NBA Playgrounds

The courts and locations look outstanding. There's no real impact on gameplay from place to place, which is something that might have added some diversity, but the different lighting and filters help each court look unique.

Playgrounds certainly has its faults. Some of its mechanics are strangely hidden in mystery as I continue to miss layups that no professional should ever miss. But, in terms of off-the-wall two-on-two basketball, it can be a blast.

NBA Playgrounds isn’t as deep as NBA Street or as beautifully simple as NBA Jam, but the gameplay is still well paced and the controls are still tight. It mixes this gameplay with cartoonish qualities and a retro style that fits an arcade basketball game, and earning new packs of random players is always rewarding. That said, I’ve taken some bad beats from the random power-ups system, and the online options are slimmer than I’d like.

This product is not the best sports game and neither the most complete, but it's fantastic if you're looking to have a good time.

NBA Playgrounds scratches an itch I didn’t know I had. Growing up in arcades I spent many a quarter on games like NBA Jam. Outside of the failed attempt by EA a few years back to resurrect the franchise, we really haven’t had a good alternative. Playgrounds fills that void nicely, even with its shortcomings. Anyone wondering if it had to be the shoes would do well to check it out.

NBA Playgrounds comes to fill the gap of the street basketball arcade genre, and it does it well. But its short duration in the single player mode and a bad optimization in the online make it an imperfect game.

Developer Saber Interactive has never made a sports game before, but NBA Playgrounds doesn’t show many signs of being a rookie.

The handful of complaints I have about NBA Playgrounds don't really take away from fun this game offers as a whole. There's definitely good times to be had, the progression system is worthwhile, and online can be incredibly competitive despite the potential for connection issues. NBA Playgrounds is the new king of the cartoon court, even if there isn't much competition anymore.

There are some great building blocks and decent mechanics to be found here though, which gives me hope that a potential sequel could end up being great. As it stands right now however, is that this NBA Playgrounds is merely a decent but unspectacular game with legs that will depend on how long its online multiplayer stays populated.

Fun in short bursts but plagued with little flaws that makes the game less fun than it should have been.

The foundation draws heavily on the classic NBA Jam and tries to deliver a modern rendition of the arcade basketball that started it all. And while Saber added a few interesting elements the mixture is just lukewarm.

NBA Playgrounds aims to bring the best elements of NBA Jam into the modern era of basketball, but falls short in some areas. The core of the high-octane gameplay is there, but it’s not enough to push past all of the game’s shortcomings.

NBA Playgrounds does a solid job of filling the void left by the NBA Street and NBA Jam series. There is a deep roster of players, and the game's cartoonish visuals look great, but the bare-bones online play and frustrating gameplay mechanics sometimes make the game feel more like a chore rather than an enjoyable experience.

NBA Playgrounds has many small issues and problems that create a game that is equal parts fun and also frustrating. It calls back to classic arcade style games and in some ways succeeds in doing so, but it also fails in a handful of ways. The online mode is a no zone if you want to have fun at this point. However, the substantial roster size of NBA stars and gameplay that is entertaining to watch, and at times also fun to play, will make it appealing to those who want a different basketball experience than the usual sim.

NBA Playgrounds rids the sport of all the annoying rules, allowing gamers to enjoy the raw and stripped down version of basketball, albeit with a lot of quirkiness thrown in. Given the lack of stuff to do though, and the price tag, I’d be inclined to say hold off for now.

Saber Interactive has a decent framework here. With more polish (and perhaps a less hideous character art style), an NBA Playgrounds sequel could potentially live up to the NBA Jam legacy. But I can only recommend this particular game to basketball fans with local friends to play against and a tolerance for clunkiness.

NBA Playgrounds doesn’t look impressive, it’s quite repetitive, and there isn’t much content on offer. With the right setup and good enough reflexes, Playgrounds is a cheap and effective substitute for the still-missing NBA Jam series.

Even if Playgrounds' single-player mode lacks the unbridled merriment that makes multiplayer so enjoyable, finally getting the upper hand in a tournament is rewarding and exciting in its own way. But even at its best, Playgrounds doesn't offer enough variety to keep you engaged for long. Playing the same game type over and over, with only levels and opponent names changing, quickly gets old, no matter how good they feel in the moment. Even one additional game type at launch might've made the overall package more enjoyable, but as of right now, it might be best to wait for Saber to patch in some variety.

NBA Playgrounds tries to bring back the classic NBA Jam charm, but fails in doing so due to a boring single player and a very unstable online multiplayer. It's still good fun when playing in local multiplayer, but that's not enough, not at this price.