ever played Konami's The baseball 2003 ?

I have The Baseball 2003 Suikigou(Fall Version) for PS2. It was my first ever yakyu game and actually got me into Japanese baseball. I remember loving all the new personalities in the arcade version I played in 2002. In my first game, I hit a game winning homerun with Hideki Matsui. I'm tempted to pick up the 2002 version sometime in the future.

Anyway, I don't know how the spring version is like, but the version I have is really great. The fielding isn't as smooth as Pawapuro 12 or Pro Yakyu Spirits. In fact it's very jerky and robotic. The game makes up for it with very distinct hitting, though. Homeruns aren't cheap and when you hit one, you feel like you earned it.

I remember it having very distinct differences from Spirits like more mascot involvement. After hitting a homer, the players get a stuffed animal of the team mascot and throw it into the crowd. The announcing is also a lot better, since the game is fully licensed by NTV.

It's fun to play the game every now and then, because it's a great representation of that particular era in yakyu. You had Kaz Matsui at his peak, Nori and Tuffy tearing it up in Osaka, Hanshin's magical season, etc. The best thing about the fall version is that it has a pennant mode in which it starts from July. It totally recreates the season up until July, then you have to take over. The stats are exactly what they were by July, and injuries are accurate, too. I remember playing as the Swallows with Fujii and Iwamura out with major injuries.

Anyway, I think you should buy it, just for the nostalgia of that season.

Syuukigo. Sorry.

thanks BigManZam.
and how is the hitting and pitching ?
is it possible to get realistic games ? ( and stats )?
do you know if you can play more then one season ?

also , is it possible to play manage-only ?

Well I've only played Pro Yakyuu 2004 and 2 but they belong in the same series. Sadly, there is no manage-mode in any of these game. In Baseball Live 2005 for the PS2 you can simulate the game while watching it but it take forever. The hitting and pitching interface are the best I've seen in any baseball game thus far. The stats and games are realistic is you play on the hard levels. Normal is really easy and the default ball speed is easy to connect HRs so you will have to bulk up the difficulty.

thanks for the reply...
Is there a way to set the hitting or pitching so that the cpu will hit or pitch ?( like in pawapuro ).
do you know if you can plya more then one season ?
do you have to manage your bullpen ? ( warm-up pitchers) ...
are the stats (games) realistic ?

I realize that this is an old thread, but I just need to add this.

I just picked this game up for $10 at a Japanese market down in Chicago, and I'm really loving it. Does anyone know of any translations out on the net though? I probably won't be playing a season, but we play a lot of 2-player, so we'd like to be able to navigate some of the options etc more than anything else.

Thanks