European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 15, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 scene stars and stripes sunday april 15 2007 to Diamond Jubilee the show leads off roster of baseball games three predictions for 2007 the cardinals wont make it Back to the world series Barry Bonds wont break Hank Aarons Al time Home run record and a scrappy second baseman named Lou Kesten will impress mets scouts but not enough to earn a major league contract the baseball Calendar May just be starting but Ive already slowed through the 2007 season using two different console baseball games i cant Tell you who wins the world series the two games didst agree on the Champ but can say that Alfonso Soriano is going to have a Heck of a year a Wrigley but which baseball game is right for you if you have an Box 360 you Only have one Choice major league baseball 2k7 but playstation owners have a tougher decision Between two pretty Good titles each with various pluses and minuses picking a favorite really depends on what you seek mob 07 the show the High Light of Sony new baseball Sim is Road to the show in which you create a ballplayer from scratch and then try to work your Way up through the minors and into the big leagues you experience Only the plays that your character is involved in anytime youre at Bat on base or in position to make a defensive play and fast Forward through the rest of the game so its easy to play through a full season in an afternoon its a fresh addictive Challenge and its undeniably thrilling to come up to the plate with the game on the line in the ninth inning Sony Carlos Delgado swings for the fences in mob 07 the show a new game for the playstation 2 the Core Gam play in mob 07 builds on the solid foundation Sony introduced last year mainly with tweaks to the pitching mechanics the graphics on the ps2 Are somewhat fuzzy and generic the ps3 version wont be out until next month and we expect it to take better advantage of the new consoles More powerful processors until then however mob 07 delivers a fast paced realistic version of americas pastime with Road to the show serving As icing on the cake platform playstation 2 playstation portable later for playstation 3 on the web  major league baseball 2k7 the 2k folks have been turning but Good baseball games for years now but there Are still a few kinks to work out the major Issue i have with baseball 2k7 is that the pitch ers Mound seems too close to the plate pitches of any Speed come in so fast that its hard to judge whether there in the strike zone before you Start your swing newcomers should expect a lot of flailing strikeouts before they get the hang of batting beyond that problem 2k7 remains the Slickest looking baseball title play ers actually resemble their real life counterparts Dontrelle Willis has that crazy leg kick while Jim Edmonds is a dare Devil in the Outfield the developers have also revamped the games menus making it much easier tomake trades or otherwise tinker with your teams chemistry but a handful of glitches and a sometimes draggy Pace its slow even by base Ball standards keep 2k from hitting this one out of the Park platforms Box 360 playstation 3 Box playstation 2 on the web map 07 Mcaa baseball if you prefer the Clank of aluminium to the crack of a wooden Bat map is the game for you it lets you choose from More than 150 College teams and play in More bucolic settings than say Yan Kee stadium in essence though map feels like a Way for a to maintain a baseball presence while its waiting to win Back the rights to produce a major league title the major innovation of map 07 is its Rock and fire pitching system which requires you to use the analog stick to determine Speed location and accuracy its a worthwhile companion to last years analog batting system and it feels completely natural once you get used to it Fielding and base running still feel Sloppy however and the Overall presentation is drab and uninspired platform playstation 2 on the web mvp07 map Casba sesh Del Jam icon a beat est this is not a hiphop game that the phrase i kept repeating to myself but 1 should have typed it in some huge and bold font and taped it to my television any self respecting self proclaimed hiphop head would need the reminder while playing this game otherwise Veteran hiphop artist Nas proclamation is True hiphop is dead and in this Case the culprits Are electronic arts and def Jam interactive but this is not a hiphop game so ill save my Soapbox rants for a different forum and write about an extremely dope def Jam icon for the playstation 3 its just two hairs Short of a masterpiece a and def Jam have set the bar really High for fighting games its straight to fisticuffs and its simple Knock out your opponent or get knocked out its this raw edginess that sets icon apart from the rest of the fighting game genre the rated icon boasts the Best graphics Ive seen in my Short ps3 lifetime i most liked How the screens Hue or saturation changes according to the fighters health a serious psychedelic effect choose from six fighting styles like ghetto blaster or Black Panther and you get More than 20 hiphop artists during it out on eight Well crafted venues the to spots for icon say music is your weapon on each venue there Are several different hazards that can inflict More damage to you or your opponents fighter the hazards Are in sync with the preselected music when the songs Baseline drops the Gas pumps at the Gas station explode and  blow your fighters Hind parts to the other Side of the lot and the controls youre also capable of changing soundtracks or bringing the song Back to the Point where a Hazard is triggered like a do the whole premise of icon is the music business build a Label Mode starts your fighter at the Bottom As raw Talent and you have to work your Way to icon status youre essentially a music producer in charge of hiphop artists youre really like an enforcer or prob Lem solver say for instance Young jeez is having trouble with a crazed fan who actually named Stan like the Eminem your fighter Steps in to handle it Knock him out problem solved this is your Job keep your artists Happy and out of trouble and  hit the studio to create music More often More music equals More Money to swell your Bank Book and More Money equals happiness for everyone Basic utilitarianism in the rap game however with the negative stereo types in mind i fear the inevitable its Only a matter of time before it gets into the hands of an impressionable minor and in afraid he or she will think this is what hiphop music is All about so have fun and try to keep this away from kids platforms playstation 3 and Box 360 on the web  com up 12 q 3 in o a a o cd o cd o cd v