NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

[Pared]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

It's just another example of how this community doesn't even know what it wants - they just complain to complain.

It's a full featured game at $50. You were getting a throw-in on the PSN/XBL when it shipped with Elite. At that time, everyone complained about having to buy Elite. "Just make it stand-alone, EA." "Add online play EA." "Why do I have to buy Elite EA?"

Now, it's everything the Wii version is PLUS a full-featured online experience including tourneys and the like, at the same price.

So in essence, you're getting MORE than the Wii version at the same price.

Did people bitch this much when NBA Street came out? Because this is essentially the same scenario here. Heck, want a better comparison? NBA Street 2, a sequel to "more of the same" and it was heralded as one of the best in the series.

Add to all that played the Wii version claim it's a blast... and it's another example of why the sports gaming industry has some of the most difficult to please consumers.

[Blzer]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

It's just another example of how this community doesn't even know what it wants - they just complain to complain.

It's a full featured game at $50. You were getting a throw-in on the PSN/XBL when it shipped with Elite. At that time, everyone complained about having to buy Elite. "Just make it stand-alone, EA." "Add online play EA." "Why do I have to buy Elite EA?"

Now, it's everything the Wii version is PLUS a full-featured online experience including tourneys and the like, at the same price.

So in essence, you're getting MORE than the Wii version at the same price.

Did people bitch this much when NBA Street came out? Because this is essentially the same scenario here. Heck, want a better comparison? NBA Street 2, a sequel to "more of the same" and it was heralded as one of the best in the series.

Add to all that played the Wii version claim it's a blast... and it's another example of why the sports gaming industry has some of the most difficult to please consumers.

Well, I'm not everyone, so I'll give my input (which I partially did a few posts back):

I don't want Elite, I want the Jam game packaged with it (downloadable on PSN). I'm not sure if I care about online play (which I didn't beg for), but all I want is what the SNES version had. I don't have an SNES anymore, so I'd like to have that again. If it's reinvented like the TMNT game that's all good and dandy, but I have other basketball games that I'd rather shell the cash to play the full experience.

I never knew the Wii version was $50. If I heard that it was, I would have said that it was absurd. Now that I hear the PS3 version is a fully-featured disc game and is $50, I don't want it. Plain and simple. I didn't make any wishlists with this game so I'm not in the "everybody" crowd.

I didn't buy NBA Street either, but The Bigs was overpriced as well IMO. I just think these arcade games should be pretty bare-boned and priced as such (and preferably downloadable only so they can justify the price points instead of paying so much for discs and cases, etc.).

If Elite was going to be $60 included with NBA Jam (albeit a limited featured version), I don't see why we can't get that version for its "value" as well. That would have been perfect, for most people who see the game as it is... a revitalized SNES game (with more features). TMNT is a fully-featured game, hell so is Fat Princess, but they're set at $15 each (or less, I can't remember). I just see NBA Jam fitting in with them. I think most people here do.

[The GIGGAS]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

I don't want Elite, I want the Jam game packaged with it (downloadable on PSN).

So you were willing to pay more for just Jam. But now that it's got more features, you're not willing to splash the dough?

I'm not sure if I care about online play (which I didn't beg for), but all I want is what the SNES version had. I don't have an SNES anymore, so I'd like to have that again. If it's reinvented like the TMNT game that's all good and dandy, but I have other basketball games that I'd rather shell the cash to play the full experience.

The Wii version is an IGN Editor's Choice, with quotes such as:

"The Wii version of NBA Jam is, essentially, a direct revisit to the classic old-school Midway game, but presented with fresh new-school tricks to jazz up the energy and bring the franchise into the current generation."

"But it's the gameplay where EA Sports truly nailed it. Past NBA Jam games have tried to advance the design, but the EA Sports' NBA Jam team clearly wanted to reign its design back to the franchise's basics."

I never knew the Wii version was $50. If I heard that it was, I would have said that it was absurd. Now that I hear the PS3 version is a fully-featured disc game and is $50, I don't want it. Plain and simple. I didn't make any wishlists with this game so I'm not in the "everybody" crowd.

I don't see why you wouldn't want it. I just don't. "Hey guys, we added more features to the game, but it has to come out by itself because the other game is ****." To which OS throws a hissy fit, and decides to **** all over NBA Jam even though it looks like a fantastic game.

I didn't buy NBA Street either, but The Bigs was overpriced as well IMO. I just think these arcade games should be pretty bare-boned and priced as such (and preferably downloadable only so they can justify the price points instead of paying so much for discs and cases, etc.).

Why, dear God, are you asking for games to be bare-boned? I... I don't get this at all! So NBA Jam should only be straight up 2 vs 2 without any modes whatsoever? Why do we even need HD?

If Elite was going to be $60 included with NBA Jam (albeit a limited featured version), I don't see why we can't get that version for its "value" as well. That would have been perfect, for most people who see the game as it is... a revitalized SNES game (with more features).

I'm almost completely sure that the NBA Jam for SNES, along with every NBA Jam(+ Hangtime, Showtime, whatever) has been more than 50 dollars.

[Pared]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

NBA Jam for the SNES was $60. Then, the minimal upgrade, T.E., was also $60.

I know, b/c I bought both on release day.

[DirtyJerz32]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

Good points Pared and Giggas. That's why I changed my mind. I think initially I was up in arm because we were getting it free. It wasn't until I truly thought about it after the shock wore off that I was actually saving money and not having to worry about have a game that I didn't want in the first place.

I personally think NBA Jam is going to be a great game for me and some others because it's going to do what it is setting out to do. Be a good fun arcade game that you can play with your boys or the cpu.

I can see some serious 2 vs 2, NBA Jam tourneys going on between some OSers. I remember how much fun it was to play 4 players, 2 vs 2 at my house. Now, I get to do that all over again from my couch and play naked if I want. :wink: Sorry I had to throw that out there.

I think it will be a welcome addition to my already packed gaming rotation.

[Blzer]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

So you were willing to pay more for just Jam. But now that it's got more features, you're not willing to splash the dough?

I'll read the rest of your post later, but no. I was not going to buy Elite just for NBA Jam (I never was going to buy Elite), however I was hoping for them to release the same version (that is packaged with Elite) independently. If they were to just release that for $50, that would allude to Elite only being worth a $10 value, which it very well may be.

[Blzer]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

I don't see why you wouldn't want it. I just don't. "Hey guys, we added more features to the game, but it has to come out by itself because the other game is ****." To which OS throws a hissy fit, and decides to **** all over NBA Jam even though it looks like a fantastic game.

Why, dear God, are you asking for games to be bare-boned? I... I don't get this at all! So NBA Jam should only be straight up 2 vs 2 without any modes whatsoever? Why do we even need HD?

Because I only want to play the game for the two-on-two experience. I don't know what the modes are in this game, but I won't be interested in a "franchise", or an "online play" (well I might be) or anything like that. Do I want the updated graphics? Hell yes. But the functionality of the game would not ensue me past what I originally played in the SNES version (and Jam TE).

Let me put it this way. Say there's a new line of TV's that are coming out. Obviously they are better than the old TV's, right? They have better resolution, are thinner, 240 Hz, whatever you want... the works. But let's say that they don't just have that updated stuff that you're looking for. Let's say that it also is 3D ready even though you aren't looking for a 3D experience. Let's say it has that Internet technology (I haven't researched that stuff yet) but you already have a computer or PS3 to use that on. Let's say it has much improved sound, but you already have a home theater system that takes care of that. Hell, let's say that now batteries are included for the remote but you already have batteries. My point is, they are giving you features that you either don't care for or are useless to your situation, yet if you want the upgrade you must pay for everything else that is provided with it. There's no in-between, no middle ground... actually, the only way that you can get the upgraded television without those unwanted perks is if you buy a low-jack home theater system bundle along with it, but the company decided that the bundle is not up to snuff and they're delaying it for next year. And if I wanted a TV with all of those cool perks, there are better ones out there I would rather invest in anyway, even if it's at a 20% price increase.

I hope that analogy serves well for my situation. Me playing NBA Jam means me playing what I used to play in the past, that's it. I'm not going to shell out $50 for that experience.

I'm almost completely sure that the NBA Jam for SNES, along with every NBA Jam(+ Hangtime, Showtime, whatever) has been more than 50 dollars.

I don't remember how much they were, but I do remember that the year was also 1993. This is over 15 years later, and you believe that I shouldn't account for the game's outdated appeal? It's not like Madden is the same game from the 1990s with updated graphics and online play.

Okay, bad example... but I hope you get my point.

[Blzer]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

Oh, and I should probably note that I think $60 is too much for a video game anyway (not that this is $60, but my point should be taken the same). In fact, this year's two MLB games I have yet to purchase a PS3 game on disc for its actual retail price (and I regret paying full for them as I intended on buying early and profiting).

Let's go through the list:

- Grand Theft Auto IV: $50
- Skate: $40
- SOCOM: Confrontation: $40*
- Rock Band 2 Special Edition: $110 (in December 2008, this would be considered damn cheap)
- Little Big Planet: $0 (Christmas present)
- ModNation Racers: $27*
- Skate 3: $27*
- MLB 09 The Show: $60**
- MLB 10 The Show: $60
- MLB 2K10: $60
- Blitz The League II: $10
- Uncharted 2: $40*
- Modern Warfare 2: $60**
- Backbreaker: $0 (birthday present)

* These were purchased during the Toys R Us Buy 2 Get 1 Free deal where my friends bought a game so I paid 2/3 the price of my games. While SOCOM game is $40 on its own, there's a bundle which came with the headset for a $60 value that I purchased (the headset is normally $50).

** I bought these at a place that broke the street date and sold it tax-free. I also bought it for other people, who paid roughly $70 average to me for getting it to them early and for the gas I paid for it. In the end, I profited enough where I could say I only paid about $30 per game.


When you see some of the prices on there, think of what their original prices were and how I went around the fact. I either waited for regular sales, bundles, bought them used, Black Friday, birthdays, or whatever else. As you can see, I'm not a fan of the way games are priced. Even through PSN my friend and I split the costs and share games together, but most of them are reasonably priced anyway.

Just know that I'm not the only one who can't justify paying $50 for NBA Jam, though my reasons may be different from theirs.

[DickDalewood]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

It's just another example of how this community doesn't even know what it wants - they just complain to complain.

It's a full featured game at $50. You were getting a throw-in on the PSN/XBL when it shipped with Elite. At that time, everyone complained about having to buy Elite. "Just make it stand-alone, EA." "Add online play EA." "Why do I have to buy Elite EA?"

Now, it's everything the Wii version is PLUS a full-featured online experience including tourneys and the like, at the same price.

So in essence, you're getting MORE than the Wii version at the same price.

Did people bitch this much when NBA Street came out? Because this is essentially the same scenario here. Heck, want a better comparison? NBA Street 2, a sequel to "more of the same" and it was heralded as one of the best in the series.

Add to all that played the Wii version claim it's a blast... and it's another example of why the sports gaming industry has some of the most difficult to please consumers.

Exactly. This game literally has as many features, if not more, than many of the $60 games we buy today, and we are getting it for $10 less.

And honestly, it's consumers as a whole, it's mainly anonymous internet board "gamer" who uses these forums and others as a place to bitch and moan about every little thing he/she doesn't agree with. No matter what, most of the members on this site are NEVER happy, NEVER enjoy these titles, and ALWAYS feel like they are being ripped off.

I'm a supervisor at Best Buy, and I deal with the everyday/casual gamer on an hourly basis, and believe me, this site is NOT a representative of the whole. If it was, I'd give up gaming altogether and find a different hobby, as there is no WAY I could deal with being grouped into a majority crowd full of whiners and tantrum-throwing babies.

Thank God for the real world.

[NC State-31 UNC-27]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

nobody cared about it being $50 on the Wii because nobody has a Wii.

there are two sides here.

a. people who planned on having it for FREE with Elite and now have to pay $50 for it (maybe they don't care about the extra features, just want to play the CPU)...reasonably upset I would say.
b. people who still think it's good value and don't mind paying for it because it has more features than they expected.

neither side is wrong.

but it does really irk me that a mod is in here being blatantly ignorant and refusing to see the view of the other side and taking shots at the "community"

[The GIGGAS]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

Let me put it this way. Say there's a new line of TV's that are coming out. Obviously they are better than the old TV's, right? They have better resolution, are thinner, 240 Hz, whatever you want... the works. But let's say that they don't just have that updated stuff that you're looking for. Let's say that it also is 3D ready even though you aren't looking for a 3D experience. Let's say it has that Internet technology (I haven't researched that stuff yet) but you already have a computer or PS3 to use that on. Let's say it has much improved sound, but you already have a home theater system that takes care of that. Hell, let's say that now batteries are included for the remote but you already have batteries. My point is, they are giving you features that you either don't care for or are useless to your situation, yet if you want the upgrade you must pay for everything else that is provided with it. There's no in-between, no middle ground... actually, the only way that you can get the upgraded television without those unwanted perks is if you buy a low-jack home theater system bundle along with it, but the company decided that the bundle is not up to snuff and they're delaying it for next year. And if I wanted a TV with all of those cool perks, there are better ones out there I would rather invest in anyway, even if it's at a 20% price increase.

I hope that analogy serves well for my situation. Me playing NBA Jam means me playing what I used to play in the past, that's it. I'm not going to shell out $50 for that experience.

Ok, wait wait, pause pause. We're comparing a 50 dollar video game to a thousand dollar plus television. Fifty dollars to over one thousand. Theoretically, if the cost of these two things were similar, I'd give you this. But for 50 dollars, you can buy NBA Jam which will probably give most nostalgic gamers over 20 hours of game play (including the Remix mode and the online mode) which is $2.50 for every hour. I understand that for some people, a 50 dollar purchase isn't an impulse... but to compare it with a television is just bizarre to me.

I don't remember how much they were, but I do remember that the year was also 1993. This is over 15 years later, and you believe that I shouldn't account for the game's outdated appeal? It's not like Madden is the same game from the 1990s with updated graphics and online play.

Okay, bad example... but I hope you get my point.

Very bad example. NBA Jam doesn't have a yearly iteration and is based on nostalgic arcade action (what you want), which by the IGN review, does well. Madden is yearly and is based on simulation, which by OS' decree, could do a lot better.

You want to play the game, but you say it's outdated. They give you more modes to make the game more modern, but then you say you don't want them, and you won't pay for them.

I also don't see how 50 dollars is too much for a video game experience (depending on hours given). I'm going to compare it with a movie and a ballgame.

Movie (in theatre): 2 hours for 15 bucks
Video Game: 20 hours for 50 bucks (we're using NBA Jam in this case)
MLB Game: 69 dollars for 4 hours (regular season, middle of the season, middle of the week, Redbird club)

If we were to compare the three experiences with dollars per hour:

Movie: $7.50 per hour
Video Game: $2.50 per hour
MLB Game: $17.25 per hour

Plus, you can also play that video game whenever you like, for as long as you like. In the theatre, you see that one movie at a set time. That MLB game only happens once.

I perhaps overestimated the length of the game. But if the length is anywhere over 6 hours 40 minutes in your time with NBA Jam, it has given you a better value than the other options, and an ability to interact with not only the game, but other people.

[Blzer]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

I wouldn't say that the cost for everything is relative. Sometimes money just weighs in differently depending on what it is. I'm not suddenly saying that I'll only pay a dime for a burger because it only takes a few minutes to eat. So I wouldn't think of it that way.

And I don't want those to be comparisons (the game and the television set), I just wanted you to understand what kind of mindset that I had but in a different light. Remember, I'm the guy who said I would stop buying McDonald's double cheeseburgers because they increased the price not only be 20 cents, but also by 20%. I'm all about percentages and the value that I get out of them, and less about how much I'm actually spending. Obviously if I'm out to get a television, I'm already looking in the hundreds/thousands anyway so that point is moot.

I don't buy many games. As you can see, I've only purchased 12 in the last 2.5 years (and I received two as gifts), and none of them have been basketball games. I'm a pretty big basketball fan, but I just haven't been able to justify paying $60 for one yet. Heck, I haven't even been searching the bargain bin.

Oh, and I'm also the kind of guy who says if I can't get the $1/hr ratio out of my games, it might only be worth a rental or "borrow from a friend," and not a purchase. I just see this game as very worthy at a $20 price tag if it was stripped down in features. Hell, even if it wasn't stripped down in features. I've mentioned other games on here which are fully featured and are downloadable only games at $15 price tags, and I have no problem buying them. I just see NBA Jam to fit that model... or at least the version that was packaged into Elite. As you can see from this thread, I think many other people feel the same.

[The GIGGAS]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

I just see this game as very worthy at a $20 price tag if it was stripped down in features. Hell, even if it wasn't stripped down in features.

A) It's not stripped in features (which now suddenly is a bad thing?).
B) So you want it to be five dollars more expensive than NBA Unrivaled.

I just see NBA Jam to fit that model... or at least the version that was packaged into Elite.

I really don't get this. You said yourself earlier you were going to get Elite mainly for the feature-stripped Jam, which would be 63 dollars. Elite got shelved, Jam gained features and lost 10 dollars, and now it's a no buy?

I honestly think if you are going to play the game as much as you say you want to, you'll get close enough to that $1 per hour thing. But neither of us are going to budge on our viewpoint. Go ahead, wait for a price drop, or rent it. Make that vote with your wallet. I'm sure there will be plenty of other non-hardcore forum users (which DickDalewood referenced) that pick this game up because it will be fun.

EDIT: I do believe in full disclosure, so here goes. I am about to preorder the game on Amazon, on which I have 20 dollars worth of pre-order credits for buying Lucha Libre AAA (which was a giant waste of my sixty dollars) and WWE SDvR. I do not see this as the correct value for the game. I see it as an amazing deal I cannot pass up.

[Blzer]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

A) It's not stripped in features (which now suddenly is a bad thing?).
B) So you want it to be five dollars more expensive than NBA Unrivaled.

A) I just don't want to have to pay more. I'm not going to utilize the new modes, so why should I have to pay for them? That's why I made the TV example.

B) Gee, when you put it that way I see what you mean. Unrivaled is awful. But since when have games been priced at released based on their quality? Look at your Madden's and MLB 2K's as of late.

I really don't get this. You said yourself earlier you were going to get Elite mainly for the feature-stripped Jam, which would be 63 dollars. Elite got shelved, Jam gained features and lost 10 dollars, and now it's a no buy?

I never said I was going to get Elite. I must have been misunderstood in my post earlier. Elite was never, and probably will never, be a part of my purchase plan (if it stays on its current route).

I honestly think if you are going to play the game as much as you say you want to, you'll get close enough to that $1 per hour thing. But neither of us are going to budge on our viewpoint. Go ahead, wait for a price drop, or rent it. Make that vote with your wallet. I'm sure there will be plenty of other non-hardcore forum users (which DickDalewood referenced) that pick this game up because it will be fun.

EDIT: I do believe in full disclosure, so here goes. I am about to preorder the game on Amazon, on which I have 20 dollars worth of pre-order credits for buying Lucha Libre AAA (which was a giant waste of my sixty dollars) and WWE SDvR. I do not see this as the correct value for the game. I see it as an amazing deal I cannot pass up.

Good for you! I really do mean that. I would love to own this game. I just don't want to pay $50 for it. I'm not going to play it that much and I'm not going to delve into the newly attached modes either. You're right that I can wait for a price drop, but at the same time I still do feel like this would have been a very successful DLC game.

I don't really think we're on different wavelengths (except how you thought I wanted to buy Elite... I'll look into that post), I just think we perceive how we spend our money differently as well as how we're going to get that bang for our buck most effectively.

I think instead of television sets, a fairer example would be how many Blu-ray movies are now released with a DVD version and a digital copy of the movie. I can see how some people can give that use (maybe they have a laptop that can't play Blu-rays, etc.), but I just see it as me paying $5 extra for no reason other than to have two extra discs I will give no use for.



EDIT: Oooh, I think I see where you thought I wanted Elite. Was it here?

I don't want Elite, I want the Jam game packaged with it (downloadable on PSN). I'm not sure if I care about online play (which I didn't beg for), but all I want is what the SNES version had. I don't have an SNES anymore, so I'd like to have that again. If it's reinvented like the TMNT game that's all good and dandy, but I have other basketball games that I'd rather shell the cash to play the full experience.

I'll rewrite that:

I do not want to buy NBA Elite, the demo was awful. It's not like I can buy it anyway since it has been delayed, but that stripped version of NBA Jam packaged with NBA Elite seems pretty interesting. If that stripped version were released in the online store for $20 or so, that would be a great investment! I would like to see that version of the game as an option, not just the fully-featured $50 version. That way I can play as I intended to, and pay just for that much as well. I'm sure those modes are great, but that's not what I want to invest into NBA Jam. For around $50, I might as well go for NBA 2K11 when I want more modes. I just want NBA Jam for the awesome two-on-two action that the SNES version had, and in this day and age I'd say that $20 is a good maximum price point for that experience.

I hope that makes sense.

[The GIGGAS]

Re: NBA Jam Release Date, 11/17 - 49.99 - Title Update in December (360, PS3)

You're right about the Elite thing I kept referencing. I think I misunderstood this line:

I don't want Elite, I want the Jam game packaged with it (downloadable on PSN).

And I completely ignored one of your posts that said:

I was not going to buy Elite just for NBA Jam (I never was going to buy Elite), however I was hoping for them to release the same version (that is packaged with Elite) independently.

I apologize, Blzer. I misrepresented your viewpoint. I kind of got caught up in my fervor, heh.