MLB Power Pros (PlayStation 2)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 4.0 stars Excellent
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 8.0 (4.0 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Frank Provo
• Reviewed on: 10/17/2007
• Released on: 10/03/2007
• Originally published on GameSpot: MLB Power Pros (PlayStation 2) Review

Spend only a few minutes with MLB Power Pros and you'll probably be led to believe it's nothing more than a lighthearted, over-the-top take on professional baseball. After all, the bobbleheaded renditions of familiar Major League players look adorable, and the controls make it very easy to slam moon shots toward the outfield. However, the more time you put in, the more you will come to discover what made the series so popular in Japan: Underneath the accessible spackle is loads of the sort of physical and statistical realism that hardcore baseball nerds crave.

Initially, you'll smile at the way the game juxtaposes realistic stadium environments with player models that resemble Lego people after they've hit the weight room. Manny Ramirez's dreadlocks look doubly ridiculous coming out from underneath his batting helmet when he's a pudgy, 3-foot-tall doll. You'll also find that the controls make it easy to place pitches and smash the ball. To throw a pitch, you simply select it and position the cursor in the spot where you want the pitch to go. To swing, you just position the sweet spot of the bat in the strike zone and press the button to swing. If you want, you can press a button to toggle between hitting for contact and hitting for power. Generally speaking, the ball will end up in play if the sweet spot is anywhere close to the ball when it crosses the plate.

Look closer and you'll realize that even though the players look like caricatures of themselves, their routines and athletic mannerisms have been captured with remarkable authenticity. Ichiro does his samurai shtick, Big Papi lumbers down the line, Jeter makes that leaping-spin-throw of his, and so on. That kind of attention to detail extends to the play out on the field. Of course, you can lay down bunts, set up steals, reposition the defense, and make substitutions whenever you like (the CPU definitely knows how to). Beyond all that usual stuff, though, this game nails the physical interplay between a bat and a ball better than every other baseball sim out there. How far you reach out, whether you swing a little high or low, and whether your swing is early or late--that's all factored into the ball's resulting trajectory. Say a pitch is thrown to a different location than you were expecting. You can easily move the cursor and make contact, but the hit probably won't be as solid because you're more likely to make contact with the edge of the bat and not the sweet spot.

Casual fans can pick their favorite players, teams, and stadiums in the practice, home run derby, exhibition, and league modes. If you play the game on the Wii, you can even swing the Wii Remote around like a bat in home run derbies and exhibition games. Battle-hardened baseball fanatics, meanwhile, can kill hundreds of hours crafting their own players in the success mode and their own teams in the season mode. Outside of those options, there's a stand-alone edit feature that lets you quickly modify existing players and teams, create new players, and put together fantasy teams. Stats gurus will love all of the statistical attributes that can be fiddled with--everything from contact and fielding, to nuanced stuff like clutch hitting and first pitch strikes. Regardless of how you play, you'll earn points anytime you finish a game that you can spend in the store to unlock alternate uniforms, additional player design options, and cheats for use in all of the game's various modes.

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MLB Power Pros (PlayStation 2): $3.50 - $19.99

store	price	in stock?	rating
	$9.33	Yes
	$3.50	No
	$19.99	Yes

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	Amazon.com	$9.33
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• 4.0 stars

  "Excellent, fun take on baseball. The new RBI from 80s."

  by sdillon on November 18, 2007

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