Future Basketball
A no-rules basketball game set in 2031.
Future Basketball is a futuristic basketball video game released by Hewson Consultants for the Amiga and Atari ST in 1990. It was ported to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System by Hudson Soft in 1991 as Bill Laimbeer's Combat Basketball, becoming the first basketball game released for that console. The game stars Bill Laimbeer, a Detroit Pistons player known for the team's aggressive, physical style of play, and is set in 2031 where Laimbeer has become commissioner and eliminated all rules.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- The Evil 3 (Amiga, ST); Hudson Soft (SNES)
- Publisher
- Hewson Consultants (EU); Hudson Soft (NA)
- Genre
- Sports
- Modes
- Single-player; Multiplayer
- Platforms
- Amiga
- Atari ST
- Super NES
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
The game uses an uncommon overhead view of the court. Players can physically check each other without fouls, and destructive items such as bombs appear frequently. A season consists of 14 games with no playoffs. After each season, the top two teams in each league advance to the league above, while the bottom two move down. Ties are broken by beginning season standings. The player starts in the Third Division and must work up to the Super League.
Reception
Future Basketball was compared negatively to Speedball. CU Amiga noted that its scrolling was not as smooth, making focus difficult. Zzap!64 stated the game looks like Speedball but does not play like it, finding ball mechanics and scoring less exciting. Bret Alan Weiss of Allgame gave the game one star out of five, criticizing graphics, sounds, and controls. Game Informer's Jeff Marchiafava viewed it more positively on a list of weird celebrity-based games. Time Extension listed Combat Basketball as one of the worst SNES games.
More in Hudson Soft Games of the 1990s
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