In effect, our unfinished build of MLB 2K6 is already the smartest baseball game ever created.

Kush completely rewrote the physics for the game, and fielders have much more weight to them this year. Turning on a dime is very difficult, and it will take a while to become accustomed to the new engine, but you'll be happy to see some solid player-collisions in the field and in the base paths. Bored after a play? Go sprint into your third basemen and knock him over. Collisions increase the risk of injury.

On the field performance, the amount of playing time, batting order, position, umpire arguments, team chemistry, salary, length of contract and contract negotiations all factor in to player happiness.

The presentation is excellent already. Joe Morgan and Jon Miller provide some of the best in-game commentary ever in a videogame that includes play-by-play and tremendous insight into the history and nuances of the game. On Xbox and hard-drive-equipped PS2s, game highlights are recorded. If you jack one with Jeter in the first, they'll replay the highlight at the end of the inning and before Jeter's next AB, just like in a broadcast.

Originally posted by Double-J:


And where the fuck is Giambi?!?!?

MLB 2K6 Ask a Developer #1: Animation
with Project Manager Chien Yu

Question 1

Ginabatulan818: Are the umpire animations improved from last year? I wanna see more dramatic umpires like strikeouts or walk animations especially the check swing situations.

Answer: We have worked on improving our umpire animations for 2K6. I know this is an animation Q&A, but we’ve also improved umpire audio this year as well!

---

Question 2

flamesfan: Will there be specific player homerun swings? In the last couple of games there hasn't been any player specific homerun celebrations. I was wondering in this year’s version if we will see these celebrations, like Ken Griffey Jrs strut after he goes yard.

Answer:We spent time in the mocap studio this year capturing new player specific animations for 2K6. To address your two concerns specifically: yes we added new signature home run celebrations to 2K6, including Junior’s home run trot.

---

Question 3

MajorLeagueBaseball4ever: Are there any new batting stances, pitching motions? Like you should add Edgar Renteria's particular stance (you guys used Damon's for Renteria), or you need K-Rod's particular pitching motions. That's one of those things make the animation more realistic y'know...

Answer:We’ve mocapped new batting stances, batter walk-ups, step outs, home run celebrations, and pitching animations for 2K6, so you’ll see a good variety of these. I don’t know if we got K-Rod’s specifically though, I will have to look into that.

---

Question 4

Beltranfan05: Thanks for taking your time to answer our questions. I appreciate that you guys value our opinion and that you do this. First off, great job so far by nabbing Inside Edge to help you out. Now, back to the topic, ANIMATIONS! By looking through the videos again, I noticed that there is possibly a new error animation. Can you confirm this? I hated the old one where the fielders would look around what seemed like forever when the ball was right in front of them. If there are new error animations, how many? I would also like to know how many animations were added to this year's game. Are there more animations for sliding, double plays, dives, collisions, etc. or is your focus more on the new catcher animations? What is your favorite animation added to the game so far? Now, for the 360, I'm sure it will have more features, and hopefully a lot more animations in the 360 version than in the xbox/ps2 version. Is there a huge difference between the amount of animations from the 360 and xbox version? If you can, would you be able to give me an estimated number of animations being put into the 360 version compared to the xbox? If you could give me any more info about the animations for the 360 version, please share. BTW, I like the addition of the new catcher animations. Again, thank you for your time. (Didn't mean to write so much, just got carried away) Sincerely, beltranfan05 GO METS!

Answer:Thanks Beltranfan05 for your kind words. The development team hated the old error animation just as much as you did, and so we have pulled them from the game once and for all. Error animations no longer exist in 2K6 as you know them. Rather than playing the same error animation when an error occurs, these will be context sensitive. As you know, we’re introducing a new Pure Motion Physics engine for 2K6, and what this means is that we have a completely overhauled player movement system and physics engine. As a result of this, two of the new things you’ll see in game are bad hops and players reacting appropriately to bad hops.

Our mocap department processed a little more than 2000 new baseball animations for 2K6 this year. This number is probably slightly misleading though, because it includes all of the new animations used for our Pure Motion engine as well as all the other new animations like catcher, new dives, new double plays, new pickoffs, new signature animations etc.

I don’t have one specific animation that I’d call as my personal favorite, but as a grouped set of animations I really like all of our new throwing on the run animations.

As far as 360 specific information, sorry but I’m not allowed to talk about them at the moment, so you’ll have to stay tuned for that!

---

Question 5

Backbreaker: I noticed on the Inside Edge(IE) video, a player was chasing flyball into short right field he ran into the wall. I also read in Game Informer about your walk, jog and run depended upon how much pressure you put on the stick. All of which is great, but in ESPN 2k5 when they introduced momentum, it was a little over done and the player would get caught up in an animation and you had to let it play out and then proceed to the next info input.

How are you guys keeping momentum under control? Flyball in the air, you go balls out and you over run it, I immediately jerk the stick back in the other direction what type of animation do I get, is it physics based or motion captured based?

Answer:Tough one to answer, because it’s essentially a combination of both. Anytime you talk about momentum there is going to be a tradeoff between responsiveness and realism. We have a group of very talented developers that have been working on our Pure Motion Physics system for the entire development cycle of 2K6, and we hope you’ll be pleased with the result.

---

Question 6

K Bomber: One of the big issues when comparing MVP 2005 with MLB 2K5 was in the dynamics of the fielding particularly in the infield. MVP featured a superior volume and variety of animations that linked together very seamlessly to really give that title a great feel in the field. Where I found 2k5 had an issue was in how the ball traveled out of throws and how the general throwing motions of the infielders left a great deal to be desired

Will MLB 2k6 feature a more aesthetic and flowing feel to the infield animations? Have the number of animations, particularly on the infield been increased and will the responsiveness of how those animations render be enhanced and made more realistic?

I loved the general look of the game last year, but the animations left something to be desired. I have high hopes because I know that Kush has done some dynamite work with very aesthetic, contextual animations in the past on games like College Hoops 2k4 that still features some of the nicest basketball animations, particularly in the paint with the bigs, of any game on any platform

Show me you can do it in baseball, guys...

Answer:Hi K Bomber. I agree with your assessment, and your post really hit the nail on the head because it’s a great summary of everything we set out to do this year with Pure Motion Physics. In addition to everything you brought up, we weren’t happy with our outfield play either in 2K5, so I think you went a little easy on us here with this post

We’ve spent a lot of time this year working on making our fielding more fluid for the infield and outfield, and I think the results will speak for themselves. For 2K6, I personally feel that we’ve really closed that animation gap between our game and those of our competitors, not only in terms of the number of fielding animations, but also in terms of the way those fielding animations look and feel. We attacked the issues we all had (our fans and our development team) with our fielding using a multi-pronged approach:

Designing all throws to be pressure sensitive made a big difference in terms of improving our animation variety and the dynamic feel of throwing and fielding. Having a momentum system and new player movement model allows our players to move at a realistic rate, which also helped to make our stadiums feel larger and more realistic. All new player collisions allowed us to really take baserunning, player tags, and tag avoidance to a whole new level. And to top it off our new catcher animations are really cool. Not only does it make catchers much more functional and relevant (particularly in conjunction with our Inside Edge feature), but it really helps to improve the look and feel of the game because you spend about half the game looking at your catcher.

Hopefully, all of our hard work in the animation area will pay off when you get a chance to play the game. We love getting feedback from you guys, and your opinions really do count.

MLB 2K6 Ask a Developer #2: Inside Edge and V.I.P.
with Project Manager Greg Wondra

Question 1

JoeCoolMan24: I want to thank you guys for answering questions from us. It's very cool that 2k is in-touch with its fans. I have a question about the Scouting Points we receive. Is the number of scouting points in this game based on the staff that you have? For example, Does having a manager like Tony LaRussa or Ozzie Guillen make a big difference than having a manager like oh, Jim Bob (don't want to offend any managers ) Does it also make a difference based on your scouts and coaches on your team? Thanks for answering our question. I am marking the days on my calendar! lol

Answer: If you're are referring to "Edge Points" you can use to purchase opposing player scouting reports when playing a quick game, the number of "Edge Points" you get to use is not tied in to the manager or coaching staff of a specific team. You always have 350 Edge Points in which to purchase reports.

In our Season, Franchise, or GM Career modes purchasing player scouting reports is done differently. In these modes you must use money out of your team budget to buy scouting reports so you have to decide if you're pinching your pennies for free agents or using some of your cash to buy scouting reports with. No worries, the scouting reports are reasonably priced.

---

Question 2

Backbreaker: Just too piggy back on joecool question. Do you have Managers VIP's in the game, and in future iterations will you have it? also will you guys incorporate GM's and how they deal with scouting i.e. small ball type of GM's if you chose to play that way.

Answer: We would have liked to have included specific manager VIPs into the game (like in NFL 2K5) but unfortunately we ran out of time. For 2K7 we hope to do so.

---

Question 3

K_GUN: one issue with the game was that players were over-rated. (i.e. Manny Ramirez had a killer year back in 2003....those ratings were carried over into last years game...i.e. 2...Randy Johnson no longer throws a 4FB near 100...even though his rating reflects that)

does having 3 YEARS of player data get accurately reflected in their ratings? and therefore do they "behave" like their human counterparts. (i.e. like Nomar hacking at a lot of first pitches in AB's)

Answer: The player ratings in our game don't come from the data we've received from Inside Edge. The ratings are created by us and for these we don't look, necessarily, at their past 3 years. Player ratings are always subject to debate. No matter how we attempt to do them, we'll never satisfy everybody as everyone has different opinions.

We are happy with how Inside Edge is affecting our CPU behavior. It really does affect how they behave. If a player shows a tendency to "take" a pitch in our game, he'll take that pitch more often than other players. If a player is shown to "chase" a pitch if pitched to a certain zone, he will have a higher tendency to swing at it. My advice, buy those Inside Edge scouting reports and listen to you catcher!

---

Question 4

MajorLeagueBaseball4ever: How do you use those 350 points in a game, can you earn it?

Answer: Those 350 "Edge Points" are given to a user before going into a quick game as mentioned above. They can't be earned. Since it is just a one time game, we thought giving 350 points would be a sufficient amount.

Again, in Season, Franchise, or GM Career mode, purchasing scouting reports is done in a different manner as you will use actual team funds instead of "Edge Points."

---

Question 5

Guga: : Hi Greg, I wanna congratulate the 2K people for putting this technology into this year's game. I think if it is used correctly it will give this game the edge it needs to be the #1.

Here is my question:

Does the scouts you get using Inside Edge really play out into the field? I mean, will players really have the tendencies they have in real life? Like Moises Alou loving to swing on the first pitch or Pedro Feliz always chasing breaking pitches on the dirt? (just kidding Pedro)

I hope Inside Edge is there not just to give you some information that will not be that valuable to you in the game.

Thanks and keep up the good work.

Answer: This is something the team has done their absolute best at to ensure it is working like it should in 2K6 and you can bet we'll be perfecting it in years to come. If a player shows a tendency to swing at a first pitch fastball, we've made it so that he'll do just that. If a player takes a lot of 1st pitch fastballs, he'll do just that. It doesn't mean he'll ALWAYS behave one way or another; we've just made it so that he'll have those TENDENCIES.

The level of detail we plan to put into making these batters and pitchers take on their real life tendencies is quite in-depth so we hope you're happy with the results.

---

Question 6

Backbreaker: Inside Edge as a crutch. There is this perception that IE, is giving the player (end user) too much information thus, the crutch factor is being expressed. I am not of that thought process, but I will play devils advocate. I was watching your IE video from this site, and there is a wealth of information giving to the player which renders him brain dead. Does the cpu follow the IE script to a tee? or is it a living scouting report? If I know a pitcher is going to throw a certain pitch in a giving situation 85% of the time, it becomes a game of cheese at that point, because I will capitalize on it every time. There is no drama or suspense in that at all.

Answer: Oh most definitely not. Our Inside Edge implementation is meant to reflect TENDENCIES. You won't be able to figure out patterns or anything like that to exploit because if a batter like Nomar USUALLY swings on a 1st pitch he PROBABLY will, but he won't 100% of the time. It's all about how strong each player's tendencies are. I'll give you an example:

Today I was playing a game and I had the Inside Edge on an opposing pitcher. He showed a tendency to throw 4 seam fastballs 55% of the time with a 0 - 0 count versus right-handed batters. I watch the CPU throw 100 pitches in this scenario to see what he would do. He ended up throwing 51 four seam fastballs. The next time I set it up, he threw 60 four seam fastballs. So you see, the percentages we show the user are accurate, but that doesn't mean the player's become robotic in behavior. Not at all.

---

Question 7

bigduux: hey guys, I just wanna say that u guys have the best baseball game on the market, I've seen and played 2k baseball and MVP, and 2k baseball is head and shoulders above MVP. Now too my question: in MLB 2k5, I noticed that my pitching was almost perfect. I played a full 162 game season, on the highest difficulty of course, and every starter on my team had an ERA less that 2.00. BTW, I was the Oakland A's (my fav team) (ed's note: Let's Go OAKLAND! Clap, clap, clap-clap-clap). Anyway, my question is what steps have been taken to ensure that user pitching isn't so dominant in this year's title? I just want to make sure that I get the best and highest level of competition possible, That's what makes the game a game.....other than that the game was perfect, I expect nothing but greatness from this years title........DOWN WITH MVP BASEBALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer: We'll we've heard your feedback and are introducing a new pitching system this year we think you'll all find fun and challenging. Our new pitching mechanic this year is called "Payoff Pitching" and the way it behaves makes it essential for users to know their pitches and understand their pitches in order to have them break properly into the right spots. Everybody here at Kush really digs it.

Unlike last year you'll be setting the BREAK of each pitch meaning if you want a curveball to drop in for a strike, you better set your cursor high and inside if you want it to drop down and away from a hitter (in a righty versus righty match up). The more effort you put on a pitch (hold down the pitch button), the more it'll break. So if you wanted to pinpoint your curveball you pretty much could, but that sucker isn't gonna bend or break one bit.

Additionally, we've made it this year so your individual pitches can get better or worse throughout the course of a game (hence the name "Payoff Pitching." When a batter has 2 strikes on him or you are in a clutch situation you can increase your pitch rating by nailing your catcher's target with a specific pitch. Bonus points for nailing your catcher's target with a suggested pitch or a highly effective pitch (hey it's a lot tougher to get a sweeping curveball to hit your catcher's target!) If you have the Inside Edge on a batter the catcher will automatically spot a pitch, otherwise you can choose to have your catcher target a spot for you by using the right stick to have him spot a pitch in a given location. You are never FORCED to make a payoff pitch (your pitch rating can go down if you miss the catcher's target), but you always have the option to if the situation comes up. Fun stuff.

---

Question 8

K Bomber: First off the video this week showing how Inside Edge is to be implemented is absolutely sick. My love of baseball is likely related to my love of statistics, so this type of feature is my idea of a gaming wet-dream

My question is this, baseball is a game of adjustment. Players will be successful and get on rolls relative to both pitching and hitting, only to have their opposition adjust in order to take the elements of that kind of success away. I may be smacking the cover off anything with heat but be completely baffled by a curve or slider. Then I might adjust to breaking pitches only to get gummed up by heat. Beyond that, tendencies will also be dictated by the stage of a player's career, so if I'm a flame-throwing fastball, sinker, slider type of pitcher in my youth, I might need to adjust in my later years to be more of a junk-baller with a repertoire of change-ups and curves.

Will Inside Edge manifest and track CPU adjustment according to this type of natural adjustment/progression, whether in-season or in-career? I love franchise style modes and to see a player naturally and logically evolve in this manner would just about send me into absolute spasm

This coupled with the types of animation improvements suggested by Chien Yu are making me absolutely goofy with anticipation

The media on this game has set the bar very high -- are you going to deliver? (I'll forward my address for such delivery....... :0) )

Have fun...............

Answer: You are absolutely correct in stating baseball is all about making adjustments to what the other guy is doing. Unfortunately, however, we won't be going into that level of detail with our Inside Edge implementation (maybe in the future). We want to ensure we get the basics done right before looking for advancements with our Inside Edge implementation.

---

Question 9

sleepytercel: With the new Inside Edge scouting and VIP features, I have a two part question. I know Visual Concepts added the VIP feature in NBA 2K6, but it feels very undeveloped, especially compared to the NFL2K offering. Is Kush really pushing this feature to the fullest, or is it more of a prototype that shall be built upon in years to come?

We also heard that the catcher will call pitches like they should, based on the scouting of certain situations. Will this feature force players online to have a realistic pitching game, and are you rewarded for pitching to the location the catcher chooses? (Meaning, if the catcher calls low and inside, and you decide to pitch low outside, does this cause a problem with the catcher?) I'm wondering because you can now shake off pitches. This would be very cool for online play, instead of having Joe nobody's pitch randomized pitches. This would also create a neat addition to pitching because it really simulates a pitcher trying to hit a desired location, more than just trying to hit a random corner or within the zone.)

Answer: See the above response about rewarding players for hitting their catcher's target using the Payoff Pitching system. We are doing our best to ensure that our VIP feature is solidly implemented. However, I want to clear up one bit of confusion I've heard people mistake before getting people's hopes too high. In online play you will not be able to get the "Inside Edge" versus your online opponent. As much as we wanted to implement this time constraints prevented us from doing it this year. Thus, when playing online your catcher is not going to suggest pitches and locations your opponent is weak against. We'll do our best to get it in for next year!

---

Question 10

San Franpsycho: Thank you very much for taking the time to answer our questions, I really appreciate this. This is a two-part question:

A. As one's GM Career and/or Franchise mode goes on, does the Inside Edge feature change as the seasons go by?

For example, let's say David Wright of the Mets has his own Inside Edge report right now based on his short career. He will/should definitely progress to be an amazing hitter in just a couple of seasons. So will Inside Edge change as he progresses to the better hitter he will become, or will his IE report be the same as it was during the first season?

B. On a similar note, how are the Inside Edge reports determined for future rookies and created players? Will we be able to fill out a basic form on how the Inside Edge report should be on certain players? For example, I know a lot about Giants minor league players and if I created them, I'd be able to come out with some realistic IE reports for them as I created them, if there were some kind of simple form to fill out while creating the player (ex. Aggressive early in counts, loves hitting fastballs, chases breaking balls behind in the count, etc.).

Thanks again.

Answer: Unfortunately, a player's Inside Edge tendencies do not "update" as a season progresses. We had wanted to do this and are planning on doing so for the future but the amount of Inside Edge data we are putting into the game takes up a lot of disk space. Making it update throughout a season is just too memory intensive at this time and we probably could have done it at the expense of having stick player models. Lots of tradeoffs have to be made in this business! We all want what you want but there are ALWAYS limitations (be they memory, time, or legal) to what we can and cannot do.

---

Question 11

beltranfan05: With the Inside Edge, I know you scout the players and learn their tendencies and likes and dislikes. But, do they ever change the way you play. So, when the computer scouts your players, will the tendencies to swing on a say for example a 2-1 count change based on what I do. Or do they always stay the same for the real life? And what you do as a player count for the VIP? I think I'm starting to understand everything after I ask all these questions. BTW, with the VIP, can you play against your own VIP instead of your friends or something? And if you wanted to play against a friends VIP, how would he save it on my hard drive?

Answer: The VIP's should work similar to all of the other 2K sports titles in terms of being able to save your friend's VIP to your hard drive and what not. You can play against your own VIP if you wish as well.

As far as your Inside Edge questions go, there are a TON of factors that determine what a player will do in the situation you mentioned above. Sure, he may have a tendency to swing in that situation, but if you pitch it 3 feet wide of the zone he's most likely not going to. If you pitch him a pitch he tends to "chase" a lot versus one he "takes" a lot, that plays a factor. There are lots of variables involved in how our players behave so like I mentioned above, I don't think you'll be able to "figure" out a player's behavior since they aren't set in stone.

---

Question 12

searcher73: How are rookies and 2nd year players scouted? Do they go off of Inside Edge's minor league stats? And then do they "discount" or lessen those stats to account for the higher quality of play in the majors?

Answer: All of the "new" players (fictional rookies you'll see in year #12 of your Franchise for example) will be given a set of Inside Edge playing tendencies just like any other player.

Thanks everybody for your questions. The team has been working hard to put out a game you'll all enjoy so we look forward to your comments and feedback. Contrary to popular belief on these forums, we do read and consider your comments, suggestions, and ideas!

MLB 2K6 Ask a Developer #3: Presentation
with Joel Simmons

Question 1

MajorLeagueBaseball4ever: Hey Joel, who did you add for the crew of 2K Sports' presentation? I heard a woman's voice in the presentation's video. Also, will Damon have clean-shaven face? Thanks.

Answer: For Major League Baseball 2K6, we have added a new team for our studio commentary during game load. Jeanne Zelasko is our new studio lead, and Steve Physioc is our new studio analyst. They introduce the game, break down the pitching and team match-ups, discuss rivalries and late season status of teams in season/franchise mode, and follow the teams through each game of the post season. As for Damon, he appears clean-shaven for his new Yankees role.

---

Question 2

JoeCoolMan24: Hey man, thanks for taking time to answer some gamers feedback, nice to know someone actually listens. Well from the presentation video I saw, I was liking it. Getting Jeanne Z. was a big plus, she is a great addiction (yeah, addiction, you read that right).

Anywho, my question is about pre-game/post-game presentation. Are we going to see any Chris Berman-esque pre-game shows while the game is loading with head-to-head matchup break-downs, maybe talking about specific players and events between the two teams. I loved that last year with Carl Ravich talking it up beforehand. Also, is there a post-game type show where it shows highlights and shows action around the league? NFL 2K5 was easily the most well presented game I have seen. It had great pre-game/post-game/in-game coverage and made it feel real. I have been hoping for the same type of deal from a baseball game. Please tell me we can see this.

Thanks guys.

Joe

Answer: With Major League Baseball 2K6, we have started a new push for more in-depth studio analysis, and our focus this year is pre-game presentation. In addition to the pitcher comparisons, team-based and rivalry analysis, situation-based analysis during late-season games and the post-season have been added for Xbox and PS2. For new-gen consoles we are adding an additional in-depth last start pitching breakdown throughout the pre-game presentation during the season, which highlights the current starting pitcher's last performance. We have plans for additional elements of highlights and post-game presentation involving Steve and Jeanne in the near future, so look forward to these additions in upcoming games.

---

Question 3

K_GUN: one issue with the game was that players were over-rated. (i.e. Manny Ramirez had a killer year back in 2003....those ratings were carried over into last years game...i.e. 2...Randy Johnson no longer throws a 4FB near 100...even though his rating reflects that)

does having 3 YEARS of player data get accurately reflected in their ratings? and therefore do they "behave" like their human counterparts. (i.e. like Nomar hacking at a lot of first pitches in AB's)

Answer: The player ratings in our game don't come from the data we've received from Inside Edge. The ratings are created by us and for these we don't look, necessarily, at their past 3 years. Player ratings are always subject to debate. No matter how we attempt to do them, we'll never satisfy everybody as everyone has different opinions.

We are happy with how Inside Edge is affecting our CPU behavior. It really does affect how they behave. If a player shows a tendency to "take" a pitch in our game, he'll take that pitch more often than other players. If a player is shown to "chase" a pitch if pitched to a certain zone, he will have a higher tendency to swing at it. My advice, buy those Inside Edge scouting reports and listen to you catcher!

---

Question 4

DodgerBlue: Why were the announcers from NFL 2K5 doing the hitting video, are they actually going to be in MLB 2K6?

Answer: The announcers for our training videos in Major League Baseball 2K6 only appear for our training videos. Our commentators for the game are Jon Miller and Joe Morgan, and newly added this year for studio segments are Jeanne Zelasko and Steve Physioc.

---

Question 5

Kev5890: : 2k is almost famous for NFL 2k5's "Halftime show"

At any point in MLB 2k6 will there be a show with 3d guests (or just hearing their voice) running over the highlights of the game?

Again this would be after the actual game is played, im just curious if you are doing anything with highlights.

thanks

Answer: 3D commentators during our in-studio presentation as well as additional highlight and post-game segments are features that we have been considering for future games. In addition to our new features for pre-game presentation in Major League Baseball 2K6, we are looking for exciting ways to enhance our studio presentation each year to bring greater context and realism to the game.

---

Question 6

totalownership: One thing the game lacked (well pretty much all sports games) was more specific chatter for the playoffs and world series. I'd like to hear more chatter from the announcers during these games to differentiate them from regular season games. Also, it'd be nice if online league games can incorporate playoffs and world series commentary elements instead of them sounding like regular games. Also regular chatter during the game would be cool too. Like say some scrub is at the plate who really doesn't have a good chance of hitting against the pitcher the guys could be talking about other stuff only interrupting for a strike or so.

Also can I get my ambulance sounds by Yankee Stadium this year? Something real faint coming from the rear surround speakers.

PS: It'd be nice to hear somebody yell "Hey Total I found our seats hurry up man" lol

Answer: Crowd chatter is a big area of improvement in this year's game as we've more than doubled our player specific chatter from Major League Baseball 2K5. There are many ways we are planning on continuing this push for next year's edition such as post-season specific chatter and generic situational chatter. Look for these new features in upcoming games. In-Game commentary detection for less-exciting batters, or blowout games are also great opportunities for Jon and Joe to depart from their usual commentary and is definitely a feature we are looking at for next year, along with stadium specific ambient sound design.

---

Question 7

bronxboy: Hi Joel, thanks for taking the time to answer some of our questions about the presentation aspects of MLB 2K6. One of the features I absolutely loved in the 2K5 version on the XBOX was the customizable player and stadium soundtracks. I was wondering if this feature will be included again in the 2K6 versions for the different consoles (if so, which console versions)? More specifically, in what ways (if any) has this been changed or improved for the 360 version of the game. Since the 360 can access all of my music stored on my PC hard drive, I was wondering if I will have ALL of those songs available to me to use in the game, or will I have to transfer all the tunes that I want to use to my 360 hard drive?

Answer: Yes, we got a lot of good feedback from the customizable player and stadium soundtracks feature from our 2K5 version, and we definitely wanted this cool feature back in Major League Baseball 2K6. We're not quite ready to talk about Xbox 360 features at this time, but you won't need to worry about not having this feature in the Xbox 360 version.

---

Question 8

eLMaYiMbE8689: I was wondering about the flashback feature.... while playing a season, will plays from like the week before or earlier in the season be recapped as a turning point? For example a gritty pitching performance when a team really needed it midway through the season or a walk off (Homerun) that changed the team's season 2 months earlier? Is the 360 as far as flashbacks go anymore advanced then the current-gen systems?

Answer: These are both great features that we hope to add in future editions. Commentary specific to important moments in big games has been a much anticipated feature that, along with improved game action commentary, will be an addition that we are developing for 2K7. As for our current feature set for highlights, we have focused on the highlights from the current game due to restrictions with the old-gen platforms, but we have big plans for the possibilities to save and replay key moments from previous games and incorporate these highlights into the context of the current game on next-gen systems for 2K7.

---

Question 9

cubbieblue: Great game last but one thing annoyed me,

Will the announcer be able to say rookie names like say if your the Cubs and you call up Angel Guzman. If he is in the game, will the announcer actually say his name or will he just say the pitcher or number 99 made strike out number 3?

Answer: Most of the rookie class of 2006 is included in Major League Baseball 2K6. This year we have added a large number of players to the name database, and for the public address announcer, first and last names can be combined from our existing list for create players and for generated rookies. And yes- Angel Guzman is included!

---

Question 10

grayboy:Hey guys,

I've been a big fan of 2K baseball as well as hockey for awhile now, but one thing I've always wished to see has never appeared in any of these games. What would really enrich the overall presentation would be to show highlights from other games around the league that day. NFL 2K5 did this very well at the end of each week showing big plays from various games and I'd love to see baseball integrate something like this ala a Baseball Tonight type of wrap-up show. Anything that enhances the believability of the experience such as this would be fantastic. Any chance we're getting something like this in this year's version?

Answer: This year, as mentioned in some of the other answers, our focus in the studio presentation has been the pre-game show. Including highlights from other games in progress, and flashback highlights from previous games is a feature that we plan on adding for future next-gen releases in the Major League Baseball 2K Series.

---

Question 11

jtashcraftjr: What is the biggest change to the presentation now that the ESPN License is gone?

Answer: The biggest change to presentation in Major League Baseball 2K6 is that the new features are integrated into the game experience more than any network-specific style. We've added special features such as Inside Edge, BaseBurner Mode, Manager Arguments, and elements that are truly unique to being immersed in the experience of actually playing baseball, in addition to familiar broadcast elements that are present in any major network broadcast of baseball. Our focus at 2K Sports has always been on representing the game of baseball in exciting ways that combine the best presentation elements of a broadcast with a great interface for feeling like you're playing a game of Major League Baseball, and we hope that the fans agree.

MLB 2K6 Ask a Developer #4: Batting
with Greg Wondra

Question 1

beltranfan05: Thanks for taking your time to answer our questions. I appreciate it. Now, I have a question obviously about the swings. This may be for animations, but I was really disgusted with the way the players swing. It just seems that the swings last year were a little too slow. They look like, oh I don't really know how to describe it, but they look like a big loopy swing. There just so slow. And, in the videos, I didn't really see any improvement. I just don't think it looks realistic. I liked how it was in MVP 05 last year. I was just curious if you guys have given any attention to this or plan to work on it. I'm just hoping the swings in the 360 version will be right. Ok, my little rant is over. But, are you guys working on it?

BTW, I know you have to push the right analog up to bunt it. But, is there any way to drag bunt? If not, are you planning to implement this in future games? It's just so unrealistic not being able to drag bunt. Especially with my speedy Mets.

Answer: Well one thing I want to make perfectly clear is that we do recognize the faults and flaws in our own game, but fixing them is ALWAYS a matter of time and resources. We always know what areas we need to be better. This year we focused on the core movement system of our fielders. Going forward into the future you're going to see much smoother and realistic looking fielder animations because we completely revamped the way that system was handled. Because so much time and focus was spent on that aspect of the game, swings could not fully be addressed. We did speed up the bat speed as much as possible (any faster and funny, funny animation pops start to happen…….we pushed it to the limit), but in order for that system to be completely revamped, it would take a whole 'nother year to work out all of the kinks. Nothing is ever as simple as it seems.

As for the bunting, we are the only game out there that allows you to move your bat around the zone while in a bunt stance. Of course we are looking at implementing drag bunts in the future. As of right now the way it works is the longer you're in your bunt pose, the better your chances of laying down a quality bunt. If you wait until the last minute to attempt a bunt, your chances of popping one up (perhaps back to the pitcher) are much increased.

---

Question 2

MajorLeagueBaseball4ever: What setting will be the default option (swing stick or classic A button?). If there's a Videogame/Purebaseball option, which one will be on videogame and which on will be on Purebaseball option? Thanks, I appreciate answering my question

Answer: We will default to the Swing Stick for both game styles. After a game or two getting used to the new mechanic, people have found it to be quite fun and natural to use.

---

Question 3

Xx Yankee xX: I have a question; if a player is doing good or bad hitting for that game does that affect if your hits will land or be caught?? i know they had confidence last year.

Answer: The confidence system from 2K4 and 2K5 has been removed from the game. In its place we have a player morale system that will affect player attributes in Franchise mode. For a single game, the size of a particular hitter's "Batter's Eye" will depend on a variety of factors including plate performance and game performance. You might want to view some of the batting videos on this website to see what the Batter's Eye is all about in our game this year. The bigger your batter's eye, the easier it is for your hitter to differentiate balls from strikes and know the final pitch location. Also, anytime you "see" a pitch using your Batter's Eye, making contact with the pitch will result in a power boost which will, in turn, affect the quality of your hits.

---

Question 4

Guga: Hi Greg, i loved the concept of the new Swing Stick system. I think it's gonna be great, it should make us feel like we are swinging a bat not just pressing a button.

I will certainly give it a try, and I mean not just play a game with it and if I can't hit with it just go back to the old batting system, no. I will try and play lots of games with it to see if I can master it.

But I have always been a cursor batting lover. I played this series with batting cursor since 2K2. I know you already said that 2K6 will have a classic hitting system, but I would like to know if 2K6 will have batting cursor as an option of the classic hitting system. Also I would like to know if it's going to be a "stationary" cursor like it was back in 2K2, 2K3 and 2K4, without going back to the middle of the plate if you released it. On 2K5 it was nearly impossible to hit with the batting cursor because it would go back to the middle of the plate if you released it. I know there are many cursor-hitting lovers out there so please answer this little question

Thanks.

Answer: LOL……In reading the boards I'm well aware of your love of cursor hitting! We certainly do realize that there are a segment of gamers out there who love the cursor batting option. In many ways, it is a "true" way of batting as whether you hit a grounder or a pop-up is totally dependant on what you, the user, did. Unfortuately though, we've discovered that there are many people on the opposite side of the fence who find cursor hitting incredibly difficult to use. The decision was made not to support cursor hitting this year and to make our swing stick as good as possible. Guga, we hope you find the swing stick to your liking this year and if enough people express the desire for cursor hitting to return, we'll always consider it in future projects.

---

Question 5

DaoudS: I read somewhere that ANY player can switch hit, I was wondering how you plan on implementing that. It's obvious that not every player has the gift of hitting from both sides of the plate, so will that translate into the ratings? If so, how?

Thank in advanced for taking questions from the fans of the franchise and we all look forward to your response.

-Daoud S.

Answer: At first we were going to make it so that just the switch hitters could switch sides of the plate but eventually we thought "Why not just let people play the game however they want to play it?" Thus, we decided to let you, the user, switch hit or not with ANY player you so choose. The way it is implement is that if you switch hit to the opposite side of the plate with a natural switch hitter, he only takes a 15% hit to his power and contact ratings as hitting from the opposite side of the plate shouldn't be too much harder for him. For players that are NOT normally switch hitters, switching sides of the plate results in a 75% hit to their power and contact ratings.

I highly suggest switch-hitting against your buddies as it's pretty much a arrogant slap in your friend's face as well as an easy way to hear some of the funniest Jon and Joe commentary in the entire game.

---

Question 6

Nomar_Warrior82: I know you point your controller up to hit the ball in the air and downward to hit a ground ball. My question is this pointing the controller down while timing the baseball will it allow me to lift the ball for a homer?

Nomar Go 2ksports!

Answer: I assume you're talking about our "Classic" batting option using the buttons? If so, pushing up on the left stick will influence fly balls while pushing down on the left stick will influence ground balls. This doesn't mean that you'll ALWAYS hit a grounder or a pop-up, it just means your chances are increased. Things like player ratings play a role too. So if you tried to hit a grounder but you timed your swing perfectly, there is still that outside chance you could hit a homerun if the right pitch is made and you have the right batter at the plate.

---

Question 7

mrhardwick: Will you be able to move in and out of the batters box? Is there a step out the box(ask the ump for time) option available? I think this would be great in 2 player modes. Sort of to keep the pitcher off balance. But only have it available one time per batter you know? Lastly(I wanted to sneak this in), how will you guys have the CORRECT rosters for the World Baseball Classic with your game coming out in less than a month? Continued success and I look forward to playing the game myself.

Answer: Yes, we do allow you to move your batter towards and away from the plate using the right analog stick (left and right before a pitcher pitches the ball). This is a great way to better position yourself for where you think the pitcher is going to pitch the ball next. It's especially helpful for when you have the Inside Edge on a pitcher and you see that his most likely pitch locations in a given situation are way outside. If you come across a scenario like that you can move your batter in on the plate in order to make better contact with the pitch if it is pitched outside.

We do not allow users to manually decide when they step out. Rather, if a pitcher stalls too long, both the pitcher and the batter will step out and get themselves settled in again.

As far as the World Baseball Classic goes we are able to include all of the major league players that will be participating in the event. Since the rosters are still evolving in the weeks leading up to the event, you will be able to download the latest WBC rosters if you happen to game online.

---

Question 8

JoeCoolMan24: My question is about the moving the strike zone in and out. Fairly simple question. Say you are a right-handed batter and you move the 3x3 strike zone in. The outside 3 boxes are now empty. They are not blue, red, nor white. Does this mean you can not hit a pitch in that area? If you were playing a 2-player game, does this now mean your friend (the oppenent) can just nail that outside side and you will have trouble hitting it? Does not sound like too much fun for the batter.

Also, i would like to ask you if there are 2 player co-op baseball. Much like in MVP 2006, you could do 2 players on a team, will that me in this game?

Thanks Greg,

Joe

Answer: Hi Joe, thanks for the question. Just because you move your batter around in the batter's box doesn't mean your hitter will have "holes" that can be pitched to and a batter will not be able to hit. You're ability to hit pitches located out of this 3x3 area are dependant on the quality of the player. Obviously a guy like Vlad Guerrero will have an easier time hitting pitches out of this zone than if a pitcher was up to the plate. So it really depends on the player.

As far as a 2-player co-op mode we did, in fact, talk about adding a co-op mode earlier in the project and everyone wanted to do it but we simply ran out of time. Hopefully in the future we will be able to offer a fun co-op experience.

---

Question 9

crumpled_heap: Can the ball trail be turned off?

Answer: You betcha. If there's anything in this game you don't like to see (like the strike zone box, etc), chances are it can be turned off. You can certainly turn off the ball trail if you wish not to use it.

---

Question 10

totalownership: I recall playing a game a long time ago (or maybe I'm thinking of real life and my memory stinks now. LOL) where you could select what type of bat you wanted to use before stepping up to the plate. A natural bat. A dried one. A heavier one...... (or if you want to get real bold which probably would mean losing your MLB license... a corked one

But I think it would add to the strategy some to have different bats. Any chance of it happening... ever?

Answer: We did have the ability to use different equipment as part of our design document for 2K6 but unfortunately ran out of time to make it a reality. We all agree it would add another layer of strategy. We hope to get this in for future installments of the game. As far as corked bats go, I wouldn't count on that happening as I'm 1000% sure the MLB would not look too kindly on that.

---

Question 11

the_rationalizer: Could you give a rough estimate of the percentage of players who have their unique stances in the game?

Answer: Oh boy, tough call. To be quite honest, I don't think anybody knows the EXACT answer to that. If I had to guess though, I'd say in total we have about 70 unique stances in the game. All of them are available to you in create-a-player as well.

---

Question 12

Marcman: Will the fatigue of the players influence the strike zone while playing?

Answer: No, fatigue of the players will not influence the strike zone for pitchers or batters. The placement of the strike zone (low, medium, or high) is variable from game to game but player fatigue doesn't determine strike zone size.

---

Question 13

BeNnYBoY18: I have noticed in recent years that bunting for a base hit in this game has been rather easy. In general, will bunting become more of a challenge? Also, how has bunting changed at all with the addition of the swing stick?

Answer: With the Swing Stick, bunting is executed by holding the R-Stick up before a pitcher makes his pitch. When this is done your batter will go into his bunt stance and from there you will be able to use the L and R triggers to aim your bunt.

We are, in fact, currently putting in some things today to help increase the difficulty of bunting for a base hit. Sounds easy enough to do but when you factor in things like fielder animation speeds and reaction times, it's often trickier to do than can be imagined.

Thanks again for all of your questions, guys! The finishing touches are being put on the game this week. We look forward to all of your feedback and hope you find the hitting system in Major League Baseball 2K6 to provide the best experience possible.

MLB 2K6 Ask a Developer #5: Payoff Pitching
with Greg Wondra

Question 1

DodgerBlue: In a 2 player game how will we be able to see where the catcher wants the pitch to exploit the batter's weaknesses using inside edge?

Answer: For 2-player games, we don't have the catcher spotting the pitches. The main reason for this is because in a 1-player game vs. the CPU, we can make our CPU batters have different tendencies. We can make them swing more in certain situations, for example. But in 2-player games, suddenly those players aren't taking on CPU tendencies anymore, they're taking on human tendencies. So, it doesn't really make sense to have the catcher suggest a ball in the zone, for example, if he thinks the batter is going to sit back and watch an 0 - 0 fastball go by because that batter is controlled by a friend, perhaps, who will swing all of the time.

---

Question 2

Seahawkman: How many pitch types are in the game? And what are they?

Answer: We've got 18 pitch types in the game this year with the new addition of the Eephus pitch (Try Casey Fossum of the D-Rays). The 18 are:

1. 4-Seam Fastball
2. 2-Seam Fastball
3. Cut Fastball
4. Sinker
5. Curveball
6. Power Curve
7. 12-6 Curve
8. Slurve
9. Knuckle Curve
10. Slider
11. Changeup
12. Circle Changeup
13. Palmball
14. Screwball
15. Knuckleball
16. Splitter
17. Forkball
18. Eephus


---

Question 3

xxpujols4mvpxx: Hello, i was just playing MLB 2k5 for the first time in a few months and remembered to post what was significantly annoying about the game. First off, the pitchers never had their real pitches, for example Jason Marquis of the STL Cardinals didn't have a sinker even though he is a sinker ball pitcher and relies on it to constantly get people out. Second, The fielders were like superman out their on the field (like literally,they actually flew in the air when they dove in the air.) The problem with that was that you could never get doubles down the left or right field lines because they were always there to catch it. Third, the reaction time for the players on defense was to quick because balls never got passed them. In real baseball there are doubles hit on the ground down the left and right field lines a lot and that is where the major rbi's come from>For example if the bases are loaded and you hit a sharp groundball down the line the fielder should not be able to snare it and throw everyone out every time just by pressing the dive button.

Thanks guys, hope the game is great.

Answer: You'll be happy to know that the "Super Fielders" are a thing of the past. In fact, we have it so that certain diving stop animations are exclusive to a certain caliber of player (your Derek Jeter's for example). I can say with all confidence you won't have to worry about the pitcher snagging every comebacker anymore. All those issues have been addressed.

As far as the pitchers not having the correct pitches in their repertoire, we go to great lengths to try and ensure that every pitcher has their "right" pitches, but it's definitely not an easy thing when we've literally got hundreds of pitchers to consider! As our relationship with Inside Edge grows this will only get easier for us. Often times players will "learn" a new pitch and so keeping up to date on what everybody throws is something we are striving for perfection on.

---

Question 4

crazynyyfan: Hey Greg, I find it nice of you guys to answer our questions, shows that you guys really listen to us. Thanks.

Anyway, back to the question -- I was wondering if you guys made it so after the pitcher makes the pitch he will, in most cases, walk around the mound and quickly pick up the bag that's located behind the pitcher's mound and than go into his stance and start the pitch? Or will he simply, after a pitch, go straight into his stance and than pick out the pitch and start it?

Answer: Appreciate the kind words, craznyyfan, we do make an honest attempt to include everybody's suggestions into our game.

Our studies have shown that most people prefer a quicker pace to the game (even though baseball is, by nature, a relatively slow paced game). Thus, when a pitcher receives the ball back from the catcher this year, he will immediately start with his hands together ready to fire off the next pitch you command. If you wish to even forego the whole catcher throw back to begin with, following a pitch you can simply "button through" the catcher throw back and reset your pitcher on the mound so you can promptly make your next pitch.

---

Question 5

beltranfan05: How will the pitchers fatigue? Will it be by how many pitches they throw? Or like it seems in many video games, the number of innings.

Answer: A couple of things factor into pitcher's fatigue. #1 is the number of pitches they throw. We don't consider how many innings they've thrown at all. If a guy can get out of an inning throwing just 3 pitches, he'll stay fresh as ever. #2 is the amount of effort you put on a pitch. You can conserve a little pitcher stamina if you decide to put minimum effort behind a pitch, but doing so means you won't get as much break from a breaking pitch, and as much speed from a fastball, etc.

---

Question 6

totalownership: Although I know this is probably something that would have to be geared more for the 360 with it's graphical power over the xbox, I think the xbox has quite a bit left to do this: Will there actually be different grips when the pitchers throw their pitches? Some batters with good eyes can actually see the pitchers hand on the ball before the release and tell what they are gonna get. Will you guys have that or will pitches have the same grip? Also will you try to implement spin on the ball so we can see what's coming in that aspect?. You know something like a palm ball has almost no spin on the ball so the stitches barely rotate whereas a fastball is nothing but blur of stitches. Will you try to implement this if you already haven't?

It would also be nice if some pitchers (this would only be good in association though) had "tells" that they could get rid of after time when they finally get wise that batters got wise to them. You guys wise to what I just said? LOL

Answer: LOL… seeing the grip was something that Slamzone was suppose to help simulate last year but you guys hated that and floated the term "arcadey" out there. Such is the life of a video game developer… you can never please everybody:

We do have unique grips for our pitch types on both the current and next gen systems. We also have the proper spins on the ball.

And "tells" to certain pitch types? Interesting. You don't gamble do you?

---

Question 7

MajorLeagueBaseball4ever: How do you put your pitch on the spot that you want to throw accurately? Do you have meatball pitches too? (if you make mistakes)

Answer: The way Payoff Pitching works is that if you want to "pinpoint" a pitch, your best bet to doing so would be to place your cursor in a location of your choice, lightly tap the pitch button (so as to basically put no effort and effectiveness on it) and then press the pitch button again as the effectiveness ring collapses back to your break point. By doing this, you'll essentially toss a "weak" pitch right at the spot you had your cursor, but your pitch won't have any added break or speed to it. It's really then an easy pitch to hit.

We do have meatball pitches again this year, but obviously Slamzone won't play a role this year as we've removed that feature from the game in 2K6 (yes, we did). A meatball pitch can occur when you've let your pitching interface "time out" meaning you didn't press your pitch button a second time to set the accuracy of a pitch. When you fail to time the second button press in the Payoff Pitch sequence, either a meat pitch results (meaning the opposing batter is tipped off to where the pitch location will be using a baseball icon) or a wild pitch can occur.

---

Question 8

K_U_F: Ok, I finally get to ask my pitching question. How often does the payoff pitch show up? Now say you have an awesome pitcher on the mound, like Santana will he have it show up more often or is it the same no matter what?

Answer: The amount of Payoff Pitch chances in a game is not dependant on the pitcher, but rather the game situations. You get the opportunity to make a Payoff Pitch (a pitch in which the pitch rating can go up or down) when:

1. You have 2 strikes on the batter
2. You are in a "Pitching Jam"
3. The batter at the plate is in a "Clutch At-Bat"
4. Late inning pitcher/ batter "Showdowns" in which the game is on the line

---

Question 9

Baseball8z: First off, I would like to say that it is very cool how the developers stay in touch with their fans. Now to my question: With the new pitching system, can you still (while in two-player mode) click a button where you want the pitch to go, then continue to move around? Then when you pitch the ball, it goes where you clicked the button the first time? I hope I explained that clearly enough. Thanks in advance if this question is answered!

Answer: Thanks, we do our best to listen to your feedback as we feel that hearing the voice of the fans is part of the development process.

And to answer your question, we are not bringing back the "set target" button we had last year with K-Zone pitching. This year, when playing in a two player game you'll move around an invisible cursor (a cursor that rapidly goes invisible at the start of a play) and then when you want to make a pitch your pitching interface will show up in the middle of the strike zone all of the time. Once you play around with it a little while and get to know and understand the Payoff Pitching mechanic it becomes second nature.

---

Question 10

KRS-One: I'm wondering about pitcher fatigue (both long-term and in-game). First off, how quickly will a pitcher tire and will it actually have an effect? For example, if I'm using Livan Hernandez I'd expect him to be able to get through 5 or 6 innings fine and then another 3 or 4 with fairly good control/velocity, will this also hold true to MLB 2K6? Also, if you leave a pitcher in entirely too long, will he be so worn out that he can barely get anything on his pitches and have trouble even getting it near the plate? Also, if a pitcher is extremely fatigued and misses his mark entirely will there be an increased chance for a wild pitch or at least of him throwing a ball? Last year when a pitcher missed entirely it would always be somewhere in the strike zone.

Second, for long-term effects, will you see a noticeable effect if you use a reliever/closer too many days in a row or if you use a starter before his scheduled start? I know some closers can go out every day (like Everyday Eddie) but most need a break every now and then, will this be part of the in-game strategy or would it be possible to send the same guy to the mound in the 9th inning every game without any repercussions? If I start a pitcher on 3-days rest will he tire more rapidly and have a higher chance of throwing out his arm?

Hopefully my question gets answered this week! Thanks in advance.

Answer: I think pitcher's fatigue at a very realistic rate in our game considering the typical number of pitchers it takes for users to play through a 9-inning game. Obviously in real life, some guys might throw 140 pitches on a given night. In our game 75 - 80 pitches is about the usual number it takes for a user to play our game.

I have noticed that Livan lasts longer than most pitchers in our game because he's got a very high stamina rating.

As pitchers fatigue you'll notice that the pitching interface increases in speed making pitches harder to locate. You'll also notice things like your velocity beginning to take a dive. Because of status changes like this when your pitcher fatigues, it will become more difficult to place your pitches and the odds of you throwing a wild pitch are increased.

Lastly, pitcher stamina recovery between games won't just be dependant on a pitcher's stamina rating. Your trainer will play a role this year as well. If you want your players to recover stamina faster between games you need to be sure your trainer devotes more of his time to this aspect of your team.

---

First of all, it was never owned by ESPN; the franchise has always been produced by some combination of Sega Sports/Visual Concepts/Kush Games/2K Sports. So you're still getting the exact same team, except EA bought the ESPN rights. MLB 2K6 will still have Jim Miller and Joe Morgan, the announcers for ESPN Sunday Night Baseball. There just won't be ESPN menus and such. If 2K Sports does one thing well, it is presentation, and it is above and beyond most other sports games.

Second of all, it will feature the InsideEdge system, which takes three years of stats and inputs them into the players to give them their real-life mannerisms and habits. The idea is that you can scout players (by purchasing the reports), but also see them play as their real life counterparts (which, especially for pitchers, would be awesome). From what reviewers/previews have said, this has been done well.

Third, they have redone many animations, at least in the fielding department. This may be subjective though, since 2K Sports says they are the ones doing it. But nonetheless, in the Q+A sessions on their site, they have allegedly fixed many problematic or just plain bad animations that have hindered the series in the past.

Fourth, they have real free agents, which MLB '06: The Show does not. I don't really understand why, but I'm assuming it must have something to do with the exclusivity rights with MLB and the Players Association.

Fifth, 2K Sports has now incorporated "payoff pitching," which is where in certain situations (0-2 count, full count, etc.) the catcher will call the best pitch for that situation, and the location. If you can pull it off, you'll get an improvement on the ratings for that pitch in the game. If not though, I think the player might have a better chance and ripping it for a HR. Also, they've changed pitching from a conventional location system (where you aim the cursor and that is generally where the ball goes) to a system where now you locate where it will break; if you want a curveball to drop off when it comes to the batter, you've gotta figure out the spot where it will happen.

Simply put, the 2K series sounds like it has many new features and improvements that should make it a great game. But if you really want to know which to get, I'd suggest renting MLB '06: The Show first, and if you don't like it, then buy the 2K game.

MLB 2K6
It's got the license, but does it got the game?
by Jonathan Miller

April 3, 2006 - Today is a great day for sports fans. Not only are Florida and UCLA fighting it out for the NCAA basketball title, but it's opening day of the Major League Baseball season. There's only one reason the IGN staff is not at an Irish pub wreaking havoc on our livers: it's review day for MLB 2K6.

Baseball fans have been waiting for this day since 2K Sports secured the exclusive third-party MLB videogame license. That deal forced EA to move its critically acclaimed MVP series to the NCAA diamond. So other than Sony's MLB '06: The Show, 2K6 is the only other simulation baseball game on the market. So, does it hit or miss? Let's call it a foul tip.

2K6 is kind of like the old Yankee-great Whitey Ford, notorious for the movement on his pitches. The hall-of-famer was said to use his wedding ring in between throws to scuff up the ball, resulting in all sorts of unnatural action. MLB 2K6 is the same way: it's a game that lacks polish and occasionally does some questionable things, but in the end, it is still a strike.


You'll get a lot more than hot and cold zones with Inside Edge.
2K6 really shines with the new Inside Edge scouting system, which we've already covered extensively in our preview coverage. Basically, you can purchase scouting reports of opposing teams from Inside Edge, the professional scouting service that compiles mountains of data on tendencies, hot and cold zones, strengths, weaknesses. There is so much data on individual players that it probably violates a few privacy laws.

Without the Inside Edge, you approach hitters and pitchers the same way you did before. If you've scouted a pitcher, however, you'll know what pitch he is most likely to throw and in what location. All of this changes based on the count, the stance of the batter and their own histories against each other. On the mound, your catcher will actually ask for a specific pitch and give you a target location, in or out of the strike zone. This changes based on the count and the situation as well, as your catcher will have no problem calling for balls as you pitch around someone like, say, Vladimir Guerrero.

The Inside Edge adds to what is already very good presentation in a baseball title, and the feature is so cool you'll wonder why it was never a part of videogames before. Heck, it was way back in 1988 when Kirk Gibson said after the World Series that Dodgers scout Mel Didier told him that Dennis Eckersley, on a 3-2 count, against a left-handed hitter, almost always throws a backdoor slider. That's what Inside Edge can do for you. Using the Edge and the Hitter's Eye, where you guess the upcoming pitch location, can be the difference between rounding the bases or returning to the dugout.

As analog control is so en vogue these days, 2K6 introduces the Swing Stick, a fun new mechanic that improves upon button-controlled hitting in every way. Similar to EA's Load and Fire batting system in MVP, you pull the right analog stick down to load your swing. You need to time the step just as the pitcher is about to release the pitch in order to maximize power and balance. If you let up on the stick, you'll perform a contact swing. Fire the stick all the way up to unleash a power swing and hit a dinger that flies 537 feet (our longest HR).

Pitching is another bright spot of 2K6. Kush introduced a new Payoff Pitching system that adds yet another dimension to pitching control. Basically, during big counts, an aiming reticule appears and the catcher calls for a pitch. If you hit the target, you'll get an attribute boost for the rest of the game, and if you miss, you'll take a small ratings hit. Kush got the idea for Payoff Pitching while watching the Brewers' Ben Sheets in 2004 when he struck out 18 against the Braves. The producer remembers watching Sheets actually improve over the course of the game, just like Roger Clemens can sharpen his splitter down the stretch. That's what Payoff Pitching is trying to capture.

Depending on the pitcher, the controller will also shake during tense situations, like with RISP late in a ballgame. Johan Santana might not feel a thing, but any shaky pitcher will definitely feel the pressure. Heck, my controller almost broke in half when I was using Byung-Hyun Kim.

Alright, so hitting and pitching work, and they work well. Unfortunately, 2K6 falters significantly in baserunning and fielding. Let's start with baserunning. When you hit a ball with no one on base, there's a nice camera angle that swings behind the baserunner so you see the field almost through his eyes. This is especially cool when you decide to stretch a single into a double and round first base. You also get a good angle to set up a directional slide, mapped to the right analog stick. Nice.


Just a bit early.
The problem with baserunning is in the sprint mechanic. By mashing one of the face buttons, you can cause a baserunner to sprint, which 2K says adds an extra layer of control. In a way, it does, and it is fun to dig out of the box on ground balls and try to beat out the throw.

However, one could argue that baseball players sprint out of the box anyway, so there should be no need to mash a button. Instead, speed is one of those things that should be based on attributes, not the speed of your thumbs. True, the players still have speed attributes in 2K6 but if you don't use the sprint button, your players appear to loaf it. Ball players, attitude problems aside, don't loaf it to first base, period. Secondly, the mechanic just doesn't work with multiple runners on base because you can only choose one to sprint. So what you have is one guy hustling his butt off and the other baserunners jogging around, and you'll swear at the screen when one of the loafers is tagged out. The sprint is a good idea in theory and addresses an aspect of videogame baseball that we haven't yet controlled. Perhaps limiting the sprint to the batter would have been a good idea as you increase acceleration, but applying it to all baserunners makes the entire process frustrating.

Fielding and baserunning are both tied into a new physics engine that 2K has dubbed Pure Motion Physics. When changing directions, you'll feel it immediately, and you probably won't like it. Players now are very weighty and changing directions takes a lot of effort. On the base paths at full speed, that's understandable. But even at slow speeds it takes a while to change direction. In the outfield, this proves to be a bigger problem. When tracking fly balls, you'll sometimes need to make a slight change of direction. Instead of just curving your run, you now plant your foot and make a slow, sharp cut. When this happens, you'll most likely miss a catch you otherwise would have made.

2K also mapped dives to the right analog stick, but the maneuver itself is very unintuitive. When you flip the stick, there is a slight delay, then the player takes a quick stutter step, and then he dives. You'll have to flip the stick a lot earlier than you are used to in order to make a diving catch, and it takes a very long time to get used to. In the infield, throwing animations take a bit of time so players seem like they don't get the ball out of their gloves fast enough. Fielding animations look nice but sometimes you'll feel locked into an animation you don't want, especially on easy ground balls -- instead of charging forward and picking it up easy rollers, sometimes players will stop and wait for the ball. Unfortunately, the baserunner is already safe at first.

You've often heard quality ballplayers described as "five-tool players." Those are the guys that do everything well. In baseball videogames, there are five tools as well: hitting, pitching, baserunning, fielding and computer AI. Baseball is a thinking man's game, and if the AI makes mistakes, like throwing to the wrong bag, then the entire game suffers. While usually solid, there are enough cases of AI-error to warrant mention in 2K6. The first comes from a hard-core baseball fan and might not mean much to anyone else. Top of the first, leadoff hitter Adam Kennedy comes to the plate. I miss my pitches and throw three straight balls. It's 3 balls and no strikes so I throw a fastball over the middle of the plate. Now, in real life, every third base coach in America would have issued the take sign by now. It's the first hitter of the game and it's a leadoff man's job to get on base. He's probably the most important factor in scoring a run in the first inning. There's no way he swings on 3-0, not in Little League, not in college and definitely not in the bigs. Kennedy swung anyway.


Ask him if he likes playing third.
While capturing video footage today the AI made another Little League mistake. White Sox at Cubs, men on first and second, no outs. Soft line drive to second base. Second baseman makes a nice over-the-shoulder catch. The baserunners tag, but the second baseman throws to first anyway, even though both runners are standing safely on base. The first baseman drops the ball and it rolls toward the dugout. The pitcher sprints after it. The first baseman sprints after it. Even the catcher sprints after it. The third baseman looks idly by while my baserunner rounds third and heads home, which no one is covering. Score one for the Cubbies. Check out the video link below for in-game footage.

In terms of game modes, 2K6 already had a deep franchise mode and it has improved even further with the dynamic player morale system. Everything from a player's contract to his spot in the order to his performance on the field factors into his morale, which factors into a player's ratings. You'll see happy players with boosts of five points while moody players suffer. As a manager, it's your duty to handle all those egos and you can call team meetings to improve morale. On the field, you'll be prompted to argue calls every now and then, depending on how aggressive your manager is. You can button mash to raise his temper, and there's a little meter with some safe zones on it. If you hit the safe zone, you're manager has inspired his team and it receives a morale boost for the next inning. If you miss the zone, you get tossed and the CPU-controlled assistant coaches will be in charge of player substitutions -- a great touch.

There's also a GM Career mode, which is the same as Franchise except you have some extra GM goals to accomplish, like turning a profit, getting rid of problem players and signing stud free agents. The World Baseball Classic is included as well and you can replay the historic tournament with licensed logos and uniforms, although only MLB stadiums are included. Sorry Tokyo Dome fans. For some reason, you can't play with the international teams in exhibition play. That's too bad because it would have been rad to see the Yankees matched up against Team Japan.

Visually, 2K6 is not as sharp as it has been in years past. The graphics are decent but there are a few issues that keep the title from being a great looking baseball title. The default camera angle is pulled back a little too far, so pitchers appear far enough away that you can't recognize them, not even the Big Unit. The player models aren't as sharp as those in MVP 2005; the stars are reproduced well enough, but there are a lot of generic white guys in turtle necks with medium-length sideburns. There are also several hiccups in the game during cutscenes, especially when you call in pitchers from the pen, but nothing that takes away from the gameplay.

Jon Miller and Joe Morgan return in the booth and do a fine job, the best of any duo in videogame baseball, hands down. Their banter is so natural you'll feel like you're listening to an ESPN Sunday Night Baseball broadcast. They've included mail from fans with questions like, "What makes a knuckleball move the way it does?" Jeanne Zelasko and Steve Physioc introduce each game during loading screens and the two obviously recorded a ton of information on each team, including each team in the WBC. There are occasional problems, however. Although it couldn't have been Miller's fault, in Franchise he's too often said that A-Rod hasn't hit any homers or recorded any RBIs in 2005. For some reason, Miller's voice program is not recognizing the 2005 stats, so you'll hear plenty of, "He didn't hit any homeruns last year."


World Baseball Classic... check.
We really enjoyed playing online in the office. 2K Sports always shines here as it usually has the most robust online options, including leagues and tournaments. The WBC is not available for online play, but we had an enjoyable time with the pros. During development, cutscenes were causing a bit of a problem so they were eliminated, so no player intros or strikeout animations are included. Instead, the next batter simply flashes on screen, ready to swing away. In one sequence, Xbox editor Charles Onyett hit a deep fly to left field and my outfielder leaped up at the wall to go for the grab. The ball dropped and the screen immediately flashed to the next batter, so we had no idea, without looking at the scoreboard, if the ball was a home run or not.

The Skybox and the Virtual Identity Profile return. The Skybox is similar to the Crib in NBA 2K6 and is a showroom for unlockable items. It also includes air hockey, which we love. You can also download your friends' VIPs to see their tendencies, strengths and weaknesses -- think of it as your own, personal Inside Edge.

Closing Comments
MLB 2K6 is a game of nice touches, but it's still only a three-tool player. You'll love gripping and ripping with the Swing Stick, and the new pitching system is enjoyable thanks to pressure situations and payoff pitches. Inside Edge is the most significant addition to the game, and we hope to see scouting play a part in the genre in the future. But control problems with baserunning and fielding, along with a lack of general polish, keep 2K6 from being the great game it's trying to be. It's a smart game off the field with the Inside Edge and intelligent franchise mode but, in the end, MLB 2K6 is a decent baseball title and a strong base to move forward with the MLB license.