are really showing. The following are all my own opinions, of course. You NEVER burn an outfielder. He either catches it on the run or it has to be a gapper to get past him. I have NEVER seen an outfielder lay out for a ball or slide while coming in for a ball. This is horrible. Too many balls drop in front of them when they should be getting dirty for the catch. Outfielders DO dive, EA.

There are WAY too many lineouts to infielders. There are WAY too many great catches by the SS and 2nd baseman going deep into the outfield. I can't count the number of over the shoulder diving catches my SS has made.

There are WAY too many extra base hits. If you do get a hold of one that is not a homer, it is a gapper and you are off to the races. Even my slowest guy is in the top ten in doubles. It just seems like there are too many hits that seem "the same." Where is the variety of grounders, choppers, etc? It seems like over half the outs are liners right to the infielders.
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Sound

Sound is great. Dolby digital is awsome when you hear the crowd start to roar behind you.

Gameplay

The gameplay is the strongest part of MVP. For the first time in a baseball game I've wanted to pitch more the bat. My first game I was scored on 13 runs and as you become better with the pitching meter, placement and sequence it becomes really great. My strikeout per game have slowly been getting better, my best so far is 10 with pedro. As a pitch gets tired the possiblity to make a bad bitch increases becuase the pitching meter becomes smaller. This is great in that it forces you to manage your staff. I have not had a complete game with anyone.

The batting is nice too. At first I was put off with the fact that you don't have to aim your swing but just get the timming right. I thought this was dumb becuase the pitcher could throw it anywhere and you could still make contact. What was the point of the pitcher aiming the ball if you could hit anything? Well if you swing at a pitch outside the changes are that its going to be a crappy hit. MVP rewards a batter that can sit and wait for a good pitch to hit. This was not so much the case in WSB.

Ok that was the good, now with the bad.

The infielders can make a play deep into the outfield. Its not un-common to see a SS run out to mid center field and make a diving catch.

7 of my 9 starters are batting over .300

8 of my players are leading the league in doubles. I have the first 8 spots when you sort MLB by doubles. This would be ok if I was also leading in other things but I'm not. I have a few (2-3) guys mixed in with the top 20 in RBI's, Avg, Triple etc. Its only doubles that I'm dominating.

The stats are minimal. It diminishes the value of playing a season.

The trading system is also minimal. Its there and thats about it.

Its very hard to hit HRs. I hate games where you hit 5 a game, but it would be nice to be able to hit a few. I think Manny should have more then 5 HRs after 30 games.

Now considering this is the first iteration in the MVP series many of these are things that are to be expected.

I think that I am going to sell my copy of MVP and purchase it for the computer so that I can play online.
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Sound

Also good, as expected from EA. Crowd cheers and chants (can get repetitive) and announcers are OK.

Gameplay

The pitching meter is not a terrible idea, but once you get the hang of it, you can do it perfect pretty much every time, or at least get close enough to perfect that you never miss your spots...it's just a matter of getting lucky and hoping the AI doesn't get a hit. If you're hoping to get strikeouts, you'll be sorely disappointed, because the AI almost never chases any pitches out of the strike zone. Pretty much defeats the whole point of having the meter in the first place, which is why I said it was a gimmick.

The fielder throwing meters are interesting, but again hurt the gameplay more than they help. Waiting for a meter to fill up when you want to throw the ball immediately is annoying, as is the fact that the meter makes turning double plays more difficult than it should be.

Infield hits are noticeably absent (as are drag bunts). All runners take way too long to get down the line to first. Balls that should be bloop hits into the outfield are always tracked down and caught by the 2B or SS. I have had a SS come out all the way to 5 feet in front of the LF and make the catch.

Batting is LAME. LAME, LAME, LAME! You don't aim at the ball, it's all timing. You can move the stick to try to hit the ball up or down or left or right, but that's it. I haven't struck out at all, ever, not once, and I've played 8-9 games on the hardest difficulty.

To round out the list of problems (aside from the bugs which tpyically plague first-year titles, such as some home runs being called ground rule doubles), you can't control your fielders' jumping and diving. That's the only fun part! I could care less about throwing the ball with a meter. That takes no skill at all; diving and jumping at the right time does...or would, if it were in the game. Didn't they learn from WSB2K1's faux pas in this regard?

Franchise mode is similarly disappointing. No minors, no coaches, no fantasy draft, no roster editor, no competing for free agents, etc. The goals system is a decent idea but is annoying in practice because most of the goals are silly (hit for the cycle? why does that make me a good manager?) or ridiculously difficult. I ended up ignoring them completely. The momentum meter really screws things up, too. You lose more momentum for losing than you gain for winning--unless you have an invincible team, you can't simulate multiple games and have a hope of a winning season because it's impossible to sustain your momentum with that formula. I like to sim through seasons and do the GM stuff, but that's just not a viable way of playing this game.
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Summary

Triple Play is gone but E.A. is back and finally their baseball game is up to speed with Madden and Live. It's a whole new ball game this year and feels all new. E.A. went with E.A. Canada as their developer and it seemed to make all the difference. The game is right up there with Sega's own WSB 2K3, which by the way is a kick arse game too. But in terms of MVP baseball's fun factor, it can't be beat. The graphics are great, the game plays great and the batting and pitching interface is the best I've seen for a baseball game. If you have an XBOX and love baseball, MVP is probably your best bet.

As with any E.A. game, you got a home run derby VS mode, a deep Franchise mode to allow you to play through multiple seasons and create your dynasty, a full Season mode, create a player mode, a pleasant and helpful tutorial to help you with all aspects of the game, and of course an exhibition mode to play with your friends. It's got the goodies along with the good gameplay, no complaints!

Sound

Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper are the best tag-team announcers for any baseball game this year and it's only on MVP baseball. Great sound effects in the stadiums, heckling fans, screaming fans, hot dog dudes, cars honking downtown, and the whacks of the bat and guys diddling on their organs. The music within the options screens includes plenty of guitar riffs from popular groups that many people will recognize. Overall, the sound rocks.

**Final Call** One of the biggest surprises from E.A. this year. Many expected just a rehash of Triple Play with a new name on the box, but on the contrary, this is all new and feels new and E.A. has my vote of gratitude for giving Sega some competition in the ballpark this year. With the exception of the fielding part that needed more interaction, MVP Baseball is a top contender, give this game a smack at the plate. It's in the game.

Gameplay

Although still not a true baseball simulation, (it still leans a bit on the unrealistic) side, but it's getting close. But the game focuses on fun and the best batting and pitching interface I've ever seen in baseball game before. Pitching the ball takes after the likes of past golfing games. It uses a "target" meter to throw that killer pitch. Sounds funky, but it turned out magnificently and most will appreicate the new feel. You choose a pitch with the corresponding button, hold it down, wait for the meter to go up to its highest point, then wait to press the button again in the "target" area. The more accurate you are about lining up the meter in the target area, the more killer your pitch will be. If you're bad about lining it up, it gives the batter and instant target meter where the ball will be. It's defintely a new feel, but it's a good feeling no matter how you look at it.

The big difference from other baseball games is that MVP baseball plays without a batting cursor. The game relies soley on timing and seeing the ball, just like the real game. On top of that you can aim with the control stick. If you need a powerful pop fly for the sacrifice play, press up, time the ball right, and you got the run. Need a grounder? Press down on the control stick and initiate your swing. It sounds a bit like Midway's Slugfest control scheme, but the reality of calling your swing depending on the type of pitch is the most important thing in MVP baseball.

Fielding is very important in any baseball game, and although the overall game is polished, it does lack a little in this area. The game does let you take complete control of your fieleders or lets you have the computer do it automatically. But when they say complete, I say "that's only partly true." You can move them in any direction to where the ball is going or where you need to put them, but that's it. You can't dive, cant jump, can't climb a fence, it's all done by the computer automatically even with auto fielding. Sporadically my shortshot would miss balls just missing his head when he could have just jumped for it. I'll also miss pop flies in the outfield because I was unable to dive for the baseball flying into the wall. It's a mystery to me why E.A. decided to let the computer take over. It's good for beginners, but I like full control in every facet of the game. But what it does right is in the execution of throwing balls from the outfield and to the bases. The "meter" again comes in to play. You can determine the power of your throw by how long you hold down the button to execute your throw. If you throw it to the max you risk an error, but the high power throws can save some runs by beating the runners to the base. It works great and I love this aspect of the game too.
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Sound

The atmosphere is really there. The sounds are really nice and they make you feel more like you are part of the game. I think this title tries to be more of a TV style presentation than other games and it pulls it off well. I really like the personal commentaries on certain players on your team.

Gameplay

I am very impressed with the presentation. It is just simply more fun than High Heat 2004 and the atmosphere is just more entertaining and enriching. I like the ability to have the computer field for me, but still let me throw and make decisions.

The only gripe I really have about the gameplay itself is how many of the hits seem the same. It seems like there are too many lineouts to the infielders and too many shallow fly balls that infielders dive or jump for. The fielding AI is suspect sometimes as well. I had one ground ball to first where the fielder had to move to his left to get it. His momentum carried him past the bag a few steps and then he stopped and stood there, just a few feet from the bag while I coasted on through the bad for a single. He could have had me by three steps, but he just watched me go by. I have also had a few plays where the ball was hit directly at the shortstop, but the 3rd baseman would dive for them for no real reason. He would miss and the ball would roll right past the shortstop into the outfield. The replay on thatone was humorous because the shortstop's head actually turns and watches the ball trickle right by him.
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Sound

This was more of a preference decsicion for me. What i like about MVP is that the announcers are the SF Giants play by play guys who i'm very familiar with in living in the bay area. WSB2K3 has some ok guys as well but for me you would have have Costas and Morgan to beat the play calling by the MVP guys. Way too much time was put in to heckling for 2K3 and not enough time for crowd chants and other ambiance(Braves war chant..Yankee roll call..organs, vendors, indvidual player cheers..Der-ek Je-ter etc..) Both games have great effects sounds; ball hitting the bat, hitting the glove, broken bats. I guess everyones ears are not the same and some people hear what they want to hear so sound is always gonna be amixed bag.

Gameplay

Well everyones gripe about gameplay was the fact that you can't dive or jump manually. I don't have a beef with that at all. How many times in games have you dove on a pretty routine play ony to find that you jumped too soon or late. Or your fingers wre pointing in the wrong direction and a single turned into a double or a 2 yd. gain into a 15 yd. romp(Madden). This game was pick up and play right out of the box. Which is graet due to the fact that most of my games are played with my idiot buddies or my 10 yr. old son. WSB2K3 had horrible controller config. and the pitching/batting setup for MVP is a godsend. I am one that is tired of the whole cursor deal and think that it should be taken out of all baseball games completely. Real baseball is about timing the pitch and sending it in the direction that benefits your runner. Speaking of running, how sweet are the pip windows for MVP! I'm sick of trying to control dots on the mini diamond window. Stealing and advancing runners is just about as simple as it gets. WSB2K3 only allows you to control the lead runner and once again using the dot system i could'nt tell how far my guys wre leading off and was picked off at bases just about every time. Talk about frutrating, fielding a line drive or pop fly was like trying to catch a chicken(remember ROCKY BALBOA) due to the over responsive controls. MVP was very smooth and keyed in on your fielder in a great camera posistion. The only gripe i had was that i'm a diehard yankee fan and they did'nt have Hideki Matsui in the game and I had to create him. Adjusting your lineup before your game starts is also kind of a hassle as well. WSB2K3 has a setup after you pick your teams to adjust everthing from lineup to uniforms. Once again each game had it's good points.
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Sound

it's cool to hear the fans get behind individual players during a game, it makes it seem like the fans are really there, instead of just being noise that sounds like a crowd. they cheer for the teams superstar when he comes up in a big situation, it's cool

Gameplay

good gameplay, but room for improvement. (but who am i to say that) throwing out runners tagging up is a big challenge, relay throws are the same way, you can't catch and throw in one motion like in real baseball, you have to catch, then charge your throw, then throw. it's hard to hit the ball over anybody's head unless you hit it out. the fielders catch everything (that's good when the other team is threatening and your shortstop lays out for a what should be a bloop single.) you can't get doubles over the outfielders heads either, just in the gaps. oh, lastly, i've played almost 20 games in my franchise my team has hit a combined 5 homers.
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Summary

I have to admit that I was planning on picking up WSB2K3 when I first went to SoftwareEtc.. But as I walked in I noticed MVP baseball playing on the PS2 kiosk, so I watched it for a little while and thought, WOW! This game looks pretty sweet. But, the controllers weren't hooked up because the guy behind the counter said that on Saturdays they unplug them because too many people come into the store. Kinda strange, I would want more people to try out a game, would probably mean more $$$.

Anyways, I then noticed that the X-Box kiosk was showing WSB2K3. As I watched WSB it seemed as if it was identical to last years game. I asked the guy if they had MVP for the XBox in and he said, "No" because the shipment got lost and they wouldn't have any until March 18th. I had to have a game today!! I wanted to buy both and then try them out and return the one that I didn't care for as much.

I ended up leaving and going to Electronics Boutique. The guy at EB said to buy the one I wasn't sure about (MVP) and then bring it back within 14 days with my receipt and switch it if I liked. What a great deal. Their shipment of MVP on the XBox didn't get lost so I paid my $50.00 and raced home.

Sound

Sound is good, especially if you like the Giants announcers, because you get to hear them over and over again unless you turn them off. I personally crank the game sounds and crowd sounds up and turn down the music and leave the announcers some where in the middle. I do enjoy the way the crowd gets into the game in crucial situations. Nothing else to say.

On a final note, if EA happens to read this review, please keep up the good work and don't sell yourselves short, or us, for next years game. Thanks!

Gameplay

I didn't know what to expect from this game as far as gameplay was concerned. After playing about 5 games, I have to admit that I'm pleasantly surprised. I set the defensive setting to 'manual' and the pitcher batting view to Pitcher3/Batter2. This means that when I'm pitching the camera is behind the pitcher and when I'm at the plate, the camera is behind the catcher. Other options are available to suit each person's preference. The pitching meter works very well, and the batting is equally as nice. I agree with other reviewers who say that they are fed up with trying to hit the ball with lining up the little cursor. Those days are long gone. As for the fielding, on manual setting you control the player as well as the throws. The throwing meter is awesome. When you need to turn a close double-play a harder and less acurate throw is required and MVP allows you this option. Good Stuff! Sure, people complain that you can't make wall jumps to rob homers from your opponents. To this I say, how often do those who play WSB make such fantastic plays? Not very often from what I've read in those reviews. EA says that the game is more about the pitcher/batter confrontation and I have to agree. I do hope that EA implements the manual dive and wall jump next year but for the time being, this first effort of their revamped baseball game, I have no complaints.

My game scores have all been relatively low scoring (4-1, 2-5. 3-0...)and with an average amounts of hits per side (6-12).
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Summary

What was once titled Triple Play from EA is now titled MVP 2003. Triple Play was just plain bad in so many ways that they had to do something. That is exactly what they did during the off-season, and boy did it pay off. I have played all the new titles on the X-Box except World Series, although I did see it in action. Basically, same game as last year, with new tweaks and pretty graphics, just did not interest me because of the knowledge of the game from the previous year. It came down to what I wanted to hold on to and what game or games was going back. Of course it all comes down to personal tastes, so MVP and High Heat stays in the library and All-Star and World Series stays at the store for me. The pitching and fielding use a meter on the default setting and I love it. I would suggest going in the main menu and listening to Harold Baines explain all the basic fundamentals to becoming competitive at playing MVP. You will get more out of that than the manual itself. I'm playing on All-Star mode, finding this to be the most competitive mode and also of course the hardest to beat. The swing animations are great and the exclusion of a cursor is to me the greatest development that went into this game. It's all about timing and getting a pitch in your batter's hot zone and then just timing your swing. This comes very close to HH in terms of the batting and makes it the best way to enjoy a video baseball game in my opinion. I've grown tired over the years of chasing a white dot around with a cursor. This is an outright great game to have and is well worth the money if you love baseball and probably some that are on the fence with video baseball. Great gameplay, along with stellar graphics has put this game over the top of all the other games I have played. Go out and get this one, you will enjoy!!!!!

Sound

Sound is well done giving you the feeling much of the time that your having a day at the old ball park. Announcers do a fine job of keeping up the pace of the game and the crowd and music keep things alive. No complaints here.

Gameplay

As stated the pitching and fielding use a meter as is well implemented into the game. EA incorporated hot/cold zone in the batter's box that is sectioned into 9 sections of the strike zone. In the options menu I choose to have this fade as the pitcher goes into his windup. If you are batting its all about timing baby and where the pitch ends up in your hot/cold zone, very well done. Use the left analog along with a one button swing to spray the ball high or ground the ball left, right or center in the field. By the way, Home Runs look great in this game and are truly fun to watch leave the yard. Pitching is just great, load your meter during the windup, hit your marks and pray the batter don't send it sailing out of reach. Fielding is fun with the meter, as you can pre-load your meter for outstanding throws and double-plays. A little to much on your meter and there is always the chance of a wild throw, so most of the time play it safe. Whether the fielder dives, jumps or pulls a circus act while trying to get the ball is not up to you pushing a certain button, the computer chooses what your fielder is going to do in relation to your coverage of the ball. At first I was skeptical about enjoying this but is so well done in the game that it does not take away anything from the gameplay itself. Also I have found the 1-Angle camera on the pitching/hitting portion to be the best view, this would not work in any other baseball game, but because of the great timed batting in this game it works flawlessly. Baserunning is outstanding and finely fun to control and watch. Windows for each base give you more control of baserunning and believe me gives you greater control of your runners, being able to see what they are doing, instead of watching DOT RACING (that says it all). Gameplay is OUTSTANDING!!!!!!
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Sound

Sound effects are great. Commentary is great and keeps right up ith the game play. Repeated comments are kept to a bare minimum. The crowd also sounds great.. to hearing vendors selling programs and hot dogs, to home crowds chanting overrated while Sosa is visiting and up to bat, to hearing the tomahawk chant in Atlanta.

Gameplay

Ahhhh the gameplay...what a fresh breath of air. To begin, EA has introduced Total Control pinching. The first step comes in selecting a pitch. Most pitchers have an aresenal of four pitches, some have 5 while some relivers have 3. After the selection is made, the player holds down the selected button while the power meter fills. Once the button is released, the meter quickly swings back for the release. If you hit the button when the meter is in the "green zone" you will throw a perfect pitch. Releasing too soon or too early will result in either tipping off the batter as to where the pitch will be or throwing a wild pitch. This innovative meter makes evey pitch a challenge, and as the game goes on and the pitcher gets tired, it becomes harder to keep your pitches under control. Pitching is an absolute blast. Now for batting. MVP does not follow the crowd by putting in the horrid batting cursor. Instead it is all about timing. The direction pad is used to determine the direction you want to the ball in. To become successful at batting, the player needs to learn how to read pitches by how they are coming to the plate. Baserunning is also another highpoint. In the corner of the screen, you can view the runners (instead of just watching dots like most baseball games. Stealing bases is easy to pull of yet difficult to master. Ok now the lowpoint...fielding. While you do have control over your fielder in regards to running, the computer automatically dives or jumps to make plays. Why EA didnt give the player control of these moves is beyond me, maybe we shall see it next year. However as good as this game plays in all other aspects, the fielding complaints is no distraction. The game offers exhibition, season,franchise and batting distance contests. This game will keep you busy until next season.
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