Do you have kids that really like baseball? Then Baseball Blast for the Wii from 2K Sports might be for you. But, before you run out and get it, there are a few things you should know about it. First, Baseball Blast is not a baseball game in the strictest sense. There is no “real” game of baseball anywhere in the game.  You don’t get to pitch, hit and run in nine innings of play. If you’re looking to do that, check out 2K Sports other baseball titles (which are actually very good). You do get the chance to play a short game of baseball in Play Ball mode, but it’s probably not the baseball experience you’d be looking for if you want a true baseball game.

What Baseball Blast is is a fun collection of 20 mini-games that are all baseball themed. So, what exactly does that mean? It means you get to play mini-games like Fielding Frenzy where you have to catch pop-flies to earn points, Slide! Slide! in which you race to home plate while avoiding obstacles, or play Cannonballs and try to sink pirate ships by hitting baseballs at them. It features all of the Major League teams as well as some of the star players from each team. In addition to the fun mini-games, you also get commentary by baseball legend Bob Uecker. Baseball Blast can be played alone in solo mode, or with multiple players (up four players) in Party Blast mode.  In Party Bast mode, Baseball Blast makes for a great game for family game night, especially for families with younger kids. Here’s a brief promo video from 2K Sports for Baseball Blast:

The Mini Games

There are 20 mini-games included with Baseball Blast. The box only describes 5 of the games, so here’s a brief description of each game:

• Carni-Ball: A shooting gallery mixed with baseball. Hit targets to advance runners along the basepath. Get them home and score points.
• Fielding Frenzy: Catch pop flies before they hit the ground. The more you catch in a row, the more points your score.
• Fly Ball Fury: Compete with three other players to catch balls hit to the outfield. Catch the most balls to win.
• Bumper Base: Drive small bumper cars around on first base and try to knock other players’ cars off the base. Be the last player standing to win.
• Stealing Bases: Try to “steal” three bases from the baseball diamond and get them to home plate safely.
• Slide! Slide!: Race to home plate while dodging to avoid obstacles along the path.
• Cannonballs!: Hit cannonballs at three pirate ships in order to sink them.
• Around the Horn: Throw the ball around the bases and hit special coins with your throws to gain points.
• Galaxy Ball: Hit a “rocket powered” ball into orbit and see how far you can make it travel.
• City Ball: Throw the ball around a maze in the city and hit trophies with your throws to get points.
• Dodge Ball: Avoid balls thrown at you and three other players by an out of control pitching machine. Last player standing wins.
• Mystery Fan: A Jumbotron fun game where you have to find the mystery fan displayed on the Jumbotron in the crowd.
• Pennant Race: Control a long ball hit from home plate. Steer the ball through fielders and over the wall to score a home run.
• Pitcher Perfect: Throw pitches and hit the targets to score points.
• Power Pitcher: Find out who throws the fastest fast ball in your family.
• Diamond Double: A batting game where you hit the ball at a castle and diamonds in the sky to earn points.
• Team Twist: Team logos have been twisted up. Untwist them with your Wii remote before time runs out.
• The Wave: Control the fans in the crowd and try to keep “The Wave” going for as long as possible.
• Poster Puzzle: Baseball themed jigsaw puzzles.
• Trivia Time: Test your baseball knowledge.

What We Liked

Family Game Night: Baseball Blast features a really good multi-player mode that lets the whole family (well, at least up to four people) play at the same time.

Fun Mini-games: The mini-games are entertaining and will keep you and your kids laughing for some time. They’re fun, comical, and enjoyable to play.

Something for Everyone: The wide variety of mini-games in Baseball Blast is nice and your kids won’t be playing the same game all day. The games are so varied that everyone should be able to find something that they like.

Cartoon Time: Baseball Blast is definitely geared toward the under-10 crowd and has a light cartoonish feel to it. All of the graphics are chunky and fun.

The Price is Right: This a low budget game at only $20 that actually delivers some quality for the bucks.  Most other games in the $15 to $20 price range are pretty awful, but this one at least delivers fun games for your family to enjoy.

What We Didn’t Like

Dancing with Myself: If you’re looking for a baseball game to play solo, this probably isn’t the game for you. The only real challenge while playing alone is unlocking mini-games. This title is definitely better played in a party or crowd setting.

Who is that supposed to be? Although Baseball Blast licensed the names of some of Major League Baseball’s brightest stars, you’d never know it by the graphics. None of the players look anything like their real-life counterparts. So, if you’re buying this because you think Derek Jeter is cute and want more of him in a video game, take a pass.

Juuuuust a bit outside! I loved Bob Uecker as the half-crazed, bumbling announcer in the Major League movies so I was excited to hear him on Baseball Blast. Unfortunately, Bob’s trademark phrases and goofy comments get pretty repetitive and boring after playing the game a few times.

Swing and a miss: There are only two mini-games that give your little sluggers a chance to hit the baseball. And, if you have little ones under 5 or 6 years old, they might have a rough time connecting with the ball. Compared to something like the baseball game on Nintendo’s Wii Sports (which comes with the Wii), the batting games in Baseball Blast are kind of hard for the little ones.

A League of their own? We noticed something after playing this one a few times…there are no women in the game. Of course there are no female players in the major leagues (yet) so we get that. But even in mini-games that feature the fans like The Wave or Mystery Fan only feature male characters. Do women not like baseball? We wish 2K Sports would have found some way to include some female faces in the game for those of us with little girls looking for a league of their own.

Good for the Kiddos

Baseball Blast is rated E for Everyone with Comic Mischief. According to the ESRB the Comic Mischief rating is based on some mini-games that involve avoiding baseballs that are shot at players; sinking pirate ships on a flooded baseball diamond; and punching other avatars to “steal” their bases. “Dizzy stars” appear above the heads of players that get knocked down or injured. Other than that, the game contains no foul language, profanity or suggestive themes.

Baseball Blast also makes good use of the Wii remotes to get your kiddos up and moving. While some of the games are simple push-button type games, there are games that make your kids use the remote to pitch the ball with a real pitching motion and swing to hit balls. Although limited to only certain mini-games, Baseball Blast should have your kids up off the couch and moving around.

Golden Egg Rating

We give Baseball Blast 3.5 out of 5 Golden Eggs. This is a good game for family game night, features plenty of mini-games to keep everyone entertained, and it gets you and your kids off the couch and moving around. The lack of good solo play, graphics that keep you asking “Who was that?”, and difficult batting control for younger kids keep this from being a star contender though. But, if you’re looking for a fun game in the $20 price range, it delivers much more than most games at the same price point.

Slideshow and Screenshots

Check out the lightbox slideshow below for images of some of the mini-games in Baseball Blast. Simply click on a thumbnail to start the slideshow. Details and information for each screenshot are located at the bottom of the image in the slideshow. Images courtesy of 2K Sports.

FTC Required Disclosure Statement

FiveHens.com received a free review copy of Baseball Blast! from 2K Sports in order to provide you with this review.  Although the product was provided to us free of charge, that in no way affected this review in either a positive or negative way. For more information about the new FTC blogger disclosure rules, please visit here for the full text of the code.