Gaming Target - PlayStation 2: NBA Jam 2004

Written by John Scalzo on May 12, 2003

First Impressions: And I hope you like Jammin' too!

Four player gaming has almost become a religion for some people at this point. A large group of people gather around the television, pop in GoldenEye, Mario Kart or Halo and just let the good times (and the trash talk) roll. But the beginnings of frantic four-player fun go back further than that. Super Bomberman for Super NES came packaged with the four-player multi-tap and games were never the same after that. A few months later came the real bombshell. Midway's Super NES & Genesis versions of their amazing arcade game NBA Jam. It was simple, a lot of fun, and one of the greatest four-player trash talk games ever. And now it's being reborn for the next generation.

Simply titled NBA Jam, Acclaim plans to go "back to the basics" and is attempting to recapture the spark that made it great back in those days. The best sign that Acclaim wants this done right is that they've gone back to Acclaim Austin, the developers of the original Super NES version. They were known as Iguana Entertainment then, but if anyone can take NBA Jam back to the basics, it's these guys. The core NBA Jam gameplay will remain mostly unchanged. Wild, spinning through the air dunks, big head mode, no fouls, hotspots, and did someone say "He's on fire!"?

Actually the man saying "he's on fire!" and everything else in NBA Jam will be Tim Kitzrow, the original announcer (and Dick Vitale soundalike) for NBA Jam is making a return. Acclaim has said that a special guest will drop in on the commentary from time to time. Maybe it'll be the real Dickie V, or maybe not.

In addition to the standard NBA Jam tournament mode, Acclaim is also including the Legends Tournament. The Legends Tournament will include over 50 of the NBA's greatest players as you travel through the last fifty years of the NBA's history as you face off against legendary teams as you travel through games with "era-specific music, uniforms, hairstyles, commentary and motions." Translation: afro time! Hey, it worked for NBA Street.

And like any good NBA Jam game, this latest edition will include lots of hidden characters and courts. There's no word on what hidden characters will be included in this go around, but many of the extra courts will be classic NBA arenas that have since been torn down.

NBA Jam is also attempting to make a slight jump into the 21st century with a few changes. Acclaim has promised "over 700 new motions" for the players which include "signature moves for current NBA All-Stars and Legends." A guess a few concessions have to be made for the new school, but I don't think this will distract from their back to basics approach. Another change is that NBA Jam will now be 3 on 3 instead of the traditional 2 on 2. It's unknown at this point if there'll be a 2 on 2 option. And finally, the new NBA Jam will include a create-a-player mode where you can insert yourself into the Jammin'. And if you play well enough you can earn credits to increase your player's skills at the Jam Store. I guess a few new features won't hurt anybody, and will probably make the game a little better.