Triple Play 2002
Score: 80% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: EA Sports Developer: EA Sports Media: DVD/1 Players: 1 - 2 Genre: Sports
Graphics & Sound: Very easily, Triple Play 2002 is one of (if not the) best looking baseball games of all time. Player models come to life with realistic bodies and 3D face scans of your favorite big leaguers. Stadiums look as sharp as they could, and the game's artists paid attention to many details in recreating the big league experience for you to play from the comfort of your living room couch. Audio commentary in sports games has come a long way since the golden days of Joe Montana's Sports Talk Football on the Genesis. Now joining the mix in his video game debut is long-time sportscaster Bob Costas, sitting aside ESPN's Harold Reynolds. These guys make a good team, and the TV-style broadcast within is well presented. The game's sound fx allow you to hear everything from the crack of the bat to the smack of the crowd.
Gameplay: This year's effort for EA Sports in their Triple Play franchise offers the same old features that any baseball title has offered in recent years: Exhibition, Tournament, Season, Playoffs, and the ever-popular Home Run Derby. Strangely missing, however, is one of the biggest features in any sports game, some sort of Franchise Mode. It is very unfortunate that after you battle your way through an entire season, nothing more can be done. There is no building of your team in the off season. In fact, there is no off season. The only option you have is to start fresh and replay the current season over and over. The main point of the game is a simple and down to earth baseball game. Set aside the fancy graphics and new commentary featuring newcomer Bob Costas, and Triple Play 2002 is nothing that you haven't seen before. Of course, this doesn't mean that the game isn't well put together. I haven't played a Triple Play game in a couple of years, but this year's effort offers a new way of hitting (at least to me, if not to all). Instead of only having to time your swing as the ball crosses the plate, TP2002 incorporates a more in-depth Bases Loaded-style method of hitting. Both the pitcher and the hitter have small cursors on the screen. The pitcher will have to try to make his/her cursor and ball cross the plate while in the strike zone. It's up to the batter to literally guess (if the pitching cursor is turned invisible) where this pitch will cross. While this method of hitting is unique, and makes a great hit all that more satisfying, at the same time it makes the game that much more difficult to play.
Difficulty: As stated above, the biggest difficulty in TP2002 is learning how to hit when the pitching cursor is not visible. It will definitely take some practice, but eventually you should be able to learn the tendencies of each type of pitch. Just don't expect to crack many homers out of the box. Sure, you'll have a better chance with the sluggers of the big leagues, but it will take precise timing, as well as deadly accuracy in lining up your hitting cursor with the spot where the ball crosses the plate. Other than that, the game is pretty straightforward and easy to control.
Game Mechanics: TP2002 is a very nice game with some very nice gameplay. The faster pace (than previous games) helps to keep everything moving at a nice rate so that it doesn't take all day to play one game. In addition, at certain game breaker situations, you'll be treated to a cool widescreen presentation of the animation, whether it is a big hit or the play for the final out. Game controls are configured very well on the Xbox controller, so getting your players to do what you want takes little effort at all. Enthusiasts of DVD extras are also in for a treat. There are five interview and behind-the-scenes movies available to watch in your off time. But because of the lack of any kind of Season mode, EA dropped the ball on this one. Triple Play 2002 could have easily been a home run of a game, but instead is only a ground rule double.
-Woody, GameVortex Communications AKA Shane Wodele
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