Little League World Series swings onto DS

If baseball itself wasn't a predominantly American pastime, the additionally layering of the Little League - effectively baseball played by kids' teams - makes the combination almost entirely US-centric.

Still that's the basis for Little League World Series 2008, a DS (and Wii) game that's just been announced by Activision.

The only equivalent we can think up is the annual school sports day, which isn't an event we'd want to remember, let alone play a game about.

But perhaps we're missing something. Certainly Dave Oxford of Activision Publishing thinks so.

"Little League baseball fans, players and families simply haven't had a videogame made just for them, so our goal is to fill this niche," he says. "Creating this game with the Little League organisation has been a pleasure and we look forward to paying homage to the three million Little League players around the world today."

The game will let players bat, pitch and field using controls specifically designed for DS and, as you play, you'll be striving to make your way from 'sandlot slugger' to Little League world champion.

Eight US and eight international teams will feature, as well as deep character customisation and various skill-based challenges too.

Little League World Series 2008 is due to hit US shop shelves on August 5th. We haven't had a response yet from Activision on whether it'll be getting a European release. We usually get some baseball games but we're guessing Little League might be a bit too niche.