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Dreamcast | Sports | World Series Baseball 2K1 | Review

There is no Boxart for - World Series Baseball 2K1
  • GRAPHICS: 5.0
  • SOUND: 3.0
  • CONTROL: 3.5
  • FUN FACTOR 3.5
  • AVG USER SCORE 2.2
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 3.0

Review: World Series Baseball 2K1

Review by KILOWATT | 11/24/2000 | 14:47:41 PM PST

After a few delays and questions about it ever surfacing, the continuation of the WSB legacy finally appears on the Dreamcast. Does it live up to the standards of the 2K sports series?

A Proud History
Ever since Tommy Lasorda Baseball on the Genesis, Sega has always been an innovator in the genre. They introduced the first cart-based play-by-play commentary and refined the pitcher/batter interface, but their trademark has always been impeccable gameplay. World Series Baseball 2K1 definitely brings many new advances to the table, highlighted by their overall graphics presentation (among the sharpest you'll see anywhere), with very fluid animations.

All About Control
WSB 2K1 is all about control. The intriguing new pitching interface, in which you choose from a selection of pitches based on your players' skills, seems daunting at first, but this setup is easily one of the best ever. The batting mechanism is rather hit or miss (no pun intended). You have to hold down and then let go of the analog trigger to swing, which works out fine for the most part, but since you can't check your swing, there really doesn't seem to be any point to the swing button being analog. Fielding is where WSB 2K1 really falls short. The fielding is all automatic except for throwing to bases. There is no option to take control yourself, and you'll find the CPU fielders making some bizarre choices in running down balls. To make matters worse, the nice animations compound the auto-fielding problem, resulting in slow tags and delayed throws. Other major flaws include relatively light stat tracking and very, very repetitive and choppy play-by-play commentary.

Only Game In Town
With many flaws and a handful of outstanding saving graces, WSB 2K1 is a tough title to recommend. Despite its shortcomings, the game is very enjoyable and the only way to fulfill your baseball cravings on the Dreamcast. The graphics are stunning and the season mode will keep you busy for quite a while. Just be prepared to deal with some frustration on the field.