MLB Power Pros 2008...Should I Get It?

[Rogmeister]

Does anyone know much about the 2nd edition of MLB Power Pros? I have and enjoy the first one on the PS2 and wondered if there's enough difference between the new one and it to warrant picking it up. Another possibility would be to get the DS version if it's any good so I can have some portable baseball since the only other baseball game I can play on my DS is a very outdated GBA one...

[oesiii]

My experience with the Powerful Pro (Jap) series is that there's usually some interesting changes in each new edition in the rpg Success modes which I don't really play too much. I stick to the baseball season side of things and the gameplay doesn't really change too much only every few years.

I imported the most recent PPro 15 that came out earlier this month and it's the first import of the series that I've tried on the PS2. I can't say I see too much difference in the baseball gameplay between it and the the PPro 10 I have for my Gamecube.

I'm picking up MLB Pros 08 when it comes out because it will have this year's rosters but I have no idea what other improvements there might be. I'll let you know in a week or two :)

I think the DS version will be a hit too. The series goes way back on the Gameboy and the Jap versions on the GBA and DS are very tight and easily my favorite portable baseball games. Tough choices for you, for me it will be easy because I'll pick both of them up.

[Osaka]

I've been looking into this a lot too. I got the last one for the Wii, but I was too engrossed in MLB The Show to really give it the time of day it deserved..which is why I am most likely gonna get this for the DS.

[nestlekwik]

I'm definitely getting the newest version. The 2008 version adds an all-new RPG-style mode MLB Life where you go through a 20-year MLB career on top of the returning (and new) Success mode. There's also a new Dream Mode and Career Mode on top of everything that is returning from last year. I just liked the game play enough that dropping $20 on the Playstation 2 version sounds pretty attractive to me.

If you'd like to surf through the details, here is the game's press release:

"2K Sports, the sports publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), and Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., today announced the next iteration of the wildly popular baseball franchise, MLB® Power Pros 2008, scheduled to be available for Wii™ home video game system from Nintendo and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system this July, as well as Nintendo DS™ later this fall. As the highest-rated and top-selling baseball title in Japan, MLB Power Pros was available in North America for the first time last year. Its comedic visual appeal of miniature Major League Baseball player models has attracted a dedicated following through its easy-to-use controls and addictively fun gameplay experience.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Konami again, and with the Baseball™ season now in full swing, we’re proud to offer our fans a refreshingly smart and exciting baseball game that is easily accessible for all ages,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “Baseball enthusiasts will appreciate the variety of newly added features, intuitive game modes and improved overall feel, and we look forward to hitting one out of the park this season with MLB Power Pros 2008.”

With over ten different exciting game modes including the traditional Practice, Exhibition, League and Home Run Challenge modes, MLB Power Pros 2008 will bring fans closer to the action than ever before. Gamers also get the opportunity to act as general manager and control the destiny of their own franchise in Season mode, or engage in entertaining role-playing story modes such as Success and MLB® Life modes. As general manager, gamers can trade, sign free agents, coordinate practice schedules, purchase new equipment, call up and send down players from the Minor Leagues™, along with other management options to bring in fans, win playoff games and eventually, earn the title of World Series™ champion.

In Success mode, fans can participate in a story-based career of rising players in the Double-A Minor League system trying to improve their baseball skills and make an impression on baseball scouts while also having to balance various situations in their personal lives. Through a variety of amusing training and game challenges, players who complete Success mode will also be able to take their created player files into MLB Life as well, or also play as either an existing Major League Baseball® player in Dream Mode, or start as a rookie in Major League Career mode. As a new feature in MLB Power Pros 2008, MLB Life is another story-based mode that will allow fans the possibility to simulate the exciting life and experience of being a Major League Baseball player over the course of a 20-year career. While continuing to play in games through the regular baseball season, players will also participate in a number of realistic situations such as signing contracts, purchasing houses and cars, making charitable donations, building up relationships with friends and teammates, picking up hobbies and much more.

With easy, pick-up-and-play hitting and pitching controls, along with intuitive Wii functionality, other new features in MLB Power Pros 2008 include support of 40-man rosters, change of ball speed, adjustment of defensive shifts, along with a real-time bullpen check functionality for substituting pitchers. MLB Power Pros 2008 will also support the option for players to import their Wii-based characters, Miis™, from their Wii or Wii Remote™ to become part of the exciting action!"

[roushimsx]

I really hope that by including the Double A for sending down or bringing guys up from the minors means that we'll actually get to have teams from the Eastern/Pacific/Texas leagues along with PCL and IL for Triple A. I'd love to just send everyone from the Giants down to the minors and promote everyone from the Defenders :D

[Rogmeister]

Thanks for the added info, nestlequik...mmmmmmm, chocolate... I do know that one magazine wasn't overly excited about it. Playstation: The Official Magazine gave it (if I remember correctly) 2.5 out of 5 stars. That's the only official review I've seen so far. I imagine I'll go ahead and get the PS2 version (especially since I don't have a Wii) and I may also buy the DS version when it comes out in about a month.

[nestlekwik]

The way I figure it is, they wouldn't have changed the game play from last year to this year. If you liked the game play last year, you really can't go wrong with paying only $20 for a brand new copy of the Playstation 2 version.

On that same token, in my mind you can't really go by what an official Playstation magazine says. Don't forget that Sony has a baseball game of their own and you may run into a reviewer who thinks just because the game isn't as realistic as possible as shown by the other Major League titles on the Playstation 3 and the like, it isn't good. It always measures down to personal opinion and I would say if you liked last year's game, you'll end up liking the newer version with even more options.

[josekortez]

The way I figure it is, they wouldn't have changed the game play from last year to this year. If you liked the game play last year, you really can't go wrong with paying only $20 for a brand new copy of the Playstation 2 version.

On that same token, in my mind you can't really go by what an official Playstation magazine says. Don't forget that Sony has a baseball game of their own and you may run into a reviewer who thinks just because the game isn't as realistic as possible as shown by the other Major League titles on the Playstation 3 and the like, it isn't good. It always measures down to personal opinion and I would say if you liked last year's game, you'll end up liking the newer version with even more options.

Also, once the new generation consoles come out, every magazine suggests that worse graphics due to the limitations of the old system make the game worse (i.e. a PS2 game reviewed in a magazine and unfairly judged against PS3 games). I say give it a try.

[boatofcar]

IGN Review (http://ps2.ign.com/articles/893/893160p1.html)



First off, anyone that didn't pick up last year's MLB Power Pros (for shame, if that's you) should look no further for which version of the game to grab. 2008 may be nearly identical in many ways to last year's offering, but it's also got a few additions that make it better, and 2008 is hands-down the definitive version, thus far. Grab it on PS2 or Wii, it really doesn't matter, save the same Wii-mote mode that was included last year, which allows simple waggle controls and Mii support for only exhibition play and home run derby. The rest is the same across both platforms.

[Rogmeister]

Is anybody here getting the DS version? I have both last year's and this year's PS2 versions and if the game is as fun to play on the DS, getting it would be a no-brainer. I would just like to kknow how it plays and if it has any problems. Today's the day it's supposed to come out...I checked one store and they didn't have it. Now I'm thinking I may wait for a review or two before I look for it again.

[PapaStu]

I'm all for getting it (DS version). I loved the Wii one (save for the throwing to the bases). I'll have it by the end of the week.

[Rogmeister]

I'm still playing the PS2 version that came out last year...I've been in a season mode and want to finish it, especially since I'm leading my division. Some hitters aren't that accurate as far as hitting. The Pirates' Ryan Doumit should have more power than he's showing in this game (the same probably applies to certain other hitters) and as August is drawing to a close, Freddy Sanchez is batting a robust .516. I also have noticed at least one roster error...they have Yadier Molina on the Giants' team and it's Bengie Molina who is the Giants' catcher. Yadier is with the Cardinals. I guess the developers played the popular "Name That Molina" game...and lost. :D

[boatofcar]

I'm really enjoying the PS2 version. It's tough to play against the big boys with an expansion team though--I've still never won that way.

[Mianrtcv]

I'm really enjoying the PS2 version. It's tough to play against the big boys with an expansion team though--I've still never won that way.

Never... Damn! This is the type of talk that makes me want to give it a shot. And then scream in rage as I realize I too can't take an expansion team all the way.

[Rogmeister]

Maybe I'll try an expansion team soon...once I finish my season with the first MLB Power Pros on the PS2. I still haven't come across the DS version yet...I may not bother looking today. It may depend on whether I go out for anaything else.

[Oobgarm]

We got them in at Best Buy yesterday, if that's of any help.

[boatofcar]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3184/2767316820_3b440496eb.jpg

This is the expansion team I created...I wanted to put them in Charleston where they belong, but Columbus was the closest city to WV :)

[Oobgarm]

If you need a portable fix, the DS version of Power Pros is pretty good. It's actually got a bit of announcing when each player comes to bat.

Pitching and batting are done well with the d-pad, as they should be. None of this touch screen garbage that other games have tried and failed at.

[Rogmeister]

Thanks, Oobgarm...the controls was the one thing about the DS I was wondering about. I still haven't found a copy but there's no Best Buy here...and I haven't been to a gaming store yet as I have to go across the river into Ohioland to get to one. I'll come across it eventually, I'm sure.

[roushimsx]

Pitching and batting are done well with the d-pad, as they should be. None of this touch screen garbage that other games have tried and failed at.

Thanks for the heads up on this. I'll be picking it up this weekend for sure. I was holding off until I found out how it controlled and there was a good chance I was going to pass on it if it was touchscreen pitching and hitting.

[Rogmeister]

It doesn't seem to have an option to play a complete season on the DS, unfortunately. You can play a single exhibition game (Match Play) or you can go through the playoffs. I like it, though hitting seems tough to me.

I've noticed a second mistake in the first MLB Power Pros (my copy is the PS2). The first mistake I found is that they put the wrong Molina on the Giants' roster. Lately, whenever Chipper Jones or Adam LaRoche comes to the plate, the announcer refers to whichever one it is as one of three 30-HR hitters on my team. The problem is I only have two. After those two, the most HR I have is by Brian Giles who currently has about 9. I can't complain about that too much...especially after all the other announcer errors (like where he first says a ball is stroked for a hit except that it's a fly ball that gets caught)...

[boatofcar]

Just wanted to bump this up from the depths to say that after a 3-year hiatus, I picked this up again, and it seems a lot easier this time. I think what I did wrong last time was not do an automatic draft at the beginning and ended up with a lot of terrible players. I did the automatic draft this time and ended up with a team on par with any of the other clubs.

I wish they'd port this to XBLA--the Bobblehead Heroes game runs on the same engine, but it's garbage by comparison, not to mention they charge you extra for each mode you unlock.