The Accolade Sports Collection brings together five sports games from the early ’90s that certainly show their age. Now, I’m not entirely convinced these games qualify as “classics,” nor could I call this collection “epic.” However, since I do happen to own three of these games in their original cartridge form, they do hold a bit of nostalgic value for me. But the real question is, should you consider adding this collection to your Nintendo Switch library?
Let’s kick off with the games I didn’t already have. We start with Hardball and its sequel, both baseball titles. I have to tip my hat to the original Hardball for all it achieved back then. It launched a whole series and even made an appearance in the intro of The Princess Bride. But, let’s face it, by 1991 it already felt somewhat outdated, and that’s only more apparent now. As a fan of the ’91 era, I wanted to play as the NL champion Atlanta Braves, but alas, you’re limited to just picking city names. It’s expected, sure, but still a bit of a letdown. The graphics hold up fairly well, even if the repetitive music might test your patience after a while. Thankfully, you can turn it off if you prefer some peace.
The sequel changes things up with a new perspective, more stadiums, and features like a demo mode—typical of sports games from that time. The game offers depth; the manual within has more than a dozen pages, paralleling the amount Olympic-style games in this collection boast. While this depth may intrigue some, it doesn’t translate to immediate playability. The game also suffers from a lack of speed. The animations, impressive back then, feel sluggish today. It’s not quite the pick-up-and-play experience you might hope for, although the save feature is a welcome addition. Without a personal connection to these Hardball games, which likely goes back to their PC days, they might not cut it for console gamers today.
Moving on, we have Summer and Winter Challenge. These games offer a total of 16 events, split evenly. I can’t delve into each event in detail, but you might think it’s a case of quantity over quality. I wouldn’t argue much there. Still, most events have a certain fun factor, especially when you’re viewing them through the lens of nostalgia.
Retro enthusiasts might find them entertaining, too. The ambitious polygons (quite a feat for the Genesis) and the animations show these games weren’t an afterthought. The “Behind the Athlete” view adds a cool 16-bit TV-style presentation. This perspective makes some events tougher—good luck avoiding a foot fault in the pole vault—but with a few like-minded friends, there’s plenty of button-mashing fun to be had.
Finally, there’s Hoops Shut Up and Jam, remembered by many as Barkley Shut Up and Jam. In the golden age of ’90s NBA stars, Sir Charles had his video game. At least it was a real basketball game, unlike some of his contemporaries who ventured into platformers and fighting games. Licensing changes have tweaked his character, yet the NBA Jam-style gameplay remains as fun as ever.
This game stands out as the easiest in the collection to jump into. As a seasoned player, it’s familiar territory, but given that the Accolade Sports Collection also targets newcomers to retro gaming, the pick-up-and-play nature of Hoops Shut Up and Jam makes it a standout, even with its changed name.
The Accolade Sports Collection (QUByte Classics) offers just what I expected—nothing more, nothing less. But in 2025, dropping $19.99 on a compilation like this is a tough sell, even for someone who feels a pang of nostalgia. It’s worth keeping an eye on it for a future discount.
