Sports games have really never been the hot genre on handheld systems. It's always been really hard to get the console experience in a portable form, mostly due to system limitations. However, that might change here with SmileBit's Baseball Advance.

For all you baseball nuts, all the standard stuff is in here. All 30 MLB teams, loaded with the 2001 player rosters and stats are there for the taking, as well as a battery backup that keeps your own stats and records safe.

There are four gameplay modes. Just want to play a quickie? Exibihtion mode is the mode for you. Take your favorite team all the way in Season mode, or just jump straight to the Playoffs if you don't want to be bothered with the long schedule. You can even play the All-Star game in All-Star mode. It's everything you'd expect in a good baseball game.

The screenshots alone can tell you how beautiful the graphics look, but what you might miss is that there are mulitple stadiums. The game will have four (yet-unnamed) real stadiums, detailed right down to the outfield wall and seat configuration. Basically, you'll know which ballpark you're in if you see it in the game.

Unfortunately, there's currently no link cable support for the game, meaning it's one-player. Hopefully, this will change before the Spring 2002 release date, but even without it, this is looking like a winning portable baseball title out of the Sega camp.