Hitz, Blitz and Ballers

Not a ZZ Top tribute band, but instead some exclusive screens from Midway's next wave of sports games.

Midway was nice enough to send off some new screens today for three titles from their 2003 sports lineup: NHL Hitz Pro, NFL Blitz Pro and NBA Ballers. All three titles are due to hit the three major platforms later this year, with Hitz due on September 8, Blitz coming in the third quarter, and Ballers getting released in the fourth quarter.

As we've discussed earlier, Blitz and Hitz will be something of a reinvention for both series?the arcadey elements of previous years will still be in there, but some slightly more realistic sports gameplay will be added to both titles. Each game will feature full five- (or 11-) player action, and you'll be able to buy new players, jerseys, stadiums and so forth with the money you earn by winning games (as opposed to the usual plethora of "Tonight's Matchup" codes). Online play will also be available?on the PS2 version, at least?and Blitz will feature downloadable weather conditions and other fine amenities.

NBA Ballers, however, is a bit of a new experiment for Midway Sports?you can call it a combination of EA's NBA street and Midway's own NBA Jam/Hangtime arcade series. The focus here is pure one-on-one action, with 24 "legends" and around 60 current NBA players facing off against each other. As Midway puts it, Ballers take a fighting-game approach to street basketball?every match is fairly short (first to 11, best two out of three, and so forth), and your chosen player will ascend ranking ladders not entirely unlike those seen in the Mortal Kombat series.

We'll have more info on all these titles next week at the Electronic Entertainment Expo?until then, take a look at some exclusive screens from all three games.

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