Sports games. I don't get it.

[the7k]

Never really been into sports games, mainly because:
a) I'm not a sports fan
b) I'm not into huge time-sinks

It's ironic that many of my friends mock me for spending a lot of time on Tactical RPGs and RTSs, and then go play their fantasy football for days at a time, maximizing their players stats and whatnot.

Of course, if you can find me someone who doesn't like NBA Jam, I think you've found an automaton. I actually own that game for the SNES, Genesis and Saturn.

[nickfil]

If you liked NBA Jam then you might want to check out the NBA Street series.

just popped in to echo this. NBA street is 3 on 3 and you can unlock some crazy players like Sasquatch and shit. Just enough weird to keep me interested. Like NBA jam, the controls are pretty easy to pick up and play with. Doesn't get bogged down in technical bullshit.

[Luke]

NHL 2002 on the PS2 is probably the best hockey game ever made.

[Metal Militia]

^ Nah Actually NHL 09 for PS3 and 360 is a hockey masterpiece no joke. MLB 09 the Show is awesome, but if you looking for quality for cheap go with MVP Baseball 2005. It has Manny Ramirez on the cover and has been hailed as the greatest baseball game of all time. It has a huge cult following no joke. Another game I loved is NBA Street and NBA Street Vol 2. Very cheap and so much fun both of them. I also enjoyed NFL Blitz.

[Ack]

I thought Blades of Steel on the NES was the greatest hockey game ever made. Oh well, we know Michael Jordan: Chaos in the Windy City is the best basketball game.

If you can't tell, I don't really get sports games either. My interest in them is usually limited to playing ones with Mario in the title. However, there is one football series that I got into for a little while, and that is the Blitz series. A buddy basically described it as a football game made from a wrestling game engine, and after seeing a quarterback get suplexed out of nowhere, I figured it was worth playing just for that.

[Luke]

A few months ago I recorded a 20 year hockey game retrospective covering hockey games from 1982 to 2002. It started with Ice Hockey on the 2600 and ended with NHL 2002 on the PS2 and xbox. It spanned several consoles and over 20+ games. It was pretty much an excuse to have friends over and get their takes on the games as well. Everybody agreed that NHL 97 is better on the Genesis than on the Saturn.
Some that stood out as good games:
Blades of Steel nes
NHL Hockey genesis
NHL 94 genesis
NHL 97 genesis
Rock the Rink ps
NHL 2002 PS2

[lost_within]

Hot Shots Golf
NBA Street series
NFL Blitz series


MANY of days wasted on hot shots.

[jrod1986]

Sports games occupy an interesting niche in gaming--at least as far as the simulation sports games are concerned. You really have to enjoy the sport itself to appreciate the little (and I do mean little) nuances that are made to the games year after year. Usually they are honestly pretty meaningless and superficial. MLB" The Show is great example of a sim sports title that has enough changes (in my mind at least) to warrant picking it up from year to year. And yes, having accurate rosters is a part of the equation.

Arcade sports games on the other hand can be quite timeless (see: Jam, NBA). Unfortunately for me, the "pick-up and play" gameplay is only fun in shallow spurts. But if you're in a group of people, arcade sports games can be great party titles that can be found on the cheap quite easily.

[DaGamingMonkey]

A few months ago I recorded a 20 year hockey game retrospective covering hockey games from 1982 to 2002. It started with Ice Hockey on the 2600 and ended with NHL 2002 on the PS2 and xbox. It spanned several consoles and over 20+ games. It was pretty much an excuse to have friends over and get their takes on the games as well. Everybody agreed that NHL 97 is better on the Genesis than on the Saturn.
Some that stood out as good games:
Blades of Steel nes
NHL Hockey genesis
NHL 94 genesis
NHL 97 genesis
Rock the Rink ps
NHL 2002 PS2

Few comments

Do you have that on youtube? I would like to see it.
A good game that is missing from that list..... Mutant League Hockey

With EA hockey, although nhl 2002 is a great game.... I have to go with 04. Just because of dynasty. It had it's flaws but it really was a breath of fresh air after 03.

^ Nah Actually NHL 09 for PS3 and 360 is a hockey masterpiece no joke. .

I can't agree with that, Although it looks great, and it's very flashy with the skill stick etc, it didn't have the grit and grind that makes hockey the great sport it is. Plus online play? Glitches were out of control.... the great idea that was EASHL was horrid upon release with the 99 overall glitches.

Ea needs to take notes from 2k for franchise mode
2k5-2k7 were some amazing games that I played the hell out of.
Unfortunately 2k has not evolved enough graphically for it to be popular.

But of course NHL10 is looking to be very promising, so maybe they'll shut me up.


OP
Try Mutant League football and hockey, my friends that don't play sports games enjoy playing that.

[ZeroAX]

I loved NBA 2k9. But I traded it in June, because in a few months time NBA 2k10 is coming out and it's going to lose it's value. If you do like me, I guess annual sports updates aren't so bad.


Also when it's sports that there is a lot of competition the games can be quite good.

Like for football with FIFA and PES. FIFA used to dominate then PES came out, made the crowed join it's side, and then FIFA 09 and FIFA 10, from what I've heard have gotten A LOT better since old FIFA games, and many people think that it's better than PES again.


And of course this will lead to Konami trying harder as well.

I wonder when EA, will get tired of having it's ass handed to them by 2K sports, and they'll pick it up with NBA Live.

also when the fuck is one of those games, going to add the Euroleague???