Sega Genesis
Released in 1997 by Sega
Grade: C+
Using a behind-the-batter view and a realistic pitching interface, this is as faithful a representation of baseball as you’ll find in 16 bits, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the most fun.
Where it falls in the series
This is the last of Sega’s baseball games on Genesis. It was released before the 1997 season, so the series goes from the original World Series Baseball to WSB 95, to WSB 96, to WSB 98. If that’s not shameless enough, consider that the last three games play exactly the same, which drives game reviewers crazy. Sega actually made two much different baseball games long before WSB, Tommy Lasorda Baseball and Sports Talk Baseball in 1989 and 1992.
Praises and gripes
Like its predecessors, this game allows you to pick from three pitch types and three pitch speeds, then pick a location and fire away. Despite exaggerated curves on each pitch, this piece of baseball realism is ahead of its time. On the downside, with 16-bit graphics, the pitcher’s motion and movement of the ball look choppy, although an improvement over the original WSB.
When batting, you choose between contact, normal, and power. Hitting comes down to timing, and unfortunately, it’s not exactly a pleasurable experience to watch pixelated pitch after pixelated pitch.
There are three difficulty settings for both pitching and batting, so you can set up a game to your specific skills, which is nice.
The action in the field is on par with most other baseball games, although slowed to a realistic pace, and I like that the camera gives a wide view of the action. The diagram in the corner makes outfield plays manageable.
This all sounds good, but somehow, the fun is lacking. Games take a while to play, and there’s something bland about it. It’s no wonder that so many baseball video games featured up-tempo arcade gameplay until consoles had the graphics and processing power to make simulation baseball rewarding.