EA Sports will be reviving NBA Jam for the Nintendo Wii.
[You can use this time to do a happy dance around your room, if you'd like]
"The new NBA Jam will feature gameplay 'true to the original', promising an updated classic experience that also adds new modes and a re-defined visual style with more realistic body types, physics and "visible player emotion" (source).
(Click the image to see a full-size version of this epic screenshot from the new game)
So, why I am so excited about this news? Well, NBA Jam was easily one of my favorite Super Nintendo games growing up, next to Donkey Kong and Batman Forever, and is definitely one of my favorite games of all time. I would play the game with my godsister for hours on end (as the Chicago Bulls, of course; Scottie Pippen was the man), and even when I wasn't playing, I would spontaneously shout "He's on fire!" and "Razzle dazzle!" in my normal day-to-day activities. NBA Jam taught me the fundamentals of basketball -- score a lot, pass the ball, don't travel, play tough D, and even if you have a god-like vertical, you're not allowed to swat the ball out of the air if it's coming down into the basket (goaltending was one of my biggest weaknesses in the game, haha).
Anyway, if you never got a chance to play NBA Jam when you were growing up, all I can really say is, "Phew, that's rough". Luckily for you, and for all of us die-hard NBA Jam fans, it's supposed to be back this year. Until then, I will be doing thumb exercises. See you on the court.
