DESCRIPTION

Back in the early 1990s, Midway created a two-on-two, Arcade-style basketball game called NBA Jam. Acclaim took away the naming rights a few years later and released its own versions, and Midway countered by releasing NBA HangTime in the mid-'90s.

Neither company fared as well commercially or critically with its basketball games ever since. After reinventing the Arcade football genre with NFL Blitz, Midway had the same development team try to bring back the magic with NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC.

NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC stays true to its roots with two-on-two, over-the-top, hardwood action. Big dunks, huge leaps, turbo, "fire" streaks, computer assistance, violent pushes and alley-oops conform to Midway's trademark formula. The NBA on NBC license adds actual NBA music, graphics and camera angles. Four to seven NBA stars, from the 1998-99 NBA season, are on each team. Shaq, a.k.a. Shaquille O'Neal, has even officially endorsed the game.

The ability to enter initials has been included from the Arcade version. By entering a name and PIN number, statistics can be saved to a Controller Pak. Also included is a Create-A-Player mode. It lets you take an existing player or mascot and mold him into your own creation by changing attributes, selecting privileges and giving names.

NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC, which is for one to four players, optionally supports the Controller Pak accessory. It must be plugged into the first controller in order to save data. ~ Scott McCall, All Game Guide