NBA Jam HD to be Available Standalone

 

Somebody at EA finally came to their senses; and the resulting decision is going to make our own happy Nick beam a happy, beamy face. NBA Jam HD, the downloadable version of the game for PS3 and Xbox 360 originally intended to be available only as an incentive pack-in for EA’s NBA Elite 11 will be hitting the digital marketplaces as a standalone product.

What prompted this 180? NBA Elite 11, the game that NBA Jam was supposed to piggyback on has been delayed. Sad news for those who prefer their balls dribbling in a more simulated manner, but great for those of us who favour silliness and things being on fire over realism.

Peter Moore laid out the reasons on his blog, acknowledging that the game’s demo was sub-par, and that the game needed a litle more spit and polish.

“As with all of our titles, we continue to evaluate and improve the code right up until launch. Feedback from consumers is a very important part of the process. NBA ELITE had the benefit of play-testing, a demo and a lot of our own research. All that feedback revealed some concerns about gameplay polish, so we’ve listened to your feedback, and made a judgment that the game would benefit from more time in development.”

While it may seem like a silly move, considering 2K Sports’ NBA 2K11 will face little in the way of competition, it’s brave and I guess a little Noble that they’d rather deliver a decent game than simply cash-in. They’ll also be supporting their last basketball title, NBA Live, with full and free roster and dynamic DNA updates.

There’s no word on when NBA Elite 11 will actually slam-dunk its way to retail, but NBA Jam HD is expected “before the holidays,” which is the real news here.

The Wii version of NBA Jam is set for a timely stateside release next week.

Source : Peter Moore

Last Updated: September 28, 2010