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Triple Play 2000 (N64) ReviewRelease Date: Spring 1999 Background Info
Graphics : 75
What did disturb me were the various minor errors that baseball fans will
recognize in a second. I decided to try out the game with the New York
Yankees (hey--I'm not a front-runner . . . I remember when #2 was Jerry
Kenney and Bobby Murcer was the second coming). First, Yankee Stadium.
It sits in the clouds--the structures just outside the stadium have been
destroyed (same for Fenway Park--no soda bottles, no Citgo sign). This
means that only in domed stadia do you have a complete environment. The
field lacks some minor markings (such as the big NY behind home plate); the
game includes a thin fence to represent the additional boxes down the foul
lines that appear during the postseason, leaving players to wonder why there's
a fence there in the first place (there are no stands or fans put there).
And then there are the Yankees themselves, who come out of their third-base
dugout (sorry, guys, but it's been the first-base dugout for decades--remember
those pictures of Roger Maris doffing his helmet after hitting #61?) with--sacrilege!--their last names on their uniforms! Nor is there a NY on the
batting helmets (other teams also lack logos there). Moreover, the players
don't exactly come out of the dugout, but materialize out of the ground near
the dugout (the graphics assume a uniform relationship between the dugouts
and playing field, and this is not the case in major league ballparks--this
problem varies by park). Unlike TP 99, the crowds are always there packing
the place (why is George complaining about attendance?). However, the
customers seem awfully flat and still. And, sometime during the season, those
fans found their scorecards next to useless, for all of a sudden Scott Brosius
and Jorge Posada decided to share #20 (Scott wears #18); then, in mid-game
against the Angels, Brosius decided that he didn't want to play favorites with
the catchers, and so came to bat in the seventh wearing Joe Girardi's #25. The
next game it was back to his old #18.
Now I know what some of you are saying--details, details. But good games
pride themselves on getting the details right--or should if they are going to
brag about their graphics.
Lest you think I'm totally down on the parks, I like the active scoreboards,
and the video screens are okay (although all they do is show what you are
seeing--no player intros, no welcome to Mrs. Webb's third grade class that is
spending this year visiting every NHL rink in Faceoff 99). There are umpires,
but no coaches or ball boys or ball girls (some people go to Wrigley Field just
to see young ladies field grounders--or so you would think from watching a
Cubs telecast). And the park is plastered with ads for those familiar EA
products, Chork, Lobster Cola, and the like (although the humor will be lost
on many players, because, unlike the PSX series, there are no plugs offered by
the announcing team). Wait until MLB decides to place ads on the uniforms...
Ballplayers' faces, while not actual representations, offer variations of facial
hair and hair and skin color; the players are not generic in appearance, and
they have individualized batting stances, various between-pitches activities
(knocking mud off one's cleats, stepping out for a moment), lean back from
inside pitches and, when taking, follow the ball into the catcher's mitt.
However, in some instances there are a limited number of animations (for
example, whenever a batter is hit by a pitch, at first we see a number of
reactions, but then he gets up, looks as if he's about to resume his stance, and
jogs to first). And don't take a practice swing: you can get caught by the
pitcher. Fielding animations are more varied, including collisions, pounding
one's mitt while waiting for that lazy fly ball to come down, and scaling the
fence; the same goes for baserunners. On the whole, these representations
and animations are solid, despite the fumbled details. Someone should play as
the Arizona Diamondbacks to see if the game does the uniform-of-the-day
routine (the uniform room at Bank One Ballpark must resemble a walk-in
closet).
Even more irritating are the limited number of in-game and replay cameras.
TP2000 features an "action camera" that is supposed to simulate a television
broadcast, and the player will have to depend on it for much of the variation
(only with the action camera do most of the vaunted camera positions come
into use). Yes, I happen to think that you need only a few in-game cameras
(others may have different preferences), and the three provided (all behind
home plate: ground view, box view, aerial view) are okay. But I've noticed
that there are problems on defense when not using the action camera,
including timing the throw to the pitcher covering first (the camera sometimes
shows only the first baseman) or in cutting down baserunners attempting to
steal (by the way, game designers, you do know that when a runner takes off,
fielders yell, "he's going!" Why is that cue missing here?). The replay
cameras can at times be simply worthless: try watching a collision at home
plate.
On the plus side, between pitches the screen displays the score, balls-strikes-outs, an icon of the basepaths with runners indicated, information on both the
batter and pitcher (or playing aids should one desire them instead), and pitch
selection. As the pitcher prepares to deliver the ball, only the ball-strike-out
count and the basepaths/baserunners icon remains on the screen.
The game claims to have weather, but what it really has is time of day,
condition of sky, and wind. No rain, no rain delays, no temperature, and so
on (all of which play a role in the real game). And the sun never moves.
Some of these observations about graphics concern minor issues, which many
players will dismiss or take in stride; others address more substantial areas.
Potential buyers should know what they are getting ahead of time--an
attractive view that nevertheless does not take full advantage of the N64's
abilities and that falls short in some ways.
Audio : 85
Two additions to console versions of TP2000 offer effects that may have to be
termed acquired tastes. When the home team bats, each batter is greeted with
a short burst of modern music. The tunes' themes seem unrelated to the
batter, and the limited selection grows old at times. And, although on the
whole ball-bat-glove sounds are done well, there's a "whoosh" for balls deep
into the outfield (warning-track blasts and balls off the wall as well as homers)
and the occasional slide-whistle for foul balls (which can become annoying).
Where the game could improve is in offering verbal cues for the player when
the opposition is stealing or taking other risks on the basepaths. That would
make the game more realistic without costing much in the way of
programming or memory.
Interface/Options : 90
Game Options and Memory Card Management: Solid. It's easy to navigate
through the menus--the game even includes helpful and easy to understand
prompts. You can play home run derby, a single game, or progress through a
season or the playoffs (there are several length options for each). You select
levels of difficulty (for both players or player and CPU), including a "custom"
option, number of innings, wind, "weather" (see above), time of day, and
cameras. Difficulty options include fielding, throwing, baserunning, pitch
aftertouch, fielding aid, game speed, the type of between-pitch overlay (stats
or help), and errors, as well as the skill levels mentioned above. You can also
select a ballpark, view stats, and participate in various activities reserved for
general managers and field managers.
There's only one flaw in the load-up routine. The game does not give you an
opening option to load a season; rather, it first warns you that the card lacks
sufficient space, and you have to tell it to continue; then you select "load" on a
menu and follow the steps to load a season [this also happens when you go to
save your progress later on]. Beware: this game is a memory hog. Multiple
seasons or saving rosters separately will require more than one card.
General Manager/Field Manager: Here there are reasons to grumble and
scratch one's head. Players wishing to update their rosters (which represent
the rosters on January 1, 1999) will find it a bit difficult to pull off the Roger
Clemens for David Wells, Graeme Lloyd, and Homer Bush deal, for you must
trade equal numbers of players. This simply should not happen: it's easy to
devise a better method, featuring a 25-man active roster plus five roster spaces
for prospects, injured players, and so on (much like NHL 99, for example).
For purposes of this review, Wells stayed a Yankee. There is the welcome
create-a-player option as well as a healthy list of free agents.
Managers can manipulate lineup cards, pitching rotations, and fielding
positions with ease from the roster menu (no position players pitching or visa
versa, however). However, managing on the field presents a slightly more
difficult challenge. This is due to the flawed nature of the difficulty options
for baserunning as well as the absence of any meaningful manager menu for
offense. Either you take total control of the baserunners or let the CPU do a
great deal (you can try for the extra base, although sometimes the game
overrode my decision, and you can steal). There is no middle ground, where
the computer AI, factoring in a player's baserunning savvy [what's that? there
is no such rating? WHY NOT?], makes the routine decisions while you make
others (should I wave in the runner from third? hit and run? steal? squeeze?
should my runners be aggressive? conservative?) with a minimum of button
mashing. Ideally, you should be able to indicate a
conservative/normal/aggressive stance for each runner, and then pull off plays
without having to hit a bunch of buttons in proper order. (Yes, you can pull
off what usually resembles a hit and run, a steal followed by a hit, but to do so
you have to do a great deal that is rather evident to your opponent). TP2000
for the N64 is a step back from its PSX predecessors in terms of offensive
strategy.
Having said this, TP2000 recognizes that one of the qualities of a well-managed game is how one uses the bullpen. You've got to warm them up
before putting them in. Too bad it doesn't tell you when the CPU is doing the
same. And there are defensive strategy options, which makes the absence of
offensive strategy options all the more glaring.
And one hidden nugget in the game is so well concealed that it's a shame. If
you pause the game, you can get all sorts of good information. There's a line
score and batter season stats, but more helpful are the pitcher's energy and
pitch count (as well as hits allowed and strikeouts). Go to the menu and
examine rosters, however, and you can find out all sorts of information about
your players, if you have the time and inclination to look. Between games,
there is a deep stats system, with league leaders, team stats, and so on.
Player manipulation: Here the game shines. The designers made good use of
the yellow buttons and shoulder buttons for throwing and baserunning (really;
using the four yellow buttons to represent the bases offers the same ease of
play found in NBA Courtside). Hitting is also rather straightforward, with
two options: easy (push a button [A for normal, B for power] and use the
joystick to direct the trajectory) and hard (same buttons; use the joystick to
manipulate a batting cursor). You can also alter the batter's stance (closed,
open, closed or far off the plate). I am pleased that EA decided to spare us the
"pick up and play" option, for what's here is fine for all players. If I were to
offer one complaint, it is that sometimes there is not enough time to position
the batter before the pitch is on its way, and players will learn that how they
position the batter is crucial to successful hitting.
All in all, two out of three ain't bad, but the hat trick was well within reach.
Gameplay : 80
Having said that, this is no warmed-over version of TP99. There are singles,
doubles, the occasional triple, and home runs (and the last are not nearly as
frequent as was once the case). There are line drives, bloopers, Texas
Leaguers, pop ups; home plate collisions; fielders diving for balls, only to
watch as the ball rolls to the wall. Sometimes it's nice to see the CPU make
an honest error; some errors are a bit more puzzling (such as the third
baseman who jumped up in the air and uncorked a throw...to left field), and
sometimes the CPU makes bad baserunning errors when handling the user's
team.
Although I miss the offensive strategy managing options, I appreciated the
simple, smooth play. In fact, the game reminded me of World Series Baseball
and World Series Baseball II for the Saturn (with options those games lacked
and should have had). And I did appreciate the absence of memory card
problems that made TP98 and sometimes TP99 a little frustrating (although I
hope I'm not being lulled into a false sense of security).
I especially enjoyed the pitching/batting interface (although my hitting needs
work on the hard mode, with the batting cursor, which, unlike, say, the
original Bottom of the Ninth, will not stay in place and does not shrink for a
power swing). If you think like a hitter, and understand how those decisions
translate into positioning yourself in the batter's box, you'll appreciate the
result. I still have to work on my power hitting, but I found it better to single
and double the opposition to death with the occasional homer thrown in for
good measure; however, for single-game contests versus some friends, a
more-arcade like power button that can really hammer the ball might be fun.
A word of advice: wait on the pitch. It's easy to pull balls foul (and, with high-contact, good bat-control players, I've been known to foul off ball after ball
just to put a little wear on the pitcher). And think about using the ball cursor,
for that compensates for the lack of depth perception that you would have as a
hitter.
Pitching remains an exercise in painting the corners and setting up hitters, and
here and there a pitch simply gets away (pinpoint control is not always to be
expected). Fielding is made easier by the presence of a bull's eye and a series
of arrowheads pointing from the player-controlled fielder to the ball; you can
make a fairly solid normal throw or put some mustard on it by hitting the L
shoulder button (speed at the sacrifice of accuracy).
Is the gameplay perfect? No. But it is more than acceptable, and the game is
easy to play, so you may be surprised at how fast you can plow through a
season.
Difficulty : 90
Overall : 84
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