Baseball Simulator 1.000 (NES Game)

I'm not the first person to realize this, but Baseball Simulator 1.000 is a horrible name for a video game, especially one as fun as this. From the name you'd expect something like a fantasy baseball game where you look at stats and never play an actual game. Baseball Simulator 1.000 actually gives the very best in arcade-style baseball fun. It's one of the best, if not the (say it like "thee" in your head) best baseball games on the NES.

First of all, the characters are a little more cartoony than they are in other games. They're all a bit on the pudgy side, which is fun. It's the same reason it was fun to watch David Wells play. Also, look how chunky your bat is. It's a caveman club. Also, different players have different powers that you can enable when you're up to bat. Some can make the ball zig-zag making it impossible to field. Others can make the ball catch on fire. My favorite is the guy who turns into a tornado at the plate. It's all much sillier and more fun than the name would imply.

With my scathing review of the fielding in Bad News Baseball, one might ask, "How's the fielding in Baseball Simulator 1.000?" It's not that bad. As a matter of fact, by the 7th inning I was routinely throwing guys out and even tossed a double play. It still has room for improvement, but barring any dark horses (I've got my eye on you, James K. Polk) I have to say: this is my very favorite baseball game on the NES. That being the case, baseball games on the NES aren't as good as most other games. So even though this one is top drawer, overall it gets only...

Even though it's not perfect, chances are this is the most fun you'll ever have playing baseball on the NES.