Trust me, the world needs a video game where basketball players wear long pants.
PlayStation 2
Released in 2003 by EA Sports BIG
Grade: B
NBA Street Vol. 2 is shallow but fun, and certainly one the better distant relatives of NBA Jam. It’s overly focused on ridiculous dribble moves that are scored like skateboard tricks in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, but the engine is solid and the game has plenty of style.
Where it falls in the series
There are four main console games in the series from 2001 to 2007:
- NBA Street (PS2, GameCube)
- NBA Street Vol. 2 (PS2, GameCube, Xbox)
- NBA Street V3 (PS2, GameCube, Xbox)
- NBA Street Homecourt (PS3, Xbox 360)
Of the first three, Vol. 2 seems to be the online dork consensus favorite.
Praises and gripes
The 3-on-3 action is fast but not out of control. The fundamental actions, dribbling, passing, shooting, are intuitive, and it’s easy to get started with the many fancy moves you can pull off.
The game is all about moves, and well, I kind of hate it. With any combination of the four shoulder buttons plus the square button, your player is juking and twisting and rolling, yo-yoing the ball around. The more needlessly complicated the move, the more points you get. These points go into a meter, and assuming you also put the ball in the hoop, your meter will pop and you’ll get a “Gamebreaker.” Score a bucket while you have the gamebreaker, and it’s 2 points for you and minus 1 point for the opponent. Pull this off a second time and it’s plus 4, minus 2. Keep in mind we’re playing streetball rules, where it’s 1’s and 2’s, not 2’s and 3’s, so these gamebreaker thingies are pretty valuable.
So, the only sensible strategy is to pour on the razzle dazzle as thick as possible at all times. This seems to be the appeal of the game, but I hate it. Doing move after move feels pointless and unnatural. I just want to get past the defense and score.
Luckily, there are some options, and you can play “Back 2 Basics” mode where there’s no added reward for tossing the ball off someone’s forehead.
The game has a decent amount of variation in general. You can play as legends, teams of NBA all-stars, or regular NBA teams. There are many cool streetball environments, but most are locked to start. The game has three difficulty levels, and they’re drastically different.
The saving grace, for me at least, is that the gameplay has enough basketball-like stuff happening. You should be smart with the ball, work for dunks or open shots, play disciplined defense, protect the basket, and harass your opponent.
The control is very responsive. You can really zip around the court. Even Shaquille O’Neal can break ankles like Allen Iverson in this game. Some of the animations are beautiful and satisfying. When you head fake, side-step, and pull up for a jumper, it feels great. Defense, on the other hand, is a repetitive chore. The steals look exaggerated and are tough to execute. Blocks happen a lot, and you need to constantly camp out near the basket to stop easy slams.
The presentation is drenched in streetball style, and believe me when I tell you that this game seemed “hip” back in 2003. The music, announcer, and trash talk help add to the fun atmosphere.
All that said, this game gets more credit than it deserves due to nostalgia and the lack of fun basketball video games on the market in 2003. It seemed like just the right take on NBA Jam’s more basic brand of arcade basketball. The graphics were top of the line in 2003, and they’re still pleasing today. But the gameplay is seriously reliant on your willingness to mash shoulder buttons for no reason other than to watch your player showboat on every possession.