Nintendo steps up to the plate
Japanese video game company will publish a baseball title this spring. But can it outplay Take-Two?
The game is being developed by Exile Interactive, the studio that brought Sega's "World Series Baseball 2K3" to the plate. It will be available April 4 exclusively for the GameCube.
The baseball video game market has become complicated in recent days after the players' union signed a semi-exclusive licensing deal with Take-Two Interactive Software.
That arrangement makes Take-Two the only independent publisher licensed to use player names and likenesses, although the deal also permits the various console manufacturers to continue with their own baseball games.
"Pennant Chase Baseball" will feature players from MLB teams, as well as ballparks and a few legendary stadiums from the past. Red Sox darling and American League Championship Series MVP David "Papi" Ortiz will be the cover athlete."Pennant Chase Baseball" will also feature commentary by former Arizona Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly and Seattle Mariners sports announcers Rick Rizzs and Tom Hutyler. The Mariners duo was a natural call for Nintendo, which owns a portion of the team.
If Nintendo is able to establish a fan base with "Pennant Chase," it could be strike two for Take-Two, since Sony's MLB series continues to draw in PlayStation 2 owners. Microsoft retired its "Inside Pitch" franchise when it disbanded its XSN sports subbrand, although the loophole in the MLB/Take-Two deal may cause the company to resurrect it.
In 2004, both Xbox maker Microsoft and PlayStation 2 maker Sony largely stepped back from the sports market, though Sony did come out with a baseball title.
There were five big-league baseball titles in 2004 on the PS2 (including Sony's own game) and four on the Xbox but only one on the GameCube, from Electronic Arts.
The total market was relatively small though, with just 2.5 million units of baseball games sold in 2004, according to The NPD Group, a market research company.
Reuters and Tim Surette of GameSpot contributed to this report.