16 Days 16 Bit: Day 4 - NBA Jam Tournament Edition
16 Days 16 Bit
I'm Chris, editor at PC Games and I use the lockdown to catch up on alleged pearls from the 16-bit era or to relive them. I will share my experiences with you here at 16 days 16 bit.Recommended editorial content At this point you will find external content from [PLATFORM]. To protect your personal data, external integrations are only displayed if you confirm this by clicking on "Load all external content": Load all external content I agree that external content can be displayed to me. This means that personal data is transmitted to third-party platforms. Read more about our privacy policy . External content More on this in our data protection declaration.
Day 4: NBA Jam Tournament Edition
Sports games don't have a reputation for aging well. The ravages of time eat away at both graphics and gameplay faster than a crystal meth addict, who, ironically, has his teeth falling out pretty quickly and then nothing more. But I digress. Some sports games are considered classics that are over time and one of them is NBA Jam Tournament Edition. Back then I loved playing the arcade basketball title with a school friend, but now this classic has to assert itself 27 years after its release.16 Days 16 Bit: Day 4 - NBA Jam Tournament Edition (6) Source: PC Games And - Surprise! Surprise! - the game actually succeeds! At the beginning I need a little time to get in. Distances cannot be estimated as precisely as with today's games and even with the actually very simple controls, I need one or two games until I no longer embarrass my AI partner. You play with the NBA teams from the early 90s, but only with two players per team on the court. If you don't play in co-op, the AI takes control of your comrade on the court, but you can order him to throw or to play.
There are three actions in the offense: Pass, Throw and Turbo. In defense, on the other hand, turbo, fouling and blocking. Since no fouls are whistled and there are no sidelights or backcourt violations, the feel of the game is wonderfully fast. If you pull under the basket while holding down the turbo button and press the throw button, you sometimes do wonderfully exaggerated dunking, which overrides all laws of physics.
16 days 16 bit: Day 4 - NBA Jam Tournament Edition (7) Source: PC Games If you hit three times in a row, the player is on fire. The ball becomes a ball of fire in his hands and when you stuff this into the basket, the net is flared. Other dunks, on the other hand, ensure that the glass on the basket is shattered. These wild actions are underlined by comments such as the "Boom-Shaka-Laka!" Which has now become cult.
While I was NBA Jam T.E. play, I experience a rollercoaster of emotions. At first I am disappointed when I remember that Michael Jordan is not in the game because probably the best basketball player of all time marketed himself and was therefore not included in the NBA license. But then I see all the other great basketball players of the 90s: Scottie Pippen, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley and Co. make for wonderful nostalgia.
When I have internalized the controls again and used the AI to do a couple of exciting and I've delivered exaggerated duels on the court, I think about the fact that the title really doesn't offer a lot of variety and I'm sure to get bored right away. Nevertheless, I play game after game and always have fun with it. Maybe I just have a very simple mind, but I still think the spectacular dunkings, fireballs and crumbling glass plates are just as cool today as they used to be.
16 Days 16 Bit: Day 4 - NBA Jam Tournament Edition (3) Source: PC Games In addition, it is wonderfully satisfying to block opposing dunks or throws or simply to box the opponent in order to then steal the ball and score yourself. At the same time, you can't be angry with the game if you get ripped off yourself because the fast, simple gameplay is just fun.
After a few hours playing the NBA Jam Tournament Edition alone, it was a little the air out, but I'm already looking forward to when everyone is vaccinated and I can force friends who come by to extended co-op sessions. So yeah, time passed NBA Jam as much as human rights passed FIFA. The arcade sports game can still inspire today.
