ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN LIMA NEWSLETTER APRIL 1991
 
 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL: 
^^^^^^^^^^^^THE BEST OF THE MBX SYSTEM GAMES  
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^reviewed by Charles Good 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Lima Ohio User Group  
 
    By their very nature, reviews of game software tend to
be very subjective.  With a review of "functional" or
"productivity" software, the reviewer should be able to
describe what the software does, and the review reader
should then be able to judge if the reviewed software will
fit the reader's needs.  A game review isn't so easy.  Game
reviews are based mainly on how much the reviewer "enjoys"
the game or how much "fun" it is for the reviewer to play
the game.  One person's "fun" may be "boring" to someone
else.  I have, for example, seen in exchange newsletters
both rave and very nasty reviews of the SUPER MARIO BROTHERS
99/4a game advertised in recent issues of Micropendium.
Thus, readers of this review may have reservations about my
claim that, for me, CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL is the most fun of
any of TI's officially released game modules.  The only TI action game that
comes close, in my opinion, is Thorn EMI's TENNIS.  But this is not an official
TI product. 
 
Unfortunately, very few readers will ever get a chance to really dispute my
claim.  You can only play CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL if you have an MBX system, and
very few 99/4a enthusiasts have ready access to this piece of hardware.  Thus,
although CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL can still be purchased brand new in TI factory
sealed containers (L.L. Conner has new modules for $15), most readers will just
have to accept my word that this is a really neat game.  For those of you who
would like to SEE what you are missing, the Lima User Group has a VHS video
tape demo of all the "MBX system required" software.  Any user group of
individual member of the Lima Ohio UG can obtain this video by sending a VHS
tape and $1 return postage, or by sending $5 to me at P.O.Box 647, Venedocia
Ohio 45894.  
  
    CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL uses all the special features of
the MBX system, including voice recognition and all the
special knobs and buttons on the MBX joystick.  It is a two
player game that requires two human players.  There is no
option for a single player to "play against the computer".
The at bat player uses the MBX joystick to swing the bat and
to control base running.  The fielding player uses voice
recognition and/or the MBX keypad to control pitching and
the fielding of batted balls.  The game is accompanied by
very realistic sounds (from the monitor speaker) and voices
(from the MBX control box speaker.  The umpire's voice is
particularly realistic.  He says "foul" and "ball" at the
appropriate times.  He raises his right hand and says
"steeerike" when the pitcher throws a good one.  When a
strike out occurs, the umpire says "Strike three, yerrr
out."  When a fly ball is caught or a runner is tagged out,
the umpire says "ouuut".  You have to hear this ump to
really appreciate his neat vocalization.  
 
    When a game starts you hear the song "Take me out to the
ball game," and the fielding team walks out of the dugout to
their fielding positions.  The first batter then walks out
of his dugout, assumes his position in the batter's box, and
the umpire says "play ball".  All of this initial player
movement is shown on screen.  The defensive player uses the
MBX keypad to throw pitches, first selecting a speed (slow,
medium, or fast) and then selecting the type of pitch.
Pitch types can be either curve or fastball.  If the pitch
is a fastball, the defensive player can aim for the inside,
middle, or outside of the plate by pressing the appropriate
spot on the MBX keypad.  To throw each pitch requires two
presses of the MBX keypad (speed, then pitch type).  If the
batter takes the pitch, the defensive player says "pitcher"
into the MBX microphone to have the catcher return the ball
to the pitcher.  If the ball is hit, the defensive player
speaks into the MBX microphone the name of the player who
should field the ball.  If necessary, the defensive player
then speaks into the MBX microphone the fielding position to
which the fielding player should throw the ball.
"Shortstop" followed by "first" might be used to throw out a
batter. The following fielding positions are accessed with
voice recognition: pitcher, first, second, third, hone,
shortstop, left, right, and centerfield.  To tag a runner it
is necessary to do more then just throw the ball to the
fielder nearest the runner.  The defensive player also ha to
press the TAG button on the MBX keypad.  Although voice
recognition is fun, it is not always accurate.  Sometimes
the computer misunderstands a spoken command and throws the
ball to the wrong fielder.  The MBX keypad provides an
accurate alternative to verbal control of who has the ball.
The keypad has a diagram of the playing field with all nine
fielding positions indicated on the diagram.  The defensive
player can press the keypad to indicate who should field a
batted ball or receive a thrown ball.  The keypad can be
used in addition to voice recognition to control fielding,
or the voice recognition option can be declined at the
beginning of the game and all fielding can be controled from
the keypad without worrying about the inaccuracies of using
the MBX microphone.  
 
    All offensive play is controlled with the MBX joystick.
To swing at a pitch use the trigger (comparable to the fire
button on most joysticks).  The force of the swing is
infinitely variable using the knob on the top of the
joystick arm.  Clockwise adds power but makes it less likely
you will actually hit the ball with your swing.  Turning the
knob fully counterclockwise produces a bunt.  This knob
turning can be done between pitches in a way that is hard to
observe by the defensive player.  Once you hit the ball can
try for extra bases by pushing the joystick arm forward.
As long as you push the joystick arm forward the batter (or
lead runner) will advance around the basepath.  Be careful
or you will be tagged out!  You can make the lead runner
slide by pushing button #1 on the joystick.  You can also
make the lead runner "lead off" by pushing the joystick arm
forward and then releasing it.  This leads to all kinds of
interesting possibilities.  The pitcher can try to pick off
the "leading off" lead runner, who must hustle back to his
base by pulling the joystick arm back (toward you).  The
"leading off" runner can try to steal a base (ending with a
slide by pushing button #1).  The defense responds with a
quick throw from the catcher or pitcher to the appropriate
base that may result in the "stealing" baserunner being
tagged out or caught in a rundown.  This sort of creative
base running (leading off, attempting to steal) adds a great of excitement to
the game. 
 
CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL is the only MBX software module that takes advantage of
virtually all of the special features available with the MBX system.  In
graphics, excitement, and special features it is comparable to many of the
better sports games available for the Nintendo game system. 
.PL 1