Introduction

Well, it’s time for Americas favorite sport to return to the spotlight, and with it comes the usual baseball sims. EAs Triple Play, 3Dos High Heat Baseball, and of course Acclaims All Star Baseball. Segas WSB2K3 and Sonys MLB2003 are expected shortly, but I think there is onlny one you will need.

ASB has been considered tops as far as console baseball goes for years, ever since the N64 versions. ASB2002 was a solid game hampered greatly by bad bugs that affected gameplay a little too much. Acclaim has put a surprising amount of refinement into this years version, and the result is a baseball game that rivals WSB2 on the Saturn for the greatest ever.

Presentation

Overall, ASB2003 has definatly the best presentation out of the bunch so far. The opening movie is great, as are the menus. Though they have not changed much, that isnt a bad thing when theyre easy to navigate. If they were unituitive, like say, any Visual Concept menu, I would expect a change. But in some cases you do not change what is working.

Control wise, there is alot to like. Controlling the fielders is an ease, with each face button mapped to the bases. Theres also a cutoff man button, allowing for quicker throws from deep field to home.

Overall, ASB2003s presentation is better than any of the other baseball games around.

Graphics & Sound

The graphics in this game are awesome. Player models are detailed and true to life. If a player has a certain accesory when hes on the field, chanses are you will see it in the game. A big feat considering theres over 900 players in this game.

The stadiums are great. They are mapped out just like the real ones. Lighting in the stadiums is about as good as Ive ever seen in any game. Little things, like team specific banners/ads around the stadium, or airplanes flying in the background make it that much more realistic.

Animations are good. There are numerous glitches in animation, such as lack of collision detection, which looks silly but doesnt really affect gameplay. Overall, the graphics in ASB2003 are great.

There are alot of nice touches, such as umpires calling calls, and the base coaches waving and stopping runners. Compared to Triple Play, ASB can easily hold its own.

Sound wise, ASB2003 is about as good as you can get. Like racing games, aside from car effects and squealing tires, what can you do? Baseball games have little to offer aside from the crack of the bat, the crowd and the commentary. Thankfully, ASB2003 excels in all 3 areas. The sound effects are top notch. A fly ball sounds different on the bat than a grounder. The crowd is very lively, unlike alot of other sports games. They chant when they sense momentum for their team. They will boo with each call from an umpire that they dont agree with.

The commentary is great, except for a few nuances. They almost always call the right play, rarely talking about something that makes you wonder if theyre watching the same game as you. You can also learn alot about baseball by simply listening to them. They have ALOT of lines to say. Well, except for the random facts they spew about individual players. While they are nice to hear every once in awhile, they get old after alot of games. More commentary for the players wouldve been nice, but thats nitpicking, considering there are over 900 players in this game, even having the player commentary they have is a good feature.

Overall, you wont have any qualms with the graphics or the sound in this game. They are both rock solid. Minor problems exist with both, but theres also enough good to make you forget about them.

Gameplay

Great graphics and sound are fine and dandy, but games(sports sims especially) need great gameplay to stand the test of time. To keep you wanting to play past the infatuation with the graphics. ASB2003 offers the best of both worlds gameplay wise. You have complete control over your batting. Cursor batting makes it very hard to hit, and therefore more exciting when you finally squeeze off a base hit. You can adjust the pitch of the cursor for different height of your hit. Theres PLENTY here to satisy the hardcore baseball fanatics.

For the more casual baseball fans(ie, me), there are options to tone down to difficulty in hitting. However, even with "easy hitting" turned on, the game is still harder than ANY other baseball game I have ever played.

Controls play a part in the gameplay. Theyre done so well, other baseball games have to pay attention. Unlike most others, ASB2003s fielders run crisp and smooth. X, Y, B, and A each throw the ball to their respective base. Baserunning is a breeze, you can do it with only the L and R buttons.

Pitching is just as easy. You have alot of control on the pitches, and each pitches is pretty much true to life. Clemens and "The Unit" throw fastballs that leave flame streaks behind them. I just wish the power meter and stamina meter were a little easier to read, and more innovative.

The wealth of modes certainly doesnt hurt this games gameplay. You have the "default" modes. Season, Tourney, Playoffs, Franchise, Home Run Derby. You can also create your own team, as well as have complete control of your Farm Team. Starting CF get injured? Well, go to your Farm Team and search for the best replacement. Someone not performing well? Put them on the Farm Team, come back later see if theyve improved.

ASB2003 also keeps track of so many stats it is insane. It’s almost Madden-like in terms of amount of stats this thing keeps. Almost everything you can think of is kept stored and tallied in career, season and playoff sections. Create a power hitter and take him through a career and try and break Hank Aarons HR record. This game lets you do that, as well as countless other stats for hitting/pitching. It keeps a "whos hot/whos not" list, which lists, well, whos hot and who is not. Guiding your team to 5 straight wins and seeing the game recognize it and list you as "hot" feels pretty good. Theres also "games of merit" list, which lists all games in the current season that had any sort of big stat, such as 20+ runs, cycles and even no hitters, and each comes with a recap and complete stats, assuring you miss nothing.

While gamers used to HR-heavy Triple Play sessions will be turned off by this games extreme realism, and difficulty(even on EASY hitting), if you’re a hardcore baseball nut(a drunk, in other words), this is the game for you. I used to think World Series Baseball 2 on the Saturn could not be toppled with its easy to get into yet deep gameplay, but ASB2003 smacked it down with ease, thanks to almost infinite replay value with its high amount of modes and the best gameplay of any baseball game Ive ever seen.

Lasting Appeal

The main thing that stands out about this game and makes you come back is the gameplay. It is incredibly realistic and a very nice change of pace.

This games franchise mode is a blast. It is probably the best franchise mode I have ever seen, even better than Madden 2002s’ franchise. The other modes, such as season, and an awesome home run derby, as well as trivia and a baseball card minigame ripped straight out of Madden, are no light hitters either. If you somehow ever get bored with the gameplay(freak.), playing "manager" in franchise mode will keep you going, well past the final game of the World Series.

Conclusion

Greatest baseball game ever? Indeed. Shocked that it came from Acclaim? Indeed. If they put this kind of effort into other games(especially QB Club), they could return to being a respected company(hey, they were for a couple years there in the 90s).

Right now the only other baseball game on XBox is Triple Play. If you want that game, save yourself alot of money and buy an older version. EA Sports owns in most sports games, but baseball is not one of them. Acclaim is the king of this hill. If you’re remotely interested in getting a baseball game, I wouldnt even wait for WSB2K3. Get this game now.