Gamevils Baseball Superstars Appstravaganza!
Time for this months Appstravaganza. With the days long and hot, everyone’s out and about for those alien things known as sports. I suppose I had research this bizarre phenomenon through virtual research over the internet. Or better yet why not experience it through a digital avatar through the conveniences of modern technology.
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| Baseball Superstars 2009 |
Fine I’ll drop the stereotypical nerd-speak and talk like a human being. Truth is the App Store isn’t plentiful in the Baseball department, others didn’t seem worth pursuing and I’m extremely thankful for the Baseball Superstars Series because it helped me discover other Gamevil games which are just so gosh-darned good. I’ve not looked for other Baseball games within the time I’ve found Superstars since there really isn’t a need.
I realize this is an Appstravaganza but I’m going to cheap out because they are all basically the same game. So I’ll lay it all down as three games all the same with merely subtle changes but that’s not to say this whole thing will be a cakewalk. These games are HUGE! A dollar spent on any one can cost you 20+ hours of your life trying to conquer the full App.
Control:
A trend amongst Gamevil games is that they aren’t fond of touchscreen gestures or gyroscope controls. Swipe and rotate and all that don’t enter into it ever and this to some is a refreshing classic approach to iOS gaming. Instead what you have are on screen controls such as a gamepad and buttons (and nothing more.) If you have any experience with other games that use these it’s sometimes frustrating however it’s quite perfect for baseball when you don’t thrive on constant activity like say a shooter or any game of that caliber.
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| Baseball Superstars 2010 |
Hitting consists of waiting to press the hit/bunt/special attack button when you’re ready to. Pitching is selecting the pitch type and aiming it with the control pad. There’s no extensive movement for it to get annoying (although there has been the odd hiccup.)
It’s also customizable to your preference if you have big thumbs, small thumbs, left handed or what have you. You can change the size, placement and opacity of the controls around the screen which will take away any reason to complain.
Gameplay:
Not your ordinary Baseball game. Its fantastical with special characters who have special pitches/hitting powers to throw an interesting twist into the game. Although you can play normally, this adds a bit of flavour to an otherwise standard game. It can be a bit annoying at times to suddenly deal with an aggravating, special pitcher in the heat of a game but as they say if you can’t handle the heat.
Several modes for what ails you, Exhibition, Season, My League, Homerun Derby, Mission and Match Play on all versions. I particularly enjoyed the My League mode and having just one batter to focus on and just batting time after time and strengthening my player. However theres a lot more meat in Season mode and I really should make the endeavour should I have more patience.
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| Baseball Superstars 2011 |
Graphics:
Simplistic enough to work on even older iOS devices. I was able to play BS2011 just fine on my iPhone 3G. Its looks are sprite based rather than 3D models and works rather well. It isn’t an acquired taste but I can see how some may be turned off by it. I think it looks charming yet it isn’t absolutely stunning or noticeable. It gets better with each progressive version and I may very well change my mind with the next rendition. As of now though, the gameplay is the winning feature of these games.
There is an HD version of 2010 for the iPad which plays and looks absolutely fantastic. All versions work well with iPad should you choose to go that way but portability pick up and play is the name of the game here (not figuratively, jerk.)
Sound:
Oh good god I’ve never went to mute so fast. Even the sound effects are unbearably annoying no matter which version. It’s the one thing that they don’t manage to fix and I have no hope left that they’ll fix it either. Sad face.
Imagine if before each at bat, an annoying sound plays. Without fail. Every single damn time. That’s what happens. And that’s during the game. When you aren’t playing and are sifting through menus to get to the next game, then it has these annoying sounds that make me rush to the next game just to get away from it only to be reminded of the annoying fanfare sound before each play.
MUTE. How I love thee. (Or iPod App. Need the iPod App.)
Good thing you can turn the sounds and music off and listen to your own stuff.
So what have we learned? Gamevil has an array of winning games on their side and this is just the tip of the iceberg. If you don’t want to spend big on the later versions, the older ones are cheaper so you have no reason to turn any of them down. It has pick up and play guaranteed. It has potential to wear your battery out while you spread your bony ass out across the couch to the dismay of family who intended to use said couch. I cannot recommend this game enough. It’s cheap! It’s fun! It’s simple! You’ve got nothing to lose! It’s one of those games I can guarantee you’ll enjoy. Even if it’s for one day, you can do much worse.
At least try before you buy to be safe. But that’ll just prove that I’m right.
Byword for Mac is iA Writers doppelganger. When I first got it I had to check if it was from a different company or maybe they released it under a new name and logo but it wasn’t. Full screen with only the bare minimal of options (that are tucked away only to be needed to make tweaks to the interface.) These adjustments consist of black against white (and vice versa), how wide the paragraphs are, how many lines you want to focus on, font and default text format.
