14 DAY TRIAL // Electronic Arts has confirmed the fact that NBA Ham has been picked up as a franchise and will be published exclusively for the Nintendo Wii home gaming console. The publisher has even brought on the creator of the series Mark Turmell in the position of senior creative director at the EA Tiburon studio. EA Sports is not saying when the title will be coming out or why the decision was made to actually only target the Wii with the new game.
Peter Moore, who is the president of EA Sports, has stated that “NBA Jam is one of the most recognizable franchises in videogame history. Diehard fans of the original game have been asking for a remake for more than a decade. We’re very excited to give them their wish this year with the return of this iconic franchise.”
The rights for what's called an “updated version” of the title have been acquired from the NBA, and EA Sports is saying that the gameplay will be “true to the original” game released way back in the prehistory of gaming in 1993.
That game was over the top, with players jumping higher than any human could, made slam dunks from impossible positions and with fouls and free throws disabled. It was an action-oriented take on a sports game and a far cry from the commitment to realism, which modern basketball titles like the numbered NBA series profess. It was also limited to 2 on 2 games.
The Wii is probably the platform of choice for the new NBA Jam because of the motion control that can allow a gameplay experience close to that of the arcade. But with the Xbox 360 getting Project Natal in the fall and with Sony offering the wand for the PlayStation 3 during the spring, EA Sports might announce updated versions of NBA Jam for those consoles at a later date.