2010 Year of the Solo Sim Sports gamer?

Was 2010 the best year for Sim sports gaming on the new generation of consoles? I say yes. With games like NCAA Football 11, MLB The Show 10, MLB2K11, NHL11, FIFA 11, and NBA2K11, this year has finally brought back the gameplay and upgrades many sports gamers have been crying for since the Next Generation consoles released several years ago.

With less and less time to play in leagues and such, I have found myself going back to offline gaming and sports games used to be a staple for me back in the day. Here are a few of my experiences with the new sports games from 2010 taken from an offline perspective.
NCAA Football 11: Im back! My favorite series of all time finally put it all together this year with great gameplay on the field, graphics, and sliders that finally work to give it that sim feel. The difference in this game from the 10 version and Madden is night and day. It seems the developers are finally making their own game now instead of pulling from Madden each year. They also seem to be listening to the feedback from the community more as well and that has made the biggest change in my opinion.



MLB The Show 10: Perhaps the best baseball game of all time and a sim gamers dream. Playing this game is like being at the park as the graphics are sweet, but the gameplay is rock solid all around and reminds me of the High Heat sim experience of the past. This is another game developed with the community feedback in mind and it shows. This also shows the power and possibilities the PS3 has to offer when it comes to in house sports games. If only this game could get the online part fixed, this would be game of the year every year.





MLB2K11: This may be the surprise of the year for me. The Show is better all around, but something about this game makes me want to play it more. The pitching interface is new and unique. The graphics are different as well and stand out more. If the fielding is improved along with the online play, this game could compete in the future with the show as it is certainly a more user friendly game to jump in and play.



NBA2K11: The greatest of all time is back and may have made the greatest video basketball game as well. When you first turn this game on and follow Jordan out of the tunnel to play against Magic and the Lakers, it brings back so many memories from the good ole days of basketball. This game screams realism from the tip off. This game may have the best player animations of any sports game today. Try a jumpshot with Jordan and Kobe and it will look dead on. With a few slider tweaks, you will see accurate statistics from the teams and players themselves. The atmosphere is one of the best ever with crowds that go nuts at the end of a game and music that plays to pump you up during tense situations. This is my game of the year when it comes to sports games period!

To sum, 2010 finally brought back some of the best gameplay and features we have not enjoyed since the older XBOX and PS2 days. The future is certainly bright if developers continue on this path and listen to the community feedback and continue the sim approach to game development.