In The Zone 2 - Konami Sports

Konami recently released this follow up to last years decent effort, In the
Zone.  While the game shares the same name as last year's version, this one
bares little resemblance to last years Run-n-Gun slam fest.  While Defensive
A-I was an after thought at best last year, and substitutions weren't even
possible in last year's game, this year's game is improved all around.

Konami won praises for their efforts last year, and got an early jump on the
competition by being early to market with their sports offerings in the
various categories.  While the rest of the competition has caught up them in
many ways, and passed them in others, Konami's efforts with this "sequel" show
that they haven't given up on the idea of being the best in the sports arena.


How has it changed from last year?

It would be nice to compare this year's version with last year, but
unfortunately, like many of the other folks that bought the first In The Zone,
I traded it in (didn't everyone?  It wasn't like you couldn't find tons of 'em
in the used games bins in the various stores!) when NBA Live '96 (EA Sports)
and NBA Shootout (Sony) were coming out.   It wasn't that last year's version
wasn't fun,  it just wasn't a complete game.  It didn't allow for
substitutions, didn't feature all of the players, didn't have a clue what
defense was -- no matter how difficult you set it for, and just left everyone
wanting more.  Unless you only wanted a running slam dunk fest, the smooth
fluid motion, and interesting graphics just couldn't compensate for the other
features that these competing products brought to the marketplace.

For the rest of this review, please understand that thoughts about last years
version are based on memory that has been known at times to be faulty.  I
apologize in advance if I forget how good -- or bad -- something was last
year, and will do my best to be fair in any case.

Some of the biggest complaints about last years game were the poor defensive
play (it was referred to as a constant Slam Dunk fest) and the lack of any
real simulation features.  This years version has made very marked
improvements in the artificial intelligence (AI), especially in the defensive
area.  While last year the primary method of scoring was the slam dunk, ITZ2
knows defense, and doesn't give up the slam dunks so easily.   This years
version forces you to take outside shots, and plays defense that makes you
work to get inside position.

Simulation and season mode features have been added to the game also, and
provide the challenge of playing towards a championship.  There are also
trades, player creation, substitions, fouls and more.  All areas that were
sorely lacking in last years version have been hit on in one way or another,
and the end result shows that Konami paid attention to the comments that folks
made about last year's game.



It still looks good, doesn't it?

The graphics that were different and interesting last year (texture mapped
polygonal figures) have been changed too.  This years version features more
rounded edges instead of the squares and rectangular edges of last year.  The
arenas look very sharp in this year's version, and feature all of the
appropriate logos, court side signage, and light and shadow effects that
should be there.  I will say that the original NBA Shootout features a little
bit better light and shadow effect on the court, but it doesn't affect game
play, and is merely a nice little bonus in the eye candy area.

Watching the game play for a while, or the demos for instance, do show that
the programmers/producers of ITZ2 have gone all out to reproduce the effects
in the real games graphical artistry.  When a player dunks the ball, you see
the back board bouncing up and down as it does in a real game.  The players in
the game even stand around panting during foul shots, or at the end of shots
that are taken.  You can just see how tired the players are.  Very slick!

The fans in the stands look relatively nice and show depth nicely.  Rather
than the typical splotchy colors, or flat repeated patterns that we've seen so
many times before, the fans look more realistic and actually fade nicely into
the background giving a better illusion of 3-D than most of the current sports
titles have done.


Did they work on the sounds?

Yes, the sounds have been (to my memory) improved this year.  There is fluid
play by play announcement in the game this year. If I guess right, the same
announcer that was in NBA Jam Tournament Edition, is featured in ITZ2.  Even
if it's not the same guy, there is definitely the "He's heating up" and "He's
on fire" call that you hear in the Jam games.

The announcer is timely with his calls though, and pronounces the players
names smoothly.  There's a slight hint of choppiness in the game call as the
team names are announced and the scores are ticked off, but only a hint of it,
and considering the speed of the game play that is going on, it's not bad at
all.

The rest of the sounds are the typical tennis shoes squeaking on the floor,
the bounce of the ball that you'd expect, and clanging of the ball off the
hoop for instance.  Nothing that really sticks out, but nothing glaringly
missing either.


What still needs work?

Well for one the documentation this year is in no way an improvement over last
year.  In fact, it seems that they've actually slipped in this area.  Sadly
though, this seems to have happened to virtually all of the games that have
been released since the jewel boxes were changed to the standard music CD size
case.  The game companies all seem to have taken the size change as an
opportunity to cheapen out on the documentation and game instructions.

In ITZ2 the documentation is lacking in completeness and doesn't even explain
all of the options found in the games option menus.  That is just plain
inexcusable.

One major complaint now that the game features the season and playoff modes is
the lack of statistical tracking over the season that is found in Live for
instance.  As some folks in the newsgroups have already been complaining, it's
apparent that Konami just didn't understand how important such features are to
us US folk.  Hopefully this is something that will be improved in next years
version of the game, but of course that means paying more hard earned money to
Konami to find out later.

One thing that this reviewer found lacking was a way to turn off the announcer
once a game has started.  The announcer isn't annoying, but still, if you want
to turn him off, you have to do it before getting into the game, and can't do
it once the game is going.


So it's not really a slam dunk?

This is a very solid effort, and as stated above, a definite improvement over
the original.  It's still not the perfect game though, and as with most sports
games, has enough room for improvement to leave you wanting to buy next year's
version when it's released.

Best recommendation, rent ITZ2, Live '96 or Live '97, and NBA Shootout from
last year (hopefully a new version will come out soon!).  Compare them
yourself, and pick the one you like best.  All are fine choices, and each has
it's own stand out features.  Buying any one of them would be a good choice,
but knowing the features of them all makes for an educated customer.



Rating: 7/10 


Barry C. Dowell


Vital Statistics

Genre:  Sports/Basketball
Game Format: 1 CD for Sony Playstation
Publisher: Konami
Audience: K-A (Kids to Adults)
Players: 1 or 8 (multi-tap adaptable)
Memory card: 1 block
Street price: $39.95 - $59.95