Which MLB Video Game Should I Buy?

Here's a true confession: I love sports video games. I'm the proud owner of a Playstation 2, and can kick my kids' butts in Madden, NCAA Football and March Madness. I also like baseball video games, with EA Sports MVP Baseball being my traditional game of choice.

I buy a new baseball game every spring. A few years ago, the realism of the games left much to be desired. Every hitter would jack 600 foot dingers, and the games would end up with scores like 30-28. This was fun for a while, but the arcade stuff gets old faster than you might think. Over the past three or four years, however, EA Sports improved its baseball game dramatically, and last year's MVP Baseball 2005 was just awesome.

Unfortunately, EA's major league game isn't an option this year. MLB signed a semi-exclusive deal with Take-Two Interactive, making that company the sole third-party provider of an MLB licensed video game for the next several years. That means EA Sports is out of the baseball picture, and I'm in a bit of a quandry about which game to buy.

Take-Two's 2K Sports division is coming out with MLB 2K 6, which is going to be released in a couple of weeks. However, because Sony makes the PS2, it is considered a "first party" provider and has its own MLB licensed game, MLB 06: The Show. That game's been out for a month or so, but the reviews I've read on it have been mixed. I've looked at videos of the two games, however, and Sony's graphics seem much nicer than the ones I've seen for MLB 2K6. On the other hand, if the game play sucks, good graphics aren't enough to make a game worthwhile.

Of course, EA Sports hasn't abandoned baseball completely. If I want their software engine, I can buy MVP 06 NCAA Baseball. I've got nothing against college baseball, but it doesn't have the same appeal to me that college football does, so I don't want to buy two games.

I'm not sure how much longer I can stand the stress of this potentially life altering decision. Sure, I keep a brave front, but having a decision of this magnitude hanging over my head is definitely wearing me down.