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  • NBA Jam Extreme (1996)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: GamePro – January 1997

    NBA Jam Extreme was first an arcade game that was released in December 1996 with home versions for the PlayStation, Saturn and Windows 95 coming about a year later. As you can probably tell from the name, this is a basketball game and it is based on the 1996-97 NBA season. This was not the first game in the NBA Jam series but it was the first created by Acclaim. Previous NBA Jam games had been developed by Midway and then ported to home systems by Acclaim. I guess this was because of legal wrangling with the name because Midway also continued releasing basketball games with NBA Hangtime. Graphically, NBA Hangtime resembled previous NBA Jam games than NBA Jam Extreme did.

    The last basketball game I spent significant time playing was One-on-One on the Commodore 64. That game featured Larry Bird and Dr. J. playing half court basketball. While the graphics were simplistic and game play a bit slow, it still managed a lot of depth and subtlety and was a blast to play. As far as the NBA Jam series, to me it seemed to peak with NBA Jam: Tournament Edition which was also an arcade game and was ported to a whole bunch of home systems.

    However, NBA Jam Extreme did add a variety of new things. The most obvious was that it was the first game in the series to feature 3D graphics. Meanwhile, NBA hangtime maintained the 2D graphics of its NBA Jam predecessor. Other changes included an expanded roster featuring a total of more than 160 NBA players, an “extreme” button which was essentially an enhanced turbo button that was found in previous iterations of the game, and other game play changes.

    NBA Jam Extreme received mixed reviews. The graphics were solid and there were a lot of new features but as an early 3D game, it had early 3D game problems. Most notably with the camera angle being something less than desirable. The game also had a slower pace and the home versions suffered from long load times. NBA Hangtime was generally considered to have better game play. However, if you are an NBA fan and someone who like video game basketball, this wasn’t a game you would want to miss. The game is of similar quality on whichever platform you choose, however the PlayStation version probably edges out the other versions as the best home conversion.

    This isn’t a game you will find a re-release for and because of licensing concerns it’s extremely unlikely you ever would. That leaves tracking down an original or using emulation if you want to give this game a try. There have been a number of sequels including NBA Jam 99 (Nintendo 64, Game Boy Color), NBA Jam 2000 (Nintendo 64), NBA Jam 2001 (Game Boy Color), NBA Jam (2003 for the PS2 and Xbox), NBA Jam (2010 for Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360) and finally NBA Jam: On Fire Edition (PS3, Xbox 360) in 2011. After that, the series seems to have died out.


    Arcade PlayStation Retro Games Sega Saturn 📎and tagged

  • Official Sega Saturn Magazine (March 1998)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Official Sega Saturn Magazine – Issue Number 29 – March 1998 

    The Official Sega Saturn Magazine in the U.K. was relatively short lived but then so was the system. It was however, a beautiful magazine. It’s definitely something that I think every Saturn owner would have wanted. The March 1998 issue includes:

    Features

    • Grandia – A detailed look at the massive RPG Grandia. This article takes you through the authors experience with this game so far.
    • Saturn Bomberman: Fight! – A look at this pretty good update of the classic Bomberman. Unfortunately, U.K. residents were forced to import this one if they wanted it.
    • Panzer Dragoon Saga – Presented here as “one of the greatest Saturn game ever”. But it is a quest emphasizing flying on dragons after all.
    • Sega Rally 2 – An in-depth preview of this upcoming Sega racing game.
    • House of the Dead – Sega produced most of the best light gun games of this era. House of the Dead is one of those.
    • Burning Rangers – Definitely a game with one of the more unique concepts. Though games involving fire fighting were not entirely unprecedented. I remember playing Rescue Squad on the Commodore 64 which wasn’t precisely about firefighting but it was about rescuing people from fires…

    Previews

    • DJ Wars – Basically a DJ simulator in which you compete with other DJs.
    • Shining Force 3 – While the Final Fantasy series may have been taking most of the spotlight, the Shining Force series was excellent and even better depending on your personal preferences.
    • Real Bout Fatal Fury Special – SNK made some of the best 2D fighters around and this is a great one for the Saturn.
    • Chill – A snowboarding game. Not sure how good it was as it seems rather obscure and the screenshots don’t make the graphics look all that great.

    Reviews

    • Winter Heat – This game features several winter sporting events including cross country skiing, bobsledding, ski jump and more. If you liked the old Winter Games series then you might like this one.
    • NHL Hockey ’98 – Unfortunately, this conversion for the Saturn is probably the worst. The PC and PlayStation versions were significantly better. Probably more a reflection of a rushed conversion than the Saturn’s capabilities.

    Regulars

    • News – Rumors of new Sega hardware in 1999 (this would become the Dreamcast); new game releases coming for the Saturn include Gun Griffon 2, Ninpen Manmaru, World League Soccer ’98, NBA ’98, NHL All-Star Hockey ’98, Vampire Savior, D&D Collection, King of Fighters ’97, and more.
    • Virtua Writer – Letters from readers about Street Fighter vs. Teletubbies, the demise of Saturn Power magazine, Sega advertising, Marvel Super Heroes, FIFA ’98, Tomb Raider, and more.
    • Q+A – Questions answered about buying import games, definitions of various computer terms, Grandia release, Resident Evil 2, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, and more.
    • Coin-Operated – A look at some of the latest and upcoming arcade games including Marvel vs. Capcom, Fighting Vipers 2, Virtual-On Oratorio Tangram, Harley-Davidson & LA Riders, Astra Superstars, and Fallen Angels.
    • And Finally… – A look at the first lesbian video game character?

    Playing Tips

    • Small Tips – Tips and codes for Steep Slope Sliders, Duke Nukem, Command & Conquer, and Mech Warrior 2. Plus a Q&A regarding NTSC/PAL (50/60Hz) switches for the Saturn.
    • Croc: Legends of Gobbos – Part 1 of a strategy guide for Croc that covers levels 1-1 through 1-6 plus boss level 2 and secret levels.
    • Mortal Kombat Trilogy – A Fatality Guide for Mortal Kombat Trilogy.
    • Quake Guide, part 3 – Part 3 of a detailed Quake strategy guide. This part covers the second and third episodes.

    …and more!


    Retro Games Sega Saturn 📎and tagged

  • Galaxy Fight (Sega Saturn)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    https://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/705220884951154688/segacity-cat-scratch-galaxy-fight-universal

    After Street Fighter II was released in 1992, there followed an endless procession of fighting games. In addition to the endless Street Fighter II enhancements and sequels, Mortal Kombat games and seemingly unlimited supply of SNK fighters for Neo Geo hardware, there were many more obscure fighting games as well. Galaxy Fight is one of those.

    Galaxy Fight (subtitled “Universal Warriors”) was originally released as an arcade game, not surprisingly on Neo Geo hardware, in 1995. The only other home conversion was for the Sega Saturn. This was only Sunsoft’s second fighting game with the first having been released only in Japan. Galaxy Fight has the usual array of characters, moves and special moves that you would expect of a 2D fighter.

    The concept behind Galaxy Fight is a galaxy wide fighting tournament with characters from all over the galaxy. I guess that concept makes it pretty easy to have some pretty varied characters. There are a total of eight playable characters including characters that look like monsters, aliens, robots and more. There are also four non-playable bosses.

    Galaxy Fight received pretty average reviews overall. There was nothing particularly wrong with it but it just didn’t stand out in a deluge of similar games. However, if you are a 2D fighter aficionado then I don’t see why you wouldn’t want to check it out. There isn’t a huge difference between the Neo Geo and Saturn versions (other than soundtrack). The Saturn version was based off of an unreleased Neo Geo CD version of the game. In addition to tracking down an original Neo Geo or Sega Saturn version, this game was also released as part of Arcade Archives for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch in 2017 (though I have no idea if it’s still available that way). And of course there are also various emulation options. There was also a PlayStation version that was released only in Japan and Europe.

    There were no direct sequels to Galaxy Fight but Sunsoft did release another game a year later called Waku Waku 7. It used the same game engine and was similar in quite a few other way, including having a Galactic theme. Waku Waku 7 was released only in Japan.

    Screen shots above are from the Sega Saturn version of the game.


    Retro Games Sega Saturn 📎and tagged