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The 3DO Company's first PlayStation baseball game is the sequel to High Heat Baseball, released exclusively for the PC in 1998. Although the original featured sprite-based player graphics and generic team names, High Heat Baseball 2000 sports 3D polygonal players, a Major League Baseball license and authentic players with statistics based on the 1998 season. High Heat Baseball 2000 also includes all 30 teams and ballparks from 1998 as well as seven additional stadiums: Ebbets Field, Polo Grounds, Safeco Park, Houston Stadium, Miller Park, Pacific Bell Park and Modesto Field. Batting involves swinging as the ball approaches the plate while using the directional pad to aim the bat. Players are free to swing anywhere within the strike zone by pushing the pad toward the location of the incoming pitch. Pitching also involves using the directional pad; first select a pitch by pushing the pad in one of five directions, then aim the ball over the strike zone. While players have seven pitches to choose from, not all pitchers can throw with the same ability. If you try to throw something that's not in your player's repertoire, don't be surprised when he shakes off the pitch! One area the developers focused on was the game's artificial intelligence, claiming their TruPlay AI offers the smartest running, fielding, pitching and managing yet seen in a console baseball game. Chairman and CEO Trip Hawkins even offers a guarantee for anyone who is not satisfied with High Heat Baseball 2000: simply return it to The 3DO Company and they will replace it with either TOCA Championship Racing or Uprising X. The guarantee ends on June 30, 1999, however, and it does not include shipping and handling. Four modes of play include Exhibition, Season, Playoffs and a Home Run Derby. High Heat Baseball 2000 also features a "Family Mode" setting designed to make things easier for novices. This mode will let the computer handle fielding, pitching, substitutions and running. All you'll have to do is step up to the plate and take some hacks! Of course, all of these settings can be toggled within a "normal" game as well. Other notable features include Ted Simmons handling the play-by-play, adjustable innings, optional errors and wind, a guess pitch mode while batting, defensive adjustments, both single and multi-game injuries as well as Dual Shock Analog Controller support (vibration only). Both season statistics and game settings can be saved to a memory card with eight blocks free.