Now when it comes to basketball games, I'm afraid there is only one option in the "NBA 2K" series, and the recently released "New Year's goods" NBA2K25 are constantly being complained about by fans, and then they have no choice but to put it into storage again, after all, there is really no choice. In fact, a long time ago, basketball games used to be full of flowers, and in addition to the orthodox realistic simulation gameplay, there were many street style works that pursued gorgeous effects. Basketball games really began to become popular, starting from the era of 16-bit consoles, when there was a work that was very popular with players, using simple and easy-to-use operations to create a unique 2v2 fast-paced basketball battle experience, whether it is cooperation or play, it is very suitable for party entertainment, and then after several generations of development, the spiritual sequel to this day is even accepted by 2K, in this issue we will review this classic series "NBA JAM".
Back in 1992, the United States men's basketball "dream team" represented by Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and other superstars participated in the Barcelona Olympics for the first time as a professional athlete, winning all eight games, with an average net win of 43.8 points per game, easily winning the gold medal like a god, making people feel the powerful charm of the NBA. In the subsequent 1992-1993 season, the Chicago Bulls led by Jordan won three consecutive championships, setting off a basketball boom all over the world, and many domestic friends began to chase stars. Highly interactive video games will naturally not miss the popular hits, and the NBA is also vigorously promoting "internationalization", so many manufacturers have launched related theme works.
On February 10, 1993, Midway Games first launched NBA JAM on the arcade platform, which featured a light-rule full-court 2v2 and was one of the first games to be officially licensed by the NBA. Unlike the complex licensing system of football games, teams, and players, the NBA adopts a highly integrated business model, with very few exceptions, all team players are packaged and licensed, and can experience the charm of the stars in a highly interactive game form, which is also of great help to the NBA promotion.
This work has been boldly improved on the basis of traditional basketball gameplay,Removed body contact fouls and other content,In addition to jumping under the hoop to interfere with the ball and limit the offensive time,Players will hardly receive any blowing penalty,You can get the ball by pushing away the opponent or even your teammates,The player's bounce ability is greatly exaggerated,Flying up and dunking like fireworks has become commonplace,Two people on the same team can often use skills such as air relays,Of course, the opponent's block is not an idle person。 Players can also enter a short period of FIRE state, when their movement speed and shooting rate are greatly increased, and there are very gorgeous special effects when dunking, and the fast pace of a few minutes is perfect for matches.
The most attractive content of the game is the real restoration of many stars, the original arcade version included all 27 teams in the 1992-1993 season, new players may not know much about the NBA 30 years ago, the Grizzlies, Raptors, Pelicans three teams were not established at that time, unlike now 30, as well as Seattle SuperSonics, Washington Bullets and other teams before the name change. This game does not pursue comprehensive coverage, and each team only selects two of the best stars, including O'Neal, Ewing, Olajuwon, Robinson, the four champion centers, as well as Barkley, Kemp, Utah and other giants, each player has four values: movement speed, three-point shot, dunk, and defense. However, the biggest regret is the aforementioned rare licensing exception, the number one star Jordan did not appear in the game, as did other NBA titles during the same period.
The game also includes a large number of hidden players, especially in the later home console port, including members of the game's development team, as well as motion-captured actors, and most amazingly, then United States President Bill Clinton and Vice President Albert Gore. It was a bit surprising to see the photos of the two heads of state appear in the game, with Clinton having good speed, three-pointers, and defensive ability, but a dunk rating of 0, and Gore having a full value defense but poor other abilities.
After the game was released, it was quickly welcomed by players, and transplanted to SFC, MD, GB and other platforms, in the underdeveloped hardware environment of the year, this pursuit of simple and refreshing gameplay, compared with the real simulation of the game has a better performance, itself basketball itself is very emphasis on star singles, can operate their favorite characters and friends to play a fast-paced game, it is very interesting. At that time, there were also a large number of enthusiasts in China, especially the MD version was widely popular with cheap assembly cassette.
The series began to get on the right track, with a sequel to NBA JAM Extreme, released in 1996, which used the ZN-1, an interchangeable base board for PlayStation performance, bringing the classic 2v2 basketball into the 3D era, adding dynamic camera angles and new motion capture animations, as well as the addition of well-known commentator Marv Albert. The new work is also logically ported to the 32-bit consoles Sony PS and Sega SS, which are also loved by players in China, and the cover of the Seattle SuperSonics No. 40 Camp Block Rocket Team Olajuwon is impressive.
However, with the continuous advancement of 3D technology, the simulation of real games in the game became more and more realistic, on November 10, 1999, Sega launched "NBA 2K" on the DC console, the first game of the series immediately attracted many basketball game lovers after the release, the same simple and smooth to use, plus the unruly balloon star Iverson as the cover, it can be said that the limelight.
The "NBA JAM" series here is gradually falling silent,The next work did not choose the mainstream platform,Instead, choose N64、GBC、GBA and other hardware,There is no greater breakthrough in both the picture performance and the gameplay system,Compared with the orthodox simulation game gameplay,The exaggerated performance of the arcade model is like a bear child messing around,2003年9month23日,The series reboot work "NBA JAM" was released on PS2、Xbox、NGC three major consoles,Changed to 3V3 gameplay,The overall response is average., The development of the series has come to an end for the time being.
After many years, EA was unable to compete with 2K due to the poor performance of its own "NBA Live" series, and the development was terminated after the launch of "NBA Live 10" in 2009, EA decided to recreate the retro arcade gameplay, taking the "NBA JAM" brand under its command, and inviting the original developer and commentator, attracting many players to try it out at the PAX Prime 2010 show, and even a custom 4-player co-op arcade frame. On October 5, 2010, the new "NBA JAM" was released, covering PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, mobile and other platforms, this game was originally planned to be a mini-game in the form of digital downloads, but after the release of an unexpected response, EA decided to launch a retail version of the disc, on October 4, 2011, the enhanced version of "NBA JAM On Fire Edtion" was released on PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles.
The gameplay of the game returns to the classic arcade style, there are still only two violations of attack timeout and interference with the ball, and the new work adds the function of pushing the opponent away by swinging the elbow, the player faces close defense when dribbling, and can press the button to make the defender stagger back, just like hard stun in a fighting game, but in doing so, the dribbler will become a two-handed ball, and he can no longer move but pass or shoot. Another new move is the cross dribble, also known as the Crossover, which can also put the defender into a short stun to gain space to attack, as well as passing the ball to a teammate, or having a teammate pass to himself, for fancy maneuvers such as aerial relay dunks.
The classic FIRE system has been further enhanced, and a player who scores 3 times in a row will enter the FIRE state, similar to the rampage in a fighting game, with unlimited acceleration, better shooting ability, and super high jump anti-gravity dunks. A player can score up to 5 consecutive points in FIRE and then end their form or be scored by an opponent.
The number of players in the game has been greatly improved, and all 30 teams in the league have appeared, except for the New Orleans Hornets and Charlotte Bobcats, two former teams that were renamed before, which are basically the same as the current NBA, in addition to several All-Star teams, and even joined Real Madrid, Maccabi Tel Aviv, and Panathinaikos Athens, three old European powerhouses. In addition to current and retired legends, each NBA team has a wealth of hidden players, including three members of the rap band Beastie Boys, stars such as hip-hop singers J. Cole and 9th Wonder, and cameos as ESPN commentators, game producers, and team mascots.
The appearance of heads of state in previous works has been impressive, and this game continues to carry forward, with United States presidents alone including Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Albert Gore, Hillary Clinton, Dick Cheney, John McCain, With well-known figures such as Sarah Palin, this is no longer a simple game, but a carnival of entertainment.
The game was loved by players for a long time after its release, and there were also a large number of fans in China, and then the Xbox backward compatibility feature was added, which can also be experienced on the latest consoles. However, it is a pity that EA did not continue the "NBA JAM", and began to restart the "NBA Live" series in 2013, continuing to compete with 2K in the field of realistic simulation, but within a few years, "NBA Live 19" became the swan song again, and "NBA JAM" officially closed the multiplayer server in January 2023 after more than ten years of operation, and the game was also removed from the app store, so far EA has completely withdrawn from the field of basketball games.
In May 2017, Saber Interactive, an United States company that developed the original remake of "Halo", launched a new work "NBA Playground", which made many players shine, the classic 2v2 gameplay is simple and easy to use, the graphics are greatly enhanced and the online battle is even more fun, many new and old stars appear in the highly recognizable Q version of the style, and the popular Iverson has once again become the cover character. Many players saw it as a spiritual sequel to NBA JAM, and the critically acclaimed sequel was soon revealed, but it was unsettling after multiple delays, until 2K announced that it had been taken over and renamed NBA 2K Playground 2.
The sequel retains the traditional arcade style, players can complete dribbling, passing, shooting, dunking, breaking the ball, blocking and other operations through simple buttons, all shots have added a moving cursor design, you need to release the button in the best position, the hit rate will be the highest, otherwise there will be an embarrassing scene of dunking.
This work greatly strengthens the fun of player collection and development, at the beginning the player has few optional characters, and needs to meet various conditions to gradually unlock, each player's ability will also increase with the experience points obtained by participating in the game, and some top stars have exclusive actions, such as Nowitzki's golden rooster independent jump shot, etc., which has a strong sense of substitution to play. Several street basketball courts with different styles, a novel three-point contest mode, and convenient local networked multiplayer functions bring a simple and refreshing street basketball atmosphere.
Today, despite the overall performance of the NBA 2K series, it has also left behind a bloated and complicated experience, and the classic 2v2 arcade gameplay still has a huge appeal, and the classic memories of NBA JAM from 30 years ago will continue to be passed on.
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Pay attention to the "Broken Thoughts Workshop", spread the fine lines, and make the game more than a game.