Underplayed Gems

ESPN Baseball 2K4 (2004)

Platforms
PlayStation 2
Genres
Sport
The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

Playing it feels like managing and competing in a meticulously presented, broadcast-style baseball match where strategy and timing on the mound matter as much as the swing.

realistic sports simcompetitivepolished presentationstrategicmoderate difficultyauthentic broadcast feelmethodical pacing

About

Spiritual successor to World Series Baseball, ESPN MLB raises the bar with Power Pitching, Online Gameplay and ESPN presentation featuring Jon Miller and Karl Ravech. Take complete control of the mound with new pitches, pitch speeds, pitch interface, pitch animations, pitcher momentum and exclusive ESPN K-Zone pitch analysis. Experience seamless online gameplay for PlayStation 2. Hundreds of new, break-through animations including broken bats, mound conferences, on-deck batters, curtain calls, and player reactions. The developers also added a new General Manager Mode -- now you'll have to answer to the owners if you can't keep your club running on all cylinders. If you don't make wise decisions, you can get fired by your team or, if successful, be lured away by other teams.

More games like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.