NBA Jam!! iPhone review

The NBA Jam reboot of 2010 has found its way over to iOS devices with EA’s release of the game in early February 2011. All of the game’s trademark dunks, shoves, and turbo running are there, but is our pocket the ideal place for NBA Jam? Is is possible that the game works better on a small touchscreen than on an HDTV with a multi-button controller in your hand? The answer to both of those questions is unequivocally yes.

Graphically, NBA Jam on the iPhone looks just as good as the HD version on the Xbox 360 and PS3. On such a small screen, this is no simple feat and EA deserves to be commended on making the game so pretty on iOS. Both quick play and Classic Campaign modes are available, so whether you’re looking to hop into a game or take on the league’s 30 teams plus a few basketball legends, you’ll have plenty of reason to keep coming back. This game is extremely addictive and completing challenges are a blast.

The controls take a little while to get used to in the iPhone version of NBA Jam. The standard virtual analog stick on the left is used for movement with three buttons on the right to control your player: shoot, pass and turbo (shoot and pass change to jump and steal when on defense). Some swipe maneuvers are required for massive dunks and shoving on defense. It’s not hard to do, but will take a few minutes for you to get the hand of things. Once you do, though, it's a breeze.

Right now, NBA Jam is the game I keep going back to on my iPhone. Whether I’m sitting around or between meetings, I sneak in some time with Big Head Mode enabled to throw down some thunder dunks and break some backboards. Being able to shove people to the ground is a fun addition to the boring task of defense. This game is a steal (excuse the pun) for $4.99 given the amount of time you’ll put in. If you've already played the console reboots, you know how addictive the game is. You’ll definitely want to pick this up. Screw it, if you have an iPhone and are even remotely interested in basketball, you should buy NBA Jam. It’s that amazingly good!