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FILE – A gamer holds an Xbox controller. (Photo: Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images)
Summary The “Backyard Sports” video game series is set to return in the coming months, the game’s developer, Playground Productions, announced on Tuesday. The video game series debuted in 1997 with the release of “Backyard Baseball” and featured “Backyard Kids” characters such as Pablo Sanchez, Stephanie Morgan, Kenny Kawaguchi and Pete Wheeler. “Backyard Sports” has partnered with several professional sports leagues, including MLB and the NBA, to expand the video game series to feature professional athletes as their children.
The iconic “Backyard Sports” video game series is officially returning for the first time in years.
This will be the first new video game release for the series since 2015, Variety reports.
Playground Productions announced Tuesday that the video game series will be returning “in the coming months” with the same visual appeal that gamers are sure to enjoy from the late 1990s and early 2000s games.
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The “Backyard Sports” series debuted in 1997 with the release of “Backyard Baseball” and featured “Backyard Kids” characters such as Pablo Sanchez, Stephanie Morgan, Kenny Kawaguchi and Pete Wheeler.
Sports Illustrated reported that the game was originally developed by Humongous Entertainment and published by Atari.
Backyard Sports partnered with Major League Baseball to feature one player from each of the 30 teams in the game Backyard Sports 2001, which portrayed professional baseball players as children. Superstar baseball players featured in the game include Ken Griffey Jr., Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn.
After partnering with other professional leagues such as the NBA, WNBA and NHL, the video game series has expanded to include other sports with the release of “Backyard Basketball,” “Backyard Football,” “Backyard Soccer,” “Backyard Hockey” and “Backyard Skateboarding.”
Sports Illustrated reported that Playground Productions plans to expand the “Backyard Sports” franchise into other areas, including film, television and merchandise.
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Information for this article was provided by Sports Illustrated and Variety. Sports Illustrated received a statement from an executive at Playground Productions confirming the video game’s re-release. This article was reported from Washington, DC.