MLB Power Pros 2008 coming in July

Those short, goofy-looking people with the big baseball bats are back in action.

Game developer and publisher Konami Corp. has announced that “MLB Power Pros” will return for another season in North America. Expect the tiny, comical-looking players that populate the game to take the field on Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 2 in July, then show up on Nintendo DS later this fall.

For those who have not played “Power Pros,” think Rayman on a ball diamond. The animated characters mimic authentic major-leaguers but look instead like Fisher-Price toys, with outsized heads, feet and hands that seem merely to orbit their gumdrop-shaped bodies. They’re capable of leaping three times their height to shag fly balls, yet are shorter than the bats they wield.

In fact, “Power Pros” is derived from the Jikkyo Powerful Major League series so popular in Japan going back to 1994, and distinctive for its arcade-style play and characters with large heads that lack noses, ears and mouths. Except for slight variations in skin tone, all the characters look almost identical.

The first “Power Pros” appeared in the United States last October and wowed gamers with its attention to detail, right down to the authentic-looking ballparks. Among the game’s features is a “Success” mode where gamers can create their own players and follow them from college all the way through 10 years of major league play. Another mode called “Season” puts gamers in the role of general manager and allows them to create teams from scratch to see how they stack up against other big-league franchises.

This season, “Power Pros 2008″ adds MLB lineup changes, easier pick-up-and-play hitting and pitching controls, 40-man rosters, pitch-speed adjustment and defensive shifting, and it will allow Wii users to import their hand-crafted Miis into the game.

Additionally, a new story-based mode called “MLB Life” lets gamers live as pro ballplayers through a 20-year career — doing such things as signing contracts, buying homes and cars, working with charities and making friends in and out of the dugout.

In other words, “Power Pros” is more mature than it looks.

Though “Power Pros 2008″ is not yet rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, the original game received an “E” (everyone) and draws upon a broad audience, ranging from kids attracted to the animation, to adults who appreciate detail and realism in sports-themed games.