NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC

"NBA Hoopz is the ony non- simulation basket ball game on Dreamcast. Trust me!!!"

I really need to get a Playstation 2. I was playing NBA Streets on PS2 at my friends house. So, Streets(NBA Streets)as what my friends and I call it, inspired me to get a non-simulation basket ball game. So, no NBA 2K and 1 & 2. My first thought was NBA Hoopz. To my surprise, Gamestop didn't have any. So I settles for the next best thing. Well, not the next best thing. This is how I rate this game.

Graphics 7 The graphics are good but not exceptional for Dreamcast. The Dreamcast has the power to turn games into pictures from the television. The players' muscles are a nice touch to the game. The faces are done very nicely and they actually look like the real person. The dunks are very good but the only replay is on the computer when they push you down and make a nice lay up. The court is nice but the background looks like the background from the Showtime on Sega. Sega Genesis. I may be over exaggerating but the background is nothing pretty compared to NBA Hoopz.

Sounds 7 The music is the basic rap or hip hop music for basket ball games. The commentator is your basic commentator. The players every now and then trash talk but very little. The sound FX are good, like when your player shoots a shot and the net swishes. Again, the music is the same and after a while it gets repetitive. The opening music is the NBA on NBC theme music and if you like that, then your in for a treat.

Controls 7 When I first had this game, I kept shooting the ball from the end of the court. I had to quit the game and change the controls around and still they were confusing. I took time to get used to them but still, when new comers challenge me, it takes a while for them to learn the controls.

Gameplay 4 The game only has 3 MODES. CREATE A PLAYER, ENTER INITIALS AND ARCADE. You would expect this from Genesis our SNES. When you enter your initials to '' start your season'' the first couple of teams are very easy on easy but when you start winning a lot the computer starts cheating. Suddenly, the computer starts blocking all of your shots, making 3-pointers and getting on fire then making more 3-pointers. What makes me mad, is when the CPU starts tripping and pushing you and the ref doesn't call anything. Your allowed 4 fouls. They basically beat me up and I don't get any free throws. Finally, the free throws are worth 3 points. Then, when the CPU makes the free throw worth 3 points the go and make a 3 pointer. Thats 6 pints in one play!!!

Replayibility 7 The only reason I played through half of the game was to build my player's attributes up. If you have a friend who is very good in this game and constantly challenges you, this game is good. One more thing that will make you mad. The roster for the teams are old. For ex. Steve Francis is not on the Rockets Team but guess who is Scottie Pippen and Charles Barkley. Yeah, lets go play this game. Sure!!!!!

Buy or Rent I say, trade in some old junk from previous systems and get about $5 off $11.99. Now that I spent my money on Phantasy Star Online, NBA Hoopz finally came in and I can't buy it yet until I save up enough money. So, don't buy or rent this game unless you fall in my situation and NBA Hoopz is not available.

Overall This game is basically an arcade on your DC. The game itself is nothing but an arcade with ARCADE MODES. Do yourself a favor and get NBA Hoopz, because at least the rosters are up to date.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 01/06/02, Updated 01/06/02