the greatest game ever made!

let me tell you how happy i am... actually, words can't capture how I'm feeling right now. the greatest game ever made, プロ野球チームであそぼう (let's play with a pro baseball team), is up and running! it wasn't until last night that i tried it out. i had tried it on the old Aquos and gave up because the lag made the game intolerable to play. the timing in the game, particularly when batting, is incredibly important. with the new Aquos i figured it would be the same story, however it wasn't. last night, just for fun, i plugged it in and i was off! i love this game so much. I've spent more hours playing this game than any other game in my life. 1st, most baseball games are like the real thing, slow paced. プロ isn't. you can play a normal game in about half the time of something like MLB 2K. there are no replays, cut scenes are few and quick, and the pitcher throws right away. the ball travels quickly and fielding is responsive and because throws and what not aren't canned animations (like every other baseball is) the defensive action is fluid and engaging. one of the best things about the game (and another thing that drives me nuts about 'normal' baseball game) is the camera angles. when batting, the angle is the typical umpire's view but you can also see the catcher's mitt and hand. however, where プロ shines is the defensive camera angles. unlike other games, which just pan out and give you an overhead view of the field making fielding the most boring part of every game, プロ puts you in the action by putting the camera right behind the fielder. if there's a hot shot down the 3rd base line, the camera jumps behind the 3rd baseman and you must react quickly. like real baseball. on a crushed home run the camera goes behind the outfielder as you watch helpless. it's awesome! the only baseball game I've ever played that made fielding exciting. there are so many good things about this game, the fluidity, the pace, the commentary, the atmosphere etc., the single best thing about the game, and only possible on the dreamcast is the pitching/hitting mechanic. when pitching, you look at the VMU to select your pitch then select your location. it's beautiful, it's simple. when playing against a human opponent it's perfect. they can't see where you're aiming! when hitting, after the pitch, the VMU tells all kinds of useful information; pitch location, swing location, swing timing, and power. power is decided by timing. you have to hold down the right trigger to ready your swing just before the pitcher comes forward in his delivery and release to swing as the ball comes in the zone. the better you time the pitcher, the more power you generate. once you figure out a pitcher's timing, you'll be spraying the ball all over the yard. some pitchers have hitches in their delivery that make them really hard to time, just like real baseball. timing. all though the game is now 9 years old, I've never played a better baseball game, and probably another game that I've been so attached to. it's dated graphically, i mean, all the players don't have arms or necks or legs (and that's why it's so fluid) and it's limited to exhibition games, a tournament and a single season mode, but it's perfect. it came out before the exodus of Japanese players to the U.S. so Ichiro (イチロー), and Matsui (松井(both of them, Kazuo and Hideki)) and Shinjo (新庄), and Matsuzaka (松坂) and Sasaki (佐々木) are all in the game along with the best team of all time, the Kintetsu Buffaloes (近鉄バファローズ)! if you can get it, get it!