2010 APBA Pro Baseball Board Game
APBA Pro Baseball
The 2010 release of the APBA Pro Baseball board game has all of the same elements as previous versions. The box set includes two teams/decks, instruction book/play charts, game-board, score-sheet and cup and dice. Unlike other baseball card playing games like Topps Attax, Donruss Top of the Order and the MLB card game, the APBA Pro Baseball player cards to not have any pictures on them. The playing cards are on a thin card stock with the players name (and nickname) a season's statistics, brief biographical information and lots of black and red number. The numbers are used during game play using the dice and play charts.
Some reasons for APBA's longevity are the realistic game play, situations and results, the ease of learning the game and ability to play the game by yourself, (not needing another player).
The realistic situations and results are the strength of this board game however. There is so much more to this game that seeing who rolled the higher number or who drew the better card. ABPA takes every real life instance and action in baseball into account. There are different charts and tables to use for runners on any base, injuries, pitcher grade reduction, player fielding abilities, base running, bunting, and hit-and-run plays. APBA Pro Baseball is a dream come true if you love strategy games and ever dreamed about managing a a professional baseball team!
An interesting twist to the 2010 Pro Baseball addition are the two teams/decks of player cards. The teams in the box set are 1953 New York Yankees and the 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers. These two all-time great teams are the two teams who met in the 1953 World Series.
Also available is the APBA Master Game Add-on and Extra Player card sets. The extra player sets are available by specific team or season. The 2010 season player set includes all 750 major league players on the opening day rosters for 2010. The Master Game Add-on provides more details, realism, accuracy and strategy. You use the same player cards as the base set, but there is a flip chart added for additional details and results. I STRONGLY recommend that you master the stand alone base set before attempting the Master Game add-on. There are so many more results and details included in the master set that beginner and even novice player will become confused and not enjoy the game. For advanced players and APBA veterans however, the Master Game Add-on will provide you with the increased strategy and detail that you have been craving!
From a collecting standpoint, fans might not find the APBA Pro Baseball board game to their liking. There are no player or team pictures or logos on any of the cards. More often then not the 'nickname' assigned to the player is just made up and not a nickname the player has in real life. Because of the thinner card stock the cards will show play wear quicker than other baseball card playing game cards. For player collectors who must have every card of their favorite player, these APBA cards could prove a fun chase. If you are able to locate a broken set/game, the real challenge starts when trying to identify older cards and sets. Older versions of the game cards did not have a copyright or season statistics. You could only tell what year the card was form by the location of the "12" along the border.
I highly recommend everyone to pick up at least the base set of this fun and addictive game! You need to experience for yourself how exciting and realistic this game is. Just remember to really learn the base set game though before even trying the Master Game add-on. If you do find some older game sets, trade your Rickey 'Hindu' Henderson cards to me!
Tal
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