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Baseball(JP) is a game that was released on the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy. Its gameplay is based on the real life sport of the same name. It was both developed and published by Nintendo. The game was first released for the Family Computer in December 1983, as one of the earlier titles, and then as one of the 18 launch titles for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
The game was reissued as a special NES game in Animal Crossing. It was then reissued for the Wii Virtual Console, 3DS Virtual Console, Wii U Virtual Console, and Nintendo Switch Online.
Gameplay[]
Title screen
As in real baseball, the object of the game is to score the most runs. Up to two players are supported. Each player can select from one of six teams. Although there is no difference between them other than uniform color, they are meant to represent the six members of the Japanese Central League. However, they do bear some resemblance to some Major League Baseball teams:
A team: Oakland Athletics
C team: Chicago Cubs
D team: Los Angeles Dodgers
P team: Philadelphia Phillies
R team: Kansas City Royals
Y team: New York Yankees
Controls[]
Pitching[]
- A button – normal pitch
- A button + Control Pad left - curve ball
- A button + Control Pad right - curve ball
- A button + Control Pad up - changeup
- A button + Control Pad down - fastball
- B button + Control Pad (in direction of specific base) - throw to that base (only when there are players on base)
Batting[]
- A button - swing
- Note: The longer the button is held, the more the swing will go through. So, if the button is tapped lightly, the batter will stop the bat halfway and make a bunt.
- Control Pad - move batter
- B button + Control Pad (in direction of specific base) - make a runner lead off/steal from that base
Baserunning[]
- A button + Control Pad (in direction of specific base) - return runner to that base
- B button + Control Pad (in direction of specific base) - make a runner advance from that base
- Note: Pressing down on the Control Pad will advance/return all runners
Fielding[]
- A or B button + Control Pad (in direction of specific base) - throw ball to that base
Game notes[]
Probably due to the NES's limitations, the gameplay itself is rather limited. Although the player could pitch and bat well enough, fielding was almost entirely automatic. The CPU would control any fielder who did not have the ball, meaning grounders and pop-ups would have to be fielded without input from the player. Once a fielder grabs the ball, he can then be controlled, although he cannot move except for a base.
In the NES release of the game, the six playable teams were changed to represent MLB pennant winners of the early 1980s.
An interesting glitch was the "super slow pitch" that could be produced when A and START were activated at virtually the same time on the pitcher's controller. The only way to reliable reproduce this was to unplug and reconnect the controller to the NES console at a bit of an angle. The pitcher began his wind up and the game would immediately pause. Upon unpausing the game, the pitcher would finish his delivery, releasing a pitch between 0 and 15 mph.
Other releases[]
- PlayChoice-10 - Baseball was one of the games available for play in PlayChoice-10 arcade machines, released in 1986.
- Game Boy - Baseball was one of the first games to launch with the Game Boy, along with Super Mario Land and Tetris.
- e-Reader - Baseball was one of the NES games ported to the Game Boy Advance e-Reader in 2002.
- Baseball is also a bonus NES game in the GameCube game, Animal Crossing.
- Game Boy Advance - Baseball is one of 9-Volt's many microgames in WarioWare: Twisted!
- Wii Virtual Console - Baseball was released for the Wii Virtual Console on January 1, 2007.
- Nintendo eShop - Baseball was released for the eShops on the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.
- Nintendo Switch Online - Baseball was included on Nintendo Switch Online in 2018, which allowed online multiplayer.
- Arcade Archives - VS Baseball was included in the 2020 release.
Legacy[]
It is one of the 16 games featured in NES Remix. A pitcher and batter from Baseball appeared as a Spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.