Major League Baseball 2K6 [GC]

On the mound, Kush developed a new Payoff Pitching system, not to be confused with the 3-2 pitch, as it the payoff is traditionally known. Instead, the payoff is any pitch after which your pitcher's ratings can increase or decrease. In an important situation, if you hit the catcher's target, your pitcher's ratings for that pitch will increase. This is much the same as, say, Roger Clemons turning it up with his splitter. Because when that thing is working, he's unhittable.

Last year, it was very easy to pinpoint your pitches in pretty much any location you wanted -- just aim the cursor and throw. That's the same this year too, for fastballs. For pitches with movement, you will now have to compensate for the break of the pitch. So if you want a slider to hit the outside corner, you have to aim over the plate, just like Randy Johnson does before he snaps off the hook. There are also some handy arrows to show the direction of the break for those that don't know where a splitter's going to go.

Slam Zone is back, but is turned off in the default option set. That's a good option too because it was really a love/hate relationship last year for fans. You can also challenge umpires, which affects team morale. The new morale system is based in-game by those challenges as well as by using good team baseball to move your players around the bases. Both the PS2 and Xbox version will be online as well.

That's all we have on MLB 2K6 for now, but stay tuned for more coverage. With game modes that represent not only the pitcher and batter but also the catcher and baserunners, the title appears to be shaping up very nicely. 2K6 is slated for release this Spring.

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