Greatest Nine


, or simply Greatest Nine, is a baseball-themed sports video game developed by Sega CS1 and published by Sega in 1995 for the Sega Saturn. It spawned a franchise that remained exclusive to Japan until the 2002 release of Baseball Advance on the Game Boy Advance. A modified version of original Greatest Nine was released internationally as the 1995 iteration of World Series Baseball on the Saturn.

Gameplay

Development and release

Kanzen Chūkei Pro Yakyū Greatest Nine was developed by Sega CS Research and Development No. 1. The project was led by graphic designer Takaya Segawa. He was new to the company and had only just completed his first game, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, in his second year there. Future Nippon Professional Baseball player Masahide Kobayashi was used for the game's motion capture. Greatest Nine launched for the Saturn in Japan on May 26, 1994. A modified version of the game with players from the Major League Baseball was released internationally later that year. Segawa later served the same role on Sega's Puroyagu Chīmu o Tsukurou! baseball series.

Reception

Next Generation rated it four stars out of five, and stated that "In the end, minus a few malfunctioning control features that Sega US promises to fix, Greatest Nine is an excellent sports title for the Saturn and an extremely encouraging sign of what's to come."

Legacy

Greatest Nine quickly became a franchise for Sega. Counting the original game, six entries were released for the Sega Saturn between 1995 and 1998. It was later revived in 2002 on the Game Boy Advance. This version was developed by Smilebit, also responsible for Motto Pro Yakyuu Team o Tsukurou!.

Sequels

  • Greatest Nine '96 – Saturn
  • Pro Yakyuu Greatest Nine '97 – Saturn
  • Pro Yakyuu Greatest Nine '97 Make Miracle – Saturn
  • Pro Yakyuu Greatest Nine '98 – Saturn
  • Pro Yakyuu Greatest Nine '98 Summer Action – Saturn
  • Baseball Advance – Game Boy Advance