MLB 2004 Review

MLB 2004 straddles the line between arcade and sim action without really fitting into either camp.  The game's dichotomy of styles is best illustrated by the centerpiece of all baseball games, the pitcher/batter duel.  Pitchers always have four pitches from which to choose, and once a selection is made you are given a very brief time during the windup to spot the pitch exactly where you want it thrown.  There's no way to finesse the ball any further during a pitch, just point it where you want it to go and that's where it goes.  You do have the ability to give the pitch an extra boost of speed at the cost of a little additional stamina, but it's not much of a penalty as even tired pitchers can still place their pitches exactly where they want. 

Batters prepare for a pitch by moving a bat cursor around the strike zone.  This involves moving the cursor to the area where the ball is coming, which is easy since you can see where the pitcher will throw the ball.  The cursor is surrounded by a "paddle", a circle around the cursor that determines how close you need to be to the ball to make contact.  Hit for power and you get a small cursor, hit for contact and you get a larger one.  You can also increase the paddle size by guessing the location of the pitch.

Since the batter can see where the pitch is going and aim his bat in that direction, the game tries to prevent things from degenerating into arcade slugfests by making the pitches incredibly fast.  Even change-ups will come in so quickly that you will need to press the swing button as the ball leaves the pitcher's hand.  The challenge in the game is not in adjusting the swing to the pitch's location, but in timing the swing quickly enough to make contact with the ball.  Those who have slower reaction times might find this to be a pretty frustrating affair.

Fielding is pretty easy in the game as you just need to get players close enough to the ball to make the play.  Throwing to a base is a simple matter of pressing the corresponding button, Circle for first, Triangle for second, etc., which is easy since the PS2 buttons are laid out similar to the bases on a diamond.  Everything else is handled pretty much automatically by the players so you'll just need to move into position and then press the desired base button.  You can make players jump and dive, but the times when you'll actually need to use those moves to make a play are rare.

The graphics in the game are strictly middle of the road. The stadiums are all accurately rendered, but they all appear a bit blurry. The player faces look fairly good, but the animations are a bit on the stiff side. Also, there aren't very many animations for the players so you'll see them repeated quite often. For example, you'll see a lot of high throws to first that will make the first basemen do a short hop and reach up high. It's all for show and doesn't have a bearing on things as you'll notice the first time a runner will cross first while the first baseman is in the air but still be called out.

Game modes include the standard exhibition, playoff, season, and franchise modes.  One mode that you get with MLB 2004 is unique, and that is the Career Mode.  In this mode you get to put yourself in the game by creating and customizing a new player.  You'll start in spring training with the team of your choice and play through a six game schedule as you try to make the team.  Gameplay proceeds normally in spring training with you controlling all players in the field, but the performance of your player is tracked and rated.  If you gain enough points through the plays made by your player, he will be called up to the majors for the start of the season.  You can then continue playing through the season, but if your player's performance suffers he will get sent down to the minors and you'll have to play more spring training games to get him back to the big show  Do well and you'll be picked for the All Star game.  Career mode is a nice addition to the game and adds an extra element of fun when playing through a season.

Overall MLB 2004 will not appeal to hardcore baseball gamers.  The controls are too simple and the game is far from a real simulation.  However, it is a bit more accessible to casual gamers who may want to give the game a look if they find that the realism of other games makes playing them too difficult or involved.

In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated: 68%.  A middle of the road game best left to those who are looking for a casual baseball game.