I should start the review by stating up front that if you're a simulation
freak, and have been living with EA's NBA Live 97 for the past few months
and playing through a season and playoffs, Shootout 97 isn't likely to
satisfy you.  It's still got several of the flaws of the original and some
odd ommissions, and doesn't have the depth of options that Live 97 does,
especially for playing defense.  

If you've got room for more than one basketball game, however, and don't
mind play on the arcadish side with some (mild) sim elements, Shootout 97
is a very good game that is greatly improved from the original.  And if
you hated the ugly, poorly animated skating players and slow, rehashed 16
bit engine of Live 97 (I know I'm in the minority here, but I don't think
I underrate Live 97 as much as its admirers overrate it), then Shootout 97
is especially worth looking at, since it is a good mix of arcade and sim
and is graphically several steps beyond Live and ITZ 2.

I actually have fond memories of the original Shootout, despite its slow,
bug-filled gameplay.  I purchased it not long after I purchased a
Playstation, and remember being excited by the possibilities of a new
system presenting basketball in a different way.  The original Shootout
clearly reflects the work of developers outside the US (some would say
outside the planet), as just about every star guard could bounce the ball
off the floor and do a reverse one-handed dunk in traffic, and players
like Charles Oakley and Bryant Reeves  could do Latrell Sprewell type
flying dunks.  

Plus you had that muffled, nerdy announcer who called every shot
"awesome!"  and "fantastic!", even when the shots were as mundane as could
be,  combined with the best PA in a console game (games against Vancouver
were worth it just to hear Dick Miller of the Golden State Warriors bellow
"BRYANT BIG CO000UNTRY REEEEEVES!!!! after a Reeves dunk).  The courts
were so glossy and hi-res they hurt the eyes.  The whole Shootout package
was beautiful, surreal, and more of a spectacle than a basketball game --
no wonder it sold so well outside the US.

Anyway, the bugs and ommissions in Shootout were plentiful, and Sony
Interactive in the US has cleaned up the game significantly.   Many flaws
have been fixed, and there are improvements:

*  Offensive fouls have been cut down dramatically
*  Ability to steal off an inbounds pass has been cut down dramatically
(though the star players can get away with quite a few)
*  Game speed has increased dramatically
*  More variety in types of dunks (and they all look very good)
*  Icon passing (already well explained by many other reviewers -- press
L2 and symbols corresponding to the PSX controller buttons come up for
different players to pass to)
*  Players can pump fake in Shootout 97.
*  Courts look more accurate than the original (though still lacking in
detail).
*  One PA announcer (rather than two), who is outstanding.
*  Non-licensed star players now look and move more like real-life
counterparts (last year Jordan was white, and Shaq looked like a cross
between Paul Bunyan and the Abominable Snowman)
*  Players overall look less polygonal and move more smoothly (though
they're smaller).
*  Stat-tracking (limited), season and create-a-player options now
available.

Shootout 97 still has several notable flaws, however:

*  Still can't substitute players except during timeouts and between
quarters
*  Very few defensive fouls called, even after you customize the rules
*  Offensive and defensive options are exactly the same as the original
Shootout, which are very limited, especially on defense (full-court press,
half-court press, double team and that's all folks).  Live 97's options
are really missed here.
*  Layup animations are practically nonexistent -- most everything is a
dunk or jumpshot.  Someone correct me if I'm wrong on this.  This hurts: 
I like to see Stockton or Payton break away for the layup, not a jam or
modified jump shot.  ITZ 2 represented layups much more stylishly.
*  Camera angles remain limited and less than optimal.  The default view
is the one I prefer, though the action camera provides the best looking
view of the players.
*  Play clock and general game rhythm are off -- 4 minute quarters lead to
almost regular NBA scores, 12 minute quarters lead to 180-200 point games.
 Related to this, CPU shooting percentages from the perimeter are rather
high.
*  Collision detection is still iffy, and you either run into players and
stop cold or "go through" them.  Also, players still take shots from
behind the backboard and HIT the back of the backboard.  On the whole,
though, collision detection feels _very_ improved from the original
Shootout.
*  Special moves for the very best players (Jordan, Pippen, Hardaway) tend
to work a little too well, especially for Jordan.  Contrary to what others
say, however, they can NOT be repeated ad infinitum with consistent
success, with the exception of Jordan  (an example I'll discuss later). 
And at all-star difficulty, over-reliance on special moves will lead to a
blocked shot, offensive foul, or having the ball stripped.

So after all this, how does it play?  Very well, once you adjust to the
gameplay style, which is faster, smoother, and more passing and perimeter
oriented than either Live 97 or In the Zone 2.  It's a bit aggravating at
first to see the CPU teams pass the ball perfectly and shoot 20 foot
jumpshots and dunk in your face over and over, but once you can play some
defense, it's great fun watching the CPU adjust to your defense:  Sony's
put in some good AI.  You triple team the opponent's best player, a guard
slashes to the hoop, receives the pass, and flicks it behind him to
another cutter.   Post men dish off to one another well on the interior
(and only rarely does Live 97's "hot-potato" type passing occur).   On
offense, if you've got a hot player (especially one doing the special
moves several times), the defense collapses on that player.

All this happens in Live 97 as well, but in Shootout, it's easier to
observe the offense and defense in motion, and control your players
appropriately to react:  the control in this game is very responsive, just
as with Sony's other sports games.  Some of the player movements are a bit
stiff, but the player animations look very good overall.  The icon passing
makes even your limited offensive playbook come alive: you can hit
cutters, throw alley-oops, set up screens for threes, and do the
equivalent of a "one-timer" by hitting the man and having him shoot off
the pass immediately.

Shootout 97 is clearly an arcade game with a decided emphasis on the play
of the stars, just as with ITZ 2; there's less nuance regarding the lesser
players than there is in Live 97.  This is obvious when you play teams
like Vancouver or the Celtics: with the lack of stars, both teams tend to
play similarly, so that games can get a bit boring seeing the same
perimeter shots, same cuts to the post from the big men, same overall
style of play-- Rick Fox = Todd Day = Greg Anthony = Blue Edwards etc etc
etc.  Play Orlando, though, and watch the excitement level go up, as
you'll see Penny Hardaway fly in on a fast break for a windmill, dish off
to Horace Grant for an inside move, or spot up for a three- pointer. 

The fun factor really kicks into overdrive playing as one of the better
NBA teams or one of the All-Star teams:  the superb graphics, atmosphere,
and overall sense of style Sony gave to the game really exhibits itself
when you see several of the best players on the court together.  It's
really satisfying to see Jordan pull off a special move to get past one
defender, fake a jump shot, then hit Grant Hill cutting perfectly to the
basket off a screen.  Playing as an All-Star team usually is fun, but
feels gimmicky in other games, like in Live 97 or ITZ 2, but in SO 97 it
feels like being at a real All-Star weekend.  The close up graphics of
players like Penny, Stockton, and Kemp are amazing, especially when they
shoot free throws.

The special move (hitting the triangle button) deserves some mention,
since some feel it cheapens the game.  I find it enhances the game, since
not only can you have your star player beat defenders for a spectacular
dunk, you can fake them out by starting a special move, drawing multiple
defenders, then hitting the open man.  As several have noted, you do "go
through" players when you start your deke and dribble behind the
back/between the legs, but I don't feel this detracts from the game too
much.  The finishing dunks really look good, and the PA announcer bellows
the names very clearly and enthusiastically (PAAATRIICK EEEEWWWWIIING!!!
WITH A TOMAHAWK JAM)  with no glitching at all.

Can the special moves be abused?  I tried an experiment.  I played with
the Bulls against the Knicks and all I did was tap triangle repeatedly to
have Michael Jordan do a special move for a dunk over and over.  This was
in Veteran skill level, 4 minute quarters.  The results were depressing. 
The Bulls led at halftime and Jordan shot 17 of 18 and had 35  of the
Bulls' 37 points.  In the second half,  I continued with the experiment
but did pass off a few more times.  End result:  Bulls 85, Knicks 77,
Jordan 35 of 44 for 71 points.  I had a sinking feeling about the game.
after this.

BUT, I tried the same thing with several other stars:  Grant Hill,
Anfernee Hardaway, Shaq...none of them were as effective as Mike.  All
would eventually miss dunks or get stripped and the CPU team would
mercilessly barrel down the court to score.  And trying with Jordan again
on All-Star difficulty, forget it:  Mike's special moves got the Bulls
behind by double digits quickly.  So Sony's implementation of the special
move, while capable of being abused, really isn't unbeatable.  It could
use some fine tuning, but I do love using it several times a game.  It's
flashier than ITZ2's counterpart, and certainly more effective than Live
97's dreaded deke button (which is more likely to send a player into
convulsions than have him do anything remotely effective.)

There's much more that could be said, but I feel Shootout 97 is not only
an improved game, but a very good basketball game period.  Because of the
lack of sim options and especially the lack of fouls, it might be a bit
tedious for some to play an entire season.  The lack of defensive options
is perhaps the biggest omission.  But as an arcadish sim (or arcade game
with sim overtones, whatever), it's very entertaining,  and the packaging
(apart from the lack of sim options) is great.  The crowd noise, hi-res
courts, and PA announcer all give this year's Shootout a real feel of
excitement and of being at an NBA basketball game, moreso than other
games...I started a season playing as the Sonics against Utah, a game
which tightened up in the 3rd quarter, and the PA announcer would actually
follow each basket with "that TIES the game!" " Seattle takes back the
lead!"... "Utah goes ahead!" ...great stuff.  And Sony's put in enough
smarts (especially with the icon passing and improved CPU AI) to make the
game challenging, though I look forward to even more progress in this area
next year.

How does it compare to ITZ 2?  Well, the players in SO 97 don't have as
wide a range of individual moves.  For example, many of the stars in ITZ 2
have individual moves appropriate to them, so Pippen's leaners really look
authentic, as do MJ's dunks, Ewing's low post moves, and Gary Payton's
dipsy-doodle layups.  In Shootout, there are very few, if any, moves
specific to particular star players (Jordan does seem more likely to take
off from behind the glass, soar above the rim, and slam it): as a result,
SO 97 can sometimes get monotonous as the jumpshots and dunks can look
samey.  However, the players actually move without the ball in SO 97 and
exhibit some AI, so there's a tradeoff -- personally, I think Shootout 97
has a wide enough variety of moves so that the game stays pretty
enjoyable.



My personal rating of the latest basketball games:

Shootout 97--   87/100  ( a flawed gem, this is my favorite for now)
In the Zone 2 -- 84/100 ( still a great arcade game with lovely signature
moves, though the gameplay faults and graphic blemishes become more
apparent next to SO 97)
Live 97 --       75/100 (still the best sim by far if that's what moves
you, but I'd rather play Coach K for the Genny than suffer through having
to control these traction-less Quake-monster look-alikes)
NCAA Final Four -- 25/100 (a dreadful example of how not to make a
basketball game )


Comments welcome, and please, I respect those who love Live 97, but I've
played it a LOT, and rabid flames (as opposed to thoughtful arguments) in
defense of EA's effort are not going to move me to like it any more at
this point.  Thanks,


Robert
rmirani@aol.com