Nintendo 64

You're not gonna get too many arguments from me here. In terms of pure ball-playing experience, no other game captures the look and feel of the game of baseball better than All-Star Baseball 2000 (ASB2000). The developers seem to have taken everything one step further than the competition. Whereas most other baseball games seem to only capture moments of realism, ASB2000 is simply real.

All-Star Baseball `99 won the baseball wars on the Nintendo 64 a year ago and was deservedly proclaimed one of the best baseball games ever made. In fact it was considered to be pretty close to perfect and many wondered how Acclaim would top themselves. Now, a new season is upon us and All-Star Baseball 2000 has arrived, bringing with it high expectations and I can tell you that they have delivered.

Game Description: The smash follow-up to Acclaim’s classic All-Star Baseball ’99, All-Star Baseball 2000 offers the same great gameplay and 30 licensed Major League Baseball teams with rosters from the 1999 season. You can hurl fastballs from the mound and swing for the fences in all 30 major league parks. Michael Kay and John Sterling are in the booth and ready to call the action, whether you’re simulating the 1999 season, or playing with your own custom team.

In the world of Nintendo 64 baseball, two franchises stand above the rest: Nintendo's very own Ken Griffey series and Acclaim's All-Star Baseball series. Thus far, it's been a heated rivalry and like most fierce competitors, neither will accept defeat or rest on its laurels. It's a new season and with it comes a new set of entries. This year's Ken Griffey is called Slugfest and it's time for us to see if developer Angels Studios made the right moves in the off-season. Batter up!

For me, it boiled down to one simple thing: the camera angles. While Dale pointed it out as a flaw, he didn't address it with the appropriate degree of severity. The camera angles in Slugfest destroyed this game.

Game Description: Bursting with stunning realism and high excitement baseball action Ken Griffey Jr.'s Slugfest drives home the winning run! Improved player animations and color commentary by Dave Niehaus-'The Voice of the Mariners'-make you feel like you're really at the game while easy-to-use controls updated rosters & statistics and an optional fantasy draft make it even more fun than being there!

My first thought was where did this game come from? Published by the makers of the hit series, Need For Speed, Beetle Adventure Racing is a totally unexpected release. Gone are the muscle cars, the rally vehicles, and the crazy collection of authentic automobile licenses. Even the traditional racing elements I've come to expect from racing games are missing or de-emphasized.