Backyard Baseball

Great game just like 97. Better graphics 2026.

the devs care and are listening to feedback thats enough for me

[h1]Backyard Baseball 2026 is a very welcome return for this ancient franchise.[/h1] [i]Backyard Baseball[/i] and the various games in the franchise have been a love of mine since I was a wee boy. When I first heard the new game was coming, I was incredibly excited after the recent rereleases did incredibly well. I want to be clear that I bought this after the huge patches came in fixing the game so this is based on the Patch 1.1.0.19.1 version. [h1]Pros[/h1] [list] [*] The game absolutely emits Backyard Baseball aura. It feels like the team who made this game perfectly understood the correct amount of skill vs luck, environments, design, everything [*] This is the best 3D game in the Backyard franchise. Let us be real: that was never a high bar to clear. I know some folks might be turned off by the 3D when the game began as 2D games, but the characters and environments here absolutely feel like they were ripped straight from the 2D space and into the 3D one. I can tell you who is who from their silhouette and where we are. [*] The environments are beautiful. The environments of the original games are perfectly recreated here with added things to keep that spirit alive. Not to mention: THEY HAVE PROPER COLOUR!!! I can't believe a game was released in modern day with a proper colour job. It is also swell to see night variations as well so you can get a different vibe and feel for the same place. [*] Bat decorating is cool. I mean I am not going to use it a lot, but hey, we love customization. [*] The batting feels really good. There is also feedback to it, too. At least, it FEELS good. I will discuss the wonkiness of it in the Cons section. [*] There are plenty of new modes and variations of the classic things we love from the way you bat to the difficulty level. We love variety. [*] Sprinting is something I don't think I realised I wanted before. When batting in the older games, you only really had the option to control directions and just had to hope they got to base. Here, you can use your limited stamina to get around the bases, but you run the risk of exhausting your player. [*] Custom character creator is pretty great because the original game did not have it. There is plenty of variety to make your character and they can be easily fitted to make up for your team's shortcomings (or you can make their stats level 1 out of 10 if you want them to suck and if you want that challenge... why would you do that, though?) [*] Plenty of teams to choose from. You even get access to the exclusive teams from the other leagues like back in the day including a few new ones. [*] The user interface is actually pretty decent. Instead of generic see-through menus, you get a cool clipboard that feels like something a coach would use. There are also cool aesthetics with the pitcher vs. batter information, and the little scoreboard at the bottom. I can see why the scoreboard graphic didn't return due to scaling, so it was nice that they gave us a still good UI in this age of generic interfaces. They even reused the treehouse menu and gave it a fresh coat of paint without losing the original charm. [/list] That said, this IS a review and some things need to be brought up as a veteran of this franchise and as a new player to this specific game [h1]Cons[/h1] [list] [*] The batting plays weird. I mentioned the batting FEELS great when you hit the ball, but something about the way the 3D ball comes over to you trips me up? I am not sure if I just suck at watching the ball, but the way it approaches throws me off when it actually comes time to hit the ball. [*] The fielding is... well, something. The players do not react when the ball is flying in the air, which is a huge problem when versus AI. By the time you select your fielder and command them to catch the ball, the ball is about to land, which leaves ample time for the enemy to get a base. [*] I love the lines with Sunny Day and Vinnie the Gooch, but I don't like listening to them. The voice acting is really bad. I really do not get why Jen Taylor could not be asked back to do this role again (yea that's right, [i]Halo[/i] fans! This was her origin!), and I know Lindsay really wanted to do Vinnie, but the new Vinnie just does not get there for me. [*] The players do not really match their stats. I am not sure if it is just me, but it feels like every player plays at a 7 or above instead of the rather wacky varying stats. This could be a very bad observation, but the way they play feels very similar. I shouldn't be seeing Jorge Garcia doing well out there! [*] Lack of multiplayer is such a weird one. This game was advertised to have multiplayer and the game launched without it. That felt like a very last-minute decision. We could have waited a few more months for the release, you know. [*] The team customization is behind [i]Backyard Baseball 2001[/i] and [i]Backyard Basketball 2001[/i]. I mean we have some good options, but [i]Backyard Baseball 2001[/i] gave you two jersey colours. Heck, [i]Backyard Basketball 2001[/i] gave you access to THREE and a LOT more teams, and more adjectives. [/list] To end it all, I am glad we finally have a proper [i]Backyard Baseball[/i] again. No, that one time in 2015 doesn't count. With the MLB teams no longer clogging up the roster and the pros getting pushed to the sides for the real, proper cast, it really feels like we are back on top again. That said, the aforementioned gameplay issues and the missing features do detract from the experience enough to lower its score too much. They are fixable, but they are also noticeable for everyone. Alexander's final score is... [h1]7/10[/h1] [h1]Verdict: Unless you absolutely love the original like I do, buy it when it gets a discount like I did.[/h1]