Little League World Series Baseball is a charming and cute baseball game, which is at times simple-to-play, and at times surprisingly difficult. 

The game makes use of most of the buttons on the Xbox controller, including the trigger buttons on each side.  Batting and pitching are performed with the right trigger, with the A, B, X and Y buttons being used for pitch selection and to throw to a base when the ball is put into play.

The simple act of pitching, batting and even fielding are pretty easy, but can start to become more difficult when you work on aiming your pitches or perfecting the timing of the swing.  Although it can be frustrating to be unable to make a pitch go exactly where you want it every time, we view this increasing difficulty of the controls as a positive thing because it makes the game accessible to players of many skill levels.

There are a couple ways to play Little League World Series Baseball.  You can play head-to-head with family or friends, or participate in a tournament yourself.  Additionally, there are a number of batting- and pitching-themed mini-games, such as a home run derby, a darts-style pitching game where you need to aim at certain numbered locations, and a memory game which involves memorizing the order to which the ball is thrown “around the horn” to each of the different bases.

The art style is very cartoony, and does not try and be overly-realistic.  We liked the character’s wide eyes, and also the colorful uniforms, which seem to be pretty good re-creations of the jerseys worn in the actual Little League World Series.

Another really cool thing about Little League World Series Baseball is the ability to rename all the players on your team after your family or friends.  This definitely adds a nice level of customization, as kids can insert the name of their teammates, siblings or parents into the lineup of whatever team they choose.

There is also a “card” system in which players can earn special ability cards whenever they are successful at a game or challenge.  This can be turned off, but when utilized can also add another layer of strategy and critical thinking.  For example, using a specific card during an at-bat could give a pitcher an advantage, or another card might make all batters an inning more likely to hit home runs.

Although Little League World Series Baseball is fun enough to be enjoyed by players of all ages, it’s clearly aimed towards kids and tweens.  The basic game mechanics are simple enough, but more advanced techniques require lots of button-pressing and can be difficult to master.  The games bright colors, cartoony art-style and team customization options make this perfect for any little leaguers out there looking to spend some diamond time in the comfort of their own home.