NBA Jam Tournament Edition

true <img src="/contributed/1228415857GbXH5AipMn.jpg" width="440" height="250"> Name: NBA Jam: Tournament Edition Platform: SNES Year Released: 1995 <img src="/contributed/1229022470ApWtQkM4CG.jpg"> For someone who has next to no interest in sports, I tend to find old-school sports games a lot of fun. NBA Jam: Tournament Edition is one of the most memorable games from my childhood, despite the fact that I have zero interest in basketball. Watching NBA games on television sounds like a fairly boring way to spend a few hours to me. However, for some reason, I fell in love with Tournament Edition on the PS1 in 1995. It’s possible that this is because it’s one of two games that came with the PlayStation bundle my brothers and I got for Christmas (the other being the <a href="/gamer/sarah/blog/article/those_were_the_days_the_playstation_era_arrives/">infamous</a> Street Fighter The Movie The Game). At any rate, I enjoyed playing the game on the PS1 for years, and in college spent some time dominating on a friend’s Super NES version. It’s been a few years, but I picked up a copy a few weeks ago, and finally got a chance to play today. For those of you who weren’t doing a lot of gaming in 1995, this game (and its 1993 predecessor, NBA Jam) were considered impressive for several reasons. First of all, the games had up-to-date NBA rosters, which didn’t make much of a difference to me, but other people were pleased with. Also, the announcer’s constant commentary became instantly quotable, with people still shouting “Razzle dazzle!” and “Boomshakalaka!” obnoxiously. The graphics were also remarkable in the 1990s, with pixilated versions of NBA players actually resembling their real-life counterparts. The rosters and graphics may be dated today, but that doesn’t mean this game isn’t still plenty of fun. <img src="/contributed/1229022494NlqzT7XByV.gif" width="440" height="385"> NBA Jam: T.E., like NBA Jam before it, is an arcade-style basketball game, which means it is not realistic at all. This is the kind of sports game I like—the type that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Feel free to throw out some elbows or knock over players from the opposing team without worrying about having someone call “foul”. It’s pretty satisfying to knock a player down and take the ball out of his hands, just as it is to make an impossible flying slam dunk that causes the net to go up in flames. Silly? Absolutely, but that’s what made this game so much fun. The controls are simple, with buttons for passing, blocking, stealing, shooting, and turbo. Of course, it’s easy to accidentally shoot when you meant to pass, or toss the ball right into the hands of the opposing team when you meant to throw it to your wide-open teammate. While there’s nothing glaringly wrong with T.E., it’s these small sources of frustration that can really hamper gameplay. Add that to some of the unbalanced (some might even say cheap) players, and there’s a chance you’ll be throwing a controller across the room. I don’t really encourage being a sore loser, but when you’re ahead for an entire game and your opponent suddenly starts nailing every single three-point shot in the fourth quarter to beat you at the last minute, it’s a bit exasperating. <img src="/contributed/12290224818eFEYFNqQv.jpg" width="440" height="383"> Surprisingly, though, NBA Jam: Tournament Edition holds up fairly well for a thirteen-year-old sports game. It was fun when I was twelve, it was fun when I was 21, and I assume it will continue to be a source of enjoyment for the Gamervision office. It’s obviously not perfect, and for true NBA fans, it can’t compare to the Live or 2K series of basketball games. However, for those just looking to have some arcade-style basketball fun, NBA Jam is still the way to go. [<a href="http://www.consoleclassix.com/snes/nba_jam_tournament_edition.html">Img source</a>] <img src="/contributed/1204908946PhJqwa60Wv.jpg" width="275" height="35"> <a href="http://www.gamerankings.com/"><img src="/contributed/12049090913D6uenyIJz.jpg" width="111" height="42"></a><a href="http://www.metacritic.com/games"><img src="/contributed/1204909164Gepk74pXtB.jpg" width="154" height="51"></a>   Related Articles: <a href="/gamer/coop/reviews/article/turok_evolution_gcn">Turok: Evolution - GCN</a> <a href="/gamer/sarah/reviews/article/aladdin_snes">Aladdin - SNES</a> <a href="/gamer/sarah/reviews/article/mortal_kombat_ii_snes">Mortal Kombat II - SNES</a> review

2008-12-11T14:19:31-05:00

<img src="/contributed/1228415857GbXH5AipMn.jpg" width="440" height="250" /> Name: NBA Jam: Tournament Edition Platform: SNES Year Released: 1995 <img src="/contributed/1229022470ApWtQkM4CG.jpg" /> For someone who has next to no interest in sports, I tend to find old-school sports games a lot of fun. NBA Jam: Tournament Edition is one of the most memorable games from my childhood, despite the fact that I have zero interest in basketball. Watching NBA games on television sounds like a fairly boring way to spend a few hours to me. However, for some reason, I fell in love with Tournament Edition on the PS1 in 1995. It’s possible that this is because it’s one of two games that came with the PlayStation bundle my brothers and I got for Christmas (the other being the <a href="/gamer/sarah/blog/article/those_were_the_days_the_playstation_era_arrives/">infamous</a> Street Fighter The Movie The Game). At any rate, I enjoyed playing the game on the PS1 for years, and in college spent some time dominating on a friend’s Super NES version. It’s been a few years, but I picked up a copy a few weeks ago, and finally got a chance to play today. For those of you who weren’t doing a lot of gaming in 1995, this game (and its 1993 predecessor, NBA Jam) were considered impressive for several reasons. First of all, the games had up-to-date NBA rosters, which didn’t make much of a difference to me, but other people were pleased with. Also, the announcer’s constant commentary became instantly quotable, with people still shouting “Razzle dazzle!” and “Boomshakalaka!” obnoxiously. The graphics were also remarkable in the 1990s, with pixilated versions of NBA players actually resembling their real-life counterparts. The rosters and graphics may be dated today, but that doesn’t mean this game isn’t still plenty of fun. <img src="/contributed/1229022494NlqzT7XByV.gif" width="440" height="385" /> NBA Jam: T.E., like NBA Jam before it, is an arcade-style basketball game, which means it is not realistic at all. This is the kind of sports game I like—the type that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Feel free to throw out some elbows or knock over players from the opposing team without worrying about having someone call “foul”. It’s pretty satisfying to knock a player down and take the ball out of his hands, just as it is to make an impossible flying slam dunk that causes the net to go up in flames. Silly? Absolutely, but that’s what made this game so much fun. The controls are simple, with buttons for passing, blocking, stealing, shooting, and turbo. Of course, it’s easy to accidentally shoot when you meant to pass, or toss the ball right into the hands of the opposing team when you meant to throw it to your wide-open teammate. While there’s nothing glaringly wrong with T.E., it’s these small sources of frustration that can really hamper gameplay. Add that to some of the unbalanced (some might even say cheap) players, and there’s a chance you’ll be throwing a controller across the room. I don’t really encourage being a sore loser, but when you’re ahead for an entire game and your opponent suddenly starts nailing every single three-point shot in the fourth quarter to beat you at the last minute, it’s a bit exasperating. <img src="/contributed/12290224818eFEYFNqQv.jpg" width="440" height="383" /> Surprisingly, though, NBA Jam: Tournament Edition holds up fairly well for a thirteen-year-old sports game. It was fun when I was twelve, it was fun when I was 21, and I assume it will continue to be a source of enjoyment for the Gamervision office. It’s obviously not perfect, and for true NBA fans, it can’t compare to the Live or 2K series of basketball games. However, for those just looking to have some arcade-style basketball fun, NBA Jam is still the way to go. [<a href="http://www.consoleclassix.com/snes/nba_jam_tournament_edition.html">Img source</a>] <img src="/contributed/1204908946PhJqwa60Wv.jpg" width="275" height="35" /> <a href="http://www.gamerankings.com/"><img src="/contributed/12049090913D6uenyIJz.jpg" width="111" height="42" /></a><a href="http://www.metacritic.com/games"><img src="/contributed/1204909164Gepk74pXtB.jpg" width="154" height="51" /></a>   Related Articles: <a href="/gamer/coop/reviews/article/turok_evolution_gcn">Turok: Evolution - GCN</a> <a href="/gamer/sarah/reviews/article/aladdin_snes">Aladdin - SNES</a> <a href="/gamer/sarah/reviews/article/mortal_kombat_ii_snes">Mortal Kombat II - SNES</a>

6149

6521

2008-12-11T12:56:50-05:00

2008-12-11T14:19:31-05:00

11222

7.0

nba_jam_tournament_edition_snes published He's On Fire! NBA Jam Tournament Edition - SNES

2009-03-02T14:55:19-05:00

763