Backyard Sports : Baseball 2007

Backyard Sports: Baseball 2007 is the Game Boy Advance entry in the kid-centered baseball series, released in North America on June 12, 2006. This portable version was developed by Game Brains and published by Atari. It turns Major League Baseball stars into child-sized players and combines them with the series’ original Backyard Kids.

Players assemble a team, choose a home field and set their game options before taking the field. The roster includes kid versions of MLB players such as Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano, Ichiro, Vladimir Guerrero and David Ortiz, alongside fictional players. Additional pro players, special players and fields can be unlocked, while player cards provide skill information and background details.

Pick-Up Game provides a one-off match with selectable rules, teams, field, players and strategy. Season Play has the player sign in as a coach, build a team and advance through a schedule while game, team and player statistics are tracked; winning the season leads into the Backyard Baseball playoffs. Season progress can be saved, including from the current inning, and Auto Save can record progress after completed games.

The arcade-style action covers batting, pitching, fielding and baserunning. The Control Pad selects pitches, positions them and moves the active fielder; A confirms a pitch or swing and combines with the pad for throws to bases. L jumps for catches, R dives, and the same shoulder buttons support defensive shifts, steals, leads and slides. A Pitch Locator can be toggled to show where a pitch will cross the plate.

Performance can earn exaggerated power-ups. Pitchers may gain specialty deliveries such as the split ball, zig-zag ball, Fireball or Freezer, while batters can collect Power Bats and trigger effects including Geyser Hit, Butter Fingers, Sonic Boom and Jumping Bean Bunt. A player’s Good Day, Neutral or Bad Day status can also alter attributes, encouraging attention to positions, fields and individual traits.

Beyond full games, the cartridge includes Home Run Derby and the single-player Fielders’ Challenge. Home Run Derby supports configurable scoring and pitch styles, and Link Play lets two Game Boy Advance systems play a head-to-head Pick-Up Game; it also supports sharing custom players between cartridges. The Game Pak is compatible with the Game Link Cable and Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter, bringing multiplayer baseball and player trading to the handheld format.