Ken Griffey Jr.'s Winning Run

"Greatness"

Ken Griffey Jr's Winning Run was made by Rare/Nintendo in 1992 for use on the SNES Entertainment System. I consider it to be the best baseball game on the SNES. With this review, you'll know a lot more about it too.

Gameplay
Just plain great. There are three different season modes, allowing for you to choose how long you want to lead your team to greatness. There's a mode just for the World Series if you think the seasons are too long. There's even a Home Run Derby mode. Belive me, the season mode is so good, you won't even look at the other ones. I admit, this is one of the funnest games I have ever played. It has one of the most responsive control usage that I have ever seen. Swinging the bat is very easy; no annoying line-up-the-ball views. Yes, this game is very easy, which is why it is so fun. Who really wants to waste time and read the manual? With Ken Griffey Jr's Winning Run, you don't need to. Just pick it up and play it. Playing this game with a friend is where it really shines. The gameplay is very quick, allowing for very quick innings. Three outs take about a minute. The only bad thing about the structure of this game is that balls travel to the wall way too quickly. If you don't like arcade style baseball games, this is the game too get you to like them. You can even pick-off runners. The only thing that bothers me is that balls that are supposed to hit the wall, go through it for home runs, which doesn't make any sense. Other than that, the gameplay does not need much improvement at all.

Story
Actually, there is a very interesting story. Hah, fooled you. It's a baseball game and you try to win it. Nine innings and all. Just hope it doesn't go into extra innings.

Audio/Video
You would be surprised at how good this actually is. All of the music fits the game of baseball perfectly and you can find yourself jammin' along with it. The sound effects are what you'd expect. ''Smack'', ''Ping'', ''Out'', ''Double-play'' and ''Safe'', sound very well put together. Trust me, there is nothing wrong with the sound department. As for the video, it is O.K. The pitcher/batter interface is well set up; you won't be guessing at what's happening. Yes, the fans do look like little dots that all move in the same direction, but who looks at them anyway? The umpires wave there arms when there's a close play. The audio/video is the only part of the game that could use a little improvement.

Replayibility
Man, do I play this game all the time. You will get hooked, trust me. I seriously don't know of any one who doesn't like this game. If you beat a season, it makes you want to play another one. It's that addicting. Playing this game again and again will only make your life that much better.

Buy or Rent
If you have a SNES, get this game. It is a must have. You could rent it a few years ago, but don't bet on it now. Get it while you still can. I'm sure you won't regret it.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/14/02, Updated 05/14/02