I know this is the wrong season for baseball, but Accolade chose this time to release their latest Hardball game. Maybe it can bring us back to the boys of summer and take us away from these cold days of winter. Hardball '99, originally titled Hardball 6 for PC, is not what I would consider a classic Baseball title. However it does try to be. Hardball '99 features weak polygon players, complete with shakes, break-up, and blocky syndrome. The graphics lean toward the animated look more so than realistic. The colors look washed out, and even worse are the fans in the stands. They look flat. So flat the outfielders will actually walk on top of them to retrieve a lost ball. The sound is also weak. I don't think the announcer knows what game he's watching, he sounds like he's calling a round of golf. The noise from the stands does have some bite to it. Fans cheer, chant, and call for hot dogs. Hardball '99's overall control on the game is good. Except it does want you to decide before the batter goes up to the plate on what kind of swing you want and whether or not your going to try and steal a base. It seems to work okay, but its not preferred control. The CPU opponents can play unfair sometimes, but the CPU will help guide your outfielders toward the ball to. If you want the fairest game its best to play with a friend. Hardball '99 is not a complete wash out. It does have a neat little feature called "The All-Time Team". Choose this time and you'll play such Baseball greats as Babe Ruth, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Hank Aaron among others. In Hardball '99 you can play manager, decide how complex he should be. Trade, sign, and draft players. Hardball '99 is only an okay baseball title which could have found an audience, but since its come out so late in the year not even Sammy Sosa can save it. However, perhaps I'm wrong and its not late in the year, but early. Get a head start on the competition.
PUBLISHER: ACCOLADE
GRAPHICS: 3
MUSIC & SOUND: 3.5 CONTROL: 5
ORIGINALITY: 2 FUN & REPLAY: 4
SECRETS: 1
OVERALL: 4.5