How to Win at Baseball Video Games

More player handbooks have been written about fantasy, role-playing or shooter games than any other genre it seems. Yet for sports fans, instruction manuals are missing, taken for granted or overlooked. So here's the first in a series of generic sports gamer guides for the console and/or PC button presser in you.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Hand-eye coordination.
• An eye for depth perception.
• A practice makes perfect play ethic.
• The open mind of a free trade general manager.

1. Overview
   
   Although big league history changes with the calendar and waits until next year, baseball video gaming is never out of season. In order to give your playing a sense of purpose beyond recreation, never lose sight of the fact that any kind of game play counts whether it's for casual fun or serious competition. This frame of mind will help lend legitimacy to your experience as you trade the pro ranks of real life for armchair athletic fields of dreams on your PC or console.

2. Batting
   
   A matter of timing, most games old and new feature button pressing to achieve the effect of offense at the plate. To master them you must be able to gauge the response time of the joystick itself to the action on the video screen. This requires a controller that you are not only familiar with, but one which is comfortable, compact and user friendly. You'd be surprised at the difference between quality of buttons and range of results. A major rule of thumb is to match your reflexes to buttons that work for you in order to judge the placement and direction of fast balls, breaking balls and off speed pitches. If all fails from a default viewpoint, just make sure you can pick and choose other camera angles in order to hit from a perspective that affords the best depth perception. Follow this simple advice and how to win at baseball video games becomes a matter of sheer gaming instinct at your fingertips.

3. Pitching
   
   This is a matter of upsetting timing to sweet science experts. And many games include a meter to compliment button pressing. Your reflex approach to button pressing is similar to batting. Except that you need to tailor your timing to a fixed graphic rather than field action. Mixing up the type, speed and location of your pitches is a must to fool the AI. Be able to remember your pitch selection and each outcome so as to have an edge from out to out and batter to batter. When pitted against an opponent with a mechanical memory, you can't be robotic or predictable, or else you'll get shelled. You must vary your game plan from the mound. It is crucial to make use of a pitcher's strengths or his payoff pitch in tight situations and to remove him when he's spent. And when your starter is out of gas and ready for the showers, his replacement should be warmed up and ready to fill in for relief.

4. Fielding
   
   Game play after the crack of the bat can be the most monotonous or frustrating part of baseball gaming. It can be either too easy or too difficult depending on the game. Most offer a geometric graphic that floats or contracts according to where a ball is batted. Knowing how to properly time its movement to make plays can give your pitcher a no-hitter or your adversary a blowout. The unpredictability before and after a pitch provides the drama of baseball where the defense reacts to offensive action. So fielding is as much a part of the game as anything else. If it is overlooked or downplayed in video gaming, that is because button controls may be substandard or unwieldy. If this is the case, either grin and bare the outcome or else find a better game. Either way, setting the function to automatic is like cheating since play in the field can make or break the outcome of a close ball game.

5. Management
   
   As a GM or skipper, creative use of the front office or the dugout is what separates graphic eye candy fans from mature gaming enthusiasts. And in a good baseball video game, you can force a parity which is almost unheard of in the national pastime. Trade options allow you to draft world class dream teams that are hard to beat and can test your powers of concentration, patience and strategy. Franchise settings let you be a player who calls the shots as well as a position player on the field. Rolling the dice with regard to choice of player personnel can be as important as the standings if your chess moves prove to make you a champion. While the big picture of baseball as a business can make a game more of a simulation than a hands on toy, the real life role play of management to run a team at the ballpark or buy, sell or trade the right players is all part of how to win at baseball video games.

Tips & Warnings

• Try to compete against a friend if and when computer gaming becomes stale. There's nothing like a human opponent to discover new levels of enjoyment.
• Stacking the free agent deck for your favorite ball club adds replay value. It's a fun way to pad the home team roster to increase your chances of winning.
• Don't discount oldie titles to find a game that suits your taste. In many instances, retro games can offer much more realistic stat data and game play.
• Research on-line baseball databases to review the right records to set AI by if game play does not reflect the realism of Major League performance ratings.

[stevemar2]

on 10/18/2009 This is a neat, well-written article. I used to play baseball video games when I was younger, but not anymore.