ESPN Baseball (Xbox): First Impressions

[Pumpy Tudors]

I plunked down $40 for ESPN Baseball tonight, and I admit that it plays a LOT like World Series Baseball 2K3. I know that shouldn't be a surprise, but seriously, it feels like almost the same game. I also want to point out, however, that I find this to be a GOOD thing.

I'm playing in the "GM Career" mode as the Cardinals, and the owner of the team wanted me to get rid of Woody Williams because he's overpaid. There were also three other goals, but I decided to go after that one first, since it was the easiest. I traded him to Minnesota. One problem solved!

Anyway, the ESPN presentation is definitely in the game, and there's a nice "Bottom Line" display that you can turn on and off during the game. It's great for seeing how the other teams in the Majors are doing. There's still not much in the minor-league management system (it's basically just a "holding area" for players not on your big-league roster), but I like the gameplay and presentation a lot. I kept MVP Baseball 2004 just in case I was on the fence about ESPN's game, but I have a feeling that I'll be more than satisfied with ESPN, so MVP Baseball will probably be traded in next week (unless someone here wants to buy it?). I haven't tried playing online yet, but I imagine that I'll have trouble finding opponents who are actually interested in playing an entire 9-inning game. I'll give that a shot over the weekend when I have more leisure time.

Sorry for this sorta scattershot post. I just wanted to throw something out there for people who might be interested in this game.

[hukarez]

Wow...wasn't even sure it was released yet! Free shipping once again from espnvideogames.com? For us extremely lazy folk?


I guess it's time for me to get my XBOX back from my buddy. Was going to let him enjoy it for awhile, until this summer when (hopefully) Fable comes out.

[Pumpy Tudors]

Yeah, I think espnvideogames.com is doing free shipping again, though I don't know for sure. I just walked into the store and bought it.

[hukarez]

Aye - they seem to be still offering free shipping. Which is a bit odd, since I think they did the same thing with ESPN NFL Football and all. I thought it was solely a little promotion...wonder if it's become a standard thing? Ah well.

[Francis_Cole]

if only the espn games would be out on pc... . I like mvp baseball 2004, but I think the interfact is certainly lacking..

[MizzouRah]

Yep, MVP - albeit a good game, just isn't holding my interest for a console game. Yes, I was pumped when it came out, but the luster has worn off. I've also read alot of good "under the hood" praises about ESPN from vets like Bill Abner... so, I traded in a couple of games for ESPN today.

Pumpy,

How's the game playing for you? I would say getting rid of Woody is a start. j/k I like Woody, but I do wonder if his arm has anything left. Who did you trade him for?


Todd

[Pumpy Tudors]

The game has been going pretty well. I thought the game was too easy on the "All-Star" level, so I bumped it up to "Legend" which is the highest. Big mistake. It's nearly impossible to strike anybody out because the other team's plate discipline is too good on that level. There are sliders for everything, but I didn't want to stay on legend and screw with sliders, so I tried to figure out what the deal was. Finally, I discovered why it was so easy on "All-Star" at first. I accidentally had the hitting set to "timing only" which meant that I didn't need to worry about location. I just had to hit the button at the right time. Oops. When I changed it to "true aim", it was a lot better, so now I'm back to All-Star level.

I traded Woody Williams and one of the catchers (not Matheny or Widger but another one whose name escapes me) to Minnesota for Johan Santana. As a matter of fact, I have the game paused right now, and Santana pitched six or seven really good innings for me against Houston. Now I've got Steve Kline in the game to try to hold down the fort until I bring Izzy in. Pujols just homered for me to give me a 4-1 lead. Santana did a great job of keeping the Houston bats at bay. He just gave up a homer to Morgan Ensberg and not much more. We need to win this game to avoid the sweep.

I want to mention that the online play is next to impossible. The lag time between hitting the button and swinging the bat is the problem. It's easy to get 15-20 strikeouts simply by either throwing as hard as you can or placing the ball out of the strike zone. You're really forced to swing way too soon at every pitch, just in case it's over the plate. Unless they tone down the pitch speeds tremendously, I don't recommend playing online at all.

[MizzouRah]

Well, I'm not much of an online person, but the game has caught my attention. I like the gameplay better than MVP, although the swing animations aren't near as good as MVP. Also, the stadiums are beautiful as well as the presentation of the game.

Check out these great settings I found over at OS:

Legend
custom sliders on

CPU Run Aggr. 55
All CPU throw strikes at 45
Everything else at 50

low wide camera angle for batting
pitcher view for pitching
power pitching off
pitch cursor off
batting - true aim, 1 button classic
swing feedback on



Todd

[hukarez]

CPU Run aggression? Hm. Seems to be more slider options available in this year's iteration than before! I might have to continue the tradition and pick up a copy.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by hukarez

CPU Run aggression? Hm. Seems to be more slider options available in this year's iteration than before! I might have to continue the tradition and pick up a copy.

There's a ton of sliders, those are just the ones that need changed. With updated rosters, this game has been a surprise thus far.

Todd

[Pumpy Tudors]

I'm getting challenged well enough on All-Star. As I mentioned before, the computer is too good at plate discipline on Legend. I don't mind walking batters, but it's nearly impossible to strike anybody out. The CPU will not chase many pitches out of the strike zone on Legend, and it rarely chases on All-Star. I think there's a slider to adjust that, and I might use it. Not sure yet.

Great game, though!

[MizzouRah]

Here is a snip from the guy who did those slider edits:

Remember the Level really only affects human contact. It has no effect on the AI hitting with the sliders turned on.

I strikeout batters all the time. You should really try these sliders out.


Todd

[Eaglesfan27]

Have there been any signs of game killing bugs? Power hitting problems? Player progression problems? Anyone simmed ahead to see if player progression works ok?

[Pumpy Tudors]

Regarding striking out AI batters, I feel like an idiot, then.

As for power hitting problems, I haven't seen anything of the sort. Everything seems pretty normal so far. I wouldn't know about player progression, as I'm unlikely to sim very far ahead at all. Sorry that I can't help with that.

[MizzouRah]

I think there's a thread or two over at OS that people have simmed many seasons will good results, although I can't comment personally. I know I sound like a broken record, but the gameplay is outstanding. I also like the amount of errors if you try and rush things. Quite fun! ...and plenty of stats.


Todd