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Pleasureable Baseball Experience | | Cameron from MA USA says (1/Feb/2004): | My friend brought over World Series Baseball 2K1 after his Dreamcast broke and said "Here, Cam, you can have it." I have to admit, I had some mixed feelings about this game before playing. I like to read reviews for games. Some were good, some were... not so good. So I plugged in my controller, and popped the disc in. Well, let me tell you, this is quite a game.
The menu design isnt the best I've seen for a baseball game, but there are quite a few modes to choose from, and all of them are great. I chose exhibition and chose my favorite team, the Boston Red Sox. The team select screen is nifty, because it shows the locations of all the home teams' stadiums. Let's get into the real game.
The graphics? In 2 words - Visual Concepts. Man, these graphics are the best I've ever seen in a baseball game before. The player animations are crystal clear, the faces are extremely detailed and based on the player, and the game animation is as smooth as butter... or margerine, it depends on what you think is smoother.
The gameplay? Well, it's kind of evened out. One bad/good/weird thing is that the game fields for you. Notice I included all three here. The bad side is that the computer sometimes makes completely idiotic mistakes. The ball gets hit into center field, the center fielder runs in the opposite direction, but then quickly jumps back and cathes the ball. It's really weird. Now, the good thing is that the computer can make an absolutely fabulous play most of the time, so you don't have to get all stressed out about where the ball will be hit. It's overall a very unique, but clichéd, idea.
Pitching is almost like all other games. Almost. You select a pitch by pressing the analog direction along with the a button, and a meter appears. You can actually control the strength of the pitch, unlike in other games (MLB and Triple Play series). But, in order for you to know what pitch you're throwing, you have to either 1. look in the manual or 2. memorize the pitch types. This kind of is a drag, for my friend never gave me the manual. But if you've got a good memory, then everything's good.
The batting is a blast. It's slightly difficult at first, but you'll get used to it. You hold in the R trigger, and when the pitch comes, you release it so swing. You have a cursor, and in order for you to get a good hit, you have to move it to where the ball is, and swing at the right time. To hit a home run, the cursor has to be dead-on. But it gets easier over time. It's a blast.
The in-game scoreboard interface is another strong point. When the teams come out onto the field when the game starts, it shows the pitcher, each with his specific stance, form, and strong points written in a box while he's warming up. The scoreboard is basic, with the inning, and the score of both teams. The field-tracker shows the shape of the field, with a white dot as the ball, and yellow dots as the runners. But what's cool is that it also shows the fielders. A new thing that might seem obvious, but kudos to Sega for having it in there.
The stadiums reflect their real-life counterparts, with details such as the shape, the wall size (to scale) and the dugouts even.
The audio is kinda quirky. The announcer is both a good thing and a bad thing, because he sounds like a real baseball announcer, but his voice is kind of monotone. The crowd is pretty good too, with shouts, screams, and whistles. They never cheer for the away team, and if an all-star steps up to bat, they go wild. But please, they need someone else to sing the National Anthem!
Overall, this game is a relaxing, but still fantastic baseball game to have. Despite reviews by the so-called "hardcore gamers", this deserves a spot in any baseball fan's collection. It might not be up to par with the other games in the 2K series, but I think Sega got past the regular season and are into the playoffs with this one!
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