At this point, the Backyard series is becoming an expected yearly addition to the interactive sports scene. Like a miniaturized version of Madden or MLB, each year Atari makes use of official licenses, shrinks the packages down to kid-friendly form, and offers a simplistic cross-section of the sport. If you aren't familiar with he series, the Backyard franchises often make use of generic (but useable) control mechanics that are already tried and true, and then sprinkle in a small amount of over-the-top gameplay around some power-ups, create-a-player, and the mix of official MLB players and fantasy characters as well, all in kid form.

Usually we'd take one look a game like Backyard Baseball '09 for DS, play it for a few minutes, and the expected result would take place: We'd grow bored almost instantly, and add it to the "pass" pile. This isn't the case this year. With Backyard making its way to DS after finding a home on GBA, GameCube, and PS2, the design actually works pretty well with the touch integration, lower graphical expectations all around (compared to PS2 and GCN, DS is obviously simpler), and some intuitive controls. It isn't a must-play game by any means, but it certainly has the core sport of baseball down, and it's the first Backyard offering out there that's sure to satisfy; at least for the younger crowd.

Full story: ds.ign.com