Get ready for some good old fashioned Major League Blinkball!
Sega Genesis
Released in 1993 by EA Sports
Grade: D-
Tony La Russa Baseball aims to bring genuine realism and speed to the Genesis, but the framerate doesn’t keep up.
Where it falls in the series
EA baseball was all over the place in the 16-bit days, even releasing THREE baseball games in the same year. Here’s your lineup:
- Tony La Russa Baseball (1993)
- Super Baseball 2020 (1994)
- MLBPA Baseball (1994)
- La Russa Baseball 95 (1994)
- Triple Play 96 (1995)
- Triple Play Gold (1996)
There are plenty of changes along the way but not a quality game in the bunch.
Praises and gripes
EA went way above and beyond the standard for baseball games at the time. This game gives pitchers an arsenal of pitch types, making the pitcher-batter duel fair and realistic … in theory.
As I’ve noted in many other reviews, the essential aspect of any baseball game is being able to see the ball well as it comes to the plate, and this game BOTCHES it. The framerate is so slow the ball appears to blink on its way to the plate, like you’re in a dark room with a strobe light.
On top of that, as a batter, you’re supposed to be watching for precise location and minor variations in movement, but the elevated viewpoint makes this quite difficult. Prepare to swing over or under a lot of pitches.
Pitching isn’t exactly a picnic either. It’s never clear exactly how much control you have over the location.
The action in the field is better, but it’s not great either. EA’s classic art style that works so well for hockey and football just doesn’t translate to baseball. Players look too big, the ball moves unnaturally, the whole thing is out of whack.
For what it’s worth, a couple years later, for La Russa Baseball 95, EA took the same basic engine and spruced up the look with a behind-the-pitcher camera, and there are a few guys out there who claim it’s the best 16-bit baseball game ever. That’s total nonsense if you ask me, but whatever.