989 Studios doesn't have the best reputation when it comes to sports games, but with the improvements made to the company's baseball game this year, that perception may start to change. Every aspect of this year's baseball game has been improved over MLB 2004. The graphics are better, the franchise mode is deeper, the controls offer a greater degree of precision, and the overall balance of the game has been adjusted so that home run blasts are no longer just as common as grounders and fly balls. MLB 2005 compares favorably to the other baseball games that are currently on the market, and while it may not delve as deeply into some areas as the rest do, there are numerous reasons why you might want to make it your baseball game of choice this season.

Picture-in-picture base cameras let you see what your runners are up to.

For instance, MLB 2005 offers a good degree of control over many aspects of play, but it doesn't go to the same extremes that other baseball games do. You don't have to deal with an esoteric meter to set the accuracy of each pitch. When you have a runner charging toward second base, you don't have to think about whether to perform a feet-first slide or a hook slide. The CPU handles these details for you. Some people like their baseball games as involved and complicated as possible, and some people just want a reasonable degree of control. MLB 2005 is aimed at those in the latter group. The pitching interface allows you to select a pitch, and then you target it toward the strike zone. How long you hold the X button during the windup determines how much power the pitcher puts behind the throw. You also have the option of making a pickoff play or throwing a pitchout, although strangely, there isn't an option for executing a quick intentional walk. The batting interface allows you to aim your swing to specific areas of the strike zone. You can further improve your chances of making contact by holding down the R2 button to guess what pitch is coming. The baserunning interface has been significantly improved so that now you can take control of an individual runner just by pressing one of the buttons on the front of the controller.

One of the biggest complaints that people have had with the MLB series in the past was that it has always been so easy to hit home runs. It wasn't uncommon in MLB 2004 to win every game played against the CPU by 10 runs or more. MLB 2005 still gives up too many base hits, but the number of long balls you'll see is much more believable on all difficulty settings. In general, the distribution of ground balls, liners, and pop flies is better than it was last year.

As far as play options are concerned, MLB 2005 offers the same set of modes that pretty much all baseball games have. One or two players can participate in exhibition matches, duke it out in a home run contest, or play through an entire season or playoff series. The franchise mode also lets a second player join in. The only play mode that doesn't support multiple players is the career mode--where you create a custom player and take him to spring training in the hopes that he'll be signed by a major league club. If you do well in spring training, you'll get to play for the club during the regular season. Every milestone you celebrate gives you more points to put toward the player's abilities. The career mode continues until your character retires or gets released, which can be at the end of the first spring training or many seasons down the line.

A hitter's hot and cold zones are displayed during every at bat.

The franchise mode is delightfully comprehensive. It puts you in charge of all aspects of running a team for multiple seasons. This includes drafting a team, playing the games, hiring staff, trading players, and renegotiating contracts, as well as keeping track of more than a dozen different business, player development, and facilities options throughout the life of the franchise. You can set ticket and concession prices, buy new equipment for your locker room and medical facilities, spend money toward billboard and TV marketing campaigns, and even upgrade the team's travel arrangements. If your team isn't performing well in a particular area, you can give your coaching staff money to work on your players' hitting abilities, or the coaching staff can teach the pitching staff a new type of pitch, and more. Your success as a general manager is evaluated every five years, and if you earn a positive rating, you'll get your contract extended for another five years. About the only feature that's missing from the franchise mode is the ability to manage minor league teams (or to have your players called up from them).

Aside from its basic play modes, MLB 2005 also includes a number of compelling bonus features. The player editor supports the use of Sony's EyeToy PS2 camera, which means that you can take your face and put it onto the custom players you create. 989 Studios did a remarkable job with their face-mapping technology. Once you import a picture, all you need to do is stretch and twist the image around the three-dimensional head until you're happy with the likeness. The rewards menu is another nice feature. When you reach certain milestones during the course of a game--regardless of which mode you're playing--you earn points that you can spend in the rewards menu. The list of available rewards includes legendary players, old-time stadiums, throwback uniforms, cheat functions, and additional graphics settings. The prices are pretty down to Earth, and it only takes a couple of games to unlock all of the retro uniforms and a dozen or so of the 78 different legends players.