NBA Hoopz is a 2001 basketball video game published by Midway. It is the sequel to NBA Hangtime and NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC. Hoopz was the only 3-on-3, arcade-style basketball video game available during the 2000–01 NBA season. Shaquille O'Neal is featured on the game cover.

NBA Hoopz
Developer(s)Eurocom Entertainment Software
Torus Games (GBC)
Publisher(s)Midway
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Dreamcast
Game Boy Color
PlayStation
Release
  • NA: February 13, 2001 (PS)[3]
  • NA: February 15, 2001 (DC, GBC)[1][2]
  • NA: February 26, 2001 (PS2)[4]
  • EU: April 13, 2001 (DC, PS, PS2)
Genre(s)Sports
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Overview

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Rather than 5-on-5 action like professional play, or 2-on-2 like its predecessors, this game features 3-on-3 play. Using players from the NBA, each player chooses a guard, forward, and center from the team's NBA roster for the first half and can make substitutions for the second half.

NBA Hoopz is an arcade-style game and not meant to be realistic: players can jump twenty or thirty feet in the air, dunk the ball from 20 feet (6.1 m) away, and do otherwise physically impossible things. Fouls are only called on flagrant pushes, foul shots are rare (and only after a number of fouls are accumulated), and there is no out of bounds. In addition, after a player makes three consecutive shots he becomes "on fire" which allows him to make almost any shot as well as goaltend without penalty. The PlayStation 2 and Dreamcast versions accommodate up to four players.

Features

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  • More than 500 High Flyin' Animations
  • Sharp Graphics, Player Models and Animated Crowds
  • Addicting Mini-Games like 21, 2ball and Around the World
  • Secret Hidden Courts like Beachside and Street Court
  • Jammin' On-Fire Mode
  • Official NBA Stats and Player Rosters

The uniforms for the Orlando Magic and Phoenix Suns were not updated for the game. These teams sported the uniforms they had in the 1997-98 NBA season instead of the ones they had in the 2000-01 NBA season.

Reception

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The Dreamcast and PlayStation 2 versions received "mixed" reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[9][10] GameZone gave the former console version universal acclaim, a few weeks before its release date.[24] Rob Smolka of NextGen said of the latter console version, "Sloppy dunk animations and a blatant lack of originality draws [sic] a technical foul on NBA Hoopz."[31]

Dan Elektro of GamePro's April 2001 issue said of the Dreamcast version, "Goodies like player creation and season mode, along with mini-games like 2ball, can't make up for the main game's fatal identity crisis. NBA Hoopz comes off as a simulation wannabe, simultaneously betraying Showtime fans and only weakly attracting serious hoop addicts. Stick with NBA 2K1."[36][b] He also said of the PlayStation version, "Give Midway credit for trying, but not much more. If Showtime left you wanting more stats and details, Hoopz might fit the bill, but Live is a better sim."[37][c] However, he said of the Game Boy Color version, "Maybe someone at Midway will get the hint that the Game Boy should have its own basketball game to match its capabilities, instead of constantly forcing the GB to do things it can't and shouldn't do. In a word, NBA Hoopz sucks."[38][d] An issue later, Jake The Snake said of the PlayStation 2 version, "Even with a locker room full of features—including four mini-games, such as 21ball and 21—Hoopz isn't great but is decent enough that some gamers, especially those with short attention spans, will prefer it over EA's NBA Live."[39][e]

Notes

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  1. ^ Three critics of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the Dreamcast version each a score of 7.5/10.
  2. ^ GamePro gave the Dreamcast version 4.5/5 for graphics, 3.5/5 for sound, and two 3/5 scores for control and fun factor.
  3. ^ GamePro gave the PlayStation version three 3/5 scores for graphics, sound, and control, and 2.5/5 for fun factor.
  4. ^ GamePro gave the Game Boy Color version 4/5 for graphics, two 2.5/5 scores for sound and fun factor, and 3/5 for control.
  5. ^ GamePro gave the PlayStation 2 version two 4/5 scores for graphics and sound, 3/5 for control, and 3.5/5 for fun factor.

References

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  1. ^ "The Games of February ¿ The U.S. Edition". IGN. February 6, 2001. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  2. ^ "NBA Hoopz". GameZone. Archived from the original on January 12, 2004. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  3. ^ "NBA Hoopz". GameZone. Archived from the original on January 1, 2004. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  4. ^ "NBA Hoopz Shipzzzz". IGN. Ziff Davis. February 26, 2001. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  5. ^ "NBA Hoopz for Dreamcast". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  6. ^ "NBA Hoopz for Game Boy Color". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 22, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  7. ^ "NBA Hoopz for PlayStation". CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  8. ^ "NBA Hoopz for PlayStation 2". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "NBA Hoopz critic reviews (DC)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  10. ^ a b "NBA Hoopz critic reviews (PS2)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  11. ^ Thompson, Jon. "NBA Hoopz (DC) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  12. ^ Thompson, Jon. "NBA Hoopz (GBC) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 16, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  13. ^ Thompson, Jon. "NBA Hoopz (PS) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 16, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  14. ^ Kujawa, Kraig; Hager, Dean; Leahy, Dan (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (DC)". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 141. Ziff Davis. p. 103.
  15. ^ Kujawa, Kraig (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (GBC)" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 141. Ziff Davis. p. 110. Archived from the original on April 21, 2001. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  16. ^ Kujawa, Kraig (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS)". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 141. Ziff Davis. p. 105.
  17. ^ Kujawa, Kraig (May 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 142. Ziff Davis. p. 109. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 12, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  18. ^ Grant, Jules (March 15, 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on August 17, 2002. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  19. ^ Helgeson, Matt (May 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)". Game Informer. No. 97. FuncoLand. Archived from the original on November 13, 2004. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  20. ^ Satterfield, Shane (February 15, 2001). "NBA Hoopz Review (DC) [date mislabeled as "May 17, 2006"]". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 11, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  21. ^ Provo, Frank (February 23, 2001). "NBA Hoopz Review (GBC) [date mislabeled as "May 17, 2006"]". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 12, 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  22. ^ Satterfield, Shane (February 15, 2001). "NBA Hoopz Review (PS) [date mislabeled as "May 17, 2006"]". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 11, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  23. ^ Gerstmann, Jeff (February 26, 2001). "NBA Hoopz Review (PS2) [date mislabeled as "May 17, 2006"]". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 12, 2015. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  24. ^ a b Da bomb mom (January 29, 2001). "NBA Hoopz Review - Dreamcast". GameZone. Archived from the original on May 27, 2006. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  25. ^ Chau, Anthony (February 20, 2001). "NBA Hoopz (DC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on September 27, 2022. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  26. ^ Perry, Douglass C. (April 2, 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  27. ^ Perry, Douglass C. (March 2, 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 8, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  28. ^ Romendil (April 11, 2001). "Test: NBA Hoopz (DCAST)". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Webedia. Archived from the original on January 22, 2022. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  29. ^ pilou (April 10, 2001). "Test: NBA Hoopz (PS1)". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Webedia. Archived from the original on May 3, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  30. ^ Romendil (April 20, 2002). "Test: NBA Hoopz (PS2)". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Webedia. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  31. ^ a b Smolka, Rob (June 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)". NextGen. No. 78. Imagine Media. p. 82. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  32. ^ Zuniga, Todd (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS)". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 43. Ziff Davis. p. 102. Archived from the original on April 18, 2001. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  33. ^ Zuniga, Todd (May 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 44. Ziff Davis. p. 98. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  34. ^ Saltzman, Marc (April 4, 2001). "Hoops, there it is on the PlayStation 2". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on November 13, 2007. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  35. ^ Boyce, Ryan (February 12, 2001). "NBA Hoopz (DC)". Maxim. Biglari Holdings. Archived from the original on June 26, 2001. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  36. ^ Dan Elektro (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (DC)" (PDF). GamePro. No. 151. IDG. p. 97. Archived from the original on December 13, 2004. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  37. ^ Dan Elektro (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS)" (PDF). GamePro. No. 151. IDG. p. 97. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  38. ^ Dan Elektro (April 2001). "NBA Hoopz (GBC)". GamePro. No. 151. IDG. p. 59.
  39. ^ Jake The Snake (May 2001). "NBA Hoopz (PS2)" (PDF). GamePro. No. 152. IDG. p. 83. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 25, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
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