If you're like me and have been a baseball fan all of your life, you might recall spending blissful hours playing those old Sega-based baseball games from the '90s.
Someone has finally produced a game to surpass the 16-bit glory of my beloved Genesis days. In my childhood years, a good game meant it had either Griffey or Clemens' face on the front of the cartridge.
In the year 2010, MLB 2K10 will be the only name that matters. This is the perfect game.
From the seamless game play and awe-inspiring graphics, to the company giving out $1 million to the first person to pitch a perfect game, there is no doubt in my mind that this game will become a classic.
I got the game the day it came out, have been playing it for a solid month and have innumerable praises and only a few small complaints.
2K10 is everything that its predecessor, MLB 2K9, was not. 2K9 was frustratingly glitchy and aesthetically disgusting. This year's version has its glitches, but they aren't the kinds that make me want to throw my Xbox controller through my flat-screen.
For example, no player-controlled outfielder in 2K9 could ever make a catch, while the computer had no problem running laps around the field before laying out for a sick web-gem, robbing you of a double through the gap. 2K10 players will occasionally make a ridiculous catch, but it's never anything superhuman.
The graphics and commentary are amazing. It's like being able to watch the Braves in HD three times a day, every day.
Ueberkudos go to the broadcasters and writers that spent so much time thinking out every possible play-by-play situation to make this game as real as it could be.
The MyPlayer feature benefited from the recent patch, which fixed many errors.
The feature gives the game an interesting, entertaining perspective of the game, but the schedule still seems to be a bit glitched. I finished my first season with the Mississippi Braves, but can't proceed to the next season.
The game play is smooth but challenging. The computer will score off any mistake you make and you will hang your head in shame every time DBack's pitcher, Ian Kennedy, embarrasses you with his knuckle curve. Tommy Hanson will burn every one of your batters with a high and tight, third strike 97 mph fastball. Albert Pujols will make your entire pitching staff cry, so go ahead and mash the right stick to draw the intentional walk with the bases loaded. You're better off that way.
Despite the challenges, you can always have a trick or two up your sleeve.
From breaking up double plays at second and plowing through catchers at the plate, to using the defensive swing feature to get your perfect pitch and the power swing to drive the 3-2 offering over the fence for a walk-off bomb, you will always have the upper hand.
This game is perfect and has set an astronomically high standard for every baseball game to come.
I recommend forgetting about pitching the $1 million perfect game, though.
You should instead write e-mails and letters to 2K asking why baseball's prodigy, Jason Heyward, isn't in the Braves lineup. Seriously, 2K?
The kid is 20 years old and has already been compared to Mantle and Aaron. Get your act together!
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