All-Star Baseball 2005

"ASB 2005 throws a hanging curveball"

Introduction:

Acclaim has been struggling financially of late, but perhaps its final ASB game is one of Acclaim's finer moments. The game has its flaws, but when it's all said and done the game leaves at least a fair impression. The game doesn't quite live up to the hype of baseball fans today like it did in ASB 2003, but the main parts of the game are outstanding. The little things are what bring down the award winning franchise's final baseball game. However, nearly everything has been improved except those little problems. Acclaim has rarely failed to disappoint when it comes to bringing in new special features and ASB 2005 is no exception. All-Star Baseball 2005 isn't the best way to end a franchise, but it sure is a good one.

Graphics: 7/10

The graphics in the game are mediocre in most areas, but the stadiums are stunningly realistic. As for the player models, well they're not the worst, but it still doesn't look like a player is always holding on to the bat and it looks like one of the batter's hands is going through the other hand at times. The fields themselves also look nice, but the grass looks perfectly even at times which is unrealistic and some stadiums with actual grass look like they are covered with turf instead. However you can still tell the turf and grass apart because the grass has more color. The lighting effects are one of the more outstanding graphics in the game, night games are just stunning, you may also find your player trying to hit with a shadow over home plate in certain stadiums.

Gameplay: 7/10

Perhaps the roughest road for ASB 2005 is its gameplay. There are so many great features yet so many glitches. Franchise mode is deeper than ever with Spring Training and the ability to sign points after Spring Training is over to improve your players. Also you can follow many different stats throughout a season and your entire franchise. You can also follow who the MLB record holders are for a variety of stats. Expansion mode has also been improved with more cities and teams. You can also select from a variety of stadiums including classic parks such as the Polo Grounds. As for trades the AI needs a huge improvement in this game because they will trade certain good players for worse players as long as it takes some money off their hands. On the field there are still phantom catches when the ball will be 50 feet away from and outfielder and appear in his glove. During replays the ball seems to stop for at least a second over home plate when a hitter gets his bat on the ball. Also during replays when a hitter hits the ball it will appear as the ball never hit the bat. Sometimes when running the bases manually and you try to advance one runner when you have more than one runner on then both runners will go. If it weren't for these errors then perhaps this would be Acclaim's best game that they had ever made, but since they occurred it drops the score significantly.

Sound: 6/10

Well the humorous commentary of Steve Lyons and Thom Brennaman continues will many different phrases. Sometimes they will get completely off the topic of baseball, which can make for a more interesting game. The crack of the bat and the sound when the ball hits the glove on a strikeout are breathtaking. The reason the sound scores so low is because it helps when you can hear it. Sometimes the sound will completely give out so your playing the game in silence. Sometimes the sound can affect the way you play the game because if you hear the crack of the bat you know you need to start running, but if you don't then usually you'll end up getting a late jump so the lack of constant sound really hurts the game. The music is also quite bad and is mainly one kind of music so it wouldn't suit the taste of most people, but the good thing is you only hear it in the menus.

Replay: 8/10

Well the fact that it's the last ASB game will pretty much force die hard fans to pop the game into the console for years, but those that aren't probably will be looking for something else within a year. Then again the franchise is unique so those that own the game may pop it in for kicks of the franchise. Despite the glitches the games can be quite fun and dramatic though allowing more replay ability. The franchises are also 20 seasons long so if you plan on going the full way with your franchise it will take you a while to finish. The fact that it is the last game in the franchise is what keeps the replay so high.

Final Recommendation:

Buy the game by all means just because it is the final game in the All-Star Baseball franchise. The gameplay will allow laughs and maybe even tears at the end of a successful franchise. Relive the 2003 baseball season and maybe even turn some things around in This Week in Baseball Challenge. I paid $50 for the game, but if you can find it for less or even if you can't then it is well worth the money.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 10/29/04