Bases Loaded (video game)

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Bases Loaded

Developer(s)	Jaleco
Publisher(s)	Jaleco
Release date(s)	Arcade version 1987 NES version ^JPN June 26, 1987 ^NA July, 1988 Game Boy version ^NA 1990
Genre(s)	Sports: Baseball
Mode(s)	Single player, two player
Platform(s)	Arcade, NES, Game Boy

Bases Loaded screenshot

Bases Loaded (Moero!! Pro Yakyuu in Japan) is a baseball arcade game by Jaleco; a version for the Nintendo Entertainment System was released in 1987 in Japan and in 1988 in the US, and a Game Boy port was released in 1990. A mobile phone version also exists. The game allows the player to control one of 12 teams in either a single game or a full season. For single games, there is also a two-player option.

Bases Loaded featured a unique television-style depiction of the pitcher-batter matchup, as well as strong play control and a relatively high degree of realism, which made it one of the most popular baseball games of the early NES era.

One unique feature of the game is that the pitcher can provoke a batter to charge the mound. Each team has only one batter who can be provoked in this manner, however (usually the team's best hitter); it is up to the player to discover who it is.

At the time Bases Loaded was released, few video games were licensed by major league sports. Therefore, the league depicted in Bases Loaded is a fictitious league of 12 teams. They are:

Boston - Good offense (Freida and Norkus), mediocre pitching
D.C. - Very potent offense (Doreo and Fendy), bad pitching
Hawaii
Jersey - Features Paste, the best player in the game, who can make almost any hit a home run. Very subpar team otherwise.
Kansas - Features Patson, who has the strongest fastball in the game (102 mph)
L.A. - "Small ball" team (high average, low power) with terrible pitching
Miami
N.Y. - Overall strong batting and pitching, but with no particular standouts
Omaha
Philly - Best pitching (Gantos), competent hitting
Texas - another "Small ball" team with decent pitching. Marcus in the middle of the lineup is quite dangerous. Ott is a very good pitcher.
Utah

There are three more video games in the Bases Loaded NES series, Bases Loaded II: Second Season, Bases Loaded 3 and Bases Loaded 4. An equivalent called Super Bases Loaded also appeared for the Super NES.