Customer Reviews

Triple Play 2002

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I've played High Heat, All Star and Triple Play for the PS2, and Triple Play is the best of all three. That said, it has some serious shortcomings.
I'll begin with the positives. The stadium graphics in TP are the best of the baseball games, and the fielding is the most fluid. It is fast-paced without being too arcady-not easy to do with a baseball game. The draft continues to be a great feature.
But some of the best features of previous Triple Play editions continue to be neglected in recent years. There are no injuries. Any position player can play all 162 regular season games without fatigue, and thus there is no reward for having a deep roster. Pitchers recover from throwing to full strength after two off days. A 50 win season is highly possible for a good pitcher if you juggle your rotation. Though the fielding is the best of available baseball games, players tend to hold onto the ball when quick throws are necessary-many potential double plays go for naught. The AI is poor. Computer batters will consistently swing at out-of-the-zone pitches, but have no trouble making solid contact on any strike. I have yet to see a called third strike. Stealing bases is too easy. The trade feature is pathetic. Any player for any player is the rule... trade your utility infielder for Ivan Rodriguez. Not even a 'this trade is deemed unfair... proceed anyway?' comes up to give a guilty conscience.
EA should include some of the features from their best sports game (Madden) that make it so much fun. Franchise mode, multiple player trades, and created teams are a few ideas. EA needs to beat the Monkeys they have at the code writing computers, or at least add more of them so that this game takes a step into the NOW of sports simulation. And gives us a baseball game worth playing.

This game is why I bought my PS2. The graphics are incredible. The strategies that you can execute in the field and at bat are very lifelike. The movement of the players and the reaction of the ball in different stadiums is so real that its scary.

With that said, there are a few things that bother me about this game:

1) In the game, the home team takes the 3rd base dugout in every stadium. What's up with that?
2) Where are the injuries?? I beamed Mike Piazza in the head, ribs, and back a half-dozen times in this game and he kept coming back for more!
3) Fighting (like in the NHL series) would be nice (see point #2 above).
4) It's pretty easy to score runs, which will make the game kinda boring after a while. I guess if we face facts that it's a computer, we should realize that there will be repeatable scenarios under which you can always score.

I've been a baseball fan all of my life and pros and cons aside - this is a terrific game to play. I think it might cure my offseason blues.

EA sports has made another lackluster game. With the heinous invention of nba live '02 behind them, the EA production team now creates a lackluster baseball game. I would conisder myself a fan of baseball, but not an avid fan (perhaps, this is why i like the game, im almost ashamed to say) The game itself is decent. The gameplay is average once the difficulty settings are changed, on amateur i scored 28 runs in game !!(pretty amazing huh) Im currently in a season on pro and the games have been pretty true to life...somewhat.
The modes of play are EXTREMELY limited. You only have single, season, and homerun derby (there may be another one that im forgetting). The graphics are decent, however the players faces are hillariously emotionless and the commentating is sometimes annoying and a bit unaccurate. Overall the games deserves 2 and half stars, not three. If your an avid fan of baseball, then you probably wont like this one, perhaps the all-star and high heat are up your alley. In a nutshell this game is for the casual fan.

This game is definitely addicting. The graphics and gameplay are really awesome. The most annoying parts of the game are the music, the fact that home run derby is way too easy, and that the easiest level is too easy and the hardest level is to hard. Playing the pro (middle) level is just about right. I win some games and lose some games. It's a bit hard on the pro level to strike people out, but it can be done. One truly great mode to play is human vs. human. I believe that this is the most realistic part of the game. The batting cursor can be invisible so that you really have to tell what type of pitch (fastball, curveball, etc.) it is before you can swing. It really gives the game a good, true feel to it. As said before, the announcers are sometimes inaccurate with their calls and there needs to be a dynasty-type mode, but overall I would definitely recommend this game.

yo! dude this is a pretty good game but on easy you can [rock]by winning 35 to 2. You can also hit 30 home runs. On medium you still win almost every game just by a closer score. But on hard its impossible to beat. If you really want a challenge this is a good game to buy or if you want the easisest sports game around.

Triple Play is back baby. The controls are the same and the action is still fast and furious. The graphics are slightly improved, and the gameplay on Rookie is still far too simple to be fun. But turn it up to pro and look out, it's a ball game. Is it perfect, no. But it's still the best baseball game out for PS2. The game is missing a franchise mode. But after a 162 game season, I couldn't care less. EA Sports does it again. So don't believe the naysayers, the great one is still the great one. "All Star" and "High Heat" might have the massive stats and franchise modes, but for sheer playability, good graphics and enjoyment, Triple Play baseball is still the king. Now if only EA Sports could make a decent basketball game they'd rule the sports gaming world.

I have had this game for a while let me tell you Ive also have high heat and all star baseball and triple play is better than those two no matter what anybody says those two are not better.
The graphics on triple play are better stadium wise and player wise.My only complaint is I think the graphics could be better and the players heads are too big just like everybody else has said. I think the people who play the game say its too easy are playing on the rookie level or pro.They should try the all star level when playing a game. During home run derby though its too easy.Also what [makes me mad] is the repeating replays when there is men on base and you the hit the ball it also bothers me when you are playing defense. Thats basically my opinion triple play is better than high heat and all star baseball.

This is the third installment of the Triple Play series that I have owned. Each one has been a bit better than the previous year. Since it is such a solid product, I am only going to focus on the negatives. My short list should really serve to reveal how hard it is to find flaws in this game.

First, I found the levels of play a bit unbalanced. The "Rookie" level is, as intended, very easy. The problem comes between the two top levels. In the "Professional" level, it takes a short period of time to easily dominate the game. Yet if you move up to the "All-Star" level it is nearly impossible to win consistently without a top team, no matter how good you are. The problem is that suddenly EVERY computer comtrolled player makes All-Star plays on defense on EVERY play and you cannot sneak a fastball by anyone when pitching...even with Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling. The realism is lost at this level in order to make the computer more competitive. The problem is that this punishes players who really would be unbeatable otherwise. Second, the graphical representation of the uniforms is not as good as in some competing games. This is only a minor criticism and most people would not even notice it. I am nit-picking to be sure. Finally, there is a limit of 24 slots for created players. If you are someone who is interested in keeping rosters current, this will grow frustrating late in the year when more and more rookies get called up and suddenly you are out of spots to creatr them. If you do not care about keeping the rosters in line with the "real world", this is of no concern.

Even with these criticisms, this is a fantastic game. It has outstanding playability, incredibly detailed stadiums, complete rosters that are current as of January 15th, plenty of player info and ratings, and tons of statistics to give you every aspect of your game or season. While future versions are sure to continue to improve on the Triple Play brand name, this one is certainly worth the price of admission for true baseball fans.

I game is good, but it needs to be realistic. True too life. There have to be injurys. There has to be something were you can give a player a day off. Like catchers and pitchers need at least 3 days off. and so on and so on?

I remember my first year in the Triple Play series, watching wide-eyed as the intro showed Reggie Jackson whiffing on a nasty breaking pitch as the commentator reminds us how Uncle Charlie was a wicked, wicked relative. It would make sense, then, that to showcase Bob Costas's talent for setting the stage, yet another montage, possibly including a Joe-D to Derek Jeter or Walter Johnson/Randy Johnson contrast, would kick things off. Instead, there is NO introduction to speak of. Does it make a difference? Pop in Gran Turismo A-spec and see if that isn't a marked improvement. So, I figured that the game itself was enhanced with a sortie of features.

While the graphics are decent, they don't seem much better than Sega's baseball offering. It plays like an arcade game, each park putting up Coors Field-like numbers. In a 29 game season, Ichiro was sixth on the Mariners club with 64 homers. Maybe he's the one Ken Caminiti was referring to...

Unlike games that have come before, TP doesn't have minor leagues, expansion, easter eggs, or even a franchise mode. As for the season mode, trades can be made right up to the playoffs (thank you, Arizona for sending Schill and the Unit over for Desi Relaford and Mark McLemore), injuries don't exist, and it actually changes play modes from "season" to "playoff" when the regular season ends.

As for the playoffs, there is NO payoff. 173 games were played and there was nothing to show for it.

In all, this was the most disappointing baseball game to date, seemingly a "rush job" put out simply to have a title on the shelf.