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Can
it be true? Has the long wait finally come to an end? After months of delays,
Sony has actually released their long-awaited baseball title, MLB Pennant Race,
just in time for the World Series (Geez, talk about just getting it in under the
gun). This had to be one of the most eagerly anticipated sports title for the
Playstation.
Even though I have Triple Play '97, I just had to go out
and purchase this game. Well, I wasn't sorry ...kind of ....for the most
part.....
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All
of the major baseball licenses have been obtained, so we are treated to fully
rendered, accurate views of baseball stadiums, player uniforms, team logo's and
colors. Player statistics and characteristics were accumulated by STATS and
include all of the 1995 player stats. Considering the fact that the 1996
baseball season is over, why Sony didn't include 1996 stats is a shame. Oh
well, guess we have to wait for Pennant Race '97 next October!
The character graphics, while kinda cartoony at first glance, are
animated incredibly well. Easily blowing away Triple Play's graphics. Batters
stances can be altered in the box and you can also move your player right, left,
forward, back. I was very pleased with the overall character depiction. The
batters show no signs of pixelation. If I didn't know better, I'd think that
the Playstation was using anti-aliasing techniques to smooth out the players.
It's that good. The fielding animations are equally impressive. There are an
enormous variety of motions used to present each play. The character's move and
react just like the real thing. Awesome job.
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The
sound effects are splendid. They really bring the "feel" of a real
baseball game to your TV. Crowd noises are very well done and not "looped"
like in some other baseball games. The crowd cheers and roars at the
appropriate times (although I haven't heard any "boo's" yet!). When
the crowd isn't ranting, we are treated to the wonderful play by play commentary
of Jerry Coleman. Sony did an excellent job in this category. The play by play
is mostly accurate and timely. When a batter comes to the plate, his previous
accomplishments for the game are identified in addition to the players name. I
did experience some errors, such as the second batter coming to the plate and
the announcer saying "and now up first...", but this sort of thing
doesn't happen often and when it does, it's often good for a laugh. The player
names, for the most part, are pronounced accurately along with the batters
fielding position. The crack of the bat, player slides and catching sounds are
some of the best yet produced in a baseball simulation. The music is your
typical organ grinder, in between inning fare. All in all, very nicely done!
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This
game is highly playable. There are an incredible amount of options and stats
tracking that would please even the hardcore baseball fanatic. Practically every
statistic and category you would want is nicely covered. You have the option of
playing in exhibition, season, playoff and home run derby modes. In the
exhibition mode you can choose to play in any stadium and through all the
gameplay modes you have the option of selecting a day or night game, setting the
wind factor, etc.
You can trade and create players and even start
your own player pool that you can draw from to make your very own "dream
team" a reality. Pitching is also very nicely done.
Your
pitcher has three pitch selections that actually match that pitchers best
throws. Pitch speed can be slow, medium or fast. You then pick which part of
the plate you would like to see the ball go to. As in real baseball, not every
throw the pitcher makes is on the money. If you choose a slow curveball for
instance , chances are it will not go exactly where you picked it to. This adds
a realism to the pitching game that has not been as apparent in previous titles.
On defense you can select the infield and outfielder positions during
each pitch selection. You can move the infielder to normal coverage, bunt,
double play depth, shallow or cover the corners. The outfielders can play
normal, shallow or deep. Nice touch! Base-running is intuitive and easily the
best configuration to date.
Sony has really utilized their controller
to best effect. Base-runners can steal, lead, dive head or feet first, fake,
tag up, etc. Fielders can dive, jump and use speed burst. A jump is
accompanied with a very realistic player grunt. Excellent! The nicest part
though is a screen select option that can be chosen during each pitch that will
bring up all of the controller functions for base-running, fielding, batting,
throwing and pitching. What a great idea!!
There is even an arcade mode that enables the game to move along at a
much faster pace than sim mode. In the arcade mode you can control the pitcher
ball all the way to the plate. This creates some truly memorable pitches
(loops, enormous curves) and makes it very easy to consistently bean the batter.
Fun stuff!! Rosters can be changed on the fly, and there is even a radar gun to
measure the speed of each pitch. You also have a distance meter for hits, auto
fielding and ball marker options, instant replay and multiple camera angles .
Each game can be played in one to nine innings and lineup changes are saved to
the memory card.
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Is
this game the perfect baseball simulation you may ask?? Well almost, but there
a few problems ...When pitching in Rookie Mode you get a green stamina bar that
never seems to go down. Doesn't the pitcher ever get tired??? (yeah, I know,
it's rookie mode what do you expect) There is no accounting for injuries and
player hot/cold streaks. The memory card manager menu sucks and each game is
saved under the name "pennant race". I can't tell which game is saved
where or what save is a game or a lineup configuration. That really pisses me
off. That being said, this game easily blows away anything else out there for
the PSX. You have none of the pixelation and choppyness of TP '97, better
graphics than any other baseball game and all of the stats and game "feel"
is nicely covered. Just think, next years Pennant Race game will be even
better. This is truly an awesome baseball game that was worth the wait. If you
like baseball games you will want to add this little gem to your library. One
player mode is challenging and fun and the two player mode is a blast. I highly
recommend this game to everyone.
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MARTIN |
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GRAPHICS: |
Good |
Well,
I'm at my 26th game of the regular season. Player control is tight as ever but
I do occasionally experience some announcer chopping. Of course this may be due
to the fact that my Playstation is overheating from constant use!
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SOUND: |
Average |
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PLAYABILITY: |
Good |
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VALUE: |
Good |
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OVERALL
8/10 |
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JIM |
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GRAPHICS: |
Good |
Another
very playable baseball game. |
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SOUND: |
Good |
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PLAYABILITY: |
Good |
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VALUE: |
Good |
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OVERALL
8/10 |
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