R.B.I. Baseball 14: Release Date, New Features and Preview

For gamers looking to take a trip down nostalgia lane, the release of R.B.I. Baseball 14 on April 9 for Xbox 360 has fans of the series reminiscing about all the fun they had the last time the game was released in 1995, according to Xbox.com.

After almost 20 years, R.B.I. Baseball is back.

Source: RBIGame.com

The newest installment of the video game series will be directed by Major League Baseball Advanced Media, the same group that is responsible for MLB.com. This will be the first game produced by the in-house developers.

The owners of other consoles shouldn’t worry about this game being exclusive to Xbox 360, though, as Polygon's Samit Sarkar is reporting that the PlayStation 3, iOS and Android systems will be getting the release on April 9 also.

According to the R.B.I. Baseball official website, the game will consist of all “30 MLB teams and 480 active players with characteristics based on hundreds of millions of data points from our extensive statistical database.”

The website claims it is based on the old two-button gameplay system with the intention of keeping the game simple. Add in the ability to play an entire game in around 20 minutes, and R.B.I. Baseball will fill the void left by the end of the 2K Sports baseball series.

Source: RBIGame.com

The only remaining baseball video game officially sponsored is The Show, and that series is exclusively available to PlayStation owners. For Xbox 360 owners that love baseball games, R.B.I. Baseball is the only option.

When asked about whether this game is going to be sold in stores or download only, R.B.I. Baseball’s official Twitter account confirmed the details:

While much of the progress the game has made in development has been kept relatively secret, one of the most exciting features added to the game is the addition of unlockable retro jerseys for each team.

The overall simplicity of the game could be its biggest success. There are low expectations for Major League Baseball Advanced Media’s first venture into the video game realm, and the decision to get back to basics by reviving an old series is a smart decision.

With many fans desperate for a baseball game, the likely lower price of the download-only release could drive gamers from all systems to give it a try.

As a two-player game, this will be a throwback to the game consoles of years prior.

R.B.I. Baseball could become an instant classic.

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