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When the NES came out in 1985,
many people were blown away with the graphics and gameplay of Super Mario
Bros. After they played other
popular titles such as Duck Hunt and Excitebike, they were
convinced. They went out and
purchased their NES and if they were like me, checked out the available
sports titles and were thrilled to see Baseball and 10-Yard Fight among
the choices. Needless to say, that
thrill didn’t last long. Both
games were huge disappointments; Baseball especially considering how the
Intellivision had already made a string of strong baseball titles. 
The problem with Baseball was not
its graphics – they are actually quite solid for their time. The problem lies with its gameplay,
specifically the fact that you cannot control your defensive
players. The computer runs the
players to the ball and then you throw the ball where you want it to
go. Now, this wouldn’t be so bad
if the computer was pretty good on defense but they somewhat routinely
turn slow-rolling grounders into doubles, which gets frustrating very
fast.
Unfortunately, this was the only
baseball game I owned for many years, leaving me stuck to quench my
baseball jones with this game.
Once I picked up Baseball Stars, I never played it again.
Baseball is easily one of my
least favorite video games ever and although the baseball game on Quattro
Sports might be worse, Baseball still ranks lower in my book because it
was developed by Nintendo as opposed to being an unlicensed game.
Positives:
The graphics are pretty good for
a 1985 release. The batting is
easy to do and the pitching is pretty realistic – you can’t curve the
ball like crazy. The name of the
game is also short and sweet – Baseball,
you’ve gotta respect that.
Glaring
Negatives:
Well, for starters you can’t
control your fielders and they are terrible fielders to boot. The games are very high scoring, often
ending up with football-like scores.
The game moves incredibly slowly, which is not good for a bad
game. The pitcher will often shake
off a few signs before you will be allowed to pitch and the fielders run
super slowly towards the ball.
There are also no real teams, no player names (fake or real), no
playoffs, no World Series or anything.
It is a one and done game.
 Graphics and Sound:
OK
Certainly the graphics aren’t
great by late 80’s standards but they are quite solid for a launch
title. I like them better than a
few other baseball titles released in the aftermath of this disaster of a
game. It also features the classic
theme song of many early launch titles.
Gameplay
and Controls: Horrible
The gameplay and controls are
almost non-existent. Use the A button
to pitch and hit and the B button to steal. The computer will take care of most of
the rest for you.
Features:
None
There are no real teams, no real
players, no playoffs, nothing!
Fun?:
Not for a minute
The game is super-slow, which
takes away all charm left for this game.
Challenge:
Yes
The computer is actually pretty
tough; it may take you a couple games to be able to beat it. It is also challenging to finish a game
due to how long it takes to play all nine innings.
Replay:
None
You will most likely never want
to play this game again…
2
Player: Yes
You can play against a “friend”
if you really want to.
Online
Manual?: Yes
http://www.nintendoage.com/index.cfm?alpha=&Keywords=baseball&FuseAction=Search.Results
Bottom
Line: Worst baseball game on the NES
Why bother playing a baseball
game where you can’t control your fielders? Stick with any of the ten or so great NES
baseball titles including Baseball Stars 1 and 2 and the three R.B.I.
Baseball games.
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