i have had the game since about 3pm and have been playing it ever since then. i have played 4 exhibition games, 2 scenarios, home run derby, pick up game and now a franchise with the cleveland indians.
i will base the review of these categories:
Presentation
Graphics
Gameplay
Sound
Presentation: This is where All Star shines. i can honestly say this is the best presentation in a baseball game to date. the menus are very easy to navigate and the music is simply breath-taking. it makes you have goose bumps seeing the old players and hearing the music from the natural. the opening fmv with lou giving his famous speech sent a chill down my spine. having players like jeter and ripken delivering the scenarios to you is a nice touch. and the presentaion of the franchise mode is glorious. everything is layed out for you and its so easy to navigate. there is even a asb rulebook that you can look at which explains alot of the franchise rules and what cirtain terms mean such as how waivers and arbitration work and what the rule 5 draft is. it is very easy to send a player down to the minors or call them up.but you better make sure they arent out of options or they will have to clear wavers. wow anyway, now on to the actual presentaion of the game, alot like last year, the comentators introduce themselves and then it shows the lineups, then the defensive positions then then it shows the pitchers warming up. this all adds to the feel of the game and it may be the same as last year but hey if it aint broke dont fix it. the in-game options are also very clear and easy to control. when you are on the mound or pitching just press down the right thubstick and you will see some cool options such as intentional walk, pitch charts, hot/cold zones. and finally asb now has bells and whistles, it is no longer a boring game to play the in-game presentaion just wraps you into the atmosphere of baseball, great job acclaim. well that about covers presentaion
score: 9.5
Graphics: well lets start with the player models. they look like baseball players. scaling is done nicely and the uniforms are vibrant and clear, colors look better than 03 lot sharper. the actual model of the player still seems a bit small in the field, but that also could be the new defensive camera angles. which i will get to shortly. overall the players look a little better than last years. but still lack somthing, dont know if its the size the shape or what but not bad by any means. the stadiums look great just like last year. not much has changed but like i said erlier if dont fix it if its not broke. the field itself looks more proportionate this year, the outfield looks realisticly bigger now. now for the new defensive views, i wasnt sure wheather to include this in the graphics or gameplay part but i will do it here. one word; Amazing. the best fielding views to date in any baseball game. it adds so much to the gameplay and the overal feel of the game it just feels so much more like baseball this year around.
score: 8.5
Gameplay: well this is the big one. this is what the debates have been about for the last 24 hours. well i can honestly say that IGN is................................Full of crap. there is no way in hell that they actually put time into their review, the gameplay is not at all the same as last years, there have been so many fine tunings and refinements that now give you the feel of actually controlling your fielders. the new views make it so much easier to see the ball and the field, which in turn makes it easier to play defense. now to hitting. best word to describe asb's hitting is "Challenging" and guys this is not a bad thing, i have only played on zone hitting so i will only comment on that. i like it alot its alot like high heat. point the left thumb stick in the right area then hit "a" to swing. pitch speeds are very fast and tough to hit but if you put it on exaggerated pitching it slows down a bit and you can see where the pitch will end up a little better. also i have noticed a huge variety of hits, from texas leaguers to shots to the wall. i have not seen very many home runs but all the ones i have seen did use the cut scene. not my favorite thing but doesnt take that much away from the game. lots of foul balls to mention as well as walks and K's it really seems like real baseball this year. everything is there and i mean everything, it all feels right too. the infield crouching is still there but has been toned down alot, same with the vacuum effect. stealing bases is now much more realistic, and based on speed, one thing that could have been in presentation, but i will mention it here, is the mound visits. not just for show like in HH. a little graphic comes up telling you how you're pitcher is doing and wheather or not the manager thinks you should leave him in or not. also it tells you the speed of the runners on base and the hitting ability of the next 5 hitters, this is just an amazing feature. i love it so much. well to some up gameplay overall the word would be "much better" while still not perfect i would love to see any other game rival it this season.
score 8.0
Sound: i think the sound this year goes a long way in making the game fun this year and not boring as it was in the past, and i dont mean the comentary either. comentary is not bad by any means but its average just like every other sports game with the exception of maybe the NFL2K series. where the sound really shines is the little nuances of the game. the one thing that sticks out to me is the umpire calls. they are very dynamic tones change all the time, you rarly hear the same exact call for example on a stike 2 call you could hear: "Stike", Stike 2", "2" or sometimes just a mufled "hrrrr" sound very very nice, and on the strike appeals you actually here the ump saying " did he go?" then you hear the base ump say "yes he went" or "no he didnt" very nice touch of realism. the crowd noise is very well done also, you hear specific team chants, and they get excited at the right times too. they will also boo when the home team boots one or stikes out in a big situation. and of course all the baseball sounds are well done such as the crack of the bat and you do hear a slight pop of the mit. another great point is the player walk up musics and between inning music it is awesome. there has to be at least 25 liscened songs, like John Mcdonald for the tribe walks up to Tim McGraws " i like it i love it" which pretty much sums up how i feel about the sound.
score: 9.0
Overall this is an excelent job by acclaim, their best offering so far, its not near perfect but much improved over last years version, if i left anything out let me know i will try to get to it.
Overall Score: 9.0 (not an average)
i will base the review of these categories:
Presentation
Graphics
Gameplay
Sound
Presentation: This is where All Star shines. i can honestly say this is the best presentation in a baseball game to date. the menus are very easy to navigate and the music is simply breath-taking. it makes you have goose bumps seeing the old players and hearing the music from the natural. the opening fmv with lou giving his famous speech sent a chill down my spine. having players like jeter and ripken delivering the scenarios to you is a nice touch. and the presentaion of the franchise mode is glorious. everything is layed out for you and its so easy to navigate. there is even a asb rulebook that you can look at which explains alot of the franchise rules and what cirtain terms mean such as how waivers and arbitration work and what the rule 5 draft is. it is very easy to send a player down to the minors or call them up.but you better make sure they arent out of options or they will have to clear wavers. wow anyway, now on to the actual presentaion of the game, alot like last year, the comentators introduce themselves and then it shows the lineups, then the defensive positions then then it shows the pitchers warming up. this all adds to the feel of the game and it may be the same as last year but hey if it aint broke dont fix it. the in-game options are also very clear and easy to control. when you are on the mound or pitching just press down the right thubstick and you will see some cool options such as intentional walk, pitch charts, hot/cold zones. and finally asb now has bells and whistles, it is no longer a boring game to play the in-game presentaion just wraps you into the atmosphere of baseball, great job acclaim. well that about covers presentaion
score: 9.5
Graphics: well lets start with the player models. they look like baseball players. scaling is done nicely and the uniforms are vibrant and clear, colors look better than 03 lot sharper. the actual model of the player still seems a bit small in the field, but that also could be the new defensive camera angles. which i will get to shortly. overall the players look a little better than last years. but still lack somthing, dont know if its the size the shape or what but not bad by any means. the stadiums look great just like last year. not much has changed but like i said erlier if dont fix it if its not broke. the field itself looks more proportionate this year, the outfield looks realisticly bigger now. now for the new defensive views, i wasnt sure wheather to include this in the graphics or gameplay part but i will do it here. one word; Amazing. the best fielding views to date in any baseball game. it adds so much to the gameplay and the overal feel of the game it just feels so much more like baseball this year around.
score: 8.5
Gameplay: well this is the big one. this is what the debates have been about for the last 24 hours. well i can honestly say that IGN is................................Full of crap. there is no way in hell that they actually put time into their review, the gameplay is not at all the same as last years, there have been so many fine tunings and refinements that now give you the feel of actually controlling your fielders. the new views make it so much easier to see the ball and the field, which in turn makes it easier to play defense. now to hitting. best word to describe asb's hitting is "Challenging" and guys this is not a bad thing, i have only played on zone hitting so i will only comment on that. i like it alot its alot like high heat. point the left thumb stick in the right area then hit "a" to swing. pitch speeds are very fast and tough to hit but if you put it on exaggerated pitching it slows down a bit and you can see where the pitch will end up a little better. also i have noticed a huge variety of hits, from texas leaguers to shots to the wall. i have not seen very many home runs but all the ones i have seen did use the cut scene. not my favorite thing but doesnt take that much away from the game. lots of foul balls to mention as well as walks and K's it really seems like real baseball this year. everything is there and i mean everything, it all feels right too. the infield crouching is still there but has been toned down alot, same with the vacuum effect. stealing bases is now much more realistic, and based on speed, one thing that could have been in presentation, but i will mention it here, is the mound visits. not just for show like in HH. a little graphic comes up telling you how you're pitcher is doing and wheather or not the manager thinks you should leave him in or not. also it tells you the speed of the runners on base and the hitting ability of the next 5 hitters, this is just an amazing feature. i love it so much. well to some up gameplay overall the word would be "much better" while still not perfect i would love to see any other game rival it this season.
score 8.0
Sound: i think the sound this year goes a long way in making the game fun this year and not boring as it was in the past, and i dont mean the comentary either. comentary is not bad by any means but its average just like every other sports game with the exception of maybe the NFL2K series. where the sound really shines is the little nuances of the game. the one thing that sticks out to me is the umpire calls. they are very dynamic tones change all the time, you rarly hear the same exact call for example on a stike 2 call you could hear: "Stike", Stike 2", "2" or sometimes just a mufled "hrrrr" sound very very nice, and on the strike appeals you actually here the ump saying " did he go?" then you hear the base ump say "yes he went" or "no he didnt" very nice touch of realism. the crowd noise is very well done also, you hear specific team chants, and they get excited at the right times too. they will also boo when the home team boots one or stikes out in a big situation. and of course all the baseball sounds are well done such as the crack of the bat and you do hear a slight pop of the mit. another great point is the player walk up musics and between inning music it is awesome. there has to be at least 25 liscened songs, like John Mcdonald for the tribe walks up to Tim McGraws " i like it i love it" which pretty much sums up how i feel about the sound.
score: 9.0
Overall this is an excelent job by acclaim, their best offering so far, its not near perfect but much improved over last years version, if i left anything out let me know i will try to get to it.
Overall Score: 9.0 (not an average)
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