MVP Baseball 2005 [GC]

Last year's game won points for animation but had a few problems graphically. The player models, especially the heads, were a bit underdeveloped. To make matters worse some of the players didn't always resemble their real world counterparts. The good news is that EA Canada reworked the player models with a focus on the heads. They literally gave the game a facelift and overall, players look more realistic and have more personality than in previous MVP games. The quality doesn't reach the near photo realistic level of detail that exists in Madden and some of the models look a bit stylized. This is only an issue on very close inspection and even from short distances the fantastic animations more than make up for it.

Sound There are only a few things a baseball game has to do right in the category of audio and the sound effects of MVP are all good. The crack of the bat and the slap of the ball in the catcher's mitt are realistic and add to the atmosphere of the ball park. Like the other instalments the crowd noise is dynamic and the intensity adjusts to fit each situation. While playing online, the crowd was noticeably more rowdy when playing at Fenway than in single player mode when I was kicking back for an early season game at Jacobs Field.

The announcers Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow once again provide the play-by-play action from the announcers booth. The commentary flows smoothly with an occasional plucky remark or offhand fact about players. It is informative without being annoying and after a few games their banter fades into the background. Unfortunately the EA Tracks do not fade at all. The nine songs featured on MVP are from the usual assortment of oddball bands and quickly wear out their welcome. If you choose to leave the volume on it results in the appearance of artist information whenever a song changes. This obstruction can be moved around the screen, but in the crowded menus of Owner mode there is no good place for it.

Online It was stated in our previews of MVP 2005 that the goal of the online game was to be identical to the single player experience. I can safely say that they have come very close to achieving this. There are occasional frame rate issues that occurred during pitching, but nothing that tipped the balance of the game. Fielding, changing out pitchers, and replays were all smooth and true to the offline game.

The Little Things EA could have stopped with what has already been described. The bugs from 2004 are fixed, Owner Mode was added, and the game has improved visuals. Not to mention features like the homerun challenge, Dynasty Mode, and custom game that have carried over from last year. However, there are a few minor additions that players will appreciate. Managers now have the ability to argue with the ump. Think the ump blew a call? Maybe he did, because MVP 2005 includes a variable strike zone and missed calls on the bases. Both of these features can be turned off, but anyone who watches baseball knows that ripping into an ump is a key part of the pastime.

If you decided to leave the dugout and dispute a call a meter will appear at the bottom of the screen. A single button increases the intensity of the argument until you decide to lay off the ump, or face being ejected from the game. Your team can receive a confidence boost from the argument, but if the manager is ejected the CPU takes over all of his duties. This means a player loses control of vital functions like putting in a reliever. I would have loved to see a dirt kicking mini-game included in this feature, but you can't have everything.

©2005, IGN Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved