NBA Showtime
- January 01, 2000 00:00 AM PST
Let's get ready to rumble! Not in the ring, but on the basketball court as Midway slam dunks flashy arcade-style basket-brawl action to the PlayStation with NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC.
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Red-hot and Flying
Tired of getting your butt kicked in ultra-realistic simulation basketball titles, but still want all the dunking, three-point bombing and shot rejecting fun? With vibrant, motion-captured dribble moves, no-look passes, fade away jumpers and high-flying dunks, NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC breaks all the rules of basketball and makes a very fun videogame in the process. The game features all 29 NBA teams with over 120 realistically modeled NBA stars, and even a few hidden characters mixed in. You can play in the home team's arena or at one of the fantasy courts, and you can even customize new teams with the real NBA stars or players you've created yourself.
Showtime is obviously not about the realism, it's about shooting with reckless abandon, knocking over your opponent and ripping the ball out of his hands, but most of all, it's about winning. In order to get the full effect, grab a few friends and a multi-tap and start playing.
What You Can't See...
While all of the thrills of game play made it safely to the PlayStation, its version of NBA Showtime looks a little graphically rough. Since the game is out simultaneously for PSX, N64 and Dreamcast, comparisons are bound to occur, and it doesn't look good for Sony's little gray box. The characters are not only very blocky with jagged edges, but they don't move as smoothly as on the other platforms. The arenas are also much darker and lack all of the subtle details of both the N64 and Dreamcast versions. If you don't have the other systems you probably won't care, but once you've seen the Dreamcast version, the PSX version will make you wince.
Sound, however, fares much better. Like most PSX to N64 comparisons, NBA Showtime shares the same basic truths: the PSX soundtrack has more sound bites which means less repetition, and it remains more timely than the N64. If you close your eyes, you probably can't tell between the PSX and Dreamcast versions.
Controls are sensationally easy, with a simple three-button configuration: pass, shoot and turbo. That's it. So no matter what button configuration you prefer, it all ends up pretty much the same. You'll probably want to use the analog stick, however, because you'll blister your thumb on the D-pad from all the juking and jiving, and then you'll be wailing.
Talking Trash
The graphics are less than impressive, but the four-player gameplay (if you have the multi-tap) makes the whole thing worthwhile, as long as you got enough game to back up all that trash you know you're gonna talk.
