The graphics are smooth and crisp overall, the courts look great and the special effects add a lot of fun (I especially liked the rain and shadow effects). The characters don't move, or look, quite as realistically as I would like, and I even noticed a few occasions of screen tearing. I'm sorry to report that the graphics in NBA Street aren't amazing as they could be. Dozens of hours of both single and multiplayer gaming merely leaves me hungry to go play some more. The inexperienced will focus too strongly on either one, and probably lose as a result (as my friend did, over and over and over). Your ability to balance tricks versus scoring, will really show up when you play multiplayer. While there is only support for two players, not four, it plays smoothly and will make you feel as though you are in control of the entire team. Knowing that the single player game is as great as I've said, I must add that the multiplayer mode is twice as much fun. My man, Prophecy, is slowly building up to rival the power and ability of Michael Jordan himself.
The character you create for yourself can be improved based on the points you win at the end of a game, and then have their looks changed with the outfits and shoes you unlock. Ahhh, sweet justice.Įven a single-player game is enjoyable, as there are courts, shoes, characters, and even entire teams to unlock, during both the tournament and the Hold-the-Court (win a set number of games against a certain team) modes. Smacking a two-point shot out of the court, or interfering with the opponent's perfect slam-dunk, is a blast. Since there is an obvious lack of fouls, goal tending is the rule of the day. The ability to block shots finally gets the attention it deserves, and is almost more fun than a well-timed dunk. This brings us to the last thing that really sets NBA Street apart from the competition. A combination of these moves, along with steals and blocks, will grab you even more points and build your trick meter up faster. While the basic performance of these moves is simple, getting a true mastery of the timing and the choice of which move to perform takes practice. Performing the tricks is easy, simply involving holding down one of the four turbo buttons (or a combination of these), along with either the trick button or the shot button. This gives you the potential to gain a four-point advance, which can make a huge difference in the outcome of the game. These trick points allow you to perform a Game Break move, which basically nets you the regular score while knocking down your opponents score by the same amount. How was this done? By balancing the drive to score quickly with the need to score trick points. It should come as no surprise that the people that made NBA Street (who also made SSX) have added tons of trick shots and dribbling moves, and more importantly have made them integral to gameplay. The excitement of rallying back and forth to the very end is exhilarating, like great street ball should be. These pitched battles are one of the things that make NBA Street a winner. Since only twenty-one points are needed to win, a game can be completed quickly, but the fact that there is no time limit and that you need to win by two points, can cause games to last quite a while. A normal two-point shot is worth one point, while a three-point shot is worth two. The action is fast paced, with an emphasis on slam-dunks. Other than a shot-clock violation, and an occasional out-of-bounds ball, there are no fouls to speak of. NBA Street is a three-on-three arcade-style basketbrawl.