Developed by Saber Interactive
Released for Xbox One (5/2017)
Also on PC/PS4/Switch
NBA Playgrounds is an arcade-style basketball game, heavily inspired by the classic NBA Jam games. At the time of this writing, the game has been removed from the Microsoft Store and all other outlets that had it for sale. More than likely the reason for the removal of this game is due to the fact that 2K Sports published the sequel and wants everybody to buy the newer title, which from what I've heard places a heavy emphasis on in-game transactions. Though you may be able to spend money for new players in the original game, it's so easy to to unlock them by just simply playing the game that there was no necessity to spend any extra money.
The graphics and overall presentation in NBA Playgrounds looks decent for the most part though there are some issues. The characters sport a cartoony look and often hardly even look like the player they're representing. The backgrounds are well done and there's a decent variety of courts to play on, though the differences between them are purely cosmetic. Sound effects and music are just sort of there, not bad but definitely not very memorable either. The menus are simple enough and easy to use, though it feels like it takes a bit longer to load matches than it should. Overall, despite some of the characters looking a bit goofy, the game looks okay.
There are no achievements involving online play, which is a good thing because I didn't have any luck finding anybody the couple times I tried searching for an opponent. Bear in mind there is already a sequel out when I'm playing this, so I wasn't surprised by this at all. The bulk of your playtime will be spent playing tournament mode, which features a world map with several different courts that will be unlocked as you progress. In each country there are four predetermined match-ups and within each match there is a challenge to complete. The challenges range from making a certain number of three-pointers to getting a certain number of steals or blocks. The challenges ramp up in difficulty as you progress and get pretty tough towards the end. Once all challenges for a region are completed you'll unlock a new basketball that can be selected in exhibition mode.
Gameplay wise, NBA Playgrounds shares a lot in common with the classic NBA Jam titles. The game features a roster that was current at the time of the game's release, which would be the 2016-2017 roster. On the court you have a turbo button that drains stamina. While using the sprint you can perform ridiculous high-flying dunks. On defense, you can swipe, block and shove. Unlike NBA Jam, when you try to swipe or shove your opponent this will drain your stamina meter in an effort to prevent mindlessly spamming the steal button. On offense you have the ability to perform crossover moves which will also consume your stamina bar. When performing a crossover, a player is invulnerable to steals for a limited time so you'll want to time your steal attempts carefully while on defense. The ball handler can also throw their elbows out to get some space when necessary. Taking a page out the NBA 2K series, when you take a shot in NBA Playgrounds you'll have a shot meter where you'll want to stop in the green. The better a players shooting stats are the easier the shot will be to make. You can also call for an alley-oop for your teammate.
On paper everything looks and sounds like it'd be good time, but there are a few issues that hold the game back from greatness. There's no nice way to put it: the defense in NBA Playgrounds sucks. The timing for blocking shots is incredibly picky to the point I pretty much exclusively had to go for steals on defense. Rebounding is also terrible, but the CPU seems to excel at it. Every time I would try to jump to grab a rebound my player would swat the ball away since he was still in block mode. This is quite frustrating and the only way I could ever get rebounds is to stay put on the ground while hoping the ball bounced to me. More often than not the CPU would jump over me and grab the board due to this. These rebounding issues really drag down the defensive side of the game. Even with that being said, the offensive aspect of the game was fun enough that I enjoyed spending some time with this game.
NBA Playgrounds was quite suddenly pulled from the Microsoft Store in October 2018, just a little after a year from its release. I played the game via Game Pass and it was removed from that service at the end of December 2018. NBA Playgrounds is pretty much gone unless you previously purchased it before its removal, which is a shame as it was a shallow but enjoyable title.
Final Verdict: While not quite as good as the classics that inspired it, NBA Playgrounds is a fun little digital title that was pulled from the the Microsoft Store quicker than most games that suffer the same fate.
Related Links:
NBA Playgrounds - GameFAQs
NBA Playgrounds - Microsoft Store
Saber Interactive - Official Site
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