Bases Loaded IV

by Nintendo

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004SVN7
• Item Weight: 8 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,666 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

If you own the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and don't have a single one of the Bases Loaded games, then you need to remedy that situation! Anyone who considers themselves to be a hardcore gamer recognizes the name Bases Loaded. Bases Loaded 4 is the rarest in the series, so collectors definitely need to take advantage of this offer! Regular Season Mode makes a return in Bases Loaded 4, and you have twelve teams from which to choose. You can play against a friend in an exhibition match, or if you're feeling lazy, you can watch two computer teams play against one another. Gameplay will feel very familiar to anyone who has played the previous installments in the series, and the music is as charming as ever. If you can't get enough of Bases Loaded, what are you waiting for?

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Bases Loaded III Part Deux, July 28, 2010

By 

musicfan28if - See all my reviews

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Bases Loaded IV (Video Game)

As Bases Loaded II was a revision of Bases Loaded I, Bases Loaded IV is a revision of Bases Loaded III. Bases Loaded 3, an overhaul of its predecessors, was the best baseball game for the NES but not without flaws. Bases Loaded 4 tweaked the graphics, adding player change animations and increasing the size and variety of players. It also reintroduced black pitchers after the segregation of BL3, and the pitchers stand on an actual pitching diamond. BL4 also introduced a variety of homeplate backgrounds.

The computer fielders are tougher to get base hits against. They seldom leave any holes in the defense or let the ball get behind them. Randomly, though seldom, they will drop a ball or let it hit the ground in front of them. Fielding for the player, with the introduction of a vastly larger outfield and reliance on a fielding radar screen, is more challenging than BL3. It's very easy to let a ball get by an outfielder, but most balls are catchable if you use the radar then change your attention to the outfielder when you hear the ball's descent.

The batting is tougher also, partly since the BL4 pitchers don't have a stamina rating and never fatigue. Instead of fatigue, BL4 uses a star rating system that accrues white or black stars according to perfomance. If a pitchers strikes out a batter, he gets an additional white star, and he subtracts a white star or adds a black star for every run scored against him. The batting is also tough because the computer umpire's idea of a strike or ball is debatable. Also, it's actually easier in BL4 to hit a homerun than to get on base because the computer fielding is tough but the batters seem to be using aluminum bats or taking steroids.

You may not get many hits playing BL4, but no problem, neither will your computer opponent once you master a couple pitching sequences. In one-player mode, versus left-hand batters simply hold the direction pad [up/right] before every pitch. Rinse and repeat and left-hand batters will seldom get a hit off of you, usually ground balls. Versus right-hand batters, it's slightly more complicated. Alternate between two pitches only. For the first pitch, press A, then [down/left] halfway through the windup. (The first pitch is a knuckleball sinker that only right-handed pitchers can use in this direction.) For the second pitch, press A, then [right] halfway through the windup. The first pitch draws the computer batter close-in to homebase and the second pitch gets a strike since he's crowding the home plate. Sometimes you can get a strikeout against right-handed batters this way. It's important to get strikeouts to keep your pitcher's stars healthy.

Pitching versus the computer is more challenging in BL3 than BL4. In BL3, your pitchers become fatigued and you can't always rely on two pitching sequences to pitch a shutout though pressing [right] provides some easy strikeouts. I don't think BL4 was fully playtested before its release so it's not much of a one-player game. It also has less animation screens than BL3 though it adds a screen for a beanballed batter rushing the pitcher. Both BL3 and BL4 have a main screen option to turn off the music. BL4 one-player mode does offer challenging batting and fielding. The pitching versus computer batters is too easy so I suggest not using the direction pad and simply pressing the A button to lob strikes throughout the game. If your fielding skills are sufficient, you should be able to win most games this way while getting some batting and fielding practice.