This game's Major League debut is a four-bagger.
We saw MLB 2K7 this year hit in March. To me, it was a very disappointing edition of the franchise. While it was great to have slick graphics, the gameplay just wasn't there. Homers seemed to be frequent and gameplay at times could be frustrating while on the field or running the basepaths. A few months later, we were treated to the birth of a new franchise: The BIGS. Touted as "Epic Arcade Baseball Action", the game delivered as advertised. Huge jumps over the outfield walls to rob homers and Sportscenter-like highlights packed into a simple pickup-and-play package catering to those not able to sit down and enjoy a long, drawn out simulation game. While it was a great deviation from sim play, a few minor fielding issues and lack of depth ended up being the game's glaring weakness.
As the MLB Playoffs are in full swing here in October, 2K has released their third MLB game this year entitled MLB Power Pros. Power Pros is based off of the Japanese baseball franchise Jikkyou Powerful Pro Yakyuu developed by Konami, which has been a top-seller for Japan for several years.
Looking at the game, you would think that it was developed for younger gamers in mind. The players on the field having a figurine-like look as they walk on the field. Big headed players with no legs roam the field and the batters box, each looking the same with the exception of unique hairstyles and some having unique facial features to distinguish themselves from the others. The stadiums are nicely detailed, each one looking like a very authentic replica of their real-life counterparts while maintaining the art style of the game. It does look a little childish, but as the old saying goes: Looks can be deceiving.
The majority of the game modes take the Wii Classic Controller or a GameCube controller to play. Batting is as simple as moving your player's bat zone around the strike zone to make contact. You have two choices when hitting: A contact swing which has a wider bat zone to make contact with, or a power swing which only has a circle around the center of the bat which requires precision to pull off a big hit or a home run. The better the hitter is, the wider those two zones will be. Advancing your runners is as simple as holding down one of the advance buttons (one advances a single runner, the other advances all runners on base) and aiming the left stick in the direction you want a runner to go.
Fielding requires simply getting under the red part of a target to catch fly balls and using the face buttons that correspond to that base as they look on the controller (A is first, Y is second, etc.) to throw a runner out. You can still pull off diving catches in the game, but it all depends on your player's fielding rating, and robbing home runs are quite a rarity in the franchise. I haven't seen one yet.
When you boot the game up, the amount of things you can do is rather incredible. First, you can play a simple exhibition game against the computer or a friend, for starters. You can also utilize the Wiimote to play an exhibition game using your Wiimote as a bat, but sacrificing manual fielding as well. The Wiimote exhibition games also allow you to import your Miis into the game, playing as yourself and all of your Mii friends on a team against your pal's Mii team.
You can also play a single-player Season mode that is more than just playing your favorite team. You play the part as a young GM set to take the reigns of an MLB team. Results are expected and you have only ten seasons to get what you need to get done. You get two options when starting a season, you can either play as an MLB team or choose to play as an entering expansion team. As an expansion team, you can select where your team hails from along with team colors and a team logo. Either way you go, you will need to have your players trained and utilized properly in order to make a run at the World Series. You'll have to set practices accordingly along with making the right front-office decisions such as contracts, trading and calling up/sending down players through your farm system. If expectations aren't being met, expect to get a pink slip handed to you by the owner.
One of the main attractions of the game is easily the Success Mode. Success Mode blends RPG elements with baseball that proves to be very entertaining and challenging. You start the mode as a college student with a dream to make the Majors. You'll have to practice hard on the field as well as studying for the big exam at the same time. That's right, you'll have to make sure you study for classes in order to stay on the team as well as stay in school. You can also snag dates and get a part-time job among other things. When it comes down to it, the decisions that you make on and off the field determine if you make the Majors or end up looking at a "Game Over" screen. Getting a few of these "Game Over" screens already, there seems to be different storylines you can encounter when playing.
One thing the game lacks this year is online play. With the lack of online play also means roster updates are not possible, which is a bit of the bummer with the fact that some of the current rosters in the game are outdated. If the game does get picked up for another year, the addition of online play would make this game's lasting ability even longer than it does without it.
Some other modes in the game include a Home Run Derby that can be played either with a standard controller or the Wiimote, a League Mode that allows up to six players to duke it out for bragging rights, an Arrange Mode that allows a player to copy an existing team and edit it any way they want to either creating a team with custom names or an entirely different team altogether, the ability to create your own players that you can either place on a team or import into your season as a free agent and a Shop where you can unlock stadiums, alternate jerseys and even some gameplay enhancements.
Don't let the look of the game discourage you from even renting this game. Deep down the game is a very intense simulation mixed with a slight bit of arcade feel. MLB Power Pros is one of the best baseball games I have played in a good long while. With enough meat on this game's bones, you'll have enough to do until Spring Training kicks back up next season.