NBA Give 'N Go

"Just give this game a chance, it's a great NBA experience on the SNES!"

Introduction

NBA Give N' Go is a basketball game for the Super Nintendo developed and published by Konami. It was released in 1995. At the time, you could consider it a good basketball game, and still is a better game than Konami's terrible NBA in the Zone series. At the time of its release, it set itself apart from the NBA Live and NBA Jam series by introducing a different type of gameplay as well as camera angle.

Graphics: 8/10

To this day, you will rarely find a basketball game that fully utilized the Super Nintendo's potential graphics-wise. However, the graphics on this game are well done. The menus have smooth 2D textures, the players' pictures are not extremely pixellated and the courts are detailed enough. The only problem with the graphics is that the players' bodies are not properly proportioned. All players are nearly the exact same size, Hakeem Olajuwon and Penny Hardaway are nearly equal in height, making it easy to block shots. I was impressed by how they included the little details on players such as Horace Grant's goggles.

Sound: 7/10

The entire game's sounds and music feel very arcade-like. While you navigate the menus, there is an upbeat melody in the background. Nothing special, just average background music that is quickly forgettable. A cool feature in the game is the introductory music at the beginning of each game, which really makes it sound like you're watching a real game on television. There is also an excitable announcer in the background, who exclaims "3-point!" or "Tomahawk!" as well as other small phrases when you make plays. Annoyingly enough, there is background music while you play the game! Some people may enjoy it, but it can get in the way of the actual gameplay because it is so loud. There is slightly different music each quarter, but it's still annoying.

Controls: 9/10

The controls are very simplistic. On offense, there are two buttons for shooting, a button for passing, and a button for an alley-oop. On defense, there is a button to steal, and a button to block. There are no problems with the controls, they work fluidly with the game.

Gameplay: 7/10

There are three gameplay modes: Arcade, Exhibition, and Playoffs mode. You can play as all the teams in the league as well as both All-Star teams and the "Supreme Team", which has a mix of some of the best players in the game. You can edit rosters and trade players to different teams. An interesting feature in this game is that two players can play together in a co-op mode against the COM in an exhibition game.

The game plays smoothly, there is no lag or delay when shooting, passing or stealing, and the AI is decent. The problem with this game is that it is very unrealisitic. Using a behind the back view is an interesting concept to use for this game, but it was poorly implemented. The courts are extremely small. You could get from one end to another in a matter of seconds. The ball physics are also unrealisitic. It is nearly impossible to make a 3 point shot because the ball always rolls off the rim. Players who shoot from certain angles in front of the basket may find that their shot doesn't go straight and hits the backboard. And because all the players are about the same size, blocking is a very easy task. Because it is so easy to block your opponent's shots, the game loses some of it's challenge.

Another problem is Konami's star rating system. it judges a player's performance based on how many stars are next to their name. Because of this, some players can play very differently than they do in real life. A defensive player can suddenly become an explosive scorer, just because he has 3 stars next to his name.

Conclusion

Although this isn't the greatest basketball game out there, NBA Give 'N Go offers some fun gameplay and is still a solid enough basketball game for the SNES. It offers some gameplay elements you can't find in other games such as the high-flying dunks and that alone makes it a worthy purchase.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/08/08

Game Release: NBA Give 'N Go (US, 1995)