Whereas
the battle for video game baseball dominance seems to be resting in the annual
struggle between EA’s MVP Baseball series and 2K’s MLB franchise, the latter is
delivering a different kind of baseball experience that favors fast-paced arcade
action instead of a sim-heavy one. The BIGS from 2K Sports takes another route
from the publisher’s MLB series, by taking away the simulation elements and
Season modes and adding only the elements that make baseball fun to watch,
namely big plays and intense situations. For the most part, The BIGS succeeds in
providing a compelling baseball game, but the PSP version does fall prey to some
issues, like sluggish controls and a lack of features. Still, if your looking
for an exciting baseball game to play on your PSP, then The BIGS is the best
(albeit only) game in town.
Like any
number of arcade style sports games, The BIGS offers the standard conventions,
like a turbo bar and a charged special meter. Your players can do some pretty
fantastical moves, like banking off of the walls in order to snag a deep,
potential homerun for a catch. The bigger moves that you perform, the better
score you get. The main focus of the gameplay is the dynamic between pitchers
and batters. Strikeouts will garner you a small boost in your special meter,
while bit hits will give you even more of a boost, as well as lower the
pitcher’s rating in whatever pitch got clocked. If you lose enough of your
rating in a given pitch, then you’ll lose the ability to use that pitch for the
rest of the game.
The
struggle between the pitcher and the batter is most apparent when Duel Mode is
engaged. If both teams have a full special meter and they each activate it, then
you’ll go into Duel Mode, where the pitcher’s pitching stats are maxed out and
the batter will knock the ball out of the park if he connects. Each side has
little room for error, making for a pretty suspenseful and engaging match up
every time.
Unfortunately, the PSP mode does have some problems that put it a step behind
its console brethren. The controls aren’t very tight, and there’s a weird little
pause before everything that you do. This is apparent when battling and
pitching, but it’s a big problem in fielding. The fielding controls are not
intuitive whatsoever, and you’ll often have a fielder just stand there when
they’re the one who should be closing in on the ball. This can lead to lose
bases, missed outs, and a lot of frustration.
In lieu of
a Season mode, The BIGS offers the Rookie Challenge, with has you taking a
rookie player and having you build up his attributes through training
mini-games, as well as your team as a whole by stealing player from teams that
you’ve beaten. In order to get to the player steal, however, you must complete
at least two other challenges against the opposing team. These will require
something of your created character, usually entailing a certain number of hits
or even a certain number of homeruns.
The Rookie
Challenge is a good addition, but it has its share of problems. For starters,
the challenge doesn’t really focus as much on your player as it should. You
still do the same things that you would do in an exhibition game, and your
character’s chosen position doesn’t really affect the outcome. The only way to
gain more points to beef up your attributes is to get hits and runs, and there
really aren’t any extra incentives for playing good defense, as this doesn’t
affect your player’s ratings whatsoever. Secondly, you can’t be a pitcher in the
Rookie Challenge. It would’ve been really cool to be able to choose your
character’s pitch set and build them up in that regard, but this can’t be done
in The BIGS. Also, there isn’t a whole lot of variety to the challenges, making
the whole things a bit repetitive after a couple of hours.
Graphically, the game looks pretty good on the PSP, but has some problems. The
character models are well animated and move pretty nicely. The players’ faces
are also pretty well done. However, the game does falter a bit with slowdown.
The sound
is also a bit of a mixed bag. The soundtrack is pretty nice (also the whole “2K
Beats” thing is a little too reminiscent of “EA Trax”) featuring a nice blend of
rock tracks from bands like Screaming Trees and Stone Temple Pilots rounding out
the bill. The commentary is well delivered, but it does get repetitive and
sounds choppy at some points.
The BIGS
is a fun, arcade-style approach to baseball, but doesn’t get too bogged down
with over-the-top elements. The game is easy to get into, and shouldn’t annoy
baseball purists who enjoy sim-heavy elements. While the PSP version stumbles a
bit with control issues and a lack of some of the bigger features in the console
versions, it’s still an engaging baseball game to play on the go.
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Gameplay: 7.0
The BIGS captures
the spirit of baseball, with huge exciting plays and some intense pitcher-batter
situations adding to the game. However, the PSP version has some control issues,
and the Rookie Challenge has its fair share of shortcomings. The loss of Home
Run Pinball is pretty saddening.
Graphics: 7.5
The BIGS is a good
looking game on the PSP, with well animated characters and some nice facial
effects. The slowdown can be a bit of a problem sometimes.
Sound: 7.0
A nice selection of
music and solid sound effects round this one out, but the choppy and repetitive
commentary hurts the score.
Difficulty: Medium
Concept: 7.0
The game creates a
nice balance, offering arcade play without being too bogged down with overly
fantastical elements. However, the PSP version is missing some of the key
elements of the console versions, like the fun Home Run Pinball mode.
Multiplayer: 7.0
The game’s
multiplayer play is pretty solid, but ad-hoc only.
Overall: 7.0
The BIGS is a fun
and addicting baseball game with some really solid elements. While the PSP
version has its share of foibles, it still does a great job of capturing the
spirit of the game.
