Replay Publishing

Replay Publishing is a game company based in Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania, that develops and publishes sports simulation games for the tabletop and computer. They currently produce Replay Baseball, Replay Basketball, and PC Replay Baseball. Competitors past and present include APBA, Diceball, Strat-O-Matic, Big League Manager, Design Depot, Negamco, Pursue the Pennant and Statis Pro Baseball.

Replay Baseball was first developed by Norm Roth and John Brodak, and first published in 1973 by Replay Games of Carmichaels, Pennsylvania.[1] They continued publishing the game until 1991, when they moved on to other pursuits due to the rising financial cost due to licensing with the Major League Baseball Players Association.[2] In 1998, Pete Ventura and Replay Publishing resurrected the franchise with the release of their first yearbook for Replay Baseball. A brand new Replay Basketball was released in 2003, and PC Replay Baseball was created for computer play and released in 2009.

In August 2007, the company held Replay Retreat 2007 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[3]

Replay Baseball

Replay Baseball is played using three dice (red, white, and blue), and a Chart Book. Play is controlled by rolling three dice (red/white/blue), and using the numbers to obtain results by referencing the pitcher and batter cards, as well as the chart book. The Chart Book is offered in two formats, the Current Chart Book being valid for the new yearbook format and for original seasons produced after 1987, and the White/Classic Chart Book being valid for original seasons produced before 1987. Playtime can be as little as 15–20 minutes per game, according to TableTop-Sports administrator Jeff Downey.[4]

Replay fans are known to play co-op games that are coordinated in their online forum, which builds a sense of community around the game. In an interview[5] with The Stateline Observer, player Craig Pillow noted:

Replay Baseball offers a number of past seasons, in both a yearbook (precut cards) and team book (eBook only) format. In addition, there are still copies of the original game (Replay Classic) and seasons available.

Replay Baseball has been mentioned in two books to-date,[6] with one providing a four-paragraph write-up concerning the game.[7]

In 2004, Replay published a yearbook of the 1923 Negro National League, using full statistical data not yet published elsewhere but provided by the researcher. The data published in the yearbook remains the most complete for a single Negro league season. Company owner Pete Ventura donated a portion of his profits to a Negro Leagues Widows fund, helping out pensionless widows of Negro leaguers.[8]

The company also donated games to Walter Reed Medical Center in 2006 and 2007 for convalescing soldiers.

Reception

Writing for Command, Dennis Agosta compared Replay Baseball to two contemporary tabletop baseball games, Strat-O-Matic Baseball and APBA Baseball, and said "Replay Baseball is the best of the three games. [Unlike APBA Baseball], Replay Baseball does not suffer from statistical inaccuracies introduced by manager actions." Agosta concluded, "Replay does not have an advanced game — all of the advanced features of S-O-M and APBA Master Game are built into the basic game and are used with no difficulty."[9]

title	Replay Baseball
italic title	no
designer	Peter Ventura
publisher	Replay Publishing
players	1–2
ages	13 and up
setup time	minutes
playing time	30 minutes
random chance	Medium (dice rolling, luck)

Replay Baseball

Reception

Replay Basketball

Second Season Pro Football

External links

References