PlayStation 2

High Heat Major League Baseball 2003

But as it stands, High Heat is the only true baseball game that you will need on the PlayStation2. Don't be brainwashed by what Game Informer says, as they are nothing but graphics whores who don't care about true gameplay. Listen to myself and everyone else who picked this baseball game above all others, and be it known that I stand by the 5 GiN Gem rating so deserving of such a marvelous series.

High Heat 2003 is the first baseball game out of the gates this season, but it?s hard to imagine Triple Play or even All-Star Baseball coming close to this performace. If you have the slightest interest in baseball, run?don?t walk?to score a copy of this excellent game.

With a glut of baseball games on the PS2 these days, it’s easy to see High Heat falling behind on name value versus the Triple Play/All-Star Baseball games. However, it would be a shame to ignore the presence of the most realistic and entertaining baseball game of the year. It might be a little too deep for arcade baseball fans or casual baseball fans, but even that’s adjustable through the sliders. But hardcore baseball junkies should have this game in their possession, if they don’t have it already. Don’t let the fact that 3DO made this game scare you off – if all their games were as good as High Heat Baseball 2003, they’d be the best publisher in the world.

Is this the best baseball game on the PS2? Yessiree, and the Xbox , and the GameCube , and the Commodore 20 . There are a few things that can be tweaked to turn this exceptional game to a stellar one. Hey, beggars can't be choosers though, but if they could, then they'd do well to choose High Heat Major League Baseball 2003 . If not for any other reason, than that proceeds go to help ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease) research to which Curt Schilling is a huge contributor. Rare is the game that you can have fun with and donate to a good cause.

Well, what else would you like to know? High Heat Major League Baseball 2003 is arguably the best baseball game for the PS2 right now. It is surely my favorite and deserves at least a rental from anyone who enjoys baseball games. If you are looking to purchase a baseball title, HH2003 would be my strong choice. The gameplay and control easily set this game apart from its competition.

Go out and buy this game. On the way home get disappointed by looking at the screenshots on the back of the case. Then you will be forced to love this game for how well it plays.

High Heat 2003 doesn’t outshine last year’s High Heat title by much, but its subtle differences in gameplay make for much smoother action and the new features add more bang for the buck. Sadly, there wasn’t much effort put into the graphics--which would have made this the leading baseball title available--but there is always next year’s High Heat to look forward too.

High Heat 2003 may not be the best looking or sounding baseball game, but its realistic gameplay laps the competition. It's good to see a sports game in this day and age that places the emphasis on substance instead of style. If you're a serious fan of Major League Baseball, High Heat 2003 is the best option on the PlayStation 2. Graphical junkies will be turned off by its seemingly simplistic look, but hardball purists will appreciate its depth and commitment to being as close to playing the real game as possible.

High Heat's sound effects are standard for this not-so-new generation of games with jeering fans, realistic voices and decent batting sound effects. Dave O'Brien and Chuck Valenches serve up the latest rotten helping of poorly synched commentary. You can say that again! Y-Y-You can s-s-s-say that again!

I view this more as an evolutionary process than anything else. It would be hypocritical of me to say (as I have before) that the gameplay is the most important thing, and then punish a developer for taking the time to get the gameplay right, even at the expense of the game's graphics. That said, I'll be keeping a keen eye on next year's offering. Now that they've got the gameplay down, there really won't be any excuse for not upgrading the graphics next year -- at the absolute MINIMUM.

From the realistic player AI, accurate statistical tracking, and authentic rules, High Heat 2003 is hands down the best-playing baseball game of the season. But for those of you who seek fantasy options or visual dynamics, this release comes up short on both accounts.

This is about as close as you're going to get to a purely arcade-style baseball title. The gameplay is lightning quick, and with the absence of an aiming icon during both batting and pitching, things just go that much faster.