World Class Baseball
System: TG-16
Release Date: December 1989
Developer: Hudson Soft
Publisher: NEC
Genre: Sports
It’s about time we get America’s favorite past time on the TG-16 with World Class Baseball. I turned this game on and after picking the Pennant Mode and my team, I was sent to the batter box. The batter animation put me off a little bit, but I put that behind me and once I got a hit, I could only think of Tommy Lasorda Baseball. The fielding view is exactly the same. The scoreboard between innings is exactly the same. And despite a little difference in pitching and batting graphics, it plays exactly the same.
The twelve teams you can choose from are all fictional, so I chose to be the Fries, because I love fries. You can move around the batter box. You can bunt for an easy base most of the time. You can swing away. I felt the swinging was a bit slow, but getting contact was very generous. This is definitely a hitter’s game, shown by a couple dozen hits between both teams.
The pitching doesn’t give you a ton of control. You can hold up to throw a change up and down to throw a fastball. Pressing right or left will move the ball in those directions. The computer is pretty good at taking balls, unlike me. I just swung at everything, because it all looked like I could connect until after I hit the swing button. I couldn’t pull off a check swing, so I guess that isn’t possible. I made a comeback in the 9th inning, blasting a grand slam, but it wasn’t enough.
Graphics: 2.5
The animations when swinging are awkward, but there are more animations on the field, so there’s that.
Sound: 2.0
The music is out of place and the digitized voice is awful.
Gameplay: 2.5
Outside of exhibition, there is only a pennant mode, where you play every team once.
Difficulty: 2.5
The computer was great at getting hits and scoring. I was alright at it.
Fun Factor: 2.5
I had an alright time, but I wasn’t compelled to play more than one game.
Overall Grade: 2.4
World Class Baseball earns a C+. It’s a solid baseball game, but it didn’t break any new ground.