Here Comes the Motherload

Yes people, it's that time again - the time I buy my annual 8 games off Amazon. I've given up on Lego game reviews, so I doubt I'm getting another Lego game any time in the future. Besides, the only one I've heard I'm really missing out on is Drome Racers, and we all know how that turned out...

Yeah, I don't really want to buy it again anyway. I also got four Backyard Sports games last year, and gameplay'd all of those. Check 'em out if you wish. Let's get on with it.

GAME NUMBER ONE: Putt-Putt's One-Stop Fun Shop
Yes people, I am getting the One-Stop Fun Shop titles. These and Pajama Sam's Games to Play on Any Day are the only games for the "Big Four" HE characters I do not have. If you don't already know, these are basic activity games. They're nothing too special, but they allow you to do stuff such as paper cut-outs, growth charts, storybooks, etc. It's general children's arts and crafts. The thing is, these games have had no footage on YouTube whatsoever. Well, that's a lie, brends11 had footage, but of course he closed his old account so that vanished. I think I should also mention that Nancy Cartwright was voicing Putt-Putt at the time of this game's release, just as a fun fact. Next game...

GAME NUMBER TWO: Freddi Fish's One-Stop Fun Shop
What I said above pretty much applies here. Likewise, brends had footage to this game too, but it's also vanished. I'd REALLY like to know why he closed his account, I saw absolutely no reason to. Meh, it is his decision, so whatever. Next game...

GAME NUMBER THREE: Pajama Sam's One-Stop Fun Shop
Unlike the previous two, this game has had no footage. Zero. Nada. What I said about Putt-Putt's version applies here just as well, so there's really nothing else to talk about. Next...

GAME NUMBER FOUR: Backyard Baseball 2001
Alright, we made it to the meat of this list - the Backyard Sports. Funnily enough, this was the first Backyard game I ever played. I originally played it at a friend's house...well, not exactly, you see, during Kindergarten, I would always go somewhere before school, as I had afternoon Kindergarten. On one day of the week, I and a bunch of other friends would get together at one girl's house - her mother was eager to entertain us. After we did a craft or wrote letters or something, we had free time and could play on their computer as an option. This game was one of our first choices - it's what got me hooked onto the series, after all. The reason the original Backyard Baseball was my first Backyard game instead of this was because a neighbor had a leftover copy and gave it to us, but that's a whole 'nother back story altogether. Whatever, I'm going into a tangent now, on with my opinion of the actual game. The opinions on this game are a mixed bag - some liked the pros, some didn't. I was the latter. I felt they were way too overpowered and had little personality. They felt like a total gimmick and took away from the game IMO. The Backyard kids are full of personality and fun. The pros...not so much. I digress, it's almost identical to the original besides, save for graphical changes. Even the sounds and voice clips went unchanged. Kind of a bummer. Ah well, next.

GAME NUMBER FIVE: Backyard Baseball 2003
Yes people, I'm aware Hondo20132 has gameplay of this up, but I'll film a full game instead of cutting several innings ahead. Gameplay-wise, the game is largely unchanged from its predecessor. Sound-wise...oh boy. The voice track got a total makeover, and none of the characters sound anywhere near like they did before. They're still tolerable once you get past that though. Before you say I'm a HE fanboy and was a total jerk to Atari's Pajama Sam voice actor, well, they wanted to make sure you weren't listening to the same voice track for the third time in a row for one. Also, keep in mind in PJS4, they were actually trying to find a VA that sounded similar to Pamela Adlon. So, the one we ended up with was supposed to be similar to the older games. Here, the VAs weren't necessarily supposed to sound similar. Case closed. Off of that tangent, it's about the same gameplay-wise. They did add a few fields though.

GAME NUMBER SIX: Backyard Soccer
I played this at the said "friend's house" too. It's just like MLS Edition, except you don't get pros and you can play as Mr. Clanky after finishing the season. That, and you get a freaking reward for finishing the season. Really, why did they take out the reward in MLS Edition? This game has had no proper footage on YouTube, but seeing how it's a 256-color game, that's understandable. I have very little to say about it, honestly.

GAME NUMBER SEVEN: Backyard Soccer 2004
The Backyard Soccer equivalent of Backyard Baseball 2003 - the voice track got a makeover and sound was changed entirely. I don't know much about this game except the fact that it has no proper gameplay on YouTube, so this will be interesting.

GAME NUMBER EIGHT: Backyard Hockey
The final game on our list. I played this at a friend's house but never actually owned it. I think it was one of HE's final games. All the characters were redesigned in this game, but it's still a fairly enjoyable game. No footage of it exists on YouTube, so this will be interesting.

Well, that's all I have to say. The times I get these up depends on how long it will take for me to be ready for it. If someone requests me, it will make it more likely for me to do that game first, but it all depends. I'll probably regret saying that, but whatever. Just a quick update on this rarely-updated blog. Goodbye everybody.
UPDATE: The data file that has the music in Baseball 2003 is scratched beyond repair. It's still playable, I just can't have the music. I'll reorder it quickly.
Reply: Turns out it wasn't beyond repair, I bought a CD repair and it worked perfectly after that. So, false alarm.
UPDATE 2: A data file on Backyard Hockey is scratched beyond repair and the game refuses to run. I'll rebuy this one too. Geez, I have never been this unlucky when it comes to the mail.
UPDATE 3: Instead of Putt-Putt's One-Stop Fun Shop, the incredibly ignorant sellers gave me Putt-Putt Saves the Zoo. SERIOUSLY, THREE MAIL MISHAPS IN ONE ORDER. I'm really mad about this. Can these sellers learn basic mail etiquette?