Off the Shelf Media

This game is a 10/10. I don’t care what my final score says because it “technically” doesn’t have a story so I can’t give it the full score. MVP Baseball 2005 is an all-time classic and the greatest baseball game ever made. It was a precursor to the MLB: The Show franchise and has earned its place in the PS2 Hall of Fame. That being said, I have to stick to the rules of this organization and put my personal feelings aside. But we all know this game is a perfect 10/10.

Gameplay: 2

The fact that these gameplay mechanics are still available in every other baseball videogame franchise speaks volumes to the impact of this game. The controls are easy to remember and that’s critical for a sports game.

Game modes consist of Exhibition, Dynasty Mode where you play through a full season as your favorite team, Owner Mode (more on that under Story), Manager Mode which is a simulation, and new mini-games.

Each mode is customizable with fantasy drafts, turning budgets on or off, unfair trades, umpire-blown calls, and more. I like how the gamer gives control to the player. I can have a game mode where I do a fantasy draft and make a super team or I can play as a B+ team and see how far I can make it.

You can also create a player and draft them into your Dynasty team. You can make them 6’11 and weigh 150 pounds with bulging arms and toothpick legs. When I was a kid I made a full roster of genetic freaks and maxed out their stats and put them all on a team. It took a few hours to make everything but it was worth it.

The new mini-games include an addicting hitting mini-game where you get points for hitting the ball in a certain part of the ballpark, a pitching Tetris-like mini-game focused on accuracy and precision, and Home Run showdown where you and a friend compete in a split-screen home run derby.

Baseball is a long game and a full 9-inning game can take 30+ minutes. You can simulate an entire season and go straight to the playoffs.

When it comes to gameplay, the rules, difficulty, and what mode you want to play is completely up to you and that’s the best gift a developer can give to a gamer.

Story: 1

Technically there is no narrative to this game but I’m going to make my case for Owner Mode. In Owner mode you pick a team, you have a budget, and you manage all aspects of the team.

“As the owner, you and your staff will have 30 years to make your organization successful and ultimately retire with as much net worth as you can accumulate.”

This game mode is challenging because you have to stay within budget for everything. Players need to stay happy. If they take the bus they will be mad and not play as well, but you won’t have the budget for a team jet for a while.

Fans need to be motivated to come to the ballpark. Which means you have to adjust ticket pricing and concessions accordingly. You can also run promotions to draw fans in but don’t spend too much.

You have to manage your coaches and staff and how they perform affects how your players play when you simulate games. If you play badly you won’t draw fans and can’t make money.

You make money through ticket sales, concessions, advertising and TV contracts, upgrading your park, and winning games.

It’s not a traditional narrative but you do put yourself as the main character of the organization and you get to write your own story by choosing what you want to upgrade first. You have to juggle and balance the needs of the fans and the needs of the players compared to your budget.

It’s unique for a sports game and it’s the closest thing this game has to a story so I give it 1 point for a brand-new game mode never seen before but replicated many times since.

Atmosphere: 2

Imagine a game where you unlock skins or characters by playing the game. That’s what MVP Baseball 2005 did masterfully. This was years before microtransactions ruined unlockables in video games.

There are 119 different uniforms, 15 stadiums, and 63 players you can unlock with MVP points. MVP points are earned by playing games and completing tasks. Or you can go into the create a character, name him Katie Roy and you unlock everything from the jump. Ahhhh cheats, the best part of gaming as a kid.

All of that adds to the atmosphere of a fantastic game. You can have Pedro Martinez pitch against Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, and Ty Cobb in the Polo Grounds. As a baseball fan, it doesn’t get any better than that.

Older stadiums also have a 1930s filter to make it look like an old game. It adds so much to the experience and gives you a baseball history lesson.

Negro League players were also included. The Negro Leagues is a dark part of the MLB’s history but I tip my cap to them for not running away from it. They respect the players and their history and the game and deserve to be commended. Prior to playing, I had no idea what the Negro Leagues was or who Satchel Paige was but this game introduced me to that history and it made me love the game of baseball even more.

The graphics for the game were good for 2005, but to be honest, they don’t look great today. Some of the character models are generic and bland, especially if you aren’t a famous player. Ichiro looks like Ichiro but Tim Salmon looks like a standard create-a-player. It’s a 20-year-old game so they get some slack and MVP 05 looked a lot better than MVP 04 so it gets a pass.

This game is also famous for its soundtrack. Tessie, Honest Mistake, The I-Roc Z Song, and many, many more rock your speakers while you’re surfing through the menus. You can spend a lot of time in the menu system looking at stats or changing your lineup so a good soundtrack is important to the game. And they nail it.

A sports game also needs good announcers and I have no idea who these 2 guys are but they had great chemistry. They have enough lines to keep it fresh and not repetitive. Hell, it’s better than some commentary in modern sports games.

Value: 2

This game was worth $50 in 2005 and it’s worth $50 today. This game is full of content for you to play on your own or with friends. It’s easy for anyone to learn and get good at.

One critique is how much space it took up on the memory card. My brother and I shared a memory card and it was tough deleting some other games to make room for two Dynasty modes. It took up 1,600kb which was insane for the time. It’s hard to value a game when it requires too much space to play, but I always deleted something because this game was above all others.

Duration: 2

I’ve been playing this game for almost 20 years. It is well worth the $50 and then some. As the game gets older, I think of new ways to play it. What if I made a team of Hall of Famers? It’s 2024, a lot of players in this game eventually went to the Hall of Fame. That extends the lifespan of this game for many years to come.

I’m at 500 hours and counting!

Final Score & Final Thoughts: 9/10

It’s a shame EA canceled the game series but I would have bought MVP Baseball 2006, 2007, 2008, and I’d still buy them if they were coming out today. It’s known as the greatest baseball game of all time for a reason, and that’s because it’s fun. It was fun in 2005 and it will still be fun in 2025. I like playing as my classic lineup and going back and thinking ‘Oh yeah, this guy existed.’

I want to know what your fantasy lineup was. I’ll end this review with my starting 9 and 5-man pitching rotation.