Sound:  
The sound is ASB 2002 is fantastic in places and mediocre in others. On the positive side, the two man booth of Thom Brenneman and Bob Brenly is some of the best commentary I have heard in a baseball game. Not only are they timely, but they seem genuinely excited on home run calls and other big plays.

However, for as good as they are, the sound is greatly hurt by anemic crowd noise that makes you feel like you are always playing in Montreal. The crowd offers no excitement at all, and really sounds 16 bit in a 128 bit world.

Gameplay:  
This has always been the trademark of Acclaim's baseball series, and for good reason. The batter/pitcher interface is one of the best, perhaps only topped by Sega's World Series Baseball 2K2. Most notable is the three-dimensional batting icon, allowing you to hit the ball in the air or on the ground as well as being able to pull the ball or hit to the opposite field. The choice of pitches is also very deep, including both two or four seam fastballs.

Also notable is the game's attention to realism, especially over the course of a season. If your style of baseball is all about the home run and you don't like pitching duels and great defense, this game is not for you.
Overall, Acclaim has done a great job of making a true simulation style game.

Control:
As said before, pitching and hitting controls are good, though amateurs should be warned they are somewhat complicated. On the other hand, base running and fielding controls are rather poor; running with more than one baserunner is frustrating and fielding is sometimes a step too slow.

I have also been party to some control glitches, namely having a player freeze if he has committed an error. More than once, I had this happen and had the computer score a few cheap runs. It's a shame because pitching and hitting show so much potential.

Multiplayer:
This is a major downfall to ASB. The game's simulation aspects simply make it rather boring with two players. Home runs are few and far between, and the action on the whole just isn't enough to keep to players excited.

While Acclaim should be commended for doing such a good job of making a realistic baseball experience, they simply forgot to include enough fun aspects of baseball to make a worthwhile multi-player title.

OVERALL:
All-Star Baseball is not a bad game, necessarily, and a rabid baseball fan may find enough here to keep them interested, it is not a game that will keep a casual fan interested for very long. The poor timing of All-Star Baseball 2002 only adds to it's mediocrity.

 

The Lowdown on  All Star Baseball 2002 Aesthetics: Above Average Control: Below Average Gameplay: Average Multiplayer: Terrible Sound: Average Innovation: 3/6 Lasting Appeal: 2/6 Overall: Below Average! "Has Some Detrimental Problems"