NBA In The Zone '99

"A pretty solid basketball game"

NBA In the Zone '99 looks great when you start it. The introduction is definitely worth
seeing again, and the in-game shots don't look too bad at all. How good is it in
reality? Read on.

GRAPHICS 7/10
The graphics aren't super-high-quality but they are pretty well done. The frame rate
has absolutely no slowdown. I like how the crowd is animated, in their own little 2D
way. The players themselves look horrible close up, but most things do in N64
games. From a bit of a distance, they look good. They move a bit like robots but
that's to be expected. The dunks look very stupid close up when they are on instant
replay. But there are a lot of good things too that outweigh the bad.

SOUND 8/10
Wow! I was impressed by the sound in this game. Seriously. The best thing, hands
down, is the crowd. They are rowdy! It really makes you feel like you're in the game.
You can hear individual shouts, and the crowd reacts realistically to whatever
happens on the court. There are also sneaker squeaks on the court, dribble noises,
whistles, and very cool little tunes for defense and after teams score. The music is
great too, in-game, between quarters, and at the menus. The announcer isn't overly
annoying and says the right things. Although you can tell when two sounds are being
combined. (i.e. ''The score is ...Chicago...Thirty....Two...Dallas...Twelve'') Thumbs up
for the sound.

GAMEPLAY 6/10
The gameplay faults a bit. The computers always seem to be open for 3 point shots
that always go in, but when you have possesion all your guys are covered, and I
mean covered. There are easy ways to score though. The free throws take a while to
get used to. The only strange thing - no ref. To start the game, you have to swat at
the basketball which is mysteriously floating above center. Pretty interesting. I like
the replay feature too, even though the replays can look pretty dumb...

CONTROLS 7/10
The controls can't really go all that wrong. Basic buttons to shoot and pass. Change
player, R, is a little bit out of place. Luckily all the buttons can be changed, thanks to
an option menu. (You do get used to the controls though).

OTHER 8/10
The little things are great. Like when the away team has a free throw, the crowd
makes all kinds of noise to try and throw the away team's player off. The players slap
hands with each other when they get the free throw. There's also a very cool 3 point
challenge, that's actually really fun to play. And there's your basic season and
exhibition modes.

In conclusion, this is a pretty solid basketball game! If you are an avid fan it might not
be your first choice because there are newer ones out. However don't count this one
out, because it has some very unique things going for it. Try renting it first; after you
try it a while you'll probably want to buy.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/31/00, Updated 03/31/00