Rules. I think we can all agree that rules just make everything 78.9% more boring, especially when rules are applied to sports. Everyone knows there’s nothing more exciting about watching basketball than watching Danilo Gallinari shove Ronnie Brewer to the ground and pry the ball from his hands. Also who watches for free throws, or lackluster jump shots? Everyone watches it for the in your face, slamma jamma dunks, and glass shattering free throws. No one understands these principals better than EA Sports in their latest remake of the 1993 title NBA Jam.
They Don't Look Fun
NBA Jam offers players a unique take on basketball. Instead of going for the detailed realism of the game as seen in titles like NBA Live, or NBA 2K, NBA Jam instead takes a more comical and arcade approach to the franchise. If you’re looking for a basketball game that perfectly re-creates Michael Jordan’s left shoe, than this is not the game for you. Games consist of two on two matches, and keep things moving as fast as possible.
Fouls are kept to a minimum. There’s no such thing as a back court violation. No lame technical fouls to worry about. Want to get the ball from the other team? Great. Go shove them to the ground and take it for your own! Really the only rules to make it into the game are goal tending (otherwise scoring would simply be improbable!), and shot clock violations. Unlike normal games of basketball, you will spend most of your time setting up layups, and dunking the ball as hard as you can.
While playing, your players ultimate goal is to score three baskets in a row. The reason for this couldn’t be more obvious. Achieving such a feat will ignite the ball on fire every time that player touches it. This allows that player to have infinite turbo, which allows players to run faster, dunk from further away, and make nearly every three pointer you try…even the ones from half court. It may sound easy, but considering that even your own teammate can end your streak it’s quite difficult to consistently land the “on fire” achievement.
Graphically NBA Jam isn’t winning any awards. The game looks as though photos of the real players’ heads were taken, cut out and placed on top of a video games body. That’s how the game has always looked, and that’s the style they stuck with. Besides, who cares how detailed our player’s shoes or sweat look. We’re just trying to smash the backboard glass into a million pieces with mour insane skills anyway!
A Milestone of Graphics and Sound
There are tons of codes and modes to unlock. From playing with big heads, or playing as Barak Obama vs. Bill Clinton the game gives you reasons to come back. Being one of the few games to come out this generation that offers two player modes on the same console is another wonderful feature of it. There’s nothing like shouting Boom Shaka-Laka in unison with the announcer at that dim-witted friend of yours who just tried to shoot on his own basket! You and a friend can even battle two other unsuspecting foes online together (Xbox live or PSN Only).
For anyone who has ever played the original NBA Jam before, yes this game lives up to your expectations. This game tried to do nothing new, it merely kept up with the times, and with the technology available. It offers more modes, and more variety, but is truly the same exact game you played all those years ago. Should you be ambitious enough you can even unlock some of your favorite classic rosters. NBA Jam delivers just as well as it always had. Now we say bring on a REAL sequel to NFL Blitz!
We give NBA Jam a “Slam Jam” out of “Boom Shaka-Laka!”
Overall Score: 9/10
