World Series Baseball | Reviewing Every U.S. Saturn Game | Episode 19 of 246

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

Tit0 now has his own KZbin channel, called Hall of Game. He's reviewing retro sports games, looking for the diamonds among the oversaturated genre. Go give his content a whirl: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gpmrgIxpbal0kM0 My main man Saturn Memories pointed out an interesting AI exploit. He tweeted this at me: "I played A LOT of WS Baseball as a kid. The fatal flaw with this version of the game is that as long as you pitch to the lower outside corner, the AI will almost always either whiff or weakly fly/ground out. I went 68-0 in the regular season doing this before I got bored." If you have not checked out his channel yet, then do it: kzbin.info

[@Larry]

Absolutely loved this game as a kid, despite Baseball being non existant here, I'd often import baseball games from the US or Japan to play with friends, and it got really competitive. But This game was probably my fave. We'd piss ourselves laughing at how the announcer said Ed Sprague's name as well, came a bit of a thing at school :D

[@Salnax]

The World Series Baseball infographic was the funniest thing I’ve seen today.

[@Mitsuraga]

I positively adore your use of commercials and other such date-specific clips to convey the general zeitgeist of the era. 8:40 Somebody isolate this bit.

[@RolandoMarreroPR]

Loved the fact you stated the video with Great Baseball for Sega Master! Our very 1st baseball game! The only game my brothers and me would play with dad!

[@cptfishstick]

Great review. I've really enjoyed your whole series, and I want to thank you for the time you put into them. Your notions on Sports games were exactly how I felt about them until recently. I'm at a place where I feel when you enjoy them in a social context with friends, they begin to shine. That said, I begged my parents for the Chef Boyardee X-Men (and Spider-man) pastas. They were terrible.

[@greenEYEDdj]

Sega lord x sent me. How have I not had you suggested to me? Good stuff.

[@eb3fan]

"I'm just glad to be here." "Alright... Me too." Panda I nearly choked on my toothbrush watching this doing my morning routine

[@XeCuTioNR]

It's just like when Sega pulled the same thing with Super League 91 and Sports Talk Baseball on Genesis. Great review! Also thanks for the follow on Twitter 🙂

[@RichardHartness]

The sheer fact that I don't like baseball, and that you don't like baseball and I STILL enjoyed this honest review shows that there is no good reason why you should have so few subs. This is getting crazy. Oh, and thank you 1,000x times for not having a really bad "WHAT'S UP GAMUUUUH'S!" type of catch phrase in your intro. I can't stand those.

[@PhillyCYOSports]

Thanks for taking your time with these

[@highheatbeats2091]

Not gonna lie. I loved this game as a kid. With that said, I played it recently and this review is spot on. I think I loved it as a kid because, back in the day, we got the games we got. Meaning, we only got them for birthdays, christmas, or tax time lol. At least in my house. So, we played the crap out of even the worst games. Also, love your Ghen War review and interview. I still have a copy of it. Was never able to beat it. I would make it to Australia, where I would get my butt kicked.

[@ralphjb]

Indeed. Same here. I only got new games for birthdays, Christmas, and report card day. I had to cherish each one I had and play the shit out of it.

[@GameplayandTalk]

It's interesting hearing a sports fan's opinions on the game. Not much of a sports guy myself (always preferred arcade sports games like NBA Jam when I do play them), but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a blast with the Home Run Derby mode available on the Bootleg Sampler. Loved that fast, snappy gameplay and that funky backing music.

[@bobopatchigglerrulez]

Just found the channel and going through all these Saturn videos on order, but I hope you bring your friend back for more videos, I dont know fuck all about sports or sports videogames either but it was pretty interesting seeing him explain it all, that would be a cool series in it's own right "Sports game expert explains sports and sports games in laymans terms to clueless nerds"

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

He’s back in the NBA Jam video. Glad you’re liking the series!!

[@CrossingRover]

Love the editing in this one! Like some of the other commenters, I used to hate sports games but they come into their own when played with a friend in a more casual setting.

[@nohozana]

Finally, a new review! Out of the 3 WSB games on the saturn, this was my personal favorite.

[@SameNameDifferentGame]

1:51 Hey, County Stadium! Miss that place.

[@DaveVoyles]

The people have spoken, and you have delivered

[@mrbig2648]

Great idea to get someone along to help out with a genre you're not so interested in. I loved the Tommy Lasorda Genesis game back then, so buying this for my Saturn was a no brainer. I wasn't disappointed. Looking forward to game number 20.

[@justineckard3665]

We had this one when I was a kid. LOVED the Home-Run Derby Mode!

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

I legit had a lot of fun with Home-Run Derby.

[@aortaplatinum]

Panda brings in resident Chad to help review World Series Baseball not to be confused with World Series Baseball or World Series Baseball or World Series Baseball or World Series Baseball. Surprisingly entertaining watch, never been super into sports either but it was cool to get that perspective and see him analyze a full 2-player game. It would be awesome to see him return or have future guests on.

[@lutfimakarim8258]

My brain begins to hurt at 2:54

[@Pimpeaux]

6:30 Ų̵̧̛̝͓̥̤̜͓̼͔̲̹̹̪̣͓̟̗̼͕̦͙̳̲̖̒̊̿̓̔̿͑͛̓̂̈́̎̊̍͂͊̐͂̓̇͂͊͋́̏̇̍͌͐͒̆͊͑̈̑͒̃̈́̉̍̄̑͑̂̀͋̈́̀̾̊͆͗̒̈́̂͘̚̚͠͠ͅ:L̵̨̰̩̦̫̠̦̳̺̹͓̖̘̱̤̤̯̱̥̫̣͔̠͍͓̤̞͕͈̐͌̀́̓͘̕͝T̶̨̧̤̜̜̩̩̻̩͚̘̭̞̞̖̩̠͔͇̝̘̝̱̖͎̻͚̊͒͆̿̽̉̅̎̉͒̿̈̓̆̈͂͘͘͝͝͝R̶̝̝̲͈̪̎̈́̓̄̔̈͘͝A̴̢̛̱̝̭̖̳̜͇͐̔̈́̽́̌̃̋̾̋̆̈́̃͋͐͆͆́̐̍͂̑̑̀̚͘͠͠ ̶̧̡̧̨̨̢̧̛̛̛̖̬͍̱̣̮̝̜̣̠̥̭͍̮̰̦͓̼̣̖̜̝̣͚̻̟̫̩͚̫͓̦̝̰͖͉̲̙̫̳̰͚̫̳̗̻̯̜̱̮͚̬̩̤͇̟͕̹̻͙͐͛̒̇͊̓͗͛̑̀̈́̍̄̉͆̀͒̓̐́̉͊͗̀̿͌͐̔̂̏͂̊͌̉̄̓̂͆̑͆̽̈̋̂̿͊͌͌̑͒̀͗̀̃͐̄̽̌̽̏̚͜͜͜͜͠͠͝͝͝͝͠͝͝ͅŖ̸̨̧̨̨̺͇̩̜̦̥͙̦̼͕̞͚͔̮̣̻̜͈̦͉̟͍̩̯̤̜̤͈͈͉̮̩̪̳̭͙̋̏̔͆͛̓̈̓͛̃͆̓̔̈̿̈̏̈̓̅͐͂̿̐̐̀̕͘͘̕͜͝͠͝ͅE̶̢̧̧̨̧̧̨̨̨̨̛͖͕̗͇̙̦̟̤̩̘̖͉̻̯̩̟̻͈̜̙͍̦̯͔͕̞̥̝̮̬̮̭̞̹̯̳̤̗͚̦̊͋͆̊̏́̊̄̉̀̍̈̌͒́̔͋̒̍͋͌̈́̀̒̒͐̿̓̂̐̓͛͗̑́͂̀̐̈́̎͋̈̈́̕͜͜͝͝͝ͅĂ̷̛̪̤͓͕̘̹̤̘̼͇͖̟̫̗͓̟̘̟̳͎̘̮̈́̀̽̈̀́̀̒̐̄̌͊̀̀͗̑͑́̉̽͒̅̏͂̇͐̉̒̚͜ͅĻ̸͉̻̲̹͕̳̞̣̹̳͈̦̯̣̦̳̗̼̞̇̌͗̉̈́͊͊̈̊̀̀̏̽̃̚̚͝͠I̷̢̡̧̨̢̨̭͓͈̠̜͇̜̭̥͕̬̙͇̙͙̼̤͚͔̳̹̥͈̙̹̦͕̫̺͉̭̖͖͔̤̞͙͚͔͐̉̄̂̽̇̐͌̄͗͛͌̅͆̅̑̂̅̃̿̌̆̆̄́̈́̊̆̌̂͋͆̿͋̀̽̇̔̕͜͜͝͝͝S̵̡̡̨̡̡̠̲̼̮͉̦͕̗̻̣̪͚̼̩͖̰̘͇͓͇̹̦͙̦̮̜̲̩̙̝̟̳̩̺̱̟͈͇͇̣̤̟͚͕̭̟̝̈́̈̌̎̍̉̏́́̌̄̀͗͌͑̔̋̀̋̇̔̓̓̒͋̾̿̊̾́̏̔̊͐̕͘͜͠͝͠͝Ṭ̷̨̧̨̧̨̡͕̭̬̲̟̲͎̳̗̹̞̬̳̥͔̟̯̮͍̪̙̻̲̳̱̻̙̤̩͉̌̋̒́́̾̿̎̎͆͊͐̓̍̄̕͘͜ͅĮ̴̧̧̢̡̡̧̲̰̗̪̞̙̲̫͖̮̼̘̖̖͖̱͕̥̗̻̭͓̪͚̫̳̫̘̜̯̪̭͓̥̰̠͙͇͈̜̱͎͉͕͉̭͓̳̬̟̤͉̟̯̟̬̦͖̦͉͉̳̗̺̓̑͂̅̑̓̋̽̿͗́̈́͊̿̀̍̈́̃̍̊͘̚͠͠͝ͅͅĆ̷̢̧̡̢̢̲̺̻͔̯̞̭͇͕̮̪̦̟̦̫͓̰̦͚̭̘̟̹̫͇͎̼͍͚͈͓̩̰̻̰̺̪̜̣͓͓̯͙͖̪͓̖̥̬̹̟͓̻̬͓̟̼͔̹̪̻͇̑̉̒͗̈́̓̓̎͆̏͗̑̊͊̈́̆́̔̀͐̈̍̀́̈́͋̍͗̒͐͛̎̔̂̀̆̕͜͜͜͠ͅͅͅͅ

[@ExpansionPack]

A channel that's reviewing every Saturn game and going in on World Series Baseball? Man, sign me up!

[@Jenovi]

No clue how I missed this one. Just wanted to say as someone who loves sports games, and covers sports games on occasion, fantastic job here. I think the MLB license was held by Sega of America, so wasn't implemented until localization, which was done by Sega of America as well. Really, the last WSB Genesis game they developed was '95 as the rest ('96 & '98) were strictly roster updates. PS- You don't ever want to play any baseball games for the 32X. Terrible stuff.

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

Thanks Jenovi!! Glad you liked it, and yeah, that licensing situation would definitely make sense. I’ll be sure to stay away from WSB staring Deion Sanders. :)

[@nate567987]

the gen games were good as well love the voice in the first one

[@DTM-Books]

I would agree with this assessment of World Series Baseball on Saturn. It was a very solid launch-period title that helped bolster the system's sports lineup, offered excellent graphics, solid audio and responsive controls. It feels more like the first installment of a series, capturing the essentials but leaving many features for the sequels. Having only four stadiums always irritated me, and the pacing was a little slow, but that's the same with most baseball videogames. It's not as good as Worldwide Soccer but leagues better than NHL All-Star Hockey. World Series Baseball 2 added in all the stadiums and refined the pitching controls to make them more realistic and less arcadey. Everything looks bright, colorful and crisp, considerably more polished than any other Gen-5 baseball title at the time. Next Generation rated it five stars which is very apt. It still plays very well, even if its sequel surpasses it, and it's a great showpiece for Saturn fans. World Series Baseball 98 is the greatest baseball videogame ever made, full stop, end of line. The reason for this is the revolutionary pitcher/batter duel, which is completely unique to this entry. Pitchers can no longer "steer" the ball in midair like nearly every baseball title since Home Run on the 2600, and each type of pitch spins in a specific direction, depending on the player. One pitcher's curveball will go differently. Batters have the option of aiming with a cursor to hit the ball or choose one of four quadrants for a power swing. Now the battles have real tension and strategy. Pitchers can't use the same moves because the batter will use power swings and score home runs more easily. Batters need to move men on base, decide on regular swing or power smash, and work to wear down the pitcher so he starts throwing "gopher balls" (as we called them in Minnesota), which are guaranteed lock-on power swings right down the middle of the plate. That's when you start racking up the score and moving your runners around the bases just like that Bugs Bunny cartoon from the '40s. Stadiums are revamped and look better than ever, and players are now rendered in polygons. They're big and blocky in that Sega Saturn way and look glorious. The animations are excellent and there are lots of little touches among the players. The play-by-play announcer has lots of good lines and still sounds good by today's standards. There's even a nice sing-along break at the 7th Inning Stretch which is great. Fan-freaking-tastic, probably my all-time favorite sports videogame after NHL 94 on Genesis. Every Saturn owner needs it. Just stop whatever you're doing and grab a copy right now. Seriously, go, go, go!

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

Daniel Thomas MacInnes WSB 98 looks like a dramatic improvement. Players definitely have that crispy Saturn look.

[@haddalayerdown]

You're so right. WSB98 is probably my favorite game on the console, and one of my favorite games of all time. There are more fun games, but this one is something I'll go to over and over. Might be time for another run at a full season!

[@nate567987]

@@PandaMoniumReviews yea and the systems were much better in a way a prelude to 2k's run and the show

[@nate567987]

also it's cheep and the boxes are like new mine still had the form in it

[@Zyrule]

Shots for every time “ World Series Baseball “ is said in this video would kill a person lol. I loved this game as a kid

[@harrisontg]

Sega Saturn games may be a small niche for the gaming community, but your channel and series are really good! It's a sin how you haven't passed 1K, man.

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

I’m getting close! The sub count never mattered to me that much though, I just love making these videos. Glad to see you’re liking them!

[@SaturnDave]

Another stellar review! It's obvious the amount of work you put into this, and it really shows in the end product. We gotta get you to 1K subs and beyond. ;)

[@planescaped]

This channel is excellent for how obscure it it. Helps that's it's nostalgic AF for me too. The Saturn was the first new system I was old enough to actually play and comprehend, instead of just mashing buttons with now clue what I was doing and deleting my older brothers save games repeatedly... >__>

[@MichaelGreen-dm2ov]

Great review sir. They took a Grizzly Bear looking of a man in Frank Tomas and make his look like a Kangaroo. Big bottom half small top half. Keep up the great reviews sir. Looking forward to Norse bu Norsewest.

[@SlappyBag9]

great and informational video! Tit0 is very knowledgeable! also no Madden 08 slander please!

[@CasperEgas]

I did like this game against someone else. Easy to get into and fun. They even released the sequel here, so it must have sold okay. Baseball is kind of popular here in the Netherlands, at least much more than American Football...

[@Falcnuts]

New sub, this is quality stuff! Can't wait for more of this series.

[@m0rShh]

The only sports games I don't like are football games. When I see a screen full of football play diagrams my brain just turns to tapioca pudding and I don't know what to do.

[@NoelComiX]

This is my favorite baseball game!!

[@snookers5123]

I didn't know until now that I want that Xmen Chef Boyardee again.

[@RolandoMarreroPR]

Almost got a Saturn just for this game... Sega Rally and VF2 even the best PS1 baseball game won't beat this one. Until PS2 MVP '05 or PS3 The Show. WS '98 still the king for me! Played that to death at a friends house!

[@jameswalt1]

God this is amazing content. I seriously laughed out loud during the charting of the different world series games 😂

[@andersdenkend]

Great video, man. Lots of effort put into. Can be enjoyed even by non-baseball interested people.

[@bjraleigh1439]

Are you and Tito related? I feel like some twins look less alike than you two do. Congrats on the top notch content!

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

No, Tit0 and I are not related, but you’re definitely not the first person to ask.

[@bjraleigh1439]

​@@PandaMoniumReviews You know what it could be, you are both from planet sega saturn! and nintendon't let anyone else tell you otherwise!!! All thee best going forward.

[@jonbourgoin182]

Bit of a shame Tito stopped uploading so soon after starting his channel, I enjoyed what little he put out.

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

He does some good stuff. I periodically try talking him into making more. :)

[@midierror]

This was probably one of the first games I played, on some demo disc. I have to say I had a small glimmer which resembled fun shine through for a split second while playing it

[@vomination]

Very nice. Keep up the good work! 😎

[@dbrd5206]

Randy Johnson is the Charizard of Stepdads 💀💀💀

[@samwars95]

Seing the Montreal Expos, made me cry a little bit :'(

[@rafchez1970]

Yeah this was so much fun when it came out and I was a big baseball fan and this is a great fun game

[@TheFancifulNorwegian]

Kanji are also used to write Chinese and Korean names, and in fact the pitcher seen in the Tronix video is surnamed 郭, which is a distinctly Chinese name (pronounced Guo in Mandarin and Kaku in Japanese). The player is most likely Kaku Genji, a Taiwanese-Japanese player who pitched at the time for the Chunichi Dragons. Also, Sega almost certainly had the MLB license by the time they listed the game under its final name on the back of the launch console box, since "World Series" is an MLB trademark and Sega would've been sued in a nanosecond if they tried to use that title without MLB approval.

[@novelezra]

I wish I had a sports friend. All I have is a friend who REALLY likes Kingdom Hearts. It's a little different.

[@WaubObWobble]

RANDY JOHNSON IS THE CHARIZARD OF STEP-DADS

[@ricardoediza2690]

By Tit0's rating, that must mean that World Series Baseball (American version for Sega Saturn in 1995) is either a god-tier game or diet-god at its lowest.

[@Mitsuraga]

In response to the question you pose at the beginning of the video, I never had any interest in watching or playing sports, growing up, much to my father's disappointment. I always did carry something of a soft spot for hockey, and I would occasionally watch basketball with my dad when he wasn't giving up the TV to let us watch Cartoon Network, or whatever. Baseball was never one that I cared about on any level... except where video games are concerned. For some reason, I find baseball video games to be among the more fun sports video games, with Bases Loaded on the Game Boy a particular favourite of mine that I'd often return to for an amazing little time killer.

[@drunkensailor112]

World series baseball 2 was a huge revolution in baseball games. The first one was a lot worse from what I've heard. Same for victory goal compared to swws 97

[@whataboutrob442]

Damn, I really enjoyed this video. And I was one of those sports guys from the 90s that would have probably disliked this game.

[@KewieCRC420]

Great video. I’ve been getting into retro baseball games recently especially on the Saturn and this video was very informative. I really like the Japanese versions WSB but there isn’t much information on video or writing about them. Anyways thanks for the video.

[@mrfake675]

Perfect game

[@retractingblinds]

2 minutes ago? 3 views? Of course I'm getting in on this.

[@Bofner]

Has Nintendo been flagging your videos for copyright? Also you and Tit0 look like brothers

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

Bofner Not yet. I only put that in since Melee is in the review. They might not actually flag me, but you never know with those cats. You’re not the first to think we’re related lol.

[@Clay3613]

Sega could not think of better titles for it's baseball games, could they?

[@Mito383]

Take a shot every time you hear the words “World Series Baseball”.

[@bhgameman]

2:49

[@sentelnbalivebolton7399]

Your friend is like me

[@imperiussuperius4133]

I don’t give this one out for free

[@chattingesque372]

Big Hurt Baseball was more fun

[@bradbeck4089]

Wholeheartedly disagree. This is one of the best arcade baseball games ever. You just didn’t play it enough. Looks like you played it enough to make a KZbin video. Logged at least 300+ games against friends growing up. The controls are tight and the graphics have aged well comparatively to other games of its time. This game is 🔥

[@PandaMoniumReviews]

It’s fair to disagree, since game quality is mostly subjective, though I did play this for several hours and not all of it was recorded. I’m glad to hear this brought you and your friends that much joy back then.

[@elgoog-the-third]

@16:51 lol wow, what did they promote with that show? Was that also at E3 95? 90s PR was wild...