MLB 2004

05-08-15 08:08 PM

tornadocam is Offline

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tornadocam

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Baseball has completed the first month of the MLB regular season. So I thought it would be appropriate to review a baseball game. So I will be reviewing MLB 2004. So lets get to it

Plot: 5
MLB 2004 is based off of the 2002 Major League Baseball Season. So this game is set for the 2003 season. As it is no surprise sports games are not known for their plots and this one is no different. The plot is to build a championship team by using the current rosters, creating players, trading players or even drafting. The plot is to beat the other teams to get in the playoffs and win the world series. There are several ways to do this you can play through the 2003 season, or you can play in franchise mode which is were you draft players.

Since it takes some creativity to build your championship team. I think that deserves a middle of the road rating concerning the plot of this game. It is a sports game so there is no bad guys in here (Unless you consider your team's rivals to be bad guys). There is no Bowser to hunt down and defeat like they are in Mario Games. No Dr. Wily to go after as in Mega Man games. It does not deserve lower because well there is a goal in the plot. At the end of the day I give the plot a 5 out of 10 rating

Graphics and Controls: 8
The graphics and controls are overall good but seem to be lacking from MLB 2001, 2002, and 2003. Those games had amazing graphics. It makes me wonder if 2004 was rushed due to more games being made for the new Play Station 2. The colors are very nicely done, the stadiums look like they do in real life, and the players look like they actually do. The sprites were nicely done. Sometimes though the spectators look like they have some fuzziness in them. The previous games in the MLB series from 2000-2003 did not have that problem.

The controls seem to be more stiff and sluggish than the previous games in this series. In the past the controls reflected the players ability. For example if a player was known in real life to be a slow runner the game reflected that and as a result that player was slower. In 2004 everybody just seems sluggish. It just seems like the quality of the controls was toned down in this game. Still the graphics and controls aver mostly good and deserve a decent rating. They are not just as good as 2001-2003 games were. So I give the graphics and controls a 8 out of 10.

Sound: 10
The sound in this game was very good. I like the soundtrack to this game. It sounded like soft rock which I really like. Vin Scully and Dave Campbell, who are the announcers in this game, sound like they do in real life. I also like how the stadium announcer says things that you would expect to hear in a real life stadium. That makes the sound really special and it is the sound that 2004 shines in. The previous games in this series also had outstanding sound. My favorite sound is when the ball player hits a home run the ball has a thunder sound to it. This lets the player know that they have hit a home run. If a ball player messes up it sounds like they sound arggh as in frustration. Also the voices of the umpires in this game sound like they do in real life as well. In addition, the cheers and boos the spectators make remind me of an actual ballgame. I know its comparing apples to oranges but this games sound reminds me of the sound of Mega Man games. Mega Man games are known for having amazing sounds. It should be no surprise that I give the sound a 10 out of 10.

Replay Value: 8
This game has good replay value as you can play through the regular season, go through spring training or play in franchise mode. If you have multiple teams like I do it is fun to play through this game with a different team. I played this game a lot when it came out and I enjoyed it. Now, with that being said I go to this one a little bit less than I do the others. I still find myself playing MLB 2001, 2002 and 2003 the most. Those 3 games are very special and its hard to beat them. Still 2004 is a good game and one you will get joy out of playing.

Depth: 7
The Depth in this game is good but it takes a tumble from previous games. As I have stated you can play through spring training, franchise mode, and regular season. You can also built you team by trading, drafting and creating players. Creating players is what brings the depth down. If a player is not in this game you can create him or make up a player. However, unlike the previous MLB games you do not get that many choices in batting style or pitching style. The previous games had several batting styles you could chose from. In previous games: You had just about all of the all stars batting style included. In 2004 you only get a certain few to choose from. I wan to think it is less than a dozen. So that lowers the depth down as you do not have that many styles to chose from. The pitching styles have really been toned down in this game. In past games, you had several pitching styles to chose from, just about all good pitchers had their pitching style to chose from when creating pitchers. In 2004 I want to think you only get 6 styles to choose from. That really lowers the depth rating down for me. I wonder again if they were rushing to get this game out. So I give the depth a good rating just not as good as the previous 3 games. I give it a 7 out of 10.

Difficulty: 8
It was really hard for me to rate the difficulty of this game for several reasons. First of all, if your team had a bad 2002 season you can build your team up to be good. On the other hand, even if you build your team up they make more errors to reflect on the 2002 season. Ball Players are the same way if they had a bad 2002 season they may strike out more, make more errors and it will be harder to get a hit. Creating players allow you to boost the created players, arm strength, fielding, speed, batting average and power. So you can adjust the created players to your needs.

Basically the difficulty is going to vary if you play as one of the good 2002 teams such as the Cardinals, Giants, Seattle, Anaheim and Houston the difficulty will probably be a 5. If your team that you chose had a bad 2002 season such as the Reds, Rockies, Mets, and Orioles then the difficulty becomes a 7 or higher. That is due to the game reflecting on that. On the other hand if you know how to play games like this then even the bad teams can be made into contenders.

No matter which team you pick or which players you put on your team it can still be difficult. Some players will hit a home run or a double off of you every time. Errors are random, though see my explanation above while some teams make more. Also some pitchers just bury you and you will struggle to get a hit off of them.

I wrestled with this and I give the difficulty an 8 out of 10. Due to the errors being random, the players reflecting on their 2002 season, and some players as well as pitchers being hard to hit off of or get hits. That is were the difficulty comes from. I mean this game is not a game that is going to make you go arrrgggghhh like some of the Mega Man games will. But it is not easy either.

Overall: 8.5
MLB 2004 came out in the spring of 2003. The play Station one was starting to decline and past its peak. The first Play Station would be made for another 2 years. But more and more games were now being made for the newer Play Station 2. I think this is were some of the issues with this game are. I think this game was rushed due to the player style choices being toned down, and the graphics & controls being not as sharp as the previous games. I think the makers of this game tried to get this game out as more and more games were being made for the newer play station.

I remember saving my money when this game came out. I really liked the MLB series on the play station so I made sure to save my money for this one. I really enjoyed this game and played it a lot. But with that being said I was hoping it would be like MLB 2003 which was one of the greatest in the series. So the issues in this game was not a huge problem but made the game seem a little bit lower in quality. Again I think it was rushed.

Still, this is a fun and overall a good game it just has some minor issues. The difficulty is about right for this type of game. I like how the game reflects on the 2002 season. I also like how the players require extra skill to get get your team a Win. I found this game like others in this series to be challenging especially if your favorite team did not have a so good year. The sounds in this game are amazing. Sounds in games do not get much better than this. The sound is up there with 2001-2003 and Mega Man games. So while some categories in this game had issues the sound was not one of them.

Now, this game did have some minor problems such as you being given a lesser choice of batting and pitching styles. Also the controls were a little bit sluggish compared to previous games. Some players are not bothered by this and if you are one of those players then this game's issues will not bother you. For the most part these issues are minor and should not stop someone from playing this game.

Would I recommend this game. Yes, I would recommend this game. Despite this games minor issues, it is a fun game and a solid game overall. As I have stated I think the issues were cause this game may have been rushed. I think anyone who loves the game of baseball will enjoy playing through this game as your favorite team or teams. I will also recommend that after playing this one you take a good look at 2001, 2002 and 2003. Overall I give MLB 2004 a solid overall rating of 8.5

If you choose to play this game. I hope you get enjoyment out of this game and that you have fun doing it.

Blessings in Christ and happy Gaming

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05-09-15 05:26 AM

Bintsy is Offline

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Bintsy

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Very great review tornadocam. I am not really one to play sports games but after reading your review I would consider playing this game just to try it. I liked how you had the words in big text and it was well thought out and easy to read. Keep up the awesome work! I can't wait to read your future reviews