I’m 34 years old and I still randomly blurt out a quote from a game that was released when I was seven. A “That’s my sister!” will come from my lips when I run into my younger sister after not seeing her in months, or I’ll say, “I like candy, everyone likes candy” while walking through the candy department at Walgreens go. These catchy tunes, which have been ingrained in my brain for almost thirty years, come from Backyard baseballa point-and-click sports arcade game that was first released in 1997 and has just appeared on Steam via publisher Playground Productions.
Backyard Baseball ’97 as it is now known is the original Backyard baseballexactly as you remember it, from the cartoonish sounds of some of his absurd throws (a soaking wet spitball or a spinning corkscrew) to the silly, sloppy court play that often results in dropped balls or collisions in the court, and all (somewhat irritatingly) the children chirp from time to time. The moment I start up Backyard baseball and I’m greeted with the silly opening credits, it’s like a warm hug from my YiaYia or a rainbow cookie personally handed to me by my grandmas on a crisp September morning. Assembling my team from a gaggle of restless kids in the stands, kids like Pablo Sanchez, the Weber twins and Keisha Philips, is like taking a time machine back to elementary school vacation. And when I get into a real game and remember how arcade-heavy and silly it is, I can’t wipe the smile off my face.
I played first Backyard Baseball ’97 during a Twitch stream, and my chat was delighted to see the game we all obviously played when we were younger. “Pablo Sanchez the GOAT,” one person typed, while many mocked my CPU opponent for his lineup selection. As the game began, someone typed in the chat that the announcer Sunny Day was voiced by none other than Jen Taylor, who plays Cortana in the game halo
Unfortunately, nostalgia can only sustain a game so far. I’m no longer in elementary school and Backyard baseballThe inherent restlessness means I rarely get on base, so the game drags on as my infield makes a lot of mistakes, the opposing team loads the bases, and my tired pitcher lets batters walk. The chirping of the children (some of whom have not aged so well) becomes annoying after the fourth, fifth and sixth time and echoes across the field. Luckily, very gratefully, after nine long innings, I get a power-up while batting with Pablo Sanchez: an aluminum bat that blasts a home run 515 yards and mercifully ends the game.
Backyard Baseball ’97 is fun in snippets and a great way to remember yesterday’s games. It’s not expensive (only $8.99 on Steam), so it might be worth playing just to remember what it was like, a life without taxes, toxic Twitter users, and the far-reaching global impact of the 9/11 (and you can too). play it on your Steam Deck).
And if you enjoy playing Backyard Baseball ’97There’s a lot more nostalgia to come as Playground Productions is coming out at some point Backyard Football ’98, Backyard Football ’99, Backyard Basketball ’01, Backyard Baseball ’01And Backyard Hockey ’02 on Steam. You can now add them all to your wishlist.
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