Baseball Riot is the latest from 10Tons gaming and available from the Xbox One, Windows 10, and Windows Phone Stores. It is a puzzle game of sorts where you are tasked with taking out enemy baseball players and corrupt energy drink reps.
The game puts you in the shoes of baseball legend Gabe Carpaccio, who is seeking vengeance on his team and the corrupt energy drink manufacturer Explodz, both of whom conspired to end his career. Armed with only his baseball bat and balls, the Windows Phone game has over 100 levels of play where you battle the evil minions of Explodz and Carpaccio's former baseball team.
Baseball Riot falls in line with all of 10Tons' offerings with outstanding graphics, challenging gameplay and a touch of twisted humor that will make most crack a smile. We took the Windows Phone version of Baseball Riot out for a test drive and found it to be a great time waster to have in your gaming library.
10Tons is one of the more diverse Windows Phone and Windows developers. From the zany King Oddball to the epic adventure of Sparkle to battling an alien invasion with Crimsonland, 10Tons has a gaming title for just about everyone. Baseball Riot could easily be a sequel to another smash hit rom 10Tons, Tennis in the Face.
Much like Tennis in the Face, you will start Baseball Riot out with a brief tutorial on gaming mechanics. The physics-based game has you knocking out your enemies by striking them with a baseball. You tap and hold the screen to line up your shot and when your aim is just right, release the screen and watch Gabe swing away.
Once you complete the tutorial, you will be greeted by the game's main menu. Here you will find options to play the game, access the gaming options and view more games from 10tons. Settings are minimal, covering sound and music levels. One nice feature that is common amongst many of 10Tons games is the option to create player profiles. You can create up to three player profiles to allow friends and family to play the game without screwing up your gaming progress.
The 100 levels of play pit Gabe against a host of characters that he must knock out. The cast of characters include fans, umpires, teammates and Explodz officials. Each character will have unique abilities that can present challenges in knocking them out. For example, the umpire is protected from frontal strikes with his mask and a padded vest. You'll need to either take him out by hitting him from behind or by knocking his feet out from under him.
The levels of play are progressively unlocked and mapped out across a city map. Each section of the map introduces a new character to knock out and not only will you need to complete each level in the section to advance to the next, but you will also need to earn a set number of stars during gameplay.
Gaming levels have your host of characters spread out across a series of platforms with various obstacles preventing direct access to them. You will have to bank shots off iron beams, walls, vending machines and other items to get to your targets. Some levels contain glass partitions that have to be shattered to access your targets and some have exploding devices to help you destroy your enemies quicker.
Each level has a minimum of three baseballs available to use to knock out your opponents, with the opportunity to earn more balls as you play. You will also find three stars strategically located with each level that you must strike with your ball. These are the stars you must collect to advance from map section to map section. Levels are replayable should you need to improve your score and collect more stars.
As you might guess, the ultimate goal of each level is to knock out all the characters before you run out of baseballs. If you fail, you will have the option to replay the level or return to the map. Each level has multiple solutions for placing your baseball shots and sometimes success is solely dependent on luck.
Overall Impression
When Tennis in the Face first landed in the Windows Phone Store, some claimed the game was too easy. I don't think many will make that claim with Baseball Riot. It shares the humorous ragdoll reactions from the characters as they are clobbered with the baseball and the general game layout. However, I found Baseball Riot to be a far more difficult game to conquer.
From the design of each level to the characters abilities, Baseball Riot does a nice job of making it difficult for you to succeed. While some levels may seem impossible to complete, the game does balance things out with a few easy levels where you can regain your confidence.
The only nit I found with Baseball Riot is that when played from the Lumia 950, the Windows Phone button panel does not retract. It does eat into the screen, but, fortunately, this glitch does not block anything critical. It should be an easy fix for 10Tons and hopefully, we'll see the fix included in the next update.
Available for both Windows PC, Xbox One and mobile devices, I found Baseball Riot to be a great time waster of a game from either platform. I do like the mobility the Windows Phone version offers, allowing you to play the game just about anywhere you need help passing the time.
Baseball Riot delivers another hit gaming title to the Windows platform for 10Tons and well worth checking out. If you have given Baseball Riot a try, let us know what you think of things in the comments below. Additionally, don't forget to rate the game in the Stores. It is an easy way to send the developer a little feedback.
Download Baseball Riot for Windows 10 ($2.99 with free trial)
Download Baseball Riot for Windows Phone ($2.99 with free trial)
Download Baseball Riot for Xbox One ($4.99)
