It's all about bouncing balls, isn't it?

Omni-Play Basketball logo

YOU don't need to be seven feet tall and come from Harlem to play basketball. This seems to be the message from SportTime in this release, which aims to combine action with coaching strategy.

The game claims to offer a new system of simulation programs where additional modules can be added to your existing system by "clipping the coupon" and sending it to Uncle Sam (don't forget the zip code). A very interesting ploy, getting people to pay for additional features which should have been included in the original game.

The game setup is under the guise of installing separate modules these are the modules that you have to pay extra for. Admittedly it may have been difficult to fit all those features in memory simultaneously, but it is still a bit much to ask people to pay for the same game more than once, no matter if you can view the court from above, from the side or from inside a cheerleader's T shirt.

SportTime claims that this is a step forward in games technology, as its system of flow control, where instead of controlling your team at all times you merely take over at a crucial moment.

This makes it easier for them to program and harder for you to play, as your star player suddenly halts underneath the basket and stands motionless before disappearing under a tonne of opposing players. Should've been ready, shouldn't you.

Admittedly there are advantages to this system. It is possible to get used to it after a while, and having the computer do half of your moves does mean you can last out a match without the inevitable joystick wounds.

Aside from choosing the initial team, the coach has other important duties to perform. Strategic use of timeouts can swing the game, not only by giving you the chance to make team changes, but also by breaking up your opponents' attack. A keen eye for a bargain, and the willingness to torture your team in the training camp, are also useful.

Do well in the league and you get to travel all over the place for the playoffs. Which way is Wyoming? But the competition is tight for the glory spot at the top. Players' performances also seems to depend on how important the match is - a very realistic feature.

Other features include recruiting your team from the various college leagues, so exploitation is the name of the game, conning poor students to come and play for you and then chucking them out when they get injured beyond repair. That's the way of the world - well at least it is in America.

By far the most entertaining part of the game is the pre-match preview and half-time roundup hosted by those two lovable rogues, Nick and Bob. A well animated and detailed synopsis of the state of the teams, and roughly how badly beaten you will be, follows.

Someone certainly went through hoops to write the manual - 56 pages full of diagrams, every menu item explained in the most exact detail and the worst spelling.

There is an overall polish to the game which is hard not to respect - except, that is, for the game display. The bottom 56 lines are alternately filled with garbage or the top of the referee, waiting to pop up. Obviously on an NTSC screen this doesn't matter, but we are not Airstrip One yet.

Aside from that, everything is graphically good, though some of the action is a little on the small side.
As a simulation, Basketball falls down on playability. There isn't enough range or depth to the action, the experience being more like watching a game being played rather than competing yourself.

As a management exercise there is a little more scope for interest, more to watch for and more feeling of actually being on the bench. My impression is that the game has fallen between two baskets.



Omni-Play Basketball logo

MINDSCAPE £24.99 Joystick or Keyboard

Sports management games have always had a small but dedicated following and fans of the genre will soon be able to try their hand at this basketball sim/management game from US outfit Sport Time.

One or two players take part in the league, which is made up of two conferences (East and West) of two divisions. Your team(s) start at the bottom of their respective divisions and the general idea is to get them to the top.

Loads of options are included to trade players, to send them off to training camps, to recruit new ones and so on. Plus heaps of statistics to keep juggling with. During each game you also get the chance to choose which plays to make, if you so desire.

Everything a basketball sim or management game should have is included, the only shame being the actual matches where the gameplay lets things down somewhat.

Still, regard it as more of a management than an action game and you won't be disappointed.



Omni-Play Basketball logo Fast Break logo

Zwei gänzlich unterschiedliche Basketball-Spiele werben zur Zeit um die Gunst der Amiga-Sportspiel-Fans: Das mehr strategisch angehauchte "Omniplay" von SportTime steht dem actionbetonten "Fast Break" von Accolade gegenüber. Wer bietet mehr fürs Geld?

Beim öffnen der Verpackung fordert Omni-Play neben zwei Disketten immerhin ein 60 Seiten starkes Handbuch samt Anweisung zur Installation auf Festplatte zutage, während Fast Break-Besitzer sich mit einem dürftigen Anleitungsheftchen und nur einer Disk zufrieden geben müßen.

Dafür steht Fast Break auch komplett im Speicher - das komplexere Activision-Game hingegen schreit gerade zu nach einer Hard Disk (oder zumindest einem Zweitlaufwerk), da sonst eine kleine Wechsel-Orgie angesagt ist.

Aber Vorsicht: Wer nicht mindestens 1 MB vorzuweisen hat, muß sowohl auf den Genuß eines Zweitlaufwerks als auch auf eine implantierte Show im Cinemaware-Stil (zwei hübsch animierte Kommentatoren geben dem Spieler Tips in Comic-Manier) verzichten.

Man sieht schon, beide Programme gehen die Thematik auf sehr unterschiedlichem Wege an. Spätestens beim Anblick der Menüs wird dieser Eindruck zur Gewissheit:

Omni-Play bietet eine überreiche Auswahl an einstellbaren Optionen: vom Ein- bzw. Zweispielermodus über die Möglichkei, einzelne Cracks zu kaufen oder zu trainieren, bis zur Wahl der Liga, in der man antreten möchte, läßt sich vieles ein-, ab- oder verstellen. Besonders gelungen: Vor jedem Spiel bietet sich die Möglichkeit, mittels Joystick selbst in das Geschehen einzugreifen, oder sich auf die strategische Komponente zu beschränken und die "Knochenarbeit' dem Rechner zu überlassen. Umgekehrt funktioniert die Angelegenheit natürlich auch - ganz große Faulpelze können sogar den Amiga ganz für sich spielen lassen!

Völlig anders Fast Break: Bis auf die Spielermodi, die Spieldauer (drei bis zwölf Minuten pro Viertel), und mit welchem von drei Athleten man antreten möchte, kann hier fast nicht verändert werden. Es geht also um Action pur. Nur leider hapert es mit der Ausführung: Spärlich animierte Mager-grafik und vor allem der nervtötende Sound (die Nike-Schuhe, für die schon in der Loadingscreen Schleichwerbung gemacht wird, quietschen furchtbar!) verderben den Spaß am Körbe werfen.

Bei Omni-Play hingegen kommt neben dem Football Manager-ähnilichen Listen-Gerangel auch das Gameplay nicht zu kurz. Kleine, aber sehr flüssig animierte Spieler und ein satter Digi-Sound (Stereo auf volle Power drehen!) machen das Game zum reinen Sportspiel-Vergnügen.

Leider ist es manchmal etwas schwierig, den gerade aktiven Spieler im Auge zu behalten, da das Programm durch nichts erkennen läßt, welcher der fünf Jungs das nun im Moment ist.

Hier hätte ein Wechsel der Trikotfarbe oder ein kleiner Pfeil auf den betreffenden Spieler wahre Wunder gewirkt. Auch ist es Schade, daß das Game bislang nur im amerikanischen NTSC-Format erhältlich ist, was bei unseren deutschen PAL-Amigas häßliche Cinemascopestreifen auf den Schirm zaubert.

Zusammenfassend kann man jedoch sagen, daß Omniplay auf jeden Fall das ausgereiftere Basketball-Spiel ist. Das zusätzliche strategische Element mit seinen unzähligen Möglichkeiten fesselt den Spieler für viele Stunden an den Computer.

Das Programmierteam "SportTime" das sich ja bereits mit "Indoor Sports" und "Superstar Icehockey" einen Namen geschaffen hat, hat hier eine richtige Sport-Simulation geschaffen; Zusatzmodule mit weiteren Ligen sollen bald folgen. Fast Break hingegen kann nur Spielern empfohlen werden, die sich nicht lange mit einem Programm auseinandersetzen möchten, sondern auf der Suche nach einem Basketball-Spiel sind, das sie nach fünf Minuten beherrschen, ohne ein dickes Anleitungsbuch wälzen zu müssen.

Die Entscheidung sollte also eigentlich nicht schwer fallen... (mm)



Omni-Play Basketball logo

Mindscape
Price: £19.99

A modern sounding title and a trendy game to match. Gone are the traditional one/two player options followed by a basic game. In fact you don't really get a traditional game at all.

Contained in the packaging of Omni-Play Basketball are two disks. One is nothing more than the game operating system, while the other disk contains the actual game modules.

The first module contains all the details for the SBA league. With this scenario you can choose whether to coach (managerial option) or play ball (arcade option). In the arcade game you still have to take the part of the player nearest the ball, but since there are only five team members per side, confusion is limited.

Considering the complexity of moves in a basketball game, control of the team is quite simple. More important, though, the feel of the game is very slick and fluent. The managerial option is not very complicated, and mainly involves selecting the appropriate options then watching how the match will progress. If you feel like putting yourself totally in charge you can opt for a compromise between management and play. This gives you the best all-round control with the team, often giving good results; but it can cause some foul ups.

The second module, however, is very different from most other sport sims. Called End Play, rather than giving you an aerial or side-view of the court, you see the action from the end of the court. It is an original idea but confusing. Mindscape are promising more add-on modules so who knows what to expect next.

Probably the most striking feature about Omni-Play Basketball is its graphics. They are realistic and contain some fabulous touches. Depending on where you are in relation to the net, the player will lob, short pot, maybe even a slam dunk; the game just seems to change every time you play it.

But it is the intermediate screens that are really impressive. Amongst others, they depict the coach giving the team a talking to, or the NBC reporters with teeth that look like an advertisement for Ultra-Brite. This sort of detail gives the game a slightly more professional appeal, albeit slightly reminiscent of Cinemaware's style.

This is not a game which appeals only to die-hard basketball fans, it is too good for that. Everything about it is of a quality, and it is exceedingly well programmed. The only flaw I found is one common to nearly all serious sports simulations: they just don't produce enough variety. With this game, the expansion modules might help to reduce that but it remains to be seen.