Same ol' homerun-happy, unrealistic and uninspiring gameplay that we've come to see in the series for the past 6 years means a game that's not worth your time.

Introduction

I won't lie to you - I didn't have high hopes for the game when it was announced. I didn't have high hopes for the game when screens and info were beginning to flourish. I didn't have high hopes for the game right before its release. And I didn't have high hopes for the game after its release. Hell, I didn't really have anything for the game to be honest. If anything I'd say that I had my qualms, but nothing more.

Luckily for me my lack of appreciation for a game that has yet to change in the last half decade paid off, as Triple Play 2002 is a stomach churning pile of inferiority.

Gameplay

Anyone would tell you that the last thing that the Triple Play series has been known for would be its realism because… well…it doesn't have any. Sure, the game use to be the pimp of baseball greatness back in the day, ending its reign sometime around Triple Play 96' or 97', but that was due to the lack of any admirable challengers. The game has and always will be (it seems) an arcade title and nothing more.

Following the trend TP2002 is still the homerun-friendly and short-lived mock-up that many have grown to detest since the collapse of the series in 96' or 97' as aforementioned. What's funny is that the game still tries to pass itself off as being a sim (yes…STILL). Now you have to be one strange fellow to have ever considered the TP series to be even remotely related to a sim. Unless it was one of those rare sims that marries its cousins, names it after its favorite alcohol or snack food, and then has an affair with its cousin. Then I guess in that way it'd be a sim.

Stepping right up to the plate you'll be greeted with the ever-popular homerun camera that will instantly follow your first swing as you crack the long ball with the worst player in the league some 530ft. And since the balls seem to float to the plate your next batter will do the same and so on until you've scored at least 10 homeruns with every person on your team (including the pitcher) and then finally you'll get out and end the first inning with a score of around 56 to 0. If you haven't gotten the picture, you can still bat a .900 or higher in a season without any problems.

On the mound you have your basic TP menu at your disposal. I must say that the pitching system is an almighty pain in the ass for this game seeing as how it's extremely easy for either you or the computer to hit homeruns, which results in the highest scoring baseball games ever. Often times you'll want to just bean the batter rather than pitch to him because they honestly will hit any and everything you throw down the plate.

The outfield is a bit confusing. The main issue I had here is that the players are extremely small (which we'll also talk about in the graphics department later) and the field is immense, making it rather hard for you to chase down a ball that's blasted low to the outfield. This could have been saved had the game had any realistic sense of speed. But it doesn't. So it's not saved.

Controls are very standard and aren't anything that you haven't grown accustomed to with any other baseball game. That being that the A, X, Y, and B buttons represent the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and home plates. Player response is slow, very slow. You aren't going to see any double plays in this game (where's the action?). There's at least a 2 second delay on throws from the time you press the button, so trying to pick someone off at second and go for the double at first is impossible. The players just throw the ball at their own leisure. WTF? Oh well, there goes any bit of excitement this game could have had.

TP also comes up stale in comparison in the game modes department, offering only an Exhibition, Season, Playoff, and Home Run Derby. HRD is pointless since the whole game is one gigantic homerun derby. So scratch that one off the list. Exhibition is a stand mode and is what you'll be playing most. Season is there, but isn't as deep as it should be and Playoff mode just allows you to skip the entire season and advance straight to the playoffs (like you'd have a problem getting there anyway).

Speaking of the game mode shortcomings, there's no madden-like cards or player cards whatsoever. Um…this is an EA game isn't it? There's also no trade blocking restrictions, so you can easily build up a powerhouse of heavy hitters or just use any random sorry ass baseball player with a -.900 batting average and crack a couple hundred homers with him (it's really all the same in this game).

And finally, the Create-A-Player mode does exist, but only has a few options and also doesn't have any point restrictions. Simple choose a face, socks length, and only a few other things and make his stats a straight 99 down the chart to create the perfect player. Then stick him to a team and bat a perfect 1.000.

This game honestly has nothing going for it. After playing High Heat 2003 and ASB2003 this game only looks more retarded. They offered so much more in all area (SO MUCH MORE). If you're looking for a good baseball game you'd better look elsewhere. Even in multiplayer the game pisses you off since whoever has bat first will most likely win the game since they'll hit homerun after homerun. Ooh… I feel dirty just playing this game. *washes clean…but it won't come off!*

Graphics

What really surprises me here is that the game actually has slowdown. Yes, slowdown. And it's all over the place too: from batters walking up to the plates to screen transitions and whatnot. It's there and it won't go away!

Next on the roster of ugly are the players. On the outside they look pretty good, but there's no doubt that these are the most stumpy and short looking guys in the ballpark. There aren't any distinct differences in body textures from one player to the next. They all are just short, lumpy looking Oompa Loompa-looking guys (minus the green hair and neon yellow skin).

Stadiums maintain a pretty nice polish visually, but there's no reaction from the crowd. They are just motionless sprites. While I'm really sick of the sprites and think it's about time that we had some real crowds in games, this game only enrages that hatred more. Ground textures seem to be a little off, as they vary drastically from one match to the next where it'll look like field tear then the next game starts and it's so fresh and so clean. Um…ok? Where's the consistency?

Animations are sub par at best; your basic triple play stick-up-the-butt running motions and whatnot. If anything, the only saving grace in animations are the player reactions. Things such as pictures striking fist when you happen to strike out a player or when a batter cracks the long ball (you'll see this one a lot). Sadly, what sort of tears this down is that there aren't any facial animations that we've come to expect from EA. So seeing a player raise his hands in praise but then seeing his face and it looks like he's super pissed sort of kills the mood.

Sound

I still can't remember the last baseball game that has actually has had a good sound system engine backing it up. It's the one area that's always overlooked. EA apparently overlooked it again as well.

You'll hear some random comments coming from fans in the stadiums and a few other random noises, but most of it is all on a loop cycle and you'll hear in some two minutes later. Crowds are sort of set to just do a generic roar rather than following the pace of the game and the commentary is dry (as it's always been). Bob Costas and Harold Reynolds lend their vocals in the booth, but thanks to a lack of fine-tuning the commentary done by these two are disjointed, as they are recorded separately and meant to sound together, but they don't.

Menu music seems to half fit the game at times and then at others don't. Most of the time, though, it doesn't fit at all and makes you wonder if the tracks were just selected at random, which they seem they were. I don't normally care too much for this area of games, but it's nice to have matching music for a good to fit the mood; especially when it's the first thing you hear when you turn on the game.

Overall

Triple Play 2002 is an unprecedented, uninspiring, un-everything negative pile of digital garbage. To enjoy this game it'd take the biggest fan ever to be devoted to a series and a couple kegs of some serious alcohol. Scratch that one… you can't enjoy this game. Period.

Dameon White
Still tries to scrub off the filth...

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