2020 Super Baseball

[Alpha2099]

...or for those who played it on the Genesis, that would be "Super Baseball 2020".

I remember playing this game on an arcade cabinet as a kid; I think the one I played was part of a Neo-Geo unit that had a couple other games loaded into it. As a kid, I was too young to understand the complexities of the game. Now that I'm older, and understand baseball a lot more, the game is much more fun to play. In a side-by-side comparison of the console versions (SNES and Genesis), the SNES definitely wins on graphics alone. The game is definitely rough around the edges and lacks an "exhibition mode", but for those who want a fun take on a sports game, this is something I recommend.

Anyone else ever played this, either in the arcade or on a console?

[CastlevaniaDude]

...or for those who played it on the Genesis, that would be "Super Baseball 2020".

I remember playing this game on an arcade cabinet as a kid; I think the one I played was part of a Neo-Geo unit that had a couple other games loaded into it. As a kid, I was too young to understand the complexities of the game. Now that I'm older, and understand baseball a lot more, the game is much more fun to play. In a side-by-side comparison of the console versions (SNES and Genesis), the SNES definitely wins on graphics alone. The game is definitely rough around the edges and lacks an "exhibition mode", but for those who want a fun take on a sports game, this is something I recommend.

Anyone else ever played this, either in the arcade or on a console?

In the Neo Geo cab. Holy crap, one of my favorite games of all time. My friend had his high school graduation party and the neighbor owned some vending machines and among the juke box and some other crap was a Neo Geo machine with this game. We literally stayed up all night the day before, of, and after his party playing and sneaking beers off of our parents. We just called it "Robot Baseball."

When I discovered the console ports, I was blown away and super pumped. I guess at the time I just overlooked novelty sports games because I was so serious about getting the next NHL or Madden or NCAA games. I guess I should've known the second I played Mutant League Football/Hockey that these novelty games were worth checking out.

God bless Robot Baseball.

I've always vowed that if I ever came into a minor windfall (so far no dice) that I'd grab an AES just to play this masterpiece.

EDIT: Just noticed you're from Mars. Westmoreland County, here.

[Alpha2099]

EDIT: Just noticed you're from Mars. Westmoreland County, here.
Hah! We're almost neighbors. Nice to hear from a fellow PA resident.

[CastlevaniaDude]

Hah! We're almost neighbors. Nice to hear from a fellow PA resident.

There's another dude on here who is from the Brownsville area, too. We seem to be well-represented.

[GhostDog]

The SNES version if I recall correctly was closer to the NEO GEO version graphically while the Genesis version shared similarities but it seemed to be a bit different. I personally enjoyed the Genesis version more because it played so much smoother and much faster than the SNES version that had a bunch of slowdown and generally seemed sluggish in comparison which took away from the flow and excitement of what should be a fast-paced arcade baseball game. I only recall playing the NEO GEO version once a while ago and I don't recall if it had any slowdown or not. Either way, Super Baseball 2020 was one of my favorite Genesis games and I would play that game to death back in 1997 when I first got it and the graphics seemed so awesome even then to me. I still think the game looks great today for Genesis when watching videos on Youtube.

[Alpha2099]

The SNES version if I recall correctly was closer to the NEO GEO version graphically while the Genesis version shared similarities but it seemed to be a bit different. I personally enjoyed the Genesis version more because it played so much smoother and much faster than the SNES version that had a bunch of slowdown and generally seemed sluggish in comparison which took away from the flow and excitement of what should be a fast-paced arcade baseball game. I only recall playing the NEO GEO version once a while ago and I don't recall if it had any slowdown or not. Either way, Super Baseball 2020 was one of my favorite Genesis games and I would play that game to death back in 1997 when I first got it and the graphics seemed so awesome even then to me. I still think the game looks great today for Genesis when watching videos on Youtube.
Graphically, the SNES version is certainly closer to the Neo Geo. The Genesis version looks very washed out, and much of the interface is just gray, whereas the SNES uses color everywhere.

However, in terms of gameplay, I do think the Genesis version is closer to the Neo Geo. For one thing, the Genesis version kept the crackers (i.e. land mines) which the SNES left out. The Genesis also displays a running clock, which the Neo Geo had but the SNES left out. Also, I feel like the teams play differently despite their stats being equal in both games. On the SNES I'm playing as Tokyo, which is rated 8/10 on hitting, and I swear I can't buy myself a hit! All they do is pop up or foul balls off. But on the Genesis, they're cracking hits all over the field.

It's almost as if the Neo Geo version split into two copies of itself, but each copy has something that the other lacks. Very strange, but that makes it nice for comparing the SNES to the Genesis.

[GhostDog]

Graphically, the SNES version is certainly closer to the Neo Geo. The Genesis version looks very washed out, and much of the interface is just gray, whereas the SNES uses color everywhere.

However, in terms of gameplay, I do think the Genesis version is closer to the Neo Geo. For one thing, the Genesis version kept the crackers (i.e. land mines) which the SNES left out. The Genesis also displays a running clock, which the Neo Geo had but the SNES left out. Also, I feel like the teams play differently despite their stats being equal in both games. On the SNES I'm playing as Tokyo, which is rated 8/10 on hitting, and I swear I can't buy myself a hit! All they do is pop up or foul balls off. But on the Genesis, they're cracking hits all over the field.

It's almost as if the Neo Geo version split into two copies of itself, but each copy has something that the other lacks. Very strange, but that makes it nice for comparing the SNES to the Genesis.

I just thought the Genesis version played much better and it was fast and addicting just as an arcade game should be while the SNES version played horribly and I really couldn't stomach it. The Genesis version looked washed out? Really? I thought it looks great and colorful and has some of the nicest graphics and gameplay for a Genesis game. The Genesis version is really underrated because no one ever talks about this game. The game definitely falls into my top 5 Genesis games because it's super addictive and I used to always come back for more back when I had a Genesis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_VKVr5yN-Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szuvZn14EgE

[Alpha2099]

I just thought the Genesis version played much better and it was fast and addicting just as an arcade game should be while the SNES version played horribly and I really couldn't stomach it. The Genesis version looked washed out? Really? I thought it looks great and colorful and has some of the nicest graphics and gameplay for a Genesis game. The Genesis version is really underrated and the game definitely falls into my top 5 Genesis games because it's super addictive and I used to always come back for more back when I had a Genesis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_VKVr5yN-Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szuvZn14EgE
Don't get me wrong, I think the Genesis version looks great for a Genesis game. But I think compared to the SNES, which had a much larger color palette than the Genesis, it doesn't look as good.

[GhostDog]

Don't get me wrong, I think the Genesis version looks great for a Genesis game. But I think compared to the SNES, which had a much larger color palette than the Genesis, it doesn't look as good.

I respectfully disagree. While the SNES generally has better colors in games, the graphics and gameplay I thought were better as a whole on the Genesis version but that's just my opinion because each version had their aesthetic or gameplay appeal for different people but I prefer the Genesis version in every aspect. EA really changed the game for the better with the Genesis version.

[zakthedodo]

Fun game on any platform.
I've only played the Genesis version on actual hardware, The SNES is a bit closer to the original but the Genesis version toned down the colors of the uniforms which I actually like better.
Everything about the game works really well. From powering up players, accumulating and losing money, speed of the game, and a 16 game season. I wished there was a longer option but oh well.
I enjoyed it more than any of the R.B.I. series or arcade type baseball games on the system.
Stat tracking would have been cool or even drafting a team, but that wasn't very usual for console games at the time. a different stadium or 2 would have a nice touch, but this is nitpicking.
Would love to see it on a next gen console, but maybe it's better if it's left alone.

[Alpha2099]

Would love to see it on a next gen console, but maybe it's better if it's left alone.
It still holds up after 20 years, but there are a couple kinks that could be ironed out. If done properly, I think it could benefit from a remake.

[GhostDog]

Just thinking about this game makes me want to buy an old crt tv, Genesis and the game but perhaps it's more trouble than it's worth. I had some really good times with this game and I'm shocked no one mentions it as among the best Genesis games. The game looks and plays beautifully and still holds up really well with its graphics and gameplay. My wish is for this game to be released for PSN and I don't know why they don't go ahead and release it since they did release Baseball Stars 2.

[Alpha2099]

Maybe someday it'll be released in some sort of uber-Genesis collection for current systems. Sega has done that before; I've seen a Sega collection for Xbox 360 that has around 30 games, I think.

[Flashback2012]

Maybe someday it'll be released in some sort of uber-Genesis collection for current systems. Sega has done that before; I've seen a Sega collection for Xbox 360 that has around 30 games, I think.

Unlikely as SNK owns the IP and would release the original Neo-Geo version instead of the Genesis or SNES ports (which they probably don't even have the code for). To the best of my knowledge, I do not believe that the game was included on the Wii/PS2/PSP release of SNK Arcade Classics but apparently according to Wikipedia the game got a domestic release for the Wii Virtual Console last year.

I have the game on Neo CD but I always preferred Baseball Stars. My cousins though loved the hell out of Super Baseball 2020 on SNES as well as BaseWars on NES (which I found to be less than stellar). :p

[Steven]

Love me some Super Baseball 2020. Like the SNES version... graphically it held up close to the arcade, and I find the gameplay to be satisfying enough.

http://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1407222/2020Baseball-23.JPGhttp://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1407222/2020Baseball-27.JPG

Love playing WALL BALL... as a kid and even now I get a total kick out of those long hit balls that roll for days off the cool Lego-esque blue glass windows. Totally fun stuff :D

Wrote a review for 2020 back in 2010 that can be viewed right here: http://www.rvgfanatic.com/7401/1397022.html

[GhostDog]

Love me some Super Baseball 2020. Like the SNES version... graphically it held up close to the arcade, and I find the gameplay to be satisfying enough.

http://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1407222/2020Baseball-23.JPGhttp://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1407222/2020Baseball-27.JPG

Love playing WALL BALL... as a kid and even now I get a total kick out of those long hit balls that roll for days off the cool Lego-esque blue glass windows. Totally fun stuff :D

Wrote a review for 2020 back in 2010 that can be viewed right here: http://www.rvgfanatic.com/7401/1397022.html

Very nice. I have to admit I've been a fan of your reviews for a while now. I love your enthusiasm in your writing and it really brings me back to my own memories and the passion I had with games in my childhood. I really don't know why SNK doesn't just release the NEO GEO version on PSN.

[Steven]

Very nice. I have to admit I've been a fan of your reviews for a while now. I love your enthusiasm in your writing and it really brings me back to my own memories and the passion I had with games in my childhood. I really don't know why SNK doesn't just release the NEO GEO version on PSN.

Thanks for the kind words, GD. It's been fun writing up all those reviews and sharing my nostalgic memories of them. I will never forget those vaunted 16-bit glory SNES days. There was something magical about being 8-12 years old, right in the thick of the early-mid '90s, growing up with gaming itself. Shoot, I need to play me some SNES today ;)

[GhostDog]

Thanks for the kind words, GD. It's been fun writing up all those reviews and sharing my nostalgic memories of them. I will never forget those vaunted 16-bit glory SNES days. There was something magical about being 8-12 years old, right in the thick of the early-mid '90s, growing up with gaming itself. Shoot, I need to play me some SNES today ;)

There was definitely magic with video games back then for me. Just seeing games behind a counter in their plastic and marvelling at their cover art was enough for me to get a thrill. Arcades in the 90s were as hot as ever and I could enter an arcade without any money as a kid and just witness the demo screens or watch someone else play and still have fun. The times I found a machine with money already in it or in the coin slot was like winning the lottery for me! I really wish SNK would bring more of its NEO GEO classics to the Playstation and XBox Live network.