Inside Pitch will have the same old engine this year. It would likely be next year's game that uses the old High Heat engine. There's also a possibility they will never use it, but that would be a major mistake since Inside Pitch is so awful.
After reading this review from IGN, i think i'm going to buy MVP Baseball 2004. http://xbox.ign.com/articles/496/496785p1.html
I got my PSM magazine the other day and they gave MVP Baseball a Must Buy award. It's their PS2 game of the month. Although I can't give their 9/10 rating of the game too much credit yet, since they haven't reviewed the other baseball games yet. Next month they will have them all reviewed. I wish these games came out early in March, so I could get some playing done during spring break since I wont be in port aransas the entire break.
i haven't really seen much of anything about either Allstar 2005 or ESPN. It doesn't seem like they've done much to improve themselves. I'd have to see an really impressive review from either to change my mind. Over the last week i've sold myself on MVP 2004. I love how the fielding is setup. You throw choose how hard you throw the ball. The better the player, the harder and more accurate they throw. The pitching seems a lot better than in high heat. You can control the speed of the pitch. Striking someone out seems like a challenge. The dynasty mode is what does it for me. Being able to control your double A and triple A farm teams is something none of the other games offer. Also the whole team chemistry concept is pretty cool. MVP is shipped on march 9th, i'm sure some gamestops will have it that night.
I'll rent ESPN and MVP before I decide. I went with WSB last year and it's a great game, I'll still play it quite often. I'm not a big fan of the right analog in any game and it seems EA is making you use it in all their games with the exception of Madden and the playmaker thing which is a simple tap up or down then forget about it. Someone needs to make a good basketball game now, I absolutely hate this years releases both LIVE and ESPN the gameplay sucks in them both.
I agree. They need a good basketball. I don't understand EA Sports. They have a game like Madden that has so many options and game modes and then a game like NBA Live has few too none.
check out this video of batting stances for MVP http://media.ps2.ign.com/media/606/606469/vid_686150.html Ichiro, Sheffield, Bagwell, Pujols all shown
Remember that game for the Nintendo where you could build your teams and earn money by beating up some chick team called the Pink Ladies? That game knocked a GPA point off myself and 5 of my roommates.
EA may have the edge over ESPN in football, but in my opinion ESPN/SEGA kicks EA's mediocre ass in Basketball, Baseball, and Hockey(who cares?) games..
while that may be true in previous years it seems like EA has taken a giant step forward while ESPN has not done anything to improve their game. I plan on renting both of them or at least testing them at gamestop before i buy. It was so much easier to choose when High Heat was in the mix.
i reserved a copy of MVP 2004 and am waiting for EB Games to get their shipment. As soon as i get it and play it i'll write up a review.
ESPN didn't have to improve much because they're game was already so superior to MVP. That's like complaing that McDonald's improved their hamburgers yet Vic & Anthonys did nothing to improve their steaks.
I just picked up my copy of MVP 2004 a little while ago. I had a setback when my controller decided not to work. I was fortunate to find one that had been chewed up by my dog last year but was still usable. Anyway, here is just a short review on what i think about the game so far. I played an exhibition game between the Astros and Cubs. I love the pitching. In high heat you simply selected a pitch and your guy threw it. This game makes it more realistic with a pitching meter. You must select how hard you want to throw the ball and also make sure it's accurate. The meter would be similar to kicking a field goal in Madden football. Obviously if you've got a guy like Roger Clemens on the mound he's gonna throw a whole hell of a lot harder. The batting is the same as it was in high heat. It's all about timing. I prefer this method to Allstar baseball. I'm not a big fan of being able to line up a circle with the pitch, and also dislike the power circle allstar created. The fielding is the best i've seen. Armstrength plays an important part in making plays. Each fielder has a similar meter to the pitchers except it's only for strength. Watching guys turn double plays, or make diving catches at 3rd is the best i've seen on any game. Overall the actual gameplay is great. You aren't going to strike out a team 17 times in one game. On the otherhand you're not going to put up 10 runs every game either. It's a nice balance. I just started messing with the Dynasty/Franchise mode. It's pretty cool. Team Chemistry and player happiness is something new that makes running a franchise more entertaining. If your team struggles, the team morale drops. If a player is unhappy he can also effect team chemistry. Each team has rivalry games. The teams will really come out motivated to play them. The astros rival's include Atlanta, St. Louis, Texas and i believe Chicago was included as well. I'll add more later once i've played it a little more. I was skeptical when i bought it but it was definitely worth the price. EA did a great job with this game. It'll be hard to compete with.
I just finished my first season with the Astros in the Dynasty/Franchise Mode. I ended up gettings swept in the NLCS by the future champion Florida Marlins. Throughout the season as GM you are sent emails to update you on your Triple A, Double A and major league teams. Players will send you an email asking for a new contract, or talk about being unhappy and not being motivated to play, and etc... Some players may only need a change in their role to be happy. For example, Octavio Dotel is listed as a Relief pitcher. If you change his role to "Closer" he seems to be happy. Emails are also sent to notify you who other teams are shopping around. I got 2 or 3 different emails over the course of the season talking about Carlos Delgado being on the block. I love being able to draft prospects. I didn't count but there are at least 7 rounds. This game has a very deep franchise mode. Also, while it may not seem that significant i'll mention it anyway. You can view standings, upcoming opponents/importance of game, and a few other options without having to scroll through long menus. On ps2 you can simply toggle between the R1 and L1 buttons, which speeds everything up. I'll post more as i learn it.
