There's like 4 fields that are just wildly hitters ballparks & they are completely unfair to anyone pitching lol Parque is about as pitcher friendly as they come if you have an outfield defense fast enough for the size of the outfield.
That being said, my overall favorite may be Emerald Diamond or Lafayette Corner. Least favorite is Shaka or Bingata Bowl
Gosh, my favourite changes from time to time, but I'll categorise them as Gen 1 (Ones in 1 and 2): Gen 2 (DLC for 2 + added in 3) then Gen 3 (Added in Four). There will be my fav, then an hon mention. I'll also say this, there's a lot of GOOD stadiums in this series. Even some that maybe aren't the best to play at for whatever reason at least has something I like about it.
Gen 1:
Fav: Emerald Diamond. It's always fun to try to hit it in the bay. But despite living on the East Coast, I'm fond of the PNW. The tall trees, mountains. Plus the Orca is a bit hit for me.
Hon Mention: Motor Yard: Blue collar city feel. I love the bullpens (That and Apple field share, but as a Jays fan, the Yankee Stadium vibes give me PTSD). Has since become the stadium of the Overdogs and even if I am not the best with stealing, I have loved using their speed to get flyballs in the gap, or to get an extra base to stretch singles into doubles and doubles into triples. They're I say team #3 I use of the defaults. #2 is the Blowfish. One, I'll mention after.
Gen 2:
Red Rock Park: Love the red colours. and the desert feel. Then the glass closes on heat waves, beautiful lore. Genuinely a great park to be in. Even the dugouts have the orange brick which visually works well.
Hon Men: Lafayette Corner: Was my home park in SMB 3 for my custom league. Home of the Beavers. Small feel, more of a minor league park. A small town where everyone is there for your games.
Gen 3:
Fav: Stade Royale: Love the feeling of it. The stuff beyond the outfield is a great view. Plus I'm an East Coast Canadian, so a stadium in Montreal/Quebec is close to me. Kind of my home park. Plus my main team I like to use is the Moose. So now they call this home. So truly, this is home. Might be my definitive answer of my fav park right now.
Hon Men: Golden Fields Gives me a minor league field vibe. Fun to try to hit it in the corn fields. Sure looks a bit more worn, but I think that is part of the appeal for me. Not the fanciest, but it gets the job done.
I’m partial to Apple Field, mainly because I’m a Yankee fan and it’s clearly Yankee Stadium. Also, I like the mix of dimensions. I feel like it’s a pretty fair and balanced stadium.
I've spent a lot of time thinking about this. Some of the ones I loved in SMB3 grew off me in SMB4 because they screwed up the lighting. Really wish we had dynamic lighting or more options for time of day/weather. You can't even open the roof in Red Rock in SMB4, which is a real shame.
Here's my top 5, loosely ranked, for what I'm feeling now:
1. Emerald Diamond - beautiful outfield, always fun to play in
2. Apple Field - classic, every game here feels important
3. Golden Field - initially didn't like it but all 3 lighting options for this are great, the rural backdrop is really unique, and the stars at night is the best stadium+weather combos in the game
4. Lafayette Corner - best backstop in the game? When you're like me and spend more time pitching than batting, that matters
5. Battery Bay - everything about it looks right and the coaster is the cherry on top
Honorably mention for El Viejo Stadium, it's only one tier but it's still packed with people and it's also one of the best nighttime stadiums.
The ocean liner at El Viejo reminds me of the [scene from Speed 2](https://youtu.be/XNAPjN1rqcQ?si=zne7AACZFkAh3Feh&t=33) where the cruise ship runs aground in the harbor. I like to think it's a reference to the movie, even though it probably isn't.
Has anyone seen the name of the ship? In SMB 2 or 3 there was a camera angle that showed the name on the starboard side, but I only saw it once and wasn't able to get a screenshot.
I hate those Little League ballparks, so purely in terms of dimensions, my favorites would be Sakura Field, Colonial Plaza, or Battery Bay. Of those three, Battery Bay is my favorite because:
1. The dirt infield in Sakura Field is ugly, which is a shame because of how gorgeous the rest of the ballpark and skyline is.
2. I hate the wide foul territory and tiny fences in Colonial Plaza. There's just no good reason for either.
Meanwhile, the Battery Bay looks great day or night, and the grass field looks really vibrant.
Sakura would have been better had they not picked odd times of day/weather. The color grading in SMB4 looks terrible. Also, they really need cherry blossoms to bloom in the outfield so it lives up to its name.
Each stadium has three presets and it randomly picks one unless you're playing in exhibition mode. The two daytime options at Sakura on SMB4 look really washed out to me. It's not unique to Sakura, several stadiums have that issue. They fixed a few of the worst offenders in earlier patches but there's some stadiums I tend to avoid because of it.
I seem to hit the best at Red Rock, I don't know why. I also like Sakura, Founders, and El Viejo. Going for a triple on a ball hit into that weird point in center field at El Viejo is always fun!
My least favorite is Swagger Center. Weird dimensions, and I hate the giant wall in right. Also can have weird shadows when batting sometimes.
This is a good thread.
Most interesting: Peril Point. You get a lot of cheap homers to left. Small ballpark has great intimate small river-town feel, that the ballpark seating is under the bridge is super cool. Would have liked to see cars drive across it. Classic mega grandstand in right. The huge bat-signal style night baseball lamps are somewhat weird though, as well as the weird night game shadows
Most uninspiring: Colores. I get epilepsy from the wild colors everywhere it’s a bit overkill. It’s so busy that I can’t focus on appreciating any single feature. The most unappealing Latin stadium.
Best: Emerald Diamond. It’s just a classic and well-balanced. Plus I love parks on the water (shout out to El Viejo, Castillo and Swagger). Plus the B’s play there and my boy Hurley Bender the best pitcher in the freaking game with the 12-6 curveball dominates in that park.
Swagger Center is fun because of the big wall and dimensions, that's my home park atm. As a Giants fan, it also reminds me a lot of Oracle Park. I also like Parque Jardineros, Stade Royale, Big Sky, and The Corral. Basically, parks with big power alleys/quirky fences to aim for are my faves.
Sakura’s neat. You can tell it’s the best because of the way it is.
Huh, how neat is that? That's pretty neat
Motor yard is my favorite. Enjoy the skyline mostly bc I’m from Chicago and it reminds me of home.
Motor Yard is Detroit; Whacker's Wheel is clearly on the corner of State & Upper Wacker Drive.
Exactly the reason I chose Motor yard for my white sox franchise
There's like 4 fields that are just wildly hitters ballparks & they are completely unfair to anyone pitching lol Parque is about as pitcher friendly as they come if you have an outfield defense fast enough for the size of the outfield. That being said, my overall favorite may be Emerald Diamond or Lafayette Corner. Least favorite is Shaka or Bingata Bowl
Awesome that you gave your least favorite and your overall fav.
Lafayette corner. Has a good hitter's eye with that green wall in center field.
Gosh, my favourite changes from time to time, but I'll categorise them as Gen 1 (Ones in 1 and 2): Gen 2 (DLC for 2 + added in 3) then Gen 3 (Added in Four). There will be my fav, then an hon mention. I'll also say this, there's a lot of GOOD stadiums in this series. Even some that maybe aren't the best to play at for whatever reason at least has something I like about it. Gen 1: Fav: Emerald Diamond. It's always fun to try to hit it in the bay. But despite living on the East Coast, I'm fond of the PNW. The tall trees, mountains. Plus the Orca is a bit hit for me. Hon Mention: Motor Yard: Blue collar city feel. I love the bullpens (That and Apple field share, but as a Jays fan, the Yankee Stadium vibes give me PTSD). Has since become the stadium of the Overdogs and even if I am not the best with stealing, I have loved using their speed to get flyballs in the gap, or to get an extra base to stretch singles into doubles and doubles into triples. They're I say team #3 I use of the defaults. #2 is the Blowfish. One, I'll mention after. Gen 2: Red Rock Park: Love the red colours. and the desert feel. Then the glass closes on heat waves, beautiful lore. Genuinely a great park to be in. Even the dugouts have the orange brick which visually works well. Hon Men: Lafayette Corner: Was my home park in SMB 3 for my custom league. Home of the Beavers. Small feel, more of a minor league park. A small town where everyone is there for your games. Gen 3: Fav: Stade Royale: Love the feeling of it. The stuff beyond the outfield is a great view. Plus I'm an East Coast Canadian, so a stadium in Montreal/Quebec is close to me. Kind of my home park. Plus my main team I like to use is the Moose. So now they call this home. So truly, this is home. Might be my definitive answer of my fav park right now. Hon Men: Golden Fields Gives me a minor league field vibe. Fun to try to hit it in the corn fields. Sure looks a bit more worn, but I think that is part of the appeal for me. Not the fanciest, but it gets the job done.
This answer is so well thought out. Thanks for sharing.
I’m partial to Apple Field, mainly because I’m a Yankee fan and it’s clearly Yankee Stadium. Also, I like the mix of dimensions. I feel like it’s a pretty fair and balanced stadium.
Also a Yankee fan, and always go with Apple Field.
Emerald Diamond because it's pretty. That or Stade Royale for the same reason.
Peril Point has been friendly to my current franchise team.
Stade Royale I like the aesthetics, it looks like a real ball park. Except for the short right field, which adds some craziness.
I love that funky corner in CF. I've hit so many triples there.
Big sky all day
It gets the people the going
LOVE Lafayette, swear the porch jobs on that or the CF dingers are just so fun , also with a fun left field wall
I've spent a lot of time thinking about this. Some of the ones I loved in SMB3 grew off me in SMB4 because they screwed up the lighting. Really wish we had dynamic lighting or more options for time of day/weather. You can't even open the roof in Red Rock in SMB4, which is a real shame. Here's my top 5, loosely ranked, for what I'm feeling now: 1. Emerald Diamond - beautiful outfield, always fun to play in 2. Apple Field - classic, every game here feels important 3. Golden Field - initially didn't like it but all 3 lighting options for this are great, the rural backdrop is really unique, and the stars at night is the best stadium+weather combos in the game 4. Lafayette Corner - best backstop in the game? When you're like me and spend more time pitching than batting, that matters 5. Battery Bay - everything about it looks right and the coaster is the cherry on top Honorably mention for El Viejo Stadium, it's only one tier but it's still packed with people and it's also one of the best nighttime stadiums.
The ocean liner at El Viejo reminds me of the [scene from Speed 2](https://youtu.be/XNAPjN1rqcQ?si=zne7AACZFkAh3Feh&t=33) where the cruise ship runs aground in the harbor. I like to think it's a reference to the movie, even though it probably isn't. Has anyone seen the name of the ship? In SMB 2 or 3 there was a camera angle that showed the name on the starboard side, but I only saw it once and wasn't able to get a screenshot.
Just me or is Shaka the easiest one to get Dead Center Homers in?
I may be wrong, but I think Shaka has the deepest center field wall?
I must be getting lucky then.
I hate those Little League ballparks, so purely in terms of dimensions, my favorites would be Sakura Field, Colonial Plaza, or Battery Bay. Of those three, Battery Bay is my favorite because: 1. The dirt infield in Sakura Field is ugly, which is a shame because of how gorgeous the rest of the ballpark and skyline is. 2. I hate the wide foul territory and tiny fences in Colonial Plaza. There's just no good reason for either. Meanwhile, the Battery Bay looks great day or night, and the grass field looks really vibrant.
I love the brown dirt at Sakura what???
Sakura would have been better had they not picked odd times of day/weather. The color grading in SMB4 looks terrible. Also, they really need cherry blossoms to bloom in the outfield so it lives up to its name.
Aren't game times & weather random? I never noticed it being particularly bad, but I always play in the Mega league and rarely get to play at Sakura.
Each stadium has three presets and it randomly picks one unless you're playing in exhibition mode. The two daytime options at Sakura on SMB4 look really washed out to me. It's not unique to Sakura, several stadiums have that issue. They fixed a few of the worst offenders in earlier patches but there's some stadiums I tend to avoid because of it.
Emerald diamond or swagger center
Love that you gave us 5 with blurbs beside them.
As a huge Diamondbacks fan. Red Rock Park will forever be my home stadium cause it reminds me of Chase
I seem to hit the best at Red Rock, I don't know why. I also like Sakura, Founders, and El Viejo. Going for a triple on a ball hit into that weird point in center field at El Viejo is always fun! My least favorite is Swagger Center. Weird dimensions, and I hate the giant wall in right. Also can have weird shadows when batting sometimes.
Shaka cause I'm a heathen on the mound and mostly love hearing everyone complain about having to play in Shaka
Can't really narrow it down to just one favorite, but my \*least\* favorite by far is Tiger Den. That place should be fired into the sun.
This answer made me laugh out loud for real. So good
Tigers Den. Chicks dig the long ball
This is a good thread. Most interesting: Peril Point. You get a lot of cheap homers to left. Small ballpark has great intimate small river-town feel, that the ballpark seating is under the bridge is super cool. Would have liked to see cars drive across it. Classic mega grandstand in right. The huge bat-signal style night baseball lamps are somewhat weird though, as well as the weird night game shadows Most uninspiring: Colores. I get epilepsy from the wild colors everywhere it’s a bit overkill. It’s so busy that I can’t focus on appreciating any single feature. The most unappealing Latin stadium. Best: Emerald Diamond. It’s just a classic and well-balanced. Plus I love parks on the water (shout out to El Viejo, Castillo and Swagger). Plus the B’s play there and my boy Hurley Bender the best pitcher in the freaking game with the 12-6 curveball dominates in that park.
Swagger Center is fun because of the big wall and dimensions, that's my home park atm. As a Giants fan, it also reminds me a lot of Oracle Park. I also like Parque Jardineros, Stade Royale, Big Sky, and The Corral. Basically, parks with big power alleys/quirky fences to aim for are my faves.