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Ken Griffey Jr.'s Winning Run is a SNES video game released in 1996. It was developed by Rare, and published by Nintendo. It is a baseball video game that features Ken Griffey Jr. as the cover athlete. The game features 28 MLB teams. It was one of the last SNES video games to be published by Nintendo, as their new Nintendo 64 was soon to be released.

Gameplay[]

The game features the 28 MLB teams in existence at the time, though playing through a full 162 game season unlocks the option to play against the two 1998 expansion teams, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and the Arizona Diamondbacks. The game includes a franchise mode, MLB Challenge mode, exhibition (single-game) play, and All-Star Game mode, which includes a home run derby mode. Unlike its predecessor, most of the stadiums in the game are generic and the Houston Astros play on natural grass at the Astrodome. From the batter's box most of the other stadiums look authentic but once the ball goes towards the warning track, the outfield walls on either side have a big wall and left center/centerfield/right center have a small outfield wall. At Wrigley Field the ivy is visible from the batters box, but once the ball goes towards the outfield wall there is no signature green ivy.

This was one of the first video games to have alternate uniforms for a sports game. The computer randomly selects either the standard home and away, or a "colored" alternate. In some cases the home team will be in their gray uniform while the away team will be in an alternate or standard home white.

Homeruns are much harder than in its predecessor, as pitching is the main key to this game.

Reception[]

Ken Griffey Jr.'s Winning Run was well received by critics, with EGM giving the game a score of 8/10.

Air Hendrix gave the game a nearly perfect score in GamePro: 5 out of 5 in both graphics and sound, and 4.5 out of 5 in control and FunFactor. He summarized that "With realistic, action-packed gameplay and superb graphics, Winning Run strolls easily over home plate." He felt that the game retains its authentic feel despite Griffey being the only real player, since the abilities and appearances of the fictitious players are modeled after their real world counterparts.

The two sports reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game a unanimous score of 8 out of 10, saying that it has greatly improved graphics and player animations over the original (Ken Griffey Jr. Presents Major League Baseball). A reviewer for Next Generation lauded the rich color, smooth and "seriously wacky" animation, immersive sound, easily mastered interface, and the retention of the solid arcade-style gameplay of the original game. He concluded, "If you own a Super NES and even just kind of like baseball, then this is the one."

Trivia[]

  • The game was featured on the cover of Nintendo Power V84.
  • Just like in the previous game Ken Griffey Jr is the only player to use his actual name due to the lack of a MLBPA license.

External links[]

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