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The pitching in MLB 2K5 is one of its redeeming factors. Though there are various pitching options to choose from including an MVP look alike, the newest addition and default is the only option you should be using to pitch. As you choose your pitch and location, you can hold the button corresponding to the pitch longer for a more powerful pitch...powerful enough to hit 100 in the 8th inning with Randy Johnson. The more power you put into the pitch, however, the harder it will become to get good accuracy. After the location and pitch are selected, two bars will intersect where the pitch location is desired and it's the pitcher's job to stop the meter racing across them in the very center. The further from the center the meter lands, the more inaccurate the pitch and if you throw a bad enough pitch, get ready for Slam Zone. In pressure situations such as a man on second in the opposing team's ballpark with 2 outs in a tied 9th inning, the controller will vibrate and accuracy will be even harder to achieve. A fun little quirk that was implemented fairly well.
Batting, on the other hand, was a big disappointment for me. It's still more of the same only with the option to guess where the pitch will be located. Guess correctly and you will see the pitch's location before it leaves the pitcher's hand. Guess incorrectly, and you'll have one hell of a time trying to hit the pitch. Still the two button system is present with the option to use A for contact and B for power and as usual, drawing a walk is almost impossible. At the plate, however, you can now switch control to the base runners and let the CPU take control of the batter so you can lead, steal, and retreat at will. When on the base paths, it's the player's job to control the runner's speed--Continually tap the corresponding buttons and the runners will run faster.
Franchise mode is nothing new and, admittedly, I spent my time in Season mode instead because franchise offered nothing of interest. MLB 2K5's shining qualities are online. The online season modes are much the same as the rest of the 2K5 lineup-- a very, very good thing in my opinion. With excellent stat tracking and near perfect online gameplay, it's a shame to pick up MLB 2K5 with no intention of joining an online league. It runs almost flawlessly and problems are seldom encountered.
ESPN Major League Baseball 2K5, though a worthy addition to Visual Concept's 2005 sports lineup, is sorely lacking where the other sports games delivered. It would be unfair to lump all of the 2K5 games together as MLB 2K5 would seem much worse than it is. Once again at the budget price of only $20, MLB 2K5 is a solid purchase and a fun game, though not nearly as good as it should have been. It's a shame that the ESPN licensing potential was fully realized in the last iteration of a Visual Concepts ESPN game, but the gameplay lagged far behind. If you're searching for an arcade baseball game as opposed to a sim game, you can add a point to my rating as I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself much more than I did.
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