R.B.I. Baseball 3
System: NES
Release Date: June 1991
Developer: Tengen
Publisher: Tengen
Genre: Sports
Take it to the diamond once again in R.B.I. Baseball 3! This is the third installment of Tengen’s version of American’s favorite pastime. All the teams are here, complete with rosters from the 1990 season. You can even play with the division champion teams back through the 1983 season Let’s give Detroit a run to the pennant!
I played on hard difficulty and picked Cleveland to go up against my Tigers. I steamrolled them, despite them having some players I recall. Cecil Fielder is like a cheat code. I think I hit a home run with him over half the times he came up to bat. Hitting is simple like it always is. You need to time your swing to hit the sweet spot. If you don’t like the pitch placement, then hold off and take a ball. Good luck with that…
Pitching is unchanged. Holding down while pressing the A Button gives you a fast ball, up throws a knuckle, and pressing left or right will give you some curve movement. The fielding sucks because you control multiple fielders at once. If you’re trying to make a grab with an infielder and miss, your outfielder is out of position more often than not. It was way too easy to get extra bases because fielders move jankily, as well. You are able to jump and dive, which can help you out or get you in trouble.
I got walloped in R.B.I. 2, but had no real problem in 3. Cleveland was steamrolled 10-2, then I got into a match with Kansas City. You’re unable to use any starters that you did in the previous game, but I managed my bullpen well, so no problems there. This was a bit closer, but Cecil Fielder is a bomb dropper and I won 7 to 4.
Graphics: 1.5
The graphics are unchanged from the previous title in the series.
Sound: 1.0
The music got on my nerves, though it was there.
Gameplay: 2.0
Fielders are a bit slow. The ball moves oddly. It just feels stiff.
Difficulty: 2.0
This is an easier game than number 2, but whether you have a whole season in you is up to you.
Fun Factor: 2.0
It’s baseball and it works, so it’s not unfun, but it could have been so much more.
Overall Rating: 1.7
R.B.I. Baseball 3 earns a C-. This was just a roster update to R.B.I. Baseball 2. Don’t blame EA for starting the trend, though they certainly pounced on it.