Triple Play 2002

"Same as Xbox version, just a few changes here and there"

Triple Play 2002 is one of the older baseball games these days, as it is from the 2002 season. Most people consider it average at best, but I thought it was a pretty good game. It is pretty much the same thing as the Xbox version of this game, but there are a few minor changes.

Graphics: 8/10
Even for a 2002 game, the graphics aren't that bad. A lot of the areas are colored and detailed just like in real life. Most of the batting stances are realistic, such as Nomar Garciaparra's batting stance. Also the players are designed just what they are in real life too. Most of the fields look excellent as well. From the Green Monster at Fenway Park to the ivory in Wrigley Field, the ballpacks look exactly like the fields present day (except some of the new ballparks, like Citizens Bank and the Great American Ballpark).

Gameplay: 8/10
The gameplay is pretty consistent for the most part. That is if you play this game on a regular basis instead of playing 2-3 games a day, where you'll eventually get bored for it for a while. You can select a team and go through their 2002 season, edit lineups and pitching rotations, trade players, and much more. Also for an exhibition game, you can select any team you want and select any field you want. If the game gets too easy, just adjust the difficulty level up a notch. Also, you can select how many innings you want to play and options like that.

Other stuff included in this game are home run derbies. You and someone else (or a computer player) can go head to head with any two players you want slugging out home runs at any field. Whoever hits the most home runs is the winner. You can also choose what types of pitches you want the pitcher to throw to you during the home run derby.

If you play a season, you may like it for the first few months of the season and then get bored after a while, if your team keeps playing the same teams over and over again (team 1 at home, team 2 at home, team 1 away, team 2 away), making the game boring. So just try to play the game at a regular basis so you won't lose motivation for this game.

Sound Effects: 9/10
Many of the sound effects from baseball are in this game and they are pretty realistic. You got umpires calling the balls and strikes, out/safe, etc. You can also hear the crowd cheer and such when a ball is hit. Another neat sound effect is the sound of when you hit the ball. If it's a long ball, you'll hear a big crack from the bat. There are some sound effects in this game not in the Xbox version. If the home team hits a home run, sirens may go off, being a Police Car, Ambulance, or Fire Truck. Other sounds may be fireworks and trains, and sometimes this may crack you up.

You also have the broadcasters, Bob Costas and Harold Reynolds from ESPN's Baseball Tonight show. Both of them are pretty good announcers, announcing play by play in this game. Sometimes Harold may say some funny lines for some plays if you hit a triple or something. But both of them aren't annoying and they shouldn't get on your nerves.

Music: 9/10
Another solid part. The only music in this game is the background music outside of gameplay. You'll hear songs like "I want to rock" and "Get over it" and you may hear them during a game. Most of the songs are pretty good and you may find yourself singing to them if you've played this game enough. There isn't a lot of music in this game, but it's there.

Controls: 8
After playing about 3 or 4 games, the controls will be pretty easy to get used to. When batting, X is to swing and Circle is to bunt. You also have fielding controls, like Square is to dive/jump and you use the analog sticks to throw the ball as well. You'll know the controls the more you play this game, and they are pretty easy to get used to them. It also took me a while to find out all the controls as well. If you forget them, try checking back in the game manual if you have it.

Replayability: 6/10
After playing 162 games in a season, you'll probably want to get rid of this game or something since you've played a lot, and then the game gets pretty boring. Or the game may be a little more fun to play if you pick a new team to play a season with. If you finished it with an AL team, try an NL team for a season and have fun playing new teams, which is exactly what I did. Otherwise, you'll probably get flat out bored of this game.

Rent or Buy?
If you don't want an outdated baseball game, then try to avoid this and get an updated baseball game from 2004/2005. Otherwise, if you like oldschool games and such and if you're a huge fan of baseball, go out and get this game and give it a try. There are still a few copies out there, but they're not rare either. They should be fairly easy to find at your local Gamestop or something.

Overall: 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/17/05