NBA Jam (Wii/X360/PS3)

[merf]

out up all versions as the x360 & PS3 follow the wii versions shortly, wii version is currently an HMV exclusive.

bought this against my better judgement on Wii as I used to love the SNES original and had the urge for a new game, plus had money on my HMV card.

fair to say its a mixed bag, I'll start with the bad.

firstly if you only have a wiimote & nunchuck avoid, the waggle enforced control is hideous and game breaking, flick up to jump, flick down to dunk, flick up to block, flick down to swing arm - I'd had enough by the end of the tutorial.

even for ?30 it all seems a bit bare bones too on Wii, there is a single player campaign and obviously local multiplayer.

also fair to say its pretty rough looking, graphics are chunky and don't move that small, doesn't have retro charm, just looks a bit iffy with not a lot of frames of animation.

I've also not worked out yet how to fully control both men on my team (think you used to be able to) and the AI team mate seems dumb as a brick

end of the bad

plug a classic controller in and things get better, forget the fact its a horrible controller and at least the game becomes playable again, doesn't feel far removed or updated from the old version but its still a fast and fun arcade game with OTT moves.

the commentary is funny, the original chap has recorded loads more lines and there are some great ones, my fave at the moment greeted a clean swoosh 3pt basket 'like my wifes top draw, nothing but nylon'

the game is still great fun, not far improved from the original but if you liked it then like me this will hit some nostalgia thing for you

conclusion - I knew I shouldn't have bought it on wii, the controller is just bad, this cries out for a proper PS3 or Xbox pad, it also cries out for online (or people in the same room) & some better graphics never go amis.

think I'm going to get rid pronto of the Wii version and re-buy when its out on the other consoles.

[Nisa]

I got this on 360 today and I've managed to put a few hours worth of play in. It's been years since I played NBA Jam so it took a game or two to get used to playing again but once I did I remembered why I loved the series in the first place. Although there's a few added moves such as alley oops and crossovers, the core gameplay is pretty much the same as the classic versions.

The game does have a bunch of new modes such as domination in which you try to capture a number of areas around one half of the court by scoring from them and there's one where you win by smashing your opponent's backboard by lowering it's health using dunks and alley oops. There's also a career mode in which you challenge the various teams in each conference to each of the different modes which also includes boss battles against classic players like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.

As far as online goes I only managed to play one game and it all seemed pretty smooth as far as lag is concerned. It did take one or two tries to connect to a game but I suspect that's due to not many people over here having the game yet. The game I did have went back and forth across each quarter until I eventually won with the narrowest of leads which was hugely satisfying. I hope there is a big enough user base to make playing online for the next few months a possibility as the game is great fun in multiplayer.

The major concern people seem to have is the perceived value of the game. Most places seem to have it for 25 quid which I would say is worth it if your a fan of the series. I paid about the same and I don't regret paying that much for it. It would have been nice to have it as a Live/PSN game but on the other hand I'm glad I didn't have to buy the travesty that is NBA Elite in order to play the 360 version.

[SuperBeatBoy]

Buying this tomorrow on 360, can't wait. Huge fan of the previous games, its been a long time coming!

[BaronSqwelch]

same as...thats if gamestation actually stock it, they have been getting worse for games I actually want lately.

will be sending up bricks online if anyone wants a game.... Baron Sqwelch on the xbox will not be "on fire" much tho!

[SuperBeatBoy]

Jesus, really forgot how hard NBA Jam was. Really need to play this alot to get my skills and timing back.

[BaronSqwelch]

very hard...more due to the cpu randomly cheating than actual toughness...going to give it a good play when ive finished off some other games!!

[apatia77]

I played it a bit on my friends xbox and the game is great but somehow it get's a bit repetitive after few hours.

[MJ]

I finally played this a few days ago and lasted just over one quarter before putting it back in the box. They are still yet to make a home release that comes close to the original arcade version for me. The original commentator doesn't sound interested and it looks too shiny. Back to the shop for me.

Turbo on L buttons.. wtf?
-but TE is likely moot as this needs 5 buttons; too deep! Why no 3 as in Showtime etc (turbo also fake move when double tapped)?

Turbo on the L trigger annoyed me too, why isn't it on the R trigger as well.

X to shoot, block and rebound.

A to pass only.

B to spin move and steal and shove when L trigger is pressed.

Why isn't A pass on offence and steal on D.

I know the buttons aren't complicated, but they're silly enough that it makes it a bit of a chore to play.

[Skull Commander]

Just got this the other day ont 360 and while it's still a fun game at it's core I do have some gripes.

Firstly I agree about the silly controls, and the fact you can't change them is awful. I can't get used to the turbo on the left and naturally keep pressing the right trigger. Also upon starting the 'Jam Camp' tutorial I did get mad when I thought all the actions were controlled by the right analogue until I figured out you can also use the face buttons.

I also miss the option that you used to get on the Snes version to control both players (where you controlled whoever had the ball at that point). Now you can only control one player with the computer controlling the other player. Fair enough, you can ask for a pass, but that's not the way I used to play the old version.

Lastly the AI is awful. Your teammate seems to make bad decisions on a regular basis and doesn't seem to like defending. The opposing team AI is even worse, with some of the most blatant cheating rubber band AI I have witnessed in recent times. I was playing on medium and it seems no matter how much I got ahead in the first half, by the fourth quarter they had gained super powers and would win. I have switched down to easy now that particular issue has gon away, but I never had this issue onthe Snes versions.