today, some obscure sierra on-line & dynamix history that shouldn't be obscure yet is due to how gaming culture developed: Front Page Sports Baseball. this just came in the mail, and i'm so glad to finally have my own copy after playing a demo from a CD-ROM Today! magazine cover disc as a kid.
this dynamix-produced and sierra-published title is weird for a bunch of reasons.
first, it's one of the last few DOS-only games that came out in the mid-90s.
second, it runs in hi-res mode using what i suspect is a blend of software-rendered 3D and 2D sprites that were a holdover from dynamix's 3Space engine used in almost all of dynamix's titles. (pic 2) the animation is crisp, the sprites are beautifully rendered in a very compressed colour palette.
third, the Front Page Sports series were massive hits - outselling other sierra/dynamix titles of the time. but no one talks about it, because sports games often get irritated yawns from gamers.
fourth, this game is fun to play. it's not just an average EA sports-style title. the batting/pitching gameplay is addictive, and the simulation of the players and teams is deep.
and finally, there is - unbelievably - still an active FPS Baseball community still modding and developing rosters for the game. someone maintains a tool that generates websites that lets other people see the outcomes of your baseball games like a late-90s ESPN network site 🤣 https://www.silverbox.com/biorhythm/
@vga256 Great write up! My brother and I played over 20 seasons of FPS Football 96, switching to 98 eventually. I think I have their baseball game but never tried it, definitely going to find the CD and try it out!
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