Although Sports games are released every year, the death of several franchises from EA Sports and 2K Sports over the years has limited the amount of sports games available. That doesn’t mean you can’t dig deep into the bargain bin and pick up a few classics though. Here are five handheld sports titles you can get pretty cheap and still have some fun with.
MLB 2K7 (PSP)
Why It’s Still Fun: Aside from the graphics and sound, “MLB 2K7” is not a bad baseball game. Filled with a myriad of gameplay modes such as the home run derby, create-a-player, season, situation, managerial and franchise, “MLB 2K7” can and will eat up plenty of hours on your PSP. Add in the fact that 2K has allowed gamers to update their roster online and has put in various legend teams in the game, such as the ’69 Mets, ’55 Brooklyn Dodgers and the ’61 Yankees and it’s easy to see that if given a chance, “MLB 2K7” can and will grow on you.
Madden NFL Football (3DS)
Why It’s Still Fun: The actual gameplay is solid, even though it feels like NFL Gameday 99 on the old PsOne, which it also looks a bit like. More fast-paced arcade action than anything else, those looking for a good time killer on the bus and train will dig it. It’s easily the best looking football game to be released on a Nintendo handheld.
NHL 2002:
Why It’s Still Fun: It’s the last handheld NHL game released on a Nintendo handheld. It plays like NHL 95. You need this in your life. At this point, we’d take this version with a roster update on the Nintendo Switch. Yes, it’s still that much fun to play.
Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee (PSP)
Why It’s Still Fun: The game’s quick loading time, online play and charming player models add to the games playability, making the game the perfect companion for anyone that loves to play their PSP in short bursts, rather than hours at a time. However, with all the unlockables and different tasks in the game, gamers may find themselves glued to the PSP for quite some time.
Overall, it offers a perfect combination of addictive gameplay and arcade style action that every PSP owner should give a chance. The replay options and create-a-character feature alone make it a must-buy, but the solid graphics and easy to learn controls make it the best golf game on the PSP.
Virtua Tennis World Tour (PSP)
Why It’s Still Fun: This is simply a perfect port. All the things you can do in the console versions are here. The control is perfect and visually, it’s excellent. This may be the best portable tennis game ever.
Patrick Hickey, Jr., is the founder and editor-in-chief of ReviewFix.com and a lecturer of English and journalism at Kingsborough Community College, in Brooklyn, New York. Over the past decade, his video game coverage has been featured in national ad campaigns by top publishers the likes of Nintendo, Deep Silver, Disney and EA Sports. His book series, "The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult and Classic Game Developers," from McFarland and Company, has earned praise from Forbes, Huffington Post, The New York Daily News and MSG Networks. He is also a former editor at NBC and National Video Games Writer at the late-Examiner.com
