Nintendo Pennant Chase Baseball
Introducing an exclusive new MLB game from Nintendo and the studio that worked on World Series Baseball 2K3. Full details and box art.
By Matt Casamassina
January 27, 2005 - Nintendo of America Thursday morning made a surprise announcement that it has teamed up with third party development studio Exile Interactive on a new Major League Baseball title designed exclusively for GameCube. The title, called Nintendo Pennant Chase Baseball, is nearly complete and will ship in the US on April 4, or in about two months.
How's that for coming out of left field?
Nintendo Pennant Chase Baseball, officially endorsed by slugger David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox, who incidentally also graces the game's cover, promises a number of traditional features as well as new ones that will help define and separate it from competing titles. The Big N was slim on gameplay details, but it did note that NPCB would "feature new game modes that combine the authenticity of Major League Baseball with the great gameplay that consumers have come to expect from Nintendo."
The game, which has been licensed by Major League Baseball Properties, the Major League Baseball Association, and the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, "includes players from every Major League Baseball team," according to Nintendo, and also boasts some 30 Major League ballparks (not to mention a few from the past). In addition, full ratings and statistics tracking will be served up in-play courtesy of STATS, Inc.
Nintendo also revealed that the title will feature in-game commentary from veteran sportscasters Bob Brenly, Rick Rizzs and Tom Hutyler. Brenly, who played for the San Francisco Giants for nearly a decade, managed the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001, the same year the team won the World Series Championship. This spring he will become the announcer for the Chicago Cubs. Meanwhile, Rizzs and Hutyler have broadcasted Mariners games for nearly 40 years combined.
Exile Interactive, a newcomer to the Nintendo family, is based out of Canada. The company previously developed World Series Baseball 2K2 and 2K3, as well as Toxic Grind, for PlayStation 2 and Xbox.
Nintendo has not yet released any screenshots or movies of Nintendo Pennant Chase Baseball. However, we don't expect the wait for media will be long given that the game ships in two months. In the meantime, though, readers can check out the official box art and logo art in our media section.
