Harry’s Grand Slam Baseball (a session review)
This was a review/session report that I had posted on Board Game Geek. Its a fun website but insanely tough to get used to navigating. I personally think it has obviously been designed by engineers….
In any case, here was a quick review I wrote up — and back to doing the test. I’m taking one next Saturday to kick off the 2010 testing season and then I’ll most likely jump into the big bad wolf of the Building Systems after that.
I loved the game, but unfortunately I don’t think we’ll be playing it anytime soon. Jing hated it because it was too luck driven. That is true, but in the end I think the basic problem is that this game doesn’t simulate playing baseball. However, I think its an awesome simulation of listening to baseball. In the end you just don’t have that much control over the events in the game, but you are there to to have it unfold in front of you you – just like listening to a good game on the radio! So yes, its a fun game but do so while having the voice of your favorite baseball anouncer playing in hour head — otherwise it might well be a bit dull.
As for a quick session report.
Jing was on the visiting team and I was the home team. It started a little slowly with a ton of outs played on each side, but I did score first with a single and a triple. The game was pretty even at the 7th inning stretch with a couple scores here or there, but Jing’s team broke down and had a rough inning with a couple errors and so I was up 6-4 at the top of the Ninth.
She led off the Ninth with a walk. Like any modern manager (and also realizing that she hated the game and most likely wouldn’t ever play with me again) I decided to go to my closer (relief pitcher card). Double! Then she dropped a single. 6-5, with men on first and third, no outs. Well its not his day, so lets see what the bullpen got (relief pitcher card again). Single! 6-6, first and second, no out. Then she drops a triple and its 8-6! Finally, my boys get their act together and the inning ends with a groundout, walk, and double play.
Bottom of the Ninth. My bats, which were decent all game (a couple triples and a homerun), just died on me. She started with a strikeout. The next hitter saw a wild pitch (but noone was on base) and then was groundout. The last guy (going for a home run I guess) flied out on my card.
Like I said at the top, I love how this game seems to simulate the ebbs and flow of a baseball game – if you let it roll over you like a good game on the radio, but my girlfriend was rushing to end the game by the end and she really didn’t let herself enjoy the narrative like I did. I had great fun but maybe you really gotta love baseball first.
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