Key Takeaways
- Backyard Baseball is considered a 2000s legend due to its impact on childhood sports gaming.
- Backyard Soccer faced challenges with controls but remains beloved by fans for its charm.
- Backyard Football introduced professional players in kid-form and had online competitive modes.
Alright, let me take you back in time for a second: it’s the early 2000s. You’ve just gotten home from school. There are some snacks in the fridge, and your mom won’t be home from work until just before dinner. There’s a roast you should be taking out to thaw, but there’s no time for that: you’ve got a game to win.
If you were a self-respecting kid of the millennium, you probably spent as much time playing Backyard Sports as you did actual sports. These children’s sports games are classics of the 2000s child experience, and with the series reboot coming they will live again. These are all the Backyard Sports franchises ranked.
6
Backyard Skateboarding
Skateboard In Style
Let’s get shredding! Backyard Skateboarding was the last of the sports to be added to the franchise Launched in 2004, this game was came out during the peak of skateboard mania. It even included Tony Hawk as an unlockable character. You can’t get cooler than that.
Where Backyard Sports had usually been a team affair, this game focused more on single characters skateboarding. Several favorites returned from earlier games, including Achmed Khan, Annie Fraizer, and Kiesha Phillips. All the characters were working towards earning funds to build a super-cool skate park, and there would be skill challenges and checks along the way to earn points. Characters would have to perform only the coolest tricks (all rendered in 3D) in order to make their dream of a place to skate a reality.
Due to Backyard Skateboarding being released later in the franchise’s life, it didn’t have as much of an impact as earlier games had. The lack of a team sport meant that there were fewer characters from the roster present, which was a draw in a series known for its lovable roster. However, it did bring the fun of skateboarding to kids across the country. Backyard Skateboarding is unique- and that’s worthy in itself.
5
Backyard Soccer
Sock It To ‘Em In Soccer
Backyard Soccer was the second release from the Backyard Sports series. With Backyard Baseball being such a home run, the developers attempted to bring the same success to Backyard Soccer. And…it didn’t go as well.
Related
8 Best Sports Games Exclusive To The Switch
From Mario Strikers to Nintendo Switch Sports, which is the best console-exclusive game on Nintendo’s handheld?
For as charming as Backyard Soccer is, the controls can be difficult to use, requiring complex motions just to play. It loaded slowly, which was a problem when the main audience was children. But those who did wait were rewarded with a beautiful game. Backyard Soccer was considered the problem child in many ways, but it remains beloved by those who played.
Backyard Soccer (alongside Backyard Baseball) was the only Backyard Sports to be released in Europe. No doubt this is due to the popularity of soccer (er, football) overseas.
4
Backyard Basketball
Dunk On ‘Em In Basketball
Backyard Basketball has a lot going on, and it is a fun and chaotic game to play. Things like a fatigue mechanic and power-ups (which aren’t always beneficial) add new complications to the series, which is a welcome change after earlier games.
The controls could be a bit difficult to master, and it reportedly crashed a lot. But it still retained all the positives from earlier games. Games from Humongous Entertainment- even when they aren’t perfect, they still have so much charm and spirit that they’re impossible not to like. Backyard Basketball’s issues would be ironed out in later releases, and it quickly became a fan favorite.
3
Backyard Hockey
Get Hooked On Hockey
Backyard Hockey marked the first arrival of winter sports to the Backyard Sports series. Before, players had been stuck in warmer weather sports but Backyard Hockey let players lace up their skates and hit the ice. This variety was a refreshing change of pace for the series, and Backyard Hockey proved popular enough to earn a few rereleases. The Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance could all run Backyard Hockey, and of course it remained on the classic PC.
Backyard Hockey made its debut in 2002, and the formula is pretty similar to the other games: get a team and hit the ice. The classic characters have all come back to compete for the Clanky Cup, alongside professional players as kids. The mechanics remain much the same as in previous games, just tailored for hockey. Adorably, players cannot get into hockey fights but instead engage in furious games of rock-paper-scissors. Those who lose go to the penalty box.
For fans of hockey, Backyard Hockey is as fun as a cold day and a clean rink. While not as beloved as the rest of the series, Backyard Hockey still has the charm that the other entries of the series have.
Backyard Football is a love letter to Americana. Designed to invoke the feeling of playing football with your friends, Backyard Football served as the third entry to the series. It introduced a number of concepts that would later be built upon while keeping that same Backyard Sports charm.
Backyard Football was the first in the series to introduce professional players in kid form. Brett Favre and Dan Marino could compete against Pablo Sanchez and Luann Lui, and you could crush them with your own gang of kids. Backyard Football also introduced an online mode, where players could compete with other coaches all over the globe.
Related
All Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games, Ranked
Where else can players make Robotnik compete in rhythmic gymnastics?
Later versions of Backyard Football would see it on more systems, including the Wii. It was also among the last in the series to be redeveloped before the reboot, with the last version coming out in 2010. That alone shows how popular Backyard Football was at its peak. Football is the most popular sport in America, and the Backyard Sports kids seem to feel the same. It’s fun, silly, and has oodles of that charm Humongous Entertainment games are known for. What’s not to like? Few things are better than a football game on an autumn afternoon, and few things are better than a round or two of Backyard Football.
1
Backyard Baseball
Bring It On With Baseball
The game, the myth, the legend. Backyard Baseball. Few games had as much of an impact on 2000s childhood as Backyard Baseball did. We’re willing to bet that if you’re a 2000s kid and you have a fascination with Fantasy League Sports, you got hooked here. Backyard Baseball was the first of the Backyard Sports games to be released. It made its debut in 1997, and quickly established itself as a living legend. The conceit is simple: look at the gang of kids, pick your roster, and play ball.
The sheer amount of characters to pick is a major draw. Backyard Baseball was noteworthy for the amount of diversity included within the roster. The kids look like your average group of kids you’d find in every neighborhood- they come from different families and have different backstories. Some are disabled, and some are poor. But what unites them is the love of baseball. Backyard Baseball would introduce a number of classic characters, including the living legend Pablo Sanchez. Considered by some to be one of the most powerful athletes in video game history, seeing Pablo in his original game is worth the effort.
Next
Best Sports Games On N64, Ranked
Due to the N64’s four-player capability and powerful graphics, it was the powerhouse for sports games during the fifth generation.