Ken Griffey Junior Slugfest Game by Nintendo Reviewed by The Dude ebaytradr1@aol.com Size: 8 megabits (1 megabyte) Save: Battery Released: June, 1999 Works with: Game Boy Color only **************************************************************************** Opening Snide Remarks: Baseball on the Game Boy? It's not been great in the past. (The game simply titled "Baseball" wasn't much fun, and personally I didn't like the old Griffey game). I'd heard that this game had broken the 56 colors/screen barrier, and I decided I'd give it a go. **************************************************************************** Gameplay Descripion: This is baseball, stripped down to its finest, simplest element. The options are not overwhelming, there is not a whole lot of room for strategy. But the batting and pitching elements are excellent, fielding is solid, and baserunning is, well, acceptable. Statistics in 12 categories are saved during a season, an excellent addition to this game. Batting in this game is mainly timing, as well as moving to a good spot in the batters box. There is only one type of swing. Like the rest of the game, batting is extremely simplified, and that is what makes it so fun. Pitching is my favorite part of the game. There's not 8 types of pitches like there are in All Star Baseball 2000, there are 3. Fastball, Curveball, and changeup. You can move the pitches a lot as they are going to the batter, which I like very much. The only problem I've found is that the pitchers seem to be very random in terms of there ability. Pedro Martinez got hit for 18 runs in 7 innings (which brings me to another point) while Pat Rapp played 3 hit shutout bsaeball in the next game. The other point I wanted to make was that the number of runs varies tremendously game to game, but this isn't as bad as one would expect. Fielding is quite good in this game. I like the ease throwing out players on groundballs and turning double plays. There is a bit of a problem with flyballs, though. The frequent screen changes following the ball, and the slightly inadequate field "radar" make it hard to follow the track of the ball. This is a small point, but an important one. I assume that the more I play, the more I will get used to this. Baserunning, while still pretty fun, is the low point in terms of the 4 parts of the game. It can get very confusing when you want to advance certain runners but not others, and I still haven't figured out how to steal. Baserunners are also frustratingly unresponsive. Otherwise, gameplay is very fun and a great aspect of the game. Liked: Batting and Pitching are great, all the aspects of play fit together nicely. Hated: Baserunning is mediocre at best, fly balls are hard to field. Also, I'm not sure that the players perform very accurately compared to real life. Supposedly each player has ratings, but I haven't yet seen them. **************************************************************************** Graphics Description: Graphics are great. As I mentioned, the 56 color barrier has been broken in this game, with hundreds of colors being shown at a time. This is easily visible in the subtle shading of the infield grass. The players are nicely drawn (maybe a bit on the small side). The cut scenes add to the game considerable, although it can get annoying when the same scene is shown three times in one inning. Liked: Everything. Hated: Basically nothing, a few repetetive cut scenes. **************************************************************************** Sound/Music Description: The background music is nice, and the sound effects very fitting. I loved hearing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during the Seventh Inning stretch! I would have liked to hear a few words from the announcer (just "Play Ball" or something simple) but still a solid aspect of the game. Liked: Everything, especially the 7th inning stretch song! Hated: Maybe a few spoken words would've been added. **************************************************************************** Play Control/Game Design: I think I covered this all in the Gameplay section. To reiterate myself, everything is quite strong in this section, although baserunning can be unresponsive. Liked: Everything. Hated: Baserunning, at times. **************************************************************************** Improve: I'm not sure how much could be changed... I would improve baserunning, maybe add some voices. RIYL: Can't be compared to many other Game Boy games. If you like baseball, you'll like this game. **************************************************************************** Final Words: This game certainly surpassed my expectations, even considering the "hype" surrounding this game. (Im put hype in quotations because Game Boy games never receive any real "hype", at least compared to games from other consoles.) A great game, with excellent replay value. A great addition to any collection. **************************************************************************** Score (out of five $) Gameplay: $$$$ 1/2 (4.5) Graphics: $$$$$ (5) Sound/Music: $$$$ (4) Play Control/Game Design: $$$$ 1/2 (4.5) Personal Opinion: $$$$$ (5) Total: 23 out of 25 Final Score: 92% **************************************************************************** Currently Known Codes: None at this time.