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Backyard Baseball ’09 Review for PC

Backyard Baseball ’09 Review for PC

The Backyard Baseball series is back with the ’09 edition. The budget sports titles have endeared fans with their kiddy visuals and lighthearted approach to America’s favorite sports. Unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot going for these titles other than the amiable presentation, as gameplay is decidedly low-brow. Nevertheless, unlike other discount gaming entries, Backyard Sports attempts to bring gamers quality by enlisting a professional player from every team and providing MLB-backed licensing via official team jerseys and an AL/NL All-Star Game. If you’re looking for an arcade baseball title, pass on this one; it’s glorified shovelware that’s really only appropriate for youngsters learning how to play video games.

Backyard Baseball '09 screenshot

As the name implies, Backyard Baseball ’09 takes players to the primary school diamonds, curbed main streets, and rolling meadows of mid-American suburbia. Gamers can choose from a selection of professionals and Backyard players to round out their squad. All of these players are represented by cute little kids of varying ability. Putting together a top-notch crew is pretty easy, and players will quickly master the arcade baseball mechanic.

Batting, fielding, and pitching are all simply executed with just a handful of face buttons and clicks. The Wii version does allow you to flick the remote while batting, but pressing the A button is far more accurate and less tedious. In other words, there’s almost nothing to this title, as fielding, batting, and throwing are done almost automatically. In fact, Backyard Baseball ’09 is very similarly to the original Baseball title for the NES (which can be downloaded on to the Virtual Console). Don’t get me wrong, there are several distinctions between this title and that antique, including varied game modes, fields, and character abilities, power-ups, distinct difficulty levels, and enhanced graphics. However, as far as gameplay is concerned, they are nearly interchangeable.

Backyard Baseball '09 screenshot

Backyard Baseball ’09 offers six modes of play. Play Now and Pickup Game are nearly indistinguishable from each other. Both modes allow players to quickly hop into a single game, but Pickup allows you to choose the teams, players, and venue. There is also a Tournament mode, which features an eight-bracket tourney. You can take one team all the way through or you can play every matchup. The Season Game gives you the opportunity to play through a 16 or 32 game season. This is the most interesting mode of play, as player stats, milestones, awards, and unlockables are tracked and opened. In Home Run Derby players can swing away with up to four selected characters, and the All-Star Game pits AL Vs. NL. Interestingly, the All-Star lineups constantly change, so players get a somewhat different experience every time they play.

Backyard Baseball '09 screenshot

There are a lot of players to choose from in this virtual sand lot. Professional players such as A-Rod, Jeter, Pujols, Ortiz, Ordonez, and Ichiro are all selectable. Some pros, like Babe Ruth and Alfonso Soriano, are locked and can’t be used until opened through the Season Game. In addition to MLB stars, a host of Backyard Baseball veterans can also be used. All these players have varying abilities in skill areas such as power, pitching, catching, fielding, contact, stamina, etc. Finding a good mix of players, positioning them well on the field, and coming up with a solid batting order is crucial for success at the higher difficulty levels.

Backyard Baseball '09 screenshot

Most of the game is a straightforward and scaled down version of baseball. But, the use of power-ups in the title affects both pitching and batting in interesting ways. If you string together a few solid plays, your power-up meter will fill and enable you to pitch freeze-balls and splitters (literally) or whack the ball into orbit when at bat. Power-ups are not infallible though. In fact, it’s pretty easy to give up a hit or strike out if you strictly rely on them. However, if you mix the power-ups into your normal routine, they can be game-breakers.

The overall presentation is standard, discount title fare. Nothing is crisp and it all seems to be hurried. The player likenesses are not good at all; skin tone and height are about the only things that differentiate Ortiz and A-Rod. The eight different venues available (two must be unlocked) are the visual bright spots of the title. The designs of each diamond are distinct and interesting. Conversely, the sounds and voice acting are devoid of any redeeming qualities. The canned commentary and sparse effects are definitely mute-worthy.

When all is said and done, Backyard Baseball ’09 is a forgettable title that may go over with very young gamers. Though the title is not all bad, mature gamers are better off saving the time and money!

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 2.5 Graphics
The game features uninspired cartoon visuals that gamers have grown to expect from budget titles. 2.7 Control
Controls are very simple and functional, though you’re bound to yawn before the end of the first game. 1.8 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
Run-of-the-mill effects and poor voice acting throughout are pitiful. 3.0 Play Value
The game has only slightly more to offer than the original Baseball for NES. Young children may actually enjoy it. 2.7 Overall Rating – Average
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

  • All current MLB teams’ uniforms and logos.
  • Pro player from every MLB team – David Ortiz, Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols, Derek Jeter, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Ken Griffey Jr., Ichiro, and more.
  • 11 Backyard Teams and your favorite Backyard Kids – Pablo Sanchez, Joey MacAdoo, Ernie Steele, Tony Delvecchio, and more.
  • New power-ups with meter and new player capabilities.
  • Custom team and player options.
  • Enhanced hitting and fielding controls.
  • Unlockable fields and players including the great Babe Ruth!
  • Multiple levels of difficulty.

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