Software Review
Copyright (c) 1995, Tommy Van Hook
all rights reserved



Al Michael Announces Hardball III
By Accolade (c) 1992

Design and Programming by Jeff Sember & Mike Benna
Produced by Pam Levins
Art by John Boechler
Music by Alistair Hirst
Sound by Mike Benna & Russel Shiffer
Manual by Jeff Wagner & Richard Moran
Creative Services by Lisa Marino & Shirley Sellers
Tested by James Kucera & Robert Daly



Most sports computer simulations use the same type of game
engine.  Hardball III is no exception to that rule.  The game is
relatively simple to use, but there are some pitfalls the user
will have to overcome.

Strengths:  The game allows you to choose a Manage-Only mode at
any time in the game.  This puts you in the manager's spot,
making the calls as to what type of play to run.  The success of
the play depends on the players that you have in the game at the
time.  In Player mode, you will still get to call the plays, but
you will control the actions of the players on the field, thereby
being ultimately responsible for the success of the play.  The
game also gives you a picture of every player in the game, which
is quite a pleasing look for a sports simulation.  While the
players on the field generally all make the same movements, the
speed of their movements is determined by their abilities, which
is a big plus for this game.  This provides some form of reality,
especially since an Eddie Taubensee can run nowhere near the
speed of Deion Sanders.  There is also a chance that a player
will "muff" any given play, providing yet another stab at
reality.  The season scheduler is nothing short of pure genius. 
I have been playing this game for nearly two months now and am
only now getting past the All-Star break (81 games).  The All
Star game is kind of neat, in that it never chooses the same
players.  The game goes into the current season stats and looks
for players that are playing the best at their positions.  It
then applies them to the All Star game in their respective
leagues.  I have never seen any other sports simulator do
anything of this sort.

Drawbacks:  There are quite a few drawbacks to this game.  The
most glaring one is the lack of any ability to trade players from
team to team in this game.  I found that the only way to
accomplish this feat was to write down the player's stats from
his old team, find a player on the new team that is not there
anymore and edit his stats accordingly.  Quite time consuming to
say the very least.  Another glaring drawback is some of the
play-calling in the game.  For instance, the following situation
is called for.  With a runner on first, you call for a "hit and
run" and opt for the batter to butn the ball.  The runner takes
off for second when the pitcher starts his windup, but the batter
won't bunt the ball unless it is a pitched strike.  In reality, a
batter would do everything in his power to bunt that ball in
order to protect the runner going to second.  A very bad error in
realism for this game.  Yet another programming error lies in the
manner that the computer changes pitchers.  The computer will
leave it's starter in the game until he tires, and only then will
he substitute a relief pitcher.  After this, the computer starts
subbing pitchers like there is no end to the world.  The only
managers that I have ever seen do this were Little League
coaches.

Conclusion:  Realism is something this game tries to emphasize
highly, but fails very badly at.  With a promising engine driving
this game, it is not that far from being great.  However, it
might benefit this system to add a trading system that allows you
to swap players between teams.  Also, some of the programming
would have to change, forcing players to make decisions at the
plate that are a bit more realistic.

Grade:  C-
Engine Grade:  B