When it comes to playing a basketball game, you expect a few things. I want to be able to slash, cut, dunk, and drain threes. I don't care if it's arcade-ish, or simulation focused; the controls should be tight. I want to be able to control my player with precision and to also be able to depend on animations to know if my shot is going in or not. If any of these aspects falter, i'm probably gonna drop it. As a bit of a basketball junkie, i'm willing to offer some leeway, but not too much.
When you ask people what are the best basketball games pre-3D, it's almost unanimously NBA Jam. I don't have much experience with the arcade version. I'm sure it's a fine game, but when I tried out the Genesis "Tournament Edition" I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The controls were whatever, the presentation was nice, but the game felt too floaty. I'd figured that maybe these games were simply before my time, and I stuck to playing 2K.
When I started up NBA Hangtime, I was cautious and didn't expect much. Besides, everyone says NBA Jam was better anyways, why bother? Boy was I wrong. NBA Hangtime would put any NBA Jam on a poster dunk. It would give NBA Jam it's Kodak moment. Seriously, this sequel is better than the OG in many, many aspects that i'm confused myself as to whether or not I didn't play NBA Jam properly, or everyone is blinded by some heavy nostalgia goggles.
For the uninitiated, NBA Hangtime is a 2 on 2 basketball game with an arcade flavor, and it's so much fun. For an SNES arcade port, this game looks quite good. The sprite work is nice and players are discernable enough for a SNES game. I tried out the codes on the VS screen to check out the alternate courts the game offers in secret. They're arguably better than the main court and offer some cool scenery to chew on. I for one really dug the Jungle court, with the court lines being delinated with greenery. Unfortunately, the roster is a bit lacking here. No Shaq or Jordan, and really any historical rosters. You also can't player as a real life player and have your teammate AI be your custom character. But the other heavyweights provide just enough entertainment.
This game just seems to get basketball mechanics just right. Although we're limited by a 2D plane, I found myself being able to crossover, hit a corner three, and find my man with comfort. Sure their may not be animations for all of these, but the sheer freedom you get to be able to do it is important. On the defensive end, rebounding could get some getting used to but getting blocks and steals is responsive. The steals usually have you push the opponent, so this is perfect for the 4 Bill Laimbeer fanboys. Or maybe I should say Draymond Green fanboys? Besides games, there's no extra minigames. Although I don't mind the leaness of the game, you may find yourself a bit disappointed. As per usual for NBA Jam games, the AI also borders on unfair at times to keep games close.
Whether you're sinking buckets, or blocking layups, the SFX here is fantastic. The euphoric basketball swish we all know and love is there, but the dunks sound even better, as do the swish of the ball when you pass, or the thud you hear when you get a nasty block. The music also gets a bit repritive by the time you get to your championship game, but it's hard to expect a full soundtrack from a title and time like this. The little "oof" you can hear when you injure someone is also kind of funny. I guess it'd be euphoric though if you're Draymond Green.
Unique to NBA Hangtime, is the player creation feature. You get points every 5 games you win, and by the time you win the championship, you can be CP3 on steroids (5'7, 160 lbs, but with all 6 stats maxed out), but it features just enough depth so you can tailor make your own players. I had a lot of fun simply playing the game, and even if you're not that upgraded, you can still be competitve until Hard difficulty or so. Once you get to Very Hard, you need some good stats. Even on Normal difficulty though the game is challenging enough. As an arcade game, Hangtime has aged very well in that the difficulty of playing the game is applicable more to your skills rather than to the AI. It's a difficult thing to pull of sometimes but this game was able to do it.
After looking for an arcade basketball game, everyone said doesn't get much better than the NBA Jam games. I say forget about all the Tournament Editions and whatnot, NBA Hangtime is well worth the time. It might be a bit lean, but it packs quite a punch and is worth it even if you're not a big basketball head.
When you ask people what are the best basketball games pre-3D, it's almost unanimously NBA Jam. I don't have much experience with the arcade version. I'm sure it's a fine game, but when I tried out the Genesis "Tournament Edition" I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The controls were whatever, the presentation was nice, but the game felt too floaty. I'd figured that maybe these games were simply before my time, and I stuck to playing 2K.
When I started up NBA Hangtime, I was cautious and didn't expect much. Besides, everyone says NBA Jam was better anyways, why bother? Boy was I wrong. NBA Hangtime would put any NBA Jam on a poster dunk. It would give NBA Jam it's Kodak moment. Seriously, this sequel is better than the OG in many, many aspects that i'm confused myself as to whether or not I didn't play NBA Jam properly, or everyone is blinded by some heavy nostalgia goggles.
For the uninitiated, NBA Hangtime is a 2 on 2 basketball game with an arcade flavor, and it's so much fun. For an SNES arcade port, this game looks quite good. The sprite work is nice and players are discernable enough for a SNES game. I tried out the codes on the VS screen to check out the alternate courts the game offers in secret. They're arguably better than the main court and offer some cool scenery to chew on. I for one really dug the Jungle court, with the court lines being delinated with greenery. Unfortunately, the roster is a bit lacking here. No Shaq or Jordan, and really any historical rosters. You also can't player as a real life player and have your teammate AI be your custom character. But the other heavyweights provide just enough entertainment.
This game just seems to get basketball mechanics just right. Although we're limited by a 2D plane, I found myself being able to crossover, hit a corner three, and find my man with comfort. Sure their may not be animations for all of these, but the sheer freedom you get to be able to do it is important. On the defensive end, rebounding could get some getting used to but getting blocks and steals is responsive. The steals usually have you push the opponent, so this is perfect for the 4 Bill Laimbeer fanboys. Or maybe I should say Draymond Green fanboys? Besides games, there's no extra minigames. Although I don't mind the leaness of the game, you may find yourself a bit disappointed. As per usual for NBA Jam games, the AI also borders on unfair at times to keep games close.
Whether you're sinking buckets, or blocking layups, the SFX here is fantastic. The euphoric basketball swish we all know and love is there, but the dunks sound even better, as do the swish of the ball when you pass, or the thud you hear when you get a nasty block. The music also gets a bit repritive by the time you get to your championship game, but it's hard to expect a full soundtrack from a title and time like this. The little "oof" you can hear when you injure someone is also kind of funny. I guess it'd be euphoric though if you're Draymond Green.
Unique to NBA Hangtime, is the player creation feature. You get points every 5 games you win, and by the time you win the championship, you can be CP3 on steroids (5'7, 160 lbs, but with all 6 stats maxed out), but it features just enough depth so you can tailor make your own players. I had a lot of fun simply playing the game, and even if you're not that upgraded, you can still be competitve until Hard difficulty or so. Once you get to Very Hard, you need some good stats. Even on Normal difficulty though the game is challenging enough. As an arcade game, Hangtime has aged very well in that the difficulty of playing the game is applicable more to your skills rather than to the AI. It's a difficult thing to pull of sometimes but this game was able to do it.
After looking for an arcade basketball game, everyone said doesn't get much better than the NBA Jam games. I say forget about all the Tournament Editions and whatnot, NBA Hangtime is well worth the time. It might be a bit lean, but it packs quite a punch and is worth it even if you're not a big basketball head.