GENRE
	Sports
	DEVELOPER
	Full Fat
	PUBLISHER
	Destination Software
	NUMBER OF PLAYERS
	1
	CONNECTIVITY
	Yes
	BUY NOW AT

Known more for their comedy routines and eight-thousand game winning streaks than their athleticism, the Harlem Globetrotters hardly seem like a basketball team worthy of their own video game. Though the team has graced Saturday morning cartoons, comic books and even an Academy Award nominated documentary (Harwood), the Clown Princes of the hardwood have been largely ignored by video games, an early NES outing not withstanding. This may indeed be because of their lack of competitive nature, or perhaps just because of the public's disinterest in playing as a basketball team that doesn't have millionaire, celebrity dating players. To those few, though, that have waited years to play as their favorite Globetrotters, Harlem Globetrotters: World Tour could not have come soon enough.

visuals

The gameplay in Globetrotters is ripped straight out of NBA Jam, and the visuals are too. Viewed from a horizontal perspective, the game features tall, lanky characters with likenesses that are too blurry to make out; though through their pixilated faces, one might draw enough of an impressionistic image of the player to differentiate between them.

The biggest king in the graphics are the missing animations, as dunks see players sucked towards the hoop, and throws end up shooting the ball forward in a way that is not only silly looking, but physically impossible. The ball never makes an arc into the hoop, rather, it works its way towards it as if by magnetic force.

The court is plain, featuring none of the luster or color of NBA courts. No ads grace the walls or scoreboards, which takes away from the games personality, though the crowd is impressive looking. Consisting of still photos that jerk just enough to be noticed but not enough to be distracting, the Globetrotting audiences have more personality than any of the other visuals in the game.

The game's menus are bare-bone. Few images accompany the options, which is a shame. Surely, many of the people playing this game won't be familiar with the Globetrotters, so it would have been nice to have a set of stills or some factoids presented here and there.

audio

The audio is oddly one of the stronger parts of the game. The sound effects, such as the ball whizzing through the air and the player's shoes screeching up and down the court sound as if they were created vocally. The inclusion of a human beat-box (or at least a computer program that sounds like one) for sound effects adds a lot of flavor to the game, drawing a physical, human element into a game that is otherwise generic.

gameplay

As previously mentioned, Globetrotters borrows straight from NBA Jam, a fine game ten years ago, but a bit retro today. For those too young to remember the hyperactive, quarter munching Jam, just think about a simplified version of traditional basketball with a lot of glitter and glitz tossed in the mix. Each team has only two active players, and speed is key, doing away with fouls and other nuisances.

Interestingly, considering all their on-court antics, the Globetrotters should have considered incorporating more elements from Jam. Certainly the over-the-top, no rules style of play the Globetrotters define game after game is perfect for the Jam formula (in fact, one wonders how many Globetrotters games the developers of Jam must have watched for reference), so why not toss more hyperboles into the mix?

When the over-the-top Jam elements are taken out, what's left is essentially generic. Stiff looking players engage in rigid, stilted throws and dunks, skipping over animations while working the ball into the hoop. The AI is pretty linear and lacks personality; instead of winning points by working to penetrate your teams defenses and grinding forward with offensive strategies, the opposition is sated just to be there, getting in your way and occasionally pooling together to score a point.

Another problem is the lack of modes -- you've got the World Tour and the no-frills exhibition match, which is like the World Tour without the World and only the Globetrotters. It's true, this is a Globetrotters game, and really, who would want to play as the other chumps? But variety is the spice of life, and often the reason to spend a long amount of time with a video game. Expect to tap this one out in one sitting.

multiplayer

N/A

overall

Harlem Globetrotters World Tour is not likely to stick in the minds of many gamers. When there are so many other basketball titles out their that up the bling-bling factor and offer better gameplay, perhaps the Globetrotters should have invested in a game more suited to their forte, one focused on courtside comedy instead of competition. This is perhaps a difficult formula, but then again, anything has to be better than playing a basketball game crafted from a ten year-old formula.

4.0/10