For sports fans, the month of March is tough to beat. First, we’re blessed with the unmatched energy and excitement of the NCAA basketball tournament (March Madness). Second, the boys of summer are coming out to play ball once again, and the new season means a new round of baseball video games.
This year has yielded a bumper crop of games — six to be exact. Unfortunately, most aren’t worth either your time or your fifty bucks. Thankfully, there is an exception, World Series Baseball 2K3 from the venerable software publisher Sega delivers a great gaming experience (available for both the PS2 and XBOX).
Game play: This year’s iteration of the game made a number of improvements over 2002’s stellar efforts. The player animations are spot-on with silky smooth transitions between movements. Additionally, players can now execute homerun stealing “wall grabs,” jump and direct the cut-off man. While the pitcher interface merely involves picking a pitch and aiming it, the batter has the choice of three setups; a timed swing, cursor based aiming or a power meter. If all that wasn’t enough, this year’s game includes five old-time ballparks, 25 Hall of Fame players and a number of retro uniforms for every team. Whew!
Features: This year the game features the ESPN license; so all in-game menus, scoreboards and instant replays resemble “Baseball Tonight.” The inclusion of an incredible stat tracking engine, season mode and nearly endless franchise options add up to one deep game. For the gamer who really wants control, there are “sliders,” which allow artificial intelligence customization.
Graphics: The game’s graphics are definitely a strong point. Real-time shadows are cast on player and field alike. The ballparks are gorgeous, and the fans in the stand aren’t mere cardboard cutouts; they actually move. You may even notice a little puff of dirt when a ball hits the infield. One gripe, however, is that a large number of players don’t look anything like their real-world counterparts.
Sound: The famous Angel’s announcer Rex Hudler provides the color commentary and Ted Robinson the play-by-play. Finally, there are amusing player specific taunts, and vendors yell things like, “get your hot dog here,” both adding a nice level of realism. Overall, the sound is average.
Verdict: Although the difference between the two systems’ versions of the game aren’t huge, the sharper graphics and smoother frame rate of the XBOX wins the matchup. Score: 4.5 out of 5. Batter up!
— Review by D.T. Lyon
March 27, 2003