Sound:  
Baseball Advance boasts some impressive sound effects. The umpires call strikes, balls, safes and outs. The crowd boos the away team, and the virtual organ sounds just like the real deal. There is no commentary during the game, but it is not missed. From the ever-present Star-Spangled Banner at the beginning of the game to the cheers (or boos) of the crowd at the end of the game, the music and sound in Baseball Advance ompliment the graphics nicely.

Gameplay:  
Smilebit and THQ made some excellent decisions while programming Baseball Advance. They knew of the limitations of the cartridge space on the Game Boy Advance, and only put in the basics. They realized that we do not need baseball trivia, home run derbies, or create-a-player modes to fully enjoy our baseball game. While this does diminish the replay value a little, the game is still better off this way. The gameplay modes include:

Exhibition: Choose your team and an opponent, and play a regular game of baseball.
Season: Choose your team and take them from April to October in hopes of winning the World Series
Playoffs: Skip the regular season and go straight to the playoffs.
All-Star Game: Choose either the American or National league and replay the 2001 MLB All-Star game.

The options, much like Baseball Advance itself, are pretty basic. Among others, they include number of innings, errors allowed, and four selectable stadiums. That’s right, four. Safeco Field, Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and Pacific Bell Park are the only stadiums that games can be played in. But then again, who actually needs every single stadium? While the other stadiums certainly are missed, it is better that the amount of those that are selectable is diminished to make the gameplay itself better.

The level of difficulty in Baseball Advance is absolutely perfect. If you play the game on Rookie, you will have no problem winning the game 35-3. On Legend, you will most certainly have your work cut out for you. Substitutions can also be made when your player is getting tired. This brings up another qualm that I have with the game. Pertaining to player conditions, the players’ energy levels are color-coded. The scheme is:

Best: Red > Orange > Yellow > Green > Blue > Purple: Worst

Now, the majority of sports games I played usually starts with Green being the healthiest and Red representing extremely tired. Not to say that this is a problem – it can just be confusing at first.

Control:
Fielding and Base Running are selectable as automatic or manual. My suggestion is to keep the Fielding on auto and the Base Running on manual. When your opponent is batting and someone lands a hit, the camera centers on the ball. This is not so much of problem when it is a grounder, but when someone hits a pop-fly to left field, you simply cannot tell where to move your outfielder. If the camera had focused on where the ball was going to land as opposed to where it is at the time, fielding would be much easier. This error could have made the game virtually unplayable, but since the auto option was added in, it makes for a more enjoyable experience.

If you do select manual fielding, the controls are fairly easy. To catch the ball, move your fielder to the ball and he will automatically pick it up. When a fly ball is hit, move the player to the blue cursor, and he will catch it. To throw to the bases, press the corresponding direction on the D-pad with the A button (right for 1st, up for 2nd, left for 3rd, down for home). Pressing the D-pad with the A button will cause your fielder to dive for the ball (if he does not have the ball in his possession). Simply pressing A will make him jump.

Pitching is also just as easy. By using the D-pad, you select which type of pitch you want to throw. Press A to throw it. While the pitcher is in motion, you can aim where you want the pitch to end up. It is as simple as that.

Batting is absolutely amazing. I personally think that Baseball Advance set a new standard for all other baseball games with its batting scheme. Batting places importance on two factors: prediction and timing. Each batter has a cursor that represents his batting range. For example, Barry Bonds would have a much larger batting cursor than Kelly Wunsch. Before the pitcher throws the ball, move the cursor to where you believe the pitch will end up. Depending on how close the actual pitch is to your prediction, the cursor will “home in” on the ball. That is the prediction factor. When the pitcher begins his windup, press and hold the A button to start your batter’s power gauge. The higher the gauge goes, the more powerful your hit will be. Release the A button to swing the bat. If your pitch prediction is close enough, and you timed your power gauge correctly, you’re guaranteed to hit yourself a dinger. To bunt the ball, press the B button. Then move the D-pad up or down to control your bat.

Running the bases is also simplistic. Press the D-pad in the corresponding direction with the L button to move a single player to a certain base (Up & L to advance runner to second base, etc). Press the L button to advance all the runners at once. The same goes for returning to bases. Press the D-pad with the R button to return to a specific base. To steal a base, press the D-pad with the L button while the pitch is in motion to steal that specific base.

Multiplayer:
Baseball Advance offers no multiplayer mode at all. Like I said earlier, this is basic baseball. Seeing as though multiplayer is a huge part of any sports game, and Baseball Advance is such a great game, the fact that there is no multiplayer mode is very disheartening. Perhaps we shall see it in a future version of the game.

OVERALL:
Any fan of baseball would love Baseball Advance. Even if you are remotely interested in the sport, you will enjoy this game. Above average graphics, great sound, and an amazing control scheme make the game a must-buy. The batting system alone is perfect, and in this editor’s opinion, should be used in every baseball game. Although Baseball Advance is not chock full of gameplay options, what we are given is good enough. Sticking to the basics is what made this game so great.

 

The Lowdown on  Baseball Advance Aesthetics: Above Average Control: Very Good Gameplay: Awesome Multiplayer: Sound: Very Good Innovation: 6/6 Lasting Appeal: 5/6 Overall: Awesome! "Top of the Genre"