NBA Jam hands-on at E3: He’s on Fire!

Joe Lloyd 17 Jun, 2010 at 2:14am ET Article published in Gaming

NBA Jam remains the only NBA game that I’ve ever played for more than just a game or two at a friends’ house—growing up in a city (Cincinnati) that has lacked an NBA team since the Royals moved west in 1972, I have never been a huge NBA fan. Having moved to Orlando, with the success of the Magic, I have gotten back into the sport but I still have fond memories of playing NBA Jam in the arcades as a kid.

The over-the-top gameplay definitely appealed to me and after playing a couple of games it still lives up to the original. Towering blocks, dunks taking off from the three point line and shoving guys to the ground and stealing the ball is still as much fun as it was as a kid in the arcades. This is a pretty faithful remake of the original—complete with 2d heads, on fire graphics, backboard-shattering dunks and all the other wacky basketball goodness.

The quarters are still short so it’s easy to just pick up and play a quick game in 15-20 minutes with 3 of your closest friends. If you enjoyed the original NBA Jam, or if you just love bigger-than-life sports games then you’ll definitely enjoy this game.

Comments

17 Jun 2010 ~ 7:59am Zanthian Do Want. Is it arcade only?
17 Jun 2010 ~ 8:30am MAGIC The title of the video says for Wii, so i would think not.

Also, this is awesome!
17 Jun 2010 ~ 4:14pm GHoosdum I loved the original NBA Jam, but the 2D heads freak me out!

Zanthian, this is a release for the Wii.
17 Jun 2010 ~ 4:35pm UPSLynx The heads freak me out too, but I think it's growing on me. It's hokey and cheesy, and ultimately, hilarious. IT feels right at home with the many absurdities in NBA Jam.
17 Jun 2010 ~ 4:38pm CrazyJoe The original had the 2D heads so this is a direct reference to the older game. It is Wii only.
18 Jun 2010 ~ 8:56am Zanthian I might actually have to turn my wii on for this one.
18 Jun 2010 ~ 9:10am Colgere

Zanthian wrote:

I might actually have to turn my wii on for this one.

This reminds me, I need to blow the dust off of mine, since I haven't used it in so long.
18 Jun 2010 ~ 12:47pm GHoosdum Nintendo's victory at E3 2010 is causing gamers everywhere to knock the dust off their Wiis.