It’s that time of year again, when spring training starts slowly gearing up and teams get ready to make runs for pennants and the World Series. Yep, I’m talking about the sport of lazy, hazy afternoons: That’s baseball folks, our national pastime. Who hasn’t become entranced by the beauty of a screaming homerun clearing the fences, the power from a sliding tackle into third base, or felt the heat of a player who’s literally on fire? While those last two will never be seen on Sportscenter, they fit right into Midway’s extreme sports realm. Known for their NFL Blitz and NBA Jam series, last year Midway struck out onto the baseball diamond with MLB SlugFest 2003, a game that bent baseball’s rules. Well, SlugFest 2004 just may break and redefine those standards in its latest incarnation. The designers obviously wanted to expand upon SlugFest’s gameplay, twisting and pulling it within the bounds of believability. However, they still wanted a game that displayed reliable baseball play based on actual league rules, so that players could still have the reliability of a solid baseball simulation mixed with over-the-top action. Last year’s title played remarkably well, but this year’s Slugfest features a host of improvements made to the gameplay. Over 20 specific new features have been added, such as instant replay, player trades and pinch hitters to boost the mechanics of the game. Missing facets of many other baseball titles, such as creating teams, player stats, or awards were included for this updated version. Along with the inclusion of such modes as Season, Tournament and the ever-popular Home Run Derby, if you disregard the wilder touches for the basic play of SlugFest, you’ll find a very well structured baseball game. Basebrawl fans shouldn’t fear, however, because those extreme touches are bigger and wilder than ever. Turbo and catching on fire has to be two of the best examples of this in the game. Both offensive and defensive sides of the ball get a limited amount of turbo, which can be used to augment practically any play. Powered up pitches, stronger hit balls, or sped up base running can be enacted with the simple press of a button. Stealing bases, scoring, catching pop-flys or tagging players out replenishes your used turbo, and consecutively having a player perform great plays will make them catch “on fire.” Not only will this fiery state make players run faster, but they’ll also hit the ball farther and tackle opposing players harder. Remember, this is a game without rules, and taking out an opposing player in your way is continually endorsed! Last year’s graphics for SlugFest were nicely done, with large, expressive characters who responded to the onscreen action with panache and humor. Well, this year’s players make their predecessor look tame, with dozens of additional taunts, celebrations and plays. Watching batters pretend to wield their bat like a samurai sword or seeing an outfielder make a gymnastic catch worthy of the Olympics is definitely pleasing to the eye, and it’s truly priceless to watch a pitcher attempt to bean a batter who’s on fire. To add to the atmosphere, a fully 3D crowd attends each and every game, a vast improvement over the older 2D fans, and their cheering and rooting looks rather natural. Every major league park has been accurately modeled, and there’s an additional 7 fantasy parks ranging from Atlantis to the Forbidden City in China that can be played upon for those who want a change in scenery. Sound has also been vastly improved. While you’ll hear the typical sounds of a baseball stadium, like the cheering fans, vendors hawking food in the stands and organ music, the sound effects have definitely been turned up several notches. The sound of a turbo-enhanced ball streaking into a mitt, or the crackle from a player that’s caught on fire is definitely noticeable. Similarly, the high pitched whimper of a player as they take a well-timed punch, slide or ball to the side is laugh inducing even though it may seem violent at the time. But what really steals the show is the commentary. Taking and expanding upon the repertoire from last year, the commentators have amazing comic timing, and will often make you laugh hysterically at some random comment or joke. SlugFest looks like it will be one of those games that could appeal to the extreme fan and the baseball purist, and should come out in the next few weeks. Check back here for a full review! Questions or comments about the upcoming release of MLB SlugFest 20-04 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox? Talk to us! [ E-Mail Jeff 'Linkphreak' Haynes ] [ Comment in our Forums ]

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