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Title: Bad News Baseball
Author:Tecmo
Rom Player: Nesticle/RockNESX
Reviewer: Judastein
Synopsis: I always used to play this game when I was younger, and I thought it was one of the better baseball games out there. In recent years, I have played them on the emulators along with pretty much every other baseball game for NES, and I would have to say this is my favourite to play. The gameplay is quite good, although there are a few animation flaws which can lead to both frustration or happiness.. depending on whether you can take advantage of them. For example, a routine ground ball to the shortstop could be caught by the 2nd baseman before reaching first base if you don’t move him out of the way before the throw. Also, this game has no knowledge of the infield fly rule, so you can easily get out of a difficult situation by letting a harmless popup drop and score the easy double or even triple play.
The Graphics are decent for a NES game, and the cut scenes for close plays at bases or after home runs add more excitement to the regular game. After the game there is a recap page that shows all the names of players that hit homeruns, and shows other basic stats of the recent game. This page is followed by a Rabbit (the umpire?) in some kind of steaming pool..After wondering about this for a few minutes I have come to the conclusion that the umpire is relaxing after a hard game of umpiring.. how original. Above this rabbit is your password code to get back to the spot that you currently reached.
There is about 8-10 different songs in this game, depending on what game you are on in terms of playing all the teams. The music is quite well done for a NES game. There is sound in this game, for when there is a “Strike” or “Ball” or “Out”.. but thats about it. I never heard these sounds when I played this game on Nesticle back in the day, mind you. I did hear them with RockNES though.
This game is quite original, having the option to play with All-Star teams. You also have the option to use spectator mode, which basically allows you to watch two computer teams play. There is also the token black guy in the celebration line after a homerun, for comedy relief.. I think? After striking out for the third out in the inning, the batter may begin slamming his bat repeatedly on the ground, before the transition part of the inning. There are several teams to play with.. My personal favourites were Toronto, Oakland and Boston. All teams have a few great hitters, a few fast guys, and some just all around decent, clutch players, both offensively and defensively. The players, who appear to be young kids, all have everyday names, like Freddy, Gene etc. Although there are a few questionable names.. like Oral and Dick. (No offense to anyone with those names)
This game was a blast to play, especially when playing with your friends. I can recall high scoring games in the 30s when we’d play when we were young. It gets very difficult to hit well once you win your first few games against the computer, and you will often only hit the ball barely past the pitcher. This can become frustrating, but by the time you reach the final game you should have grasped the skill of hitting the ball well more often than not. I won’t lie and say you are going to hit the ball a lot when you first start playing. Odds are if you aren’t striking out, you are hitting very flimsy ground balls that look like you intended to bunt the ball. Have some patience, and even try learning the game by playing with All-Star Mode. These batters can really hit well, and will give you some confidence. Keep in mind though, that the pitchers are All-Stars, too.
I’d also recommend Dusty Diamond’s All-Star Softball.. it is a classic game which allows you to pick all your players, like you did when playing pickup games with your friends.
Best Cheats: No cheats to really speak of.. if there are any its not hard to find them on Google..It is important in this game to position your players properly in accordance to their specific skills. For example, Neil has A ranking for all defensive positions, so he would be a good player to put in any defensive position. However a player like Freddy plays only C level (Adequate) defense at the First base position only. You may not want to put Freddy in an important defensive position as he will be prone to more errors. Errors tend to occur a lot, especially in the later games in your quest to beat all the teams. As far as I could tell no team was without their defensive woes though. If a player isn't good in the field, he will usually excel in another area of field. (Unless he's just useless..)
Game Play: 8
Graphics: 8
Music/Sound: 8
Originality: 8
Overall Rating: 8
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