World Series Baseball 2K2 Review

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(More customer reviews)Rarely have I heard so much bellyaching and crybaby whining as I have over this game. Coming after what was possibly THE MOST BOTCHED Sega Sports game in history, we should be happy the thing was even released, let alone being remotely playable. It is not perfect, but if you know anything about console baseball games, there has never been a perfect baseball game. World Series 2K2 comes glancingly close though. First off, to answer some questions and comments posed by others: 1) The red/blue/clear boxes are areas of the strike zone that the hitter hits well/poorly in. 2) The defense is NOT difficult, and most often the computer will start your player in the correct direction. If you screw up from there, blame youself. 3) Yes, the outfielders sometimes don't turn around to make the catch, big freakin deal! They still make the catch! 4) The fielders are slow? Then why can I usually beat the runner to first base with any one of my infielders? I personally like a ball to fall in the gap in the outfield once in a while, it's called realism. 5) The faces of the players are far from perfect (Derek Bell's moustache being a particularly gruesome offender), but the players are otherwise animated and rendered exceedingly well. 6) The stadiums look amazing, the crowds are 2D but they always have been so deal with it. 7) I don't believe people complain about their trades getting vetoed. How many times did gamers kvetch about "I shouldn't be able to assemble an all-star roster by swindling every team in the league!" but now we have people moaning that "Waaah, I can't build my ultimate dream-team, waaaah!" Go take a nap! My issues with the game: 1) I don't see much difference in fielding from player to player. Everyone seems to have the same general range, fielding ability, and speed. 2) Sadly, too many homeruns. Though this has always been a problem with console baseball games, the developers/publishers think gamers would rather see more homeruns than less. 3) Visual Concepts and the other development teams thought it would be a hoot to see THEIR names in the game. Which is why the Mets' left-fielder isn't Benny Agbayani, it's John Brooks. And there's some joker named Larry Peacock in the Pirates bullpen. Just check the back of the game manual and you will see that 1 player from every MLB team has been replaced with a member of the game development team. Ridiculous? Yes, but I deal with it and so should you. Apart from that, I really have no grave issues with the game. Pitching is tremendously intuitive, hitting is all in the timing, fielding is not nearly the chore that the inept think it is, the menus are clear as day if you aren't a moron, substitutions are easy, strikeouts are an art-form that you will get better at with time, the graphics are silky smooth and oh so nice, home run derby is fun, and don't forget the franchise mode. People, this game had TEN MONTHS in development. Which ain't much, in gaming time. They had to SCRAP the previous incarnation, and start over. I think they did a tremendous job, and trust me, I'm usually the first person to jump down a baseball game's throat when it disappoints. Don't be a follower by jumping on the anti-WS2K2 bandwagon. Judge for yourself, and let yourself enjoy all the game has to offer, it is after all, undisputedly the BEST baseball game available for the Dreamcast.

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World Series Baseball 2K1 nearly ruined one of the most cherishedfranchises in sports gaming with its poor gameplay. For the 2K2 edition, Segaturned to Visual Concepts--the developers behind its excellent football,baseball, and hockey titles. The developers only had 10 months to work on thetitle, and while it's the best baseball game on the Dreamcast to date, it playslike a game that needs more work.
Thankfully, fielding is back in the game (fielding was automatic in 2K1).Unfortunately, the controls can be very tricky. Ground balls hit within areasonable range of the player often pass him. The only alternative is diving,which leads to spectacular shots of players diving over and past baseballs. Thebatting and pitching controls are simpler than in last year's version, but couldhave used more polishing. Hitting is way too arduous (in the video gamesense)--even after dozens of game hours, tracking pitches is far more difficult than inother games. Positives include sharp graphics and a plenitude of modes, such asexhibition, season, playoffs, home run derby, franchise, and online. This iscurrently the only baseball game on a console that supports Internet play,albeit with some lag and bug issues.
Problems aside, this is as good as baseball gets on this platform. If theDreamcast is your only system and you're itching for a baseball game, then don'thesitate to pick this one up. Gamers with other consoles should consider EASports's and Acclaim's baseball titles. --Raymond M. Padilla
Pros:
The best baseball game on the Dreamcast
Excellent graphics
Internet play
Cons:
Gameplay could have used a few more months of tweaking
AI is easily fooled
Internet play can be buggy

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