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It's the bottom of the ninth, the bases are loaded, and the Phillies need just two runs to clinch a spot in the World Series. But something's holding up play. Jim Skaalen, the pitching coach, and Jonny Estrada, the ninth batter, are arguing furiously as they approach the mound. Estrada, it seems, has lost faith in the abilities of his general manager. "I don't care if he's new to this, skip," Estrada objurgates, "he shouldn't have to Google what a 'bunt' is."I've been playing Out of the Park Baseball 2007 for a few weeks now. It's a remarkable game in a number of ways. It's the brainchild of a Swedish programmer, published by a British studio, yet embraced as one of the purest expressions of America's national sport. It's obstinately unwelcoming to newcomers - a sea of statistics and acronyms with nought but a 518-page manual to help keep you afloat - yet has seen its user base grow and grow. Oh, and there's the small fact that for the past nine years it's been listed as the second best PC game of all time on the internet's biggest review aggregator website.
You've probably seen it there, on Metacritic, and assumed, like me, that there had been some kind of mistake. Especially once you take into account the company it keeps. With a 96 rating - the site's 2007 game of the year - it sits alongside Half-Life 2, Skyrim and Baldur's Gate 2. These are games that have become cultural touchpoints, so accepted into the gaming canon that they exist now more as memes as much as they do playable experiences. Out of the Park sticks out like a golden sombrero - a fact highlighted by its hundreds of scathing user reviews. A sampling:
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