Baseball Stars 2

Baseball Stars 2 is a 2-player baseball arcade game released by SNK in 1992 for the Neo-Geo console. A less cartoony console version was released for the NES by Romstar the same year.

The Neo-Geo version was released for Virtual Console on December 10, 2007 and the PlayStation 2 and PSP as part of SNK Arcade Classics Vol. 1.

Arcade version
You can select from one of 18 teams across two leagues - Exciting League (beginner) & Fighting League (expert): Exciting League:


 * New York Monsters
 * Tokyo Ninjas
 * Napoli Angels
 * Taipei Hawks
 * Seoul Ivories
 * Sydney Griffons
 * Oaxaca Rockets
 * Barcelona Flames
 * London Lifeguards

Fighting League


 * USA Bisons
 * Japanese Samurais
 * Korean Dragoon
 * Italian Waves
 * Taiwan Dragons
 * Aussie Thunders
 * Mexican Typhoons
 * Spanish Galleons
 * British Knights

NES version
Changes made from the original Baseball Stars, released by SNK in 1989, include:


 * RUNNING attribute intuitively affects speed on the field. DEFENSE only affects arm strength and diving range.
 * Improved pitch control. This gave the game a slightly less realistic feeling compared to the first installment.
 * Easier bunting controls. (Hold Down+A to bunt instead of stopping the swing partway through.)
 * Ability to see lead-offs while pitching/batting.
 * 6 pitchers and 4 bench players instead of 5 each.
 * New music and home run animations. These include the "Power connect" graphic for a two-run home run, an animated graphic of the batter rounding the bases and pumping his fist for a 3-run home run or grand slam, and a similar (yet very rare) graphic including a white Scottish terrier following the batter for a come-from-behind (usually game-ending) home run in a dramatic situation.
 * Inability to hire players.

Teams include:


 * Rome Togas
 * Beijing Gladiators
 * Tokyo Ninjas
 * Los Angeles Stars
 * Seoul Apples
 * Palameiras Sunblock
 * London Lords
 * Oaxaca Rockets
 * Paris Fries
 * Moscow Grizzlies
 * Barcelona Bisons
 * Toronto Towers (a suspiciously similar logo was used by Chinese Taipei in the 2006 World Baseball Classic)
 * Caracas Vipers
 * Glasgow Moonhawks
 * Kiev Tigers
 * Stuttgart Pizzazz

All-star teams include:


 * All-Star West A
 * All-Star West B
 * All-Star West C
 * All-Star West D
 * All-Star East A
 * All-Star East B
 * All-Star East C
 * All-Star East D
 * SNK Superstars
 * SNK Crushers
 * SNK Battalions
 * SNK Stallions

Although the ability to watch the game was removed, the gameplay itself did not suffer from such a setback. Players could still create leagues of up to 125 games (6 teams playing each other 25 times) and view statistics such as League Standings, Average, Home Runs, Runs Batted In, Earned Run Average, Wins and Saves. Players could still fire players and upgrade them using the same 15-point system introduced in the original Baseball Stars.

Series

 * 1. Baseball Stars (1989)
 * 2. Baseball Stars Professional (1990)
 * 3. Baseball Stars 2 (1992)