Bad News Baseball (NES Game)

Bad News Baseball is about on par with any of the other baseball titles you'll see on the NES. I love vintage baseball video games, but they all seem to suffer from the same malady: the fielding sucks. I don't know why, but video game fielders from 1976 to 1999 (approximately) just couldn't manage to chase down a ball with any sort of gusto. Bad News Baseball has this problem as bad as any other game I've seen.

Before I start dissing it, I had better talk about the things that make Bad News Baseball a good game. It has some of the cleanest graphics you'll see as far as NES baseball goes. The intro that zooms in on the field from the top of one of the light poles is a nice touch. The pitchers and batters are nicely and smoothly animted, which is much appreciated. There are silly touches like the fact that the second plate umpire is a rabbit. I also like the fact that if you strike out to end an inning, your batter will angrily slam his bat on the ground.

The batting is easy to control, but the pitching is another matter. I had to look up the manual to find out why the opposing pitcher was throwing 100 MPH pitches while my guy was tossing 56 MPH lobs. Pitching is a three step process, and takes a little practice before you're throwing it right each time. By the time you learn it,  the computer has already sent a ball or two into the stands. Then there's the aforementioned fielding. Because your outfielders don't line up with your infielders (even though they all run in whichever direction you push) it's impossible to know where your outfielders are when a ball is hit to them. The CPU is always under every fly ball, which is infuriating. Also, slow rollers are deadly. Your infielders can only chase them so far, and all your fielders are always slower than the slowest hit. Once a slow roller gets past your infield, chances are you have no idea where your outfield is. In the meantime, the runner is screaming around the bases. I had the CPU hit an inside the park homer just because I couldn't chase down a ball that would be a routine out in real life.

Despite all the fielding woes, Bad News Baseball is still a lot of fun to play. It's best to play with a friend as both sides will suffer from poor fielding and the game will be about an even match. Warts and all I still give Bad News Baseball...