[h1] An entertaining baseball themed arcade spin off that can feel a bit repetitive after time. [/h1]
The first thing to note about [b]Baseball Club[/b], if it wasn't obvious from the description, is that it is not a full baseball game with teams but a pitcher versus batter experience with arcade elements.
The arcade elements are actually done very well, with plenty of colourful graphics, encouraging sound effects, and all the bells and whistles you could wish for. The game certainly lets you know that you are in an arcade setting and I was impressed with the presentation and overall feel of the game. The graphics look nice too and the game mechanics are quite easy to grasp with just a few movements of the cursor and timing needed to successful pitch or hit the ball.
There are four characters to play with but they need to be unlocked by successfully winning matches and improving their skills. Each character has their own attributes which favour them towards batting or pitching and they can be upgraded using coins won from either [b]one on one matches[/b], [b]challenges[/b], or a special mode called [b]skill shot[/b]. There are also [b]daily rewards[/b] just for playing, which refreshes quite often, rewards for completing [b]achievements[/b], like getting x amount of home runs, and rewards for levelling up your character.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3365232907
[h2] One Versus One [/h2]
This is a mode where you pay an entrance fee to challenge an AI player to a one-on-one duel with a cash prize for the winner. The winner also gains cups which determines their ranking and matches you up with opponents who are close to your level, and the loser gets cups removed, but should result in an easier game next time. There are lots of tiers you can unlock by number of cups earned, which bring about harder opponents, cost more money to enter, but reward you with better prizes. When the opponents get more difficult, they will have better equipment and have special pitches like ‘quake’ which shakes the screen as you are trying to hit the ball and ‘smudge’ which partially obscures your view.
[h2] Challenges [/h2]
This mode presents you with three objectives to aim for earning you either one, two, or three stars depending on how many you achieve. Objectives are things like get x number of points, or pitch x number of perfect balls, hit specific targets in the outfield, or get x number of home runs for example. They get harder as you progress and are quite challenging to obtain. It took me a while with lots of retries but I managed to get ninety-five out of a possible ninety-six stars yet that wasn’t enough to progress to the next level which I thought was a bit strict! The objective I am missing asks to hit targets in the outfield with a pitcher who throws special balls so it was very difficult. I would have expected there to be some grace in progression but it looks like you will have to earn three stars in all thirty-two rounds so it is definitely a challenge.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3365232794
[h2] Skill Shot [/h2]
This mode can be very lucrative and the challenge refreshes every six hours, so it’s a challenge you can attempt once a day to really boost your cash. It is a batting challenge where an automated pitching machine fires eight balls at you whilst you try to hit them. It is quite relentless so once you hit one ball get ready for the next one. Depending on how well you strike the ball will determine how many points you will receive. At the end of the barrage your points total determines which one of the six chests you can open. The higher your score, the better the prize chest will be, and this is where you can unlock some nice upgrades to your character.
Upgrades make your equipment better and can improve a player’s attributes like power, contact, impact, swing, throw, and stamina. Equipment includes different kinds of balls, bats, hats, and gloves, and you can even choose the player’s diet. Some of these items will change the appearance of the character, and in true arcade fashion, you can see them use strange objects like telescopes or hammers instead of bats, and they can even wear different outfits that will boost their stats also.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3365233054
The game is very enjoyable, even if you are only batting or bowling, because there is a natural progression that introduces new equipment or different kinds of balls or tasks, and the game is always evolving. That is up to a point. Inevitably, the game runs out of new ideas after the five- or six-hour margin and does feel a little repetitive at that point. It becomes much harder to progress because opponents are much more difficult to defeat and you yo-yo up and down levels and don’t seem to get anywhere. This is where a little grind and patience is needed to upgrade your character so that they become better at hitting or pitching. I sort of lost interest at that point though because I had almost completed the challenges, and unlocking new tiers in the one versus one really only brings new venues and harder opponents.
[h1]🍳Conclusion🍳[/h1]
[quote][h2][b]Baseball Club[/b] is enjoyable for a while but starts to feel a little stale and repetitive later on. To keep the game feeling fresh I would definitely add Steam achievements and extend the challenges mode and make it more forgiving when progressing.
Otherwise, it is a fun arcade experience, especially if you enjoy baseball, and it is perfect for dipping in and out of with incentives for returning to play. The batting and pitching are easy to pick up and navigate so it should appeal to all ages. It would be great if online players could compete in the one versus one mode instead of just AI and more modes would be welcomed. [/h2][/quote]
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