Developer: Microsoft Publisher: Microsoft System Requirements: Pentium (TM) 166 Quad or better speed CD-ROM 32 MB RAM 100 MB available hard drive space (50MB swap) DirectX 7 certified SVGA card (4MB) DirectX 7 certified sound card 4X or faster CD-ROM drive Windows (R) 95/98/2K 100% Microsoft-compatible mouse Recommended: 8x CD-ROM Pentium 2(tm) 233 or faster 64 MB RAM 8MB Video Card Sidewinder Gamepad or Joystick Da Introduction—Da Installation The installation looks great; it's very sleek and clean. Very Microsoft. But the installation play-by-play is quite patronizing and very excessive. I don't understand why anyone would want this in his or her game. The installation itself took under 10 minutes for me; just enough time to get some coffee brewing and get ready to plunge into another Microsoft game. The first good impression of this game was the very smooth interface. It looks extremely clean and it's very easy to use. The colors were dull but vibrant at the same time. The options were very basic and easy to set up. It took me about 2 minutes to start the game and start a home run derby. It took me 3 minutes to learn how to swing the bat, and another minute to get the timing right. I hit 4 homeruns my first time out and I figure I did pretty well. So far, this baseball game stands out above the rest with its spotless, easy to use options and interface. The performance on the test system was very good. I recommend you do the largest install you can afford for the best gaming experience. The smaller installs lead to some choppiness, but on a 450mhz+ system it should be fine on typical install. Da Graphics: The graphics in this game slow my computer down (see specs below), but it's still very playable. It's impressive to see the scaling Microsoft has done for low-end to high-end computers. I'm also impressed by the quality of the top notch graphics settings, the players look very realistic and everything seems to shimmer with that professional glint Microsoft is very capable of putting on their products. The graphics will please the high end user, but if your machine isn't 'all that and a bag of chips' then you will be pleased with the lower settings available. My TNT displays everything very nicely, no graphical artifacts or messed up textures. I use mismatched Detonator drivers (see below for information). They are unofficial and can be found around the 'net. There is even a setting for Full Screen Anti-Aliasing, for GeForce and Voodoo 5 users (there is an option in the 5.14 drivers to enable this for Nvidia cards). Overall the graphics for this game are by far top notch. I wish I had a Voodoo 5 6000 for this; using the FSAA would make the game look that much better. The players are smooth and well modeled; you can even note a wrinkled shirt. Since I'm not a hardcore baseball fan I figured those guys were the slacker players. The stadiums don't look that great, but they're not so ugly that they distract you. There is a lot of detail put into each team; a lot of work done to distinguish the baseball players from each other and give each team a unique feel when you play them. The animation on the running appears strange on occasion, but nothing too bad. I personally could do without the odd trail the baseball leaves behind. Da Sound: The sound is good, nothing to rave about. But then again it's nothing that takes away from the feeling a baseball should give you, all the typical baseball sounds are here. The sound is immersing, but not breathtaking. It sounds good in surround, but then again what doesn't? I don't suppose I should expect to be blown away by the sound in a baseball game, but sounds get boring fast. The commentary done by Thom Brennaman is somewhat bearable, but after a while it tends to get repetitive. He has to say something after every play. However, if they didn't have commentary after each play it would feel empty, especially after playing with commentary for as long as I do. Da Gameplay: There a number of modes to choose from including: League, Home Run Derby, Single and Tonight's game. It took me awhile to learn how to bat properly, and I still have some quirks with it. There's a target box that gets larger/small depending on what type of hitting you choose (normal, power, contact) and it's smallest for power, largest for contact. The fielding is fairly simplistic and it doesn't require much talent. I don't really like batting, but then again I ‘m not very good at it. I'm more of a strategic person, so I enjoy pitching a lot more. And besides, you get to bean people! The gameplay also allows you to go into Front Office Management mode, where you can tally the costs of how much you make and the general revenue your team generates. If your team does poorly, don't expect to stay in the front office for too long. Moreover, there is also a Career mode that will take you through multiple seasons and you can see your rookies grow old. You can make your own players and bring your team through several years of success or failure (if you've got the skills that I have). Da Conclusion: If you are a hardcore or even an avid fan of baseball you will enjoy this game. It runs on a huge range of computers from P-166 to top of the line. It provides graphics that are scaled to the performance that your computer will lend to them. Microsoft Baseball 2001 provides great gameplay that I haven't seen in a baseball game since Ken Griffey Jr. for SNES, which was more of an arcade game than this one. This game is a lot more serious about a realistic approach to baseball. The sound was good but a little overused; considering it's a sports game this is no surprise. But, the best feature is the immersion. Whether you're beaning players, hitting homeruns or diving for the catch that will end the inning, you will feel like you are truly apart of the game. This is an experience I don't think any baseball fan would want to miss. It was awarded as the MLB Player's Choice and for good reason too. It is my choice for a baseball game, if I were ever to choose one. 4.5 out of 5 Joysticks Mike Loranger Test System Includes: CeleronA 300mhz Riva TNT (Mixmatched Drivers, 5.14 Detonator OpenGL ICD, 3.68 everything else) 128MB of RAM Win98 SoundBlaster Live! 24x CD-ROM