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Backyard Basketball is a series of entries into the Backyard Sports franchise of video games. The first game was developed by Humongous Entertainment and published by Infogrames Entertainment SA and released for Microsoft Windows and Macintosh platforms in 2001. Additional games have been released on a variety of consoles, each sporting different characters and slightly altered gameplay mechanics.

The series includes Backyard Baseball, Backyard Basketball, Backyard Football (American football), Backyard Soccer, Backyard Hockey, and Backyard Skateboarding. In the games, players form a team consisting of Backyard Kids and pro players, which they take through a 'Backyard League' season, attempting to become the champions.

As with the other entries into the Backyard Sports franchise, Backyard Basketball has received notoriety for its inclusion of pro basketball players as playable characters. The first incarnation included Kevin Garnett and Lisa Leslie. The most recent release includes Stephen Curry as its mascot.^[1]

Gameplay[edit]

• Jul 26, 2014  How I missed this incredibly obvious one is completely beyond me. By Rhett Mathis.
• This, my friends, is Backyard Baseball. Backyard Baseball takes you back to when you were a kid, when baseball was a game, and the team was hastily put together among the kids in the neighborhood. Playing for Real. Humongous Entertainment reached back into the past and captured all those childhood memories of baseball and digitally assembled.

Backyard Basketball offers two primary modes of gameplay: Single Game, which allows the player to select a team to compete against a computer-controlled team, and Season Play, which allows the player to select a team to compete against a series of computer-controlled teams over an 18-game season, including two best-of-three playoff series and a best-of-five championship series should the player achieve a large number of victories. The Single Game mode also allows the player to compete against a second player or to practice using a single character.

Before games can occur, the player has the option to modify a variety of settings. These include court selection, A.I. difficulty (easy, medium, or hard), the presence of certain rules (fouls, fatigue, violations, shot control, and power-ups), sound options (game music, background sounds, and in-game dialogue), controls, and team names. Team modification also involves the customization of jerseys.

The game's controls are set to mouse usage by default, capitalizing on a point & click style of gameplay to move characters around. The game is also compatible with keyboards and game pads.

The selection of team members follows one of two settings: First Five Picks, which allows each player to select their team members freely, or Full Draft, which forces each player to select their team members one at a time in an alternating fashion. Each potential team member, including younger versions of Kevin Garnett and Lisa Leslie, is ranked according to five statistics operating on a 1 to 10 scale. These include Inside Shooting (the relative accuracy of the character's shot from inside the three-point line), Outside Shooting (the relative accuracy of the character's shot from beyond the three-point line), Ballhandling (the relative likelihood that the character will not have the ball stolen or blocked on offense), Defense (the relative likelihood that the character will be able to steal or block the ball on defense), and Quickness (the relative speed at which the character moves along the court). Players also have the option to customize rookie characters with either manually chosen or randomly allocated statistics, as well as heights, skin tones, shooting hands, birthdays, and names. Although rookie characters generally have lower overall statistics compared to pre-rendered players, they have the additional ability to increase all of their statistics by three levels should the player's team make the playoffs in Season Play.

Gameplay in Backyard Basketball is set to a point & click control scheme by default. With three characters on the court at one time, the player clicks at various locations on the court to guide the character with the ball to that location. Clicking on a teammate causes the character to pass the ball to that teammate while clicking the basket (indicated by a basketball icon) causes the character to attempt a shot. If shot control is on, then players have the option to make the shooting character pump fake by clicking rapidly, finally shooting the ball when the click is held down. If shot control is off, then the character will automatically release the shot once the basketball icon is clicked.On defense, the player can switch between characters to control by clicking on them as they run about, guiding the chosen character by clicking the location on the court where he or she should go. If an opposing character is clicked when an 'X' symbol hovers by them, the character nearest him or her will attempt to steal the ball. If a pair of hands appears near the basket when an opposing character goes to shoot the ball, the nearest character will attempt to block the shot or rebound the ball.

Each quarter of a game lasts approximately three minutes while each overtime period (if necessary) lasts approximately one minute. The longer characters play without rest, the more tired and prone to mistakes (poor shooting and ball-handling) they will be; as such, substitutions can be made after any completed play or during a time-out. Characters will recover their energy while on the bench (only two players can stay on the bench at a time). Granted, a character's energy will never decrease if the fatigue option is turned off.

Over the course of a game, power-ups may occasionally be rewarded to teams. The majority of these power-ups are useful, such as the flaming ball (which guarantees that the next attempted shot will go in), the tornado (which increases the speed of all characters on the court), the doughnut (which causes the next character who attempts a shot to automatically attempt a slam dunk), and 110% Juice (which provides energy to otherwise tired players if the fatigue option is turned on). However, some power-ups provide detrimental effects, such as the icy ball (which makes shots more likely to miss), the stick of butter (which reduces the team's ball-handling abilities), and the ice cream truck (which prevents the entire team from moving for a brief period of time).

Releases[edit]

Backyard Basketball games have been released numerous times to a variety of platforms. In 2001, the first game of the series was released for Windows and Macintosh featuring Kevin Garnett as the game's primary mascot, and Lisa Leslie.^[2] In 2004, a game was released for the Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, and PC, featuring Tim Duncan as its primary mascot.^[3] The game was released once more in 2007, this time for the Nintendo Gamecube and Nintendo DS as well as the aforementioned systems, featuring Paul Pierce as its primary mascot.^[4] The game has most recently been released as a mobile app featuring Stephen Curry as its primary mascot.

2007[edit]

Backyard Basketball 2007 is a sports game released late 2006. This is the fifth iteration of the Backyard the game is Paul Pierce of the Boston Celtics. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS. A planned release for the Nintendo GameCube was cancelled.^[5]

Reception[edit]

In the United States, the debut version of Backyard Basketball sold 780,000 copies and earned $13.2 million by August 2006, after its release in October 2001. It was the country's 15th best-selling computer game between January 2000 and August 2006. Combined sales of all Backyard Sports games released between January 2000 and August 2006, including Backyard Basketball, had reached 5.3 million units in the United States by the latter date.^[6]

Backyard Basketball has received low to mixed reviews throughout its multiple releases. Ivan Sulic of IGN awarded the original version a score of 6.5 out of 10, complimenting the simplistic gameplay and colorful graphics while lamenting the amount of crashes that the game is susceptible to encountering.^[7] Chris Adams of IGN awarded the 2007 Nintendo DS version the same score, commenting that the addition of new gameplay modes offered more variety.^[8]

References[edit]

1. ^Backyard Sports. Web. <https://www.backyardsports.com/Archived 2015-04-11 at the Wayback Machine>.
2. ^https://www.amazon.com/Backyard-Basketball-Pc/dp/B00005ME4W
3. ^https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00009EG4K/ref=s9_simh_gw_p63_d1_i5?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=1RZJWCAY0G3429TPN3H1&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1970559082&pf_rd_i=desktop
4. ^https://www.amazon.com/Backyard-Basketball-2007-PC/dp/B000FIS7YI/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1429209581&sr=1-1&keywords=backyard+basketball+2007
5. ^http://www.ign.com/games/backyard-basketball-887839/gcn-848551
6. ^Edge Staff (August 25, 2006). 'The Top 100 PC Games of the 21st Century'. Edge. Archived from the original on October 17, 2012.
7. ^Sulic, Ivan. 'Backyard Basketball.' IGN. IGN, 10 Jan. 2002. Web. 16 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ign.com/articles/2002/01/11/backyard-basketball-2>
8. ^Adams, Chris. 'Backyard Basketball 2007 Review - IGN.' IGN. IGN, 18 Oct. 2007. Web. 16 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/10/18/backyard-basketball-2007-review>.

External links[edit]

• Backyard Basketball (PC/Mac) at MobyGames
• Backyard Basketball (PS2) at MobyGames
• Backyard Basketball (GBA) at MobyGames

Backyard Baseball is a software released in 1997 by Humongous Entertainment.

Commentators[edit]

Sunny Day[edit]

• I think we're all ready to play some baseball!
• It's time to get down with your favorite baseball players!
• (custom player) steps up to bat.
• (when the computer player's turn to bat ends) Alright, it's our turn now!
• (player hits a home run) Goodbye, baseball!

Vinny the Gooch[edit]

• Waaaaiiit a minute. The Gooch does not under any circumstances say 'Hi ho'. Sunny Day may be saying 'Hi ho', but The Gooch just says YO!
• Vinny da Gooch is lovin' that!
• (describing Pablo) Even though the Secret Weapon doesn't speak any English, we all know he's a rad dude!
• (describing Achmed) Achmed is one of the best hitters on the team!
• This young batter means business.
• (when a homerun happens) I don't know what kind of pitch that was, but it tasted just like chicken!
• (when a player gets out) He/She was robbed!
• (when a player makes it home) Sweet as candy i tell ya! I like candy, everybody likes candy. That's why Halloween is such a popular holiday!
• (describing Sunny Day) What she means is she's never gonna stop yapping.
• (when a homerun happens) Aloha means goodbye, baby.
• (when a strike happens) It was in there like swimwear.

Backyard Kids[edit]

Achmed Khan[edit]

• (getting picked) Let's rock 'n roll! (Amir Khan also says this)
• I wanna rock! Rock! (scats) I wanna rock!
• (after getting struck out) Aw man, I blew it!
• (stepping up to bat) I'm gonna smack this one! (Amir Khan also says this)
• (stepping up to bat) This one's outta here! (Amir Khan also says this)

Amir Khan[edit]

• (getting picked) Groovy!
• (after getting struck out) I hope Achmed didn't see that!
• (after getting struck out) Major bummer! (Achmed Khan also says this)

Angela Delvecchio[edit]

• (during the chatter) Hey, we wanna batter, not the broken ladder, y'know!
• (striking out a batter) Hey, what'd I tell ya?
• (striking out a batter) Ba-da-bing-ba-da-boom! Bye-Bye, batter!
• (stepping up to bat) I'm gonna smack this one for sure.
• (after getting struck out) No way that's gonna happen again!
• (stepping up to bat) You guys in the outfield better move back.
• (after getting struck out) Don't say a word.
• (getting tired) Okay, I know I'm good, but my arm needs a rest before it turns into a big noodle.

Annie Frazier[edit]

• (getting picked) Sweet!
• (stepping up to bat) I'm looking for a kind hit here, pitcher!
• (stepping up to bat) Come on, pitcher, hook me up!
• (getting tired) Hey, I'm pooped. I need a sub.
• (getting tired) Can I get a sub out here? My arm is toast.

Ashley/Sidney Webber[edit]

• (one of the twins getting picked) Goody! Now pick my sister Ashley/Sidney too!
• (the other twin getting picked) Oh, goody! Ashley/Sidney and I are on the same team!
• (only one twin getting picked) Goody!
• (during the chatter) We've got spirit, yes we do. We've got spirit, how 'bout you?
• (stepping up to bat) I'm gonna crush this one!
• (stepping up to bat) I'm gonna smash the ball outta here!
• (after getting struck out) Tennis is my sport anyway.
• (getting tired) Say, my tennis elbow is acting up.

Billy Jean Blackwood[edit]

• (stepping up to bat) Y'all better step back a few!
• (after getting struck out) That's okay. I didn't wanna run anyway.
• (getting tired) Yoo-hoo! My arm's getting tired out here!
• (striking out a batter) Sorry, I'm just doin' my job.

Dante Robinson[edit]

• (during the chatter) I see London, I see France, I see your underpants!
• Just gimme a minute! I'm still hungry!
• (stepping up to bat) I'm turning that ball into creamed corn!
• (stepping up to bat) Bring on the meat!
• (after getting struck out) Next time!
• You should pick me. I've got a pretty good arm!
• (getting picked) Let's dig in!
• My name is Dante, but the kids call me 'Stretch'. I guess that's supposed to be a joke!
• One time, I ate a whole turkey! Bet you didn't know that!
• (striking out a batter) Smooth like butter!
• (striking out a batter) Chew on that, tough guy!
• (getting tired) Whew! I'm running out of juice!
• (getting tired) I'm getting noodle arm!
• (on the mound) Eat this!

Dmitri Petrovich[edit]

• (striking out a batter) Indeed, I achieved the proper ball spin.
• (after getting struck out) It appears as if I need to rethink my strategy.
• (during the chatter) May I remind you that the primary objective is to hit the ball?
• (not getting picked) I must admit I am a bit disappointed.
• (bored on the field) Please, cease this foolishness and just FORFEIT THE GAME!!!!

Gretchen Hasselhoff[edit]

• (getting picked) Goodygoodygoodygoodygoody! (Goody goody goody goody goody!)
• MymomnamedmeGretchenafterhergrandmanamedGretchen. (My mom named me Gretchen after her great grandmother named Gretchen.)
• (stepping up to bat) I'mgonnasmackthisoneouttasight. (I'm gonna smack this one outta sight.)
• (getting tired, talks more slowly than usual) Um... I'm tired.

Jocinda Smith[edit]

• (stepping up to bat) Watch this homerun!
• (getting picked) Hey, alright! (Kimmy Eckman also says this)
• (stepping up to bat) It's time for a homerun!
• (getting tired) My arm is toast!
• (getting tired) My arm is spent! How 'bout a sub?

Jorge Garcia[edit]

• I don't like to swim and I don't like to get dirty.
• (getting picked) I suppose I'll play, but I don't want to get dirty, OK?
• (unprovoked) Did you guys see the map of Hawaii that Justin Verlander painted on Kate Upton’s lower back?

Kenny Kawaguchi[edit]

• (getting picked) Alright! Thanks, buddy!
• (stepping up to bat) Here I go!
• (stepping up to bat) Okay, pitcher, give me one right over the center!
• (after getting struck out) Boy, I messed up.
• (after getting struck out) I'll do better next time.
• (striking out a batter) I'm good.
• (on the mound) I'm gonna get you, batter!
• (getting tired) Man, I don't wanna complain, but my arm is tired.
• (getting tired) I could use a sub right about now.

Kiesha Phillips[edit]

• (stepping up to bat) Heeeeerree's... Kiesha!
• (during the chatter) Watch out, Batman! Here comes the Joker!
• (during the chatter) Say, what's up, Doc?
• (stepping up to bat) Baseball been very very good to me.
• (after getting struck out) You are Despicable!
• (after getting struck out) Coises! Foiled again!
• (getting tired) I need a sub and I'm not talking lunch here!
• (getting tired) I can't take much more of this, captain!

Kimmy Eckman[edit]

• My name's Kimmy and I like candy.
• (stepping up to bat) This one's going to miles!
• (after getting struck out) Darn, darn, darn it!
• (getting tired) Come on, coach! I'm dying out here!
• (on the mound) I'm gonna blow this one right by!
• (getting tired) Hey, kid! My arm's getting tired!

Lisa Crocket[edit]

• (not getting picked) Whatever.
• (stepping up to bat and on the mound) Here goes nothing.
• Leave me alone.
• (getting tired) How about a sub, ace?
• (getting picked) Neat.
• (getting tired) I'm tired. Give me a sub.

Luanne Lui[edit]

• Aww, I wuv you!
• (striking out a batter) I got you! Neenoo Neenoo!
• (on the mound) Neenoo Neenoo! Baddo Waddo!
• (after getting stuck out) Me gonna cwy...
• (getting picked) Did you heew that, Teddy? We got picked!
• (stepping up to the plate) This one's fo you, Teddy!
• (getting tired) Teddy says it's time fo his nap. So we need a sub.
• (on the mound) Oh, I wuv pwaying basebaw!

Maria Luna[edit]

Backyard Baseball Wikipedia Pictures

• (stepping up to bat) Okay. I'm gonna knock the stuffing outta this one!
• (stepping up to bat) Okay. This time, I'm gonna hit like a pinata!
• (after getting struck out) Ay-yi-yi!
• (striking out a batter) I... Got... You.
• (getting tired) Hey there, I'm tired.
• (after getting struck out) That's no good!

Mikey Thomas[edit]

• The kids call me Nugget, but my real name is Michael Rhett Thomas.
• (getting picked) You're my friend!
• (not getting picked) I'm telling my mom!
• (stepping up to bat) I've gotta get on base!
• (stepping up to bat) I want right down the middle for me!
• (after getting struck out) No fair! I'm telling my mom!
• (after getting struck out) That's okay.
• (getting tired) I'm tired of pitching now.
• (striking out a batter) I'm pretty good, huh?

Pablo Sanchez[edit]

• (stepping up to bat) ¡Adiós, béisbol! (Goodbye, baseball!)
• (getting picked) ¡Excelente! (Excellent!)
• Soy Pablo. ¿Quieres jugar? (I'm Pablo. You wanna play?)
• (striking out a batter) ¡Adios!
• (when the player clicks him on the player cards section while holding shift) Okay, don't tell the other kids, but uh... I speak English. I learn Spanish in school.
• (taunting from the field) creo que no qieres jugar (I don't think you wanna play)
• (after getting struck out) Este bate no sirve para nada! (This bat is useless!)
• (getting picked) Vamos a ganar! (We are going to win!)

Backyard Baseball online, free

Pete Wheeler[edit]

• (getting picked) Uh... huh?
• (getting picked) So whose team am I on?
• (stepping up to bat) I'm gonna hit a touchdown!
• (during the chatter) Bet ya can't hit a touchdown!
• (during the chatter) Ra ra ra! Go, team!
• (stepping up to bat) Uh, what am I supposed to do again?
• (after getting struck out) Now what?
• (striking out a batter) Uhh... Whoops.
• (getting tired) Uhh... I don't wanna throw the ball no more.

Ronny Dobbs[edit]

• Know what's neat? Aw, nothing.
• (during the chatter) Miss it! Miss it! Now you gotta kiss it!
• (after getting picked) Neat. I get to play.
• (stepping up to bat) I'm going to hit this one two hundred gazillion miles!
• (stepping up to bat) Neener-Neener! You can't strike me out!
• (after getting struck out) No fair!
• (getting tired) I'm getting sleepy.
• (striking out a batter) I'm pretty good for a little guy.
• (after getting struck out) I don't wanna play anymore!
• (getting tired) I don't wanna pitch anymore.

Sally Dobbs[edit]

• (after getting struck out) I could've hit a home run if I wanted to.
• (getting tired) I need a sub. I don't have the same energy as some of the younger kids, you know?
• (getting tired) I'm getting kinda tired of pitching.

Stephanie Morgan[edit]

• I don't know why...
• (during the chatter) Hey, batter!
• (during the chatter) My, oh my!
• (stepping up to bat) As you can tell, I modeled my stance after the great Babe Ruth.
• (after getting struck out) How Humiliating!
• (after getting struck out) Oh well. I'm sure Cal had his bad days, I suppose.
• (getting tired) My daddy says I shouldn't pitch for too long.

Tony Delvecchio[edit]

• (during the chatter) Be-au-ti-ful!
• (getting tired) What're ya tryin' to do, kill me? I need a sub here!
• (during the chatter) Hey, Slick, swing, why don't ya?
• (during the chatter) Growin' a beard out here, waitin' for some action!
• (stepping up to bat) Watch this one, Slick!
• (getting picked) Listen here, Slick, you made the right decision!

Vicki Kawaguchi[edit]

• I'm going to be a ballerina when I grow up.
• My name is Vicki Kawaguchi. My brother's name is Kenny. He's in a wheelchair. Can I go now?
• One time, I was practicing my pirouette and I got so dizzy, I barfed. But don't tell anyone, okay? But it was really gross and stuff, because I just ate a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup. Promise you won't tell?
• (getting picked) Hooray!
• (stepping up to bat) Don't throw the ball fast, okay?
• (stepping up to bat) Here comes the graceful ballerina to the plate.
• (after getting struck out) Stupid baseball is for babies!
• (after getting struck out) That's okay.
• (getting tired) I'm tired of pitching. Can I stop now?
• (getting tired) I don't wanna pitch anymore, please?
• My mommy says I'm her little butterfly and daddy calls me his baseball swan. Kenny calls me pipsqueak.

External links[edit]