MLB 2K11 News and Info

[BDSooner72]

Apparently Ronnie at 2ksports promised some info today from his twitter.

Also 2ksports is bringing back the million dollar competition

http://espn.go.com/espn/thelife/videogames/blog/_/name/thegamer/id/5994789/mlb-2k11s-million-dollar-competition

[Jason]

First Trailer:

Trailer for MLB 2K11

[Ted]

I honestly see nothing new there.

[Jason]

MLB 2K11 Feature List

2K Sports has been especially quiet on the MLB 2K11 front (outside of the $1 million contest announcement) and after the comments made regarding the MLB license that has increased concern that the series isn’t going to make a strong push this year or next. With under seven weeks to go until release of the game the first details are finally here in the way of an initial features list which many will likely find uninspiring.

The big addition appears to be the “Dynamic Player Ratings” which will have real-time influence through all the game modes. The improved fielding and new player models were noted in the reveal trailer. Continue on for a look at the announced features and leave your thoughts in the comments!

Dynamic Player Ratings
Watch your favorite MLB pitcher strike out the side in a real game, then watch his stats improve in your game. Dynamic Player Ratings update in real-time through ALL game modes, including MLB Today, Franchise and My Player.

Revamped Fielding System
Completely revamped fielding system, featuring improved AI, throwing meters and landing indicators to give you more control to run down a fly ball or make the play at the plate.

My Player Mode
Guide your player through the Minor Leagues and into the history books with an improved My Player mode.

MLB Today
Stay up-to-date on the latest happenings in Major League Baseball, with timely play-by-play commentary and stat overlays pulled from real life news and box scores.

Total Control Pitching and Hitting
The battle at the plate comes to life in the palms of your hands. Paint the corners with pinpoint accuracy on the mound, and then fight off nasty sliders until you get the pitch you’re looking for at the plate.

New Player Models
Amazing attention to detail captures every intricacy of the game. Enjoy completely rebuilt player models for Major League authenticity like never before.

Source: PastaPadre.com

[Ted]

I suspect they are phoning this one in.

[BDSooner72]

MLB 2K10 was not that bad.  Honestly if they can clean up the franchise issues and make online playable (something neither baseball game has done) I will be content.  At this point in the current gen there really is not a lot that you can add to a game and not have it be considered fluff.  I mean the big thing for this years MLB The Show is analog pitching and hitting.  Madden had that worthless ask madden 2.0 playcalling system as it's big feature.  The only game that is adding a lot of new features is Tiger Woods and that series is about 5 years behind where it should be and all of the features so far seem pretty legit.

NHL 11 is pretty much the same game as last year with real physics and new teams. Most of the time was spent on gameplay tweaks. I hate calling the Ultimate Hockey team something new since Fifa lead the way with it a year ago.  NCAA 11 improved on what it already had.  No new features, just enhancing the ones they had and tossed in more ESPN presentation and graphical tweaks.

My two favorite games of this year NCAA and NHL 11.  I will leave it at that.

[Ted]

I won't go so far as to say that 2k10 took a step backward for every gain it made in 2k9, but the lack of pop ups to the infield and foul territory strongly downgraded the experience for me.  I liked the improved fielding animations and the ability to play AA ball (only AAA in 2k9), found the expanded controls at batting allowed me to exploit a pitcher and just keep fouling off pitches if I desired.  I could never find the sweet spot and had to choose between being able to hit for realistic average and power AND not be able to exploit the foul off mechanism.

Both versions have franchise issues.  I've had to turn off trading in my dynasty because I just saw some bizarre stuff and didn't want it to take a chance of ruining a franchise that I hoped to run for many seasons.  Free agency is so lacking that I have to pretend this is some alternate baseball universe that has some kind of throw back in time to where free agency didn't exist.  I've found that any team can acquire any big name free agent name that might come up because the budget system is so liberal that every team has loads of money to work with.  So dynasty becomes this:  1.  Grab any free agent over 80 overall rating you see, even if you don't need him, because you are going to see maybe 2 or 3 each season.  2.  Really get involved in your farm system because developing the dynasty is going to be about finding minor leaguers that are able to rise up into the 70's and beyond.

Both games are borderline unplayable online and quickly grow tiresome.

2k10's "My Player" was a novelty that wore off fast although I have found a new implementation for it, but we'll see if that lasts.

2k10's presentation went backwards with the annoying flash cut between every pitch.  I'm one of the few that enjoys watching everything that goes on between the pitches.  Do we need a hurry up option?  Yes, but why make the only choices super-hurry-up and medium-hurry-up.  And John Kruk is so annoying to listen to that I feel like stuffing cotton in my ears.  I can't tell you how many times I went into Options---->Presentation Settings to look for the slider to silence just Kruk, praying that it was there somewhere.  Give me philandering Steve Phillips any day of the week.

Look at your own points though.  Clean up franchise and make online playable.  Neither addressed in that blurb.  Everything mentioned in there is stuff already in the game.  And now we're supposed to get excited by "amazing player models."

I just don't have much hope, but I'll check it out just in case.

[Jason]

MLB 2k10 had its share of problems but I found the game to be a lot of fun. I'd be shocked if 2K didn't fix the lack of pop ups and hopefully they remembered to add errors back to the game this year. I'm guessing/hoping that the "revamped fielding system" will correct the lack of errors though. Like Ted, I hope they give you the option to turn off the hurry-up option completely. I'm not holding my breath for improved online play, but I'll be happy if they can at least improve the single-player game. I really enjoyed 2K10 and I'm looking forward to 2K11. My biggest concern is that 2K will make changes to things that worked fine in previous versions.

[Jason]

TeamXbox.com has posted their preview:

When two different series from different companies cover the same sport, a debate will rage on until one of the games is ultimately buried (or loses its license). For the world of America's favorite pastime, that debate is between 2K Sports' MLB 2K series and Sony's MLB The Show. For Xbox owners the debate grows less heated as our go-to choice is the 2K series, but that doesn't mean we're going to like it without question. While MLB 2K10 showed promise from a fledgling series, it was far from perfect and needed a lot more work before it could step into the spotlight as the go-to baseball game. After some hands-on time with its follow-up MLB 2K11, I can definitely tell you that 2K Sports are taking the sport and culture seriously and are aiming to win over both the baseball purists and fair-weather sporting fans for the future.

The first real thing everyone needs to know about 2K Sports is that they listen to their community. They saw the lukewarm reviews that trickled out on MLB 2K10 and realized that they had their work cut out for them to take it to a new level. To the untrained eye, a first glance at MLB 2K11  might look strikingly similar to 2K10, but the subtle differences that have changed add up to an extremely positive whole.

The biggest feature for the game this year is the total inclusion of MLB Today. This real-world stat counter keeps track of the current baseball season and adjusts every single aspect of the game to the actual counterparts. Thus injuries, rosters, hot and cold streaks, and general effort on the real diamond are reflected in the game so that you feel more connected to the sport than ever. These stats are tracked for every player and accumulated as a 30-day average and then put into the game so that statistics are constantly dynamically updated. Much like NBA 2K11, the menus are plastered with news and updates from the real league and you'll be hard pressed not to be informed of current standings.

Trying to make the experience feel less random and less like a game, the development team has tweaked the game's fielding to be more realistic overall. First of all, when you hit the ball into the outfield, the camera hangs back as though you're watching the ball fly from the batter's perspective. This gives less of a tell to the outfielders where it's going to land, much like in the real world. And whereas 2K10 had a giant black shadow exactly where the ball is going to drop, 2K11 gives you the general circle of drop for just a second, then whittles itself down to a single target where you're going to have to react quickly to catch the ball.

On the note of detail, some additions have been implemented to bring out the high drama of the game. As a tense no-hitter progresses through the innings, pitchers are going to show their tension or frustration, base coaches are going to be shown coaching at the bases. Pitchers, like the Giants' Tim Lincecum, show their traditional stance on the mound. Using hours of captured footage of famous players doing their thing, 2K Sports aims for an air of authenticity when you see a famed batter stepping out of the box to dust off a shoe, or walking off the field when struck-out.

For the purists, 2K noted that for home games, the default pitcher camera is set to the exact camera of a city's local sports station. Thus for a fan playing with their home team, they're going to notice the feel of watching the experience on television, and definitely realize once they've hit the road for away games.

The ball physics have been rewritten so that its reactions to dirt, grass and brick are all new. The the ball can fade in different directions and it isn't always the difference of a single pixel for a strike or a ball. Runners caught between bases can hold the two triggers rather than tap a single direction so that they can make the call when to run at the right moment. And overall errors don't happen randomly. They claimed you won't see the same fielding mistakes present in MLB 2K9. Errors are situation-dependent in that yes, a shortstop might just fumble a hard grounder, but a pop-fly won't be missed under the right conditions.

Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay provided advice and suggestions for a lot of the development process. He correct the dev team when they had something wrong and explained how certain situations in the game work out from his point of view. This expert testimony from the big leagues definitely pays off in the game as it all further exemplifies the attention to detail found in this experience.

2K Sports is once again offering up $1,000,000 to anyone who can pitch a perfect game this year. Last year that triumph was accomplished within hours of the game releasing. But this time around the contest is following slightly augmented rules. Players will have thirty days to practice their throws from the time the game releases to the time of the season opener. Then, players will be using a team with stats dictated by MLB Today so the perfect game will be dependent on real world performance compounded by the individual player's skill.

At the time of the current preview, 2K Sports weren't talking about the Franchise mode or any multiplayer elements, but the factors will be revealed in the coming weeks between now and release time. Now MLB 2K11 isn't going to be the perfect jump for everyone, but the work on the details and the feel of America's favorite game are definitely pushing the series in a direction that is going to pay off.

[Jason]

I'm not loving the news about the fly ball camera.

[Ted]

2k series is 10 years old and he called it a "fledgling series."

[Jason]

I played a game of MLB 2K10 over the weekend and had forgotten just how good the commentary is in that game. After playing mostly EA Sports games lately, you can really see how much better 2K's commentary is. The game itself is still quite enjoyable and I just hope they don't ruin any of the good things in 2K11.

[Jason]

I just pre-ordered MLB 2K11 for $45.99 from Amazon.com. They dropped the price to $55.99 and were offering a $10 credit on a future purchase, but the $10 came right off the price of my order. I wonder if I'll get the $10 credit too after the game ships

[BDSooner72]

I need to test that too. Off to pre order all my March games.

[BDSooner72]

And off to find somewhere else to buy my games.  They have pretty much eliminated the 99 cent release date delivery (only 3 pre ordershad it available and they were all $49.99 games).  Then after using one day shipping they showed it would arrive the 10th, two days after being in stores. I wish they would go back to the $5.99 and guarantee release date delivery and have it for most every game.


I did not show that extra $10 off. I did show you got $10 off the next purchase.  Maybe you had $10 credit sitting out there from the last game you purchased.