Sound familiar? This is my review from last year's version of All-Star Baseball. I was blown away last year, and this year it only got better. My two biggest problems last year were the crummy looking crowds and choppy player animations. This year, Acclaim seems to have gotten everything worked out. The players all move with a smoothness that is about as natural as a game can get. Oh, did I mention the crowds? OH MY GOD do they look awesome! While they are still 2D, the developers used shots of real people - whether they are the developers, or just people from the local trailer park, I couldn't tell you - but the effect is great and takes the game one step closer to looking like the real thing.
The commentary is some of the best I have heard this side of a Sega Sports title. I do not know who Acclaim hired as their sound team, but these guys deserve a raise because, for once, it seems like they actually 'got it'. The commentary, for once, sounds like a real presentation. What I found interesting was that the commentators were not just limited to what was going on in the game and would often go off into little tangents about other teams in the league just like in a real game.
