From: rsvanc00@nx17.mik.uky.edu (Randolph S. Vance)
Subject: The NBA JAM FAQ, Version 1.9 (long)
Date: Mon, 24 May 1993 17:53:19 GMT


What a busy, busy week it's been.

I won't say much more, but let the Posting speak for itself.

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                      How to WIN at NBA JAM!
 
                                by
 
                        Randolph S. Vance
 
                                and
 
                       William G. Henderson
 
             E-Mail: RSVANC00@mik.uky.edu (NeXT Mail)
                     WGHEND00@mik.uky.edu (NeXT Mail)
 
                            Version 1.9
                       Revised: May 24, 1993
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction.
 
Are you tough enough to take on all 27 of the NBA teams? If you think you are,
get set for the most intense basketball video game you'll ever play!
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
History.
 
Version 1.0: The original FAQ as posted by Carl Chavez. Informative but
some parts about power-ups were inaccurate.
 
Version 1.1 and 1.2: Corrected versions by Randolph Vance and Greg Henderson.
We updated the information on how to do power-up tricks. These versions
are unpublished and unposted, but if you go to the Kentucky Arcade, you
might find a hard copy we printed of these versions. Some of which were
HIGHLY INACCURATE, especially about the Tank Game.
 
Version 1.3: Posted May 1st, 1993. Corrections on some of the power-up
tricks, especially on how to do the Tank Game and the Fair Shake.
 
Version 1.4: Posted May 4th, 1993. Updates information on "HE'S ON
FIRE!", as well as informing of the new special guest star, Petro.
New sections, the Rumor Mill, and this History.
 
Version 1.5: Posted May 4th, 1993. Overall revision of 1.4.
 
Version 1.6: Posted May 5th, 1993. Confirms code for Defensive + Intercept
powerup at one time.
 
Version 1.7: Posted May 10th, 1993. Another all-around revision, this time
of 1.6, as well as what happens if you win the game by defeating all 27
NBA teams. Also information on how to milk the clock. How you can tell if
the NBA Jam machine you play on is in need of an upgrade, today on ROBERTO!
 
Version 1.8: Posted May 19th, 1993. Three new Special Guest codes, plus
information on abilities of Special Guests. Yet another revision. Man goes
beserk and kidnaps nineteen Game Show Hosts with slice of Lime, film at 11!

Version 1.9: Posted May 24th, 1993. Actually nothing new from last time, but
lots of rumors from between postings.

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Rumor mill.
 
The Rumor mill is where untested or unconfirmed reports of power-up's or
other things go. Stuff in the Rumor mill will be tested by us, to see 
if they do indeed work, or if we can confirm their existance of them by
asking Mark Turmell. Something of note, Mark Turmell denies the existance
of Second Fatality moves in Mortal Kombat, classifying them under Vaporware.
Yes, Mark Turmell reads Usenet. Sometimes.
 
Other rumors have been circulating on different ways to do power-up's.
All the power-ups that are listed here are either given to us by Turmell,
or have been confirmed to work by either Turmell or by us. Consider this
FAQ posting to be the FINAL WORD. Anyone else telling you another way to do
these tricks may be lying just to look big, your mileage may vary.
 
Rumors have been floating around about more power-up combinations and other
powerups, there are ways to get more than one power-up at once, including
a move as yet unconfirmed to get the powerup's for defensive, offensive
and intercept all at once. Soon as we figure this out, we'll let you know.

There has also been a rumor from I believe The Immortal Spam about a possible
bug involving Barkley, and the ability of shooting three after three.
This could, however be chalked up to either luck, or strategy or both.
 
And, on another note, people on Prodigy have decided that they would
flood the Net with false and misleading information about special guest
characters, some of the more memorable red herrings included LEP, Feb 29
and JFK, Nov 22. What a morbid sense of humor these Prodigy folks seem
to have. Well, there were seven codes, if you include the newest
Prodigy Red Herring, FDT, Oct 23.  We tested and/or asked about them
all. The seven most recent Prodigy codes are ALL VAPORWARE. DO NOT TRY
THEM, YOU WILL LOSE YOUR MONEY! As for Noel Margate, hey, we understand,
you got excited just the same as the rest of us did, it isn't your fault.

Changing the subject, expect in a future version a complete guide to
the Power Ratings of all 57 Pro players, as well as the 20 Special Guests,
but don't expect that for at least two to four weeks. Give us some time to
compile all the stats together.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Before you play.
 
NBA JAM is an multi-coin game, so make sure it's worth it for you. Some 
arcades have their machine set at one coin per period, others may have more.
Look to spend a dollar to two per complete game, depending on location.
 
Also, ask your arcade owner about the version of NBA Jam they own. Versions
of NBA Jam that have been released to arcades are 2.0 and above. There
are some minor bugs in Version 2.0 that regard the machine swallowing up
an occasional coin and not giving a credit, and also problems with the
Tank Game killing off players and ending a regular game, along with correcting
a jersey color problem with special guests. Our arcade has two NBA Jam's
that were Version 2.0. Recently, the owner has put in 3.0 update chips that
correct the credit problems, fixes the jersey color of special guests and
prevents games from ending at the Tank Game. Our arcade owner recommends to
everyone with 2.0 release machines that they contact their distributor as
soon as possible and obtain and install 3.0 update chips. The coin swallowing
problem is also another annoying bug in the Williams game Smash TV. If you own
a Smash TV original machine or kit, check with the distributor for possible
update chips. Some assembly required, batteries not included.
 
Here is a simple test to see if your machine is 2.0 or 3.0. Put in enough
for one period of play. Enter the Turmell code, MJT, March 22nd. If Turmell
is in a purple color Lakers uniform, you are on a 2.0 machine. Inform the
owner of this fact, tell them of the necessary upgrade chips  and how obtain
them through the distributor.
 
If Turmell is in the color jersey of the team you select, such as a red 
jersey for the Bulls, you are on a 3.0 machine.
 
If you play in a 2-on-2 complete game, usually four to eight dollars, the
winning two player team gets to stay on for free to face the next two people
or the Computer.
 
It is always best to enter your initials for the record keeping. If you play
in a four player game, and some dumb newbie selects NO for entering initials,
cold-cock him!
 
Enter your initials, followed by your birth month and birth date. This tells
the Computer who you are. If you have never played before, there will be no
record available of your statistics. If you have, the computer will show you
your record and winning percentage, followed by a streak of wins, if any, 
and an update of your last complete game. Only complete games count in
records, partials do not.
 
Pick your team carefully. The 27 teams are made up of two of the best and
brightest of the NBA, although Jordan isn't available for the Bulls.
Each team has their strenghths and weaknesses. i. e. the Sacramento Kings
have a good dunker with Spud Webb, and a good three point shooter with
Tisdale, but they are slow. Golden State has an excellent three point
shooter with Mullin, and a fair dunker. Orlando has a terrific three
shooter (Skiles) and a terriffic dunker (Shaq), but they have worse speed
than Sacramento. In my opinion, the three teams with the best balance are
Charlotte, Chicago, and Atlanta.
 
People have been buzzing about, "Well, where's Michael Jordan?".
The official word from Turmell is that Jordan is NOT in the game. Neither
is Magic Johnson, who is rumored in the machine also. Reason being that
Midway got a blanket deal to carry two people from 27 teams, and that they
were VERY lucky to get Shaq. Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson apparantly are
seperate entities from the NBA Licensing, and so, would be entitled to more
money than it appears Midway had.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Basic Moves
 
TO PASS: Press pass. Press turbo and pass to throw a quicker, safer pass.
 
TO SHOOT: Hold the shoot button down. Shot is more accurate when player
is at the peak of the jump.
 
TO HEAD FAKE: Tap shoot button once. Unfortunatly, your Computer drones
will shoot if you do this while they have the ball.
 
TO DUNK: Hold shoot when running. Hold turbo and shoot for a super dunk.
(More on Super Dunks in Section 2.)
 
TO LAY UP: Hold shoot for a short time when running.
 
TO THROW ELBOWS:
 
  1) Tap turbo twice.
 
  2) Tap shoot repeatedly (head fake seems to include an elbow throw).
 
TO STEAL:
 
  1) Tap steal to knock ball away.
 
  2) Tap steal and turbo to knock OPPONENT down.
 
TO BLOCK: Hold shoot button to jump. Hold turbo and jump to jump higher.
 
TO REBOUND: This is automatic if you're close enough; otherwise press shoot
and point toward the ball.
 
TO ALLEY OOP: Easier to do with two player teams. The player without the ball
moves under the basket and holds shoot (to jump). Meanwhile, the ball handler
presses turbo and pass to throw to the jumping player quickly.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Special Techniques
 
To reject a dunking player, it's best to wait until the dunker has reached
the peak of his jump before you jump to block. For example, if Barkley
starts a cannonball dunk, wait until he's coming down before you press
turbo and jump. Also, make sure you're in front of the player and near
the basket.
 
Another way to reject a dunker is to knock him down (turbo and steal) if
it's a low dunk like an "easy jam".
 
To block a shot, you need to jump at the same time you believe the shooter
will jump. I usually let the shooter shoot while I'm in his face (but not
jumping) and then I'll grab the rebound (or my teammate will). It is
possible to block the buzzer 3-point attempt. Right after the ball is passed
inbounds press turbo and jump and point toward the shooter.
 
To steal, there are three good techniques: 
 
  1) stick close and press steal a lot. This is not my technique, so
  say much about it, but it seems to work well for others.
	
  2) knock 'em down. It's more fun, and can be done continuously
  to computer opponents until they drop the ball.
 
  3) let a player shoot while you're near their basket, and jump
  before it gets there. Hopefully you won't get called for goaltending.
 
To rebound, there are two good techniques:
 
  1) press shoot to jump toward the ball AFTER it has hit the rim or board.
 
  2) knock down opposing players near the ball so you can grab the ball off
  the floor.
 
If you are close enough to the ball your player will jump automatically to
rebound.
 
SHOOTING: Try to have a screen when you're trying to shoot. There seems to be
a pattern with the computer in which you can usually go 3/4 down the court
and have a screen for the 3-point shot if you let your computer teammate
run ahead of you. This is great for players like Mullin...
 
Head fakes work great. Make sure you mix in a few elbow throws though, or
you may be knocked down.
 
If you're doing an easy jam with an opponent nearby, it's best to pass to
your teammate in mid-dunk. He's usually open and you won't have to worry
about getting knocked down.
 
SUPER DUNKS: Several different dunks - YOU MUST BE MOVING TO DUNK!
 
Easy jam: close to basket, hold shoot.
 
"Look out!" (360 dunk): near the second tick on the key, hold shoot.
 
Two-handed jam: from close and above the basket, hold shoot.
 
Tomahawk jam 1: from close and below the basket, hold turbo and shoot.
 
Tomahawk jam 2: from the middle of the key, hold turbo and shoot.
 
Tomahawk jam 3 (windmill): from 3/4 length of key (bottom of circle), hold
turbo and shoot.
 
Cannonball slam (fireball): from top of circle, hold turbo and shoot.
 
Really high 720 slam (also the "Tarzan yell" slam or "helicopter rotor" slam):
from a corner of the key, or from outside the key near the third tick mark
on the key, hold turbo and shoot.
 
Weird slam (don't know what to call it; he puts his knees up and spins 2 or 3
times): from outside the key near 2nd or 3rd tick on the key, hold turbo
and shoot.
 
Spreadeagled slam: From middle of key, hold shoot.
 
Really high behind the back slam (similar to easy jam): from middle of key,
hold shoot.
 
The dunk where the dunker hangs on the rim: near third tick on the key
(but outside the key), hold turbo and shoot.
 
In mid-dunk, if your teammate is open, you can pass the ball back to them by
pressing pass. Then, they can take an easy three!
 
In the fourth quater and in any overtime periods, you can break the backboard
in a spectacular display with any specialty dunks.
 
When time is running out in the period, dunking isn't a good option. If time
runs out in mid-dunk, you made a "bad decision". ;)
 
MILK THE CLOCK: In a one-player or a two person team vs. the Computer, you
can burn seconds off a clock and keep a lead from changing as quick as it can
if you play fast break basketball. If you have a lead of four points or more,
and get the basketball from a basket or goaltend, get the ball, stay at your
end of the court, hold your position, stay for as long as you can. The
Computer will stay in it's position and do nothing until the Shot Clock counts
down below 5, then it will force you to take your move. At 6 seconds, quickly
pass to your teammate if he's open, or if you are, take a shot. Even if you
miss, you get better a better shot at rebounding, then you can get the ball,
pass back to the man in backcourt, and milk the clock again. This trick works
best in the fourth quarter.
 
"HE'S ON FIRE!": When a character makes three consecutive shots in a row,
he is said to be "on fire". After that, all his future shots will stand
a much more improved chance of entering the basket, although I have seen
some miss while on fire. You can really open up a lead when on fire by
launching three after three. You will stay "on fire" until the other team
makes a shot go in their basket.
 
When you're on fire, to stay on fire, work in the back of the court,
goaltend any layups or three-pointers, steal and rebound when possible.
This also works if you're "heating up", i. e. you've made two shots in a
row and need a third to go on fire. Plus, when you're on fire, you have
the advantage of unlimeted turbo power, even if you're the kind of player
that holds down turbo during a game.
 
When someone else in on fire, the best way to get them off fire is to dunk
the basketball.
 
You don't stay on fire forever, you lose it after a period of time. A rather
long time, it seems, usually 30 points, but you do lose it.
 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Secret Codes.
 
All secret codes are done before the Tip-off, when the announcer says,
"Tonight's match up: (Team) versus (Team)" and continued right up until 
the tip-off.
 
BIG HEAD: Hold joystick up and hold down Turbo and Steal at "Tonight's
match up". Gives your player a head three times larger than normal. Some
arcades might have their machine set to have Big Head permanently on, as it
is also an operator-adjustable feature, therefore, doing this on such a
machine will turn Big Head off.
 
POWERUP DEFENSE: Tap Steal or Block eight times when it says "Tonight's
match up". Eight times only. Gives you extra defensive power.
 
POWERUP INTERCEPT: Hold down joystick and hold down all three buttons during
"Tonight's match up". Gives you extra intercept power.
 
POWERUP OFFENSE: Tap Steal or Block 21 times at "Tonight's match up".
21 times only. Gives you extra offensive power. This is a VERY DIFFICULT
power-up to get, so be patient.
 
POWERUP DEFENSE AND INTERCEPT: At "Tonight's match-up", tap turbo six times,
hold down all three buttons, move joystick down, then up, then down again and
hold joystick down. Then lift up on turbo and hold it down again. This code
will give you the Defensive and Intercept power-up, a deadly combination for
one person to have, like Spud Webb.
 
FAIR SHAKE: Tap turbo ten times when it says "Tonight's match up".
Turns off the computer's rampant cheating. This only works in four-player
games, three player games or two player games where they compete against each
other. It will say at the tip off, "All computer assistance turned off"
 
  Why do this? Well, if you have a BIG lead over 20 points versus an opponent,
  the Computer will try to balance out things by making your opponent's
  shots go in better, while making you go ice cold. ("Can't buy a bucket!")
  This happened to me when I played Mullin in a one-player game versus
  Minnesota. Very early in the first quarter, I went on fire and opened
  a 21-5 lead. Then, in the second quarter, I went cold, lost the big lead
  and the Computer kept a balance until the last quarter. I couldn't make
  any shot during the last minute of the game and lost by 5 points. *sigh* :(
 
SHOOTING PERCENTAGE: At "Tonight's match up", spin joystick clockwise and
rapidly tap all three buttons at once until tip-off. Whenever anyone takes
a shot (not a dunk), a small number between 01% and 99% will show below the
credit counter.
 
This is the percent chance your shot has on going in. I have seen some
01% to 05% shots from LONG range go in with nothing but net, and I have also
seen some 99% percent layups miss horribly off the mark, so don't take the
percentage at it's value all the time. It is now known what "Learning Mode 2"
is, so we know it doesn't matter if more than one person does this.
 
On older versions of NBA Jam (2.0 and earlier) the Computer would flash the
message, "Shot % display activated". On versions that are 3.0 and later,
the Computer will say, "Shot % display activated - Learning Mode 2".
The Shot Percentage IS Learning Mode 2.
 
There is a Learning Mode 1 and a Learning Mode 3. Mark Turmell would not
tell us what they are or how to get them.
 
SPECIAL GUEST STARS:
 
We've found twelve Special Guests so far. Mark Turmell says that there
are twenty special guests in the game, besides the 54 regular NBA players.
 
The Special Guests are people who either work for Bally/Midway/Williams
in production of this game, or some of their good friends.
 
In machines that are Version 2.0, the special guests had their own jerseys,
but in 3.0, that has been fixed so that they wear the teams jersey. This
was a rather confusing bug, especially if you picked the Lakers to go against
Two Turmells on Charlotte. Turmell's jersey color was that of the Lakers,
although that isn't his favorite team. He's not saying who is! ;)
 
They can be found by entering their initials and birthdate before picking
teams. Though it may seem that the Special Guests inherit the stats of the
person they substitute for, the Special Guests seem to have their own
advantages and disadvantages over the character they substitute for.
We haven't yet found out the advantages and disadvantages for all the
special guests, those we know, we've listed. We'll put in the next
posting the complete list of advantages and disadvantages.
 
TURMELL: Enter MJT and the birthdate March 22nd. Mark J. Turmell is
the main designer and programmer for NBA JAM. Look for improved three
shooting, but at a slight cost of dunking and defense. We recommend you put
Turmell on in place of Mullin for the Golden State Warriors. 
 
AIR MORRIS: Enter WIL and the birthdate January 1st. On older versions,
you may have to wait for seven seconds before entering January. You can look
for improved dunking ability, but at the cost of three shooting. You can
substitute him for any good dunking player. Try him in place of Shaq.
Also look on the scoreboard during periods for the ad for Air Morris.
The scoreboard will show his face in a side profile, a single shoe and
a jet plane.
 
CARLTON: Enter JMC and the birthdate August 5th. He's kind of small, so we
suggest you put him on in place of Spud Webb.
 
DIVITA: Enter SAL and the birthdate February 1st. Sal Divita did the artwork
for NBA Jam, as well as some graphics work on Mortal Kombat. All around, expect
more speed defensively and offensively from Divita.
 
GOSKIE: Enter TWG and the birthdate December 7th. During the game, he looks
an awful lot like U. K. Basketball player Gimel Martinez, but that might be
just my imagination.
 
HEY: Enter JWH and the birthdate Sept. 20th. This is Jon Hey, another
familiar face on the Design Team screen, the one in the checkered shirt
and glasses, sticking his tongue out to the rest of the world.
 
HOWARD: Enter HOW and the birthdate July 15th. Yes, this is the same Howard
that played basketball for the DePaul Blue Devils, now on the Utah Jazz.
If you play the Jazz with him, put him on in place of Karl Malone.
 
LIPTAK: Enter SL(space) and the birthday June 24th. Shawn Liptak is the one
on the design team screen with a basketball for a brain.
 
NEWCOMER: Enter JRN and the birthday June 18th. On the Select Team screen,
look for him in a yellow T-shirt, glasses, mustace and beard.
 
OURSTER: Enter SNO and the birthdate January 3rd. Turmell didn't know
who I was talking about at first, but when I told him we nicknamed him
"Snowman", because of his initials, he knew INSTANTLY who we were
talking about On the Select Team screen, where you'll see Goskie in place,
he'll bear a strong resemblance to old-time movie comic Oliver Hardy, with
mustache and Derby Hat. He even wears the hat while he's playing the game,
you can see this if you have Big Head set.
 
PETRO: Enter GNP and the birthdate October 8th. George N. Petro is the main
designer of Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
 
RIVETT: Enter RJR and the birthdate January 17th.
 
As of this revision, these are the twelve special guests that are confirmed.

We are changing the policy on discovery of Special Guests.
 
If you know of any more guests, send us E-mail about them ONLY.
DO NOT post new codes, unless you can guarantee their authenticity. This
Prodigy fiasco recently brought a lot of complaints to me. :(

And, more from the desk of Mark Turmell, there IS a female Special Guest!
This is a rumor he has confirmed! Also, note that the Prodigy code
for the female is INCORRECT!!!!! It is NOT, I repeat, NOT FDT, Oct 23rd! 
 
TANK GAME: Players 1 and 2 hold down all three buttons and hold down joystick
at "Tonight's match up".  Player 1 enters tank game, controls tank with 
joystick; left, right, forward, reverse, fires at tanks with any button.
If your tank gets hit too many times, the message, "You are dead!" flashes on
the screen, so be alert. Spectre or Battlezone players should have no
difficulty. Shot tanks make the sound of a backboard breaking.
If Player 1 survives long enough in the Virtual world,  the game will say
"All players powerup". After the Tank Game, the basketball game should start
normally, plus any powerups, i. e. everyone has big head, defensive, 
offensive, intercept power-ups, shot percentage is on in Learning Mode 2.
 
Version 2.0 machines can end the game at this screen, much to the dismay
of other players, especially if everyone has put in for a full game. And
if this happens, the winners don't stay for free, because there weren't
any winners. 2.0 machines can also end the game if the messages, 
"All players powerup!", "You survived!", pop up.
 
NBA Jam machines that have a Version 3.0 update chip installed will no
longer end the game if the screen says, "You are dead!", nor end it if you
survive long enough to get "All players powerup!". On 3.0 machines, there
will be no message, "You survived!". Instead, it will just give you the
message "All players powerup!", then fade out and fade in the tip-off.
 
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4. Winning the game.
 
If you beat all 27 teams, you are in for a treat.
 
Besides the two babes who offer you congratulations.
 
According to Turmell, one who has beaten all 27 teams can then face
off with the computer in new challenges. The next game you play that is
one person and your computer teammate will be versus a team consisting of
two random players, i. e. Barkley and Pippen, Mullin and Webb, Shaq and Ewing
and COUNTLESS other combinations! This can also work if you play your
character twice, both against the computer, or play with a friend who has
also beaten the game. 
 
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5. Special thanks go to:
 
Mark J. Turmell, at Williams/Bally/Midway in Chicago for answering every
question we had about NBA JAM.
 
People keep asking us, "Wow, you know Turmell? What's his number?"
I made a promise to Mr. Turmell not to give out his number to the Net.
I don't think he wants people calling him on the horn all the time, but he
does appreciate the Net, and our work to produce this, and the pats on the
back he's gotten from everyone for the great job he did on this game.
(Yes, he HAS seen this FAQ! :)

Ed Boon, also of Williams/Bally/Midway for correcting us on the Special
Guests and their duties at W/B/M. :)
 
foregone@u.washington.edu (Carl Chavez) for providing us with the bones
of the FAQ, where we corrected some general errors, along with providing 
information on new power-up tricks.
 
jimhsu@athena.mit.edu (Jim Hsu) for helping us with info on turbo and fire.
 
Jon.Taylor@uuserv.cc.utah.edu (Jon Taylor) for giving us five new
Special Guest codes!
 
justin@seas.smu.edu (Justin Anderson) for providing us with the code
for Petro, as well as the confirmed Defensive and Intercept power-up
code combination. 
 
eric@parcplace.com (Eric Ching) for providing Shawn Liptak's code. :)
 
spam@ccs.northeastern.edu (The Immortal Spam / Eric Holma) for providing
Carlton and Newcomer's codes, although I got the Carlton code from some
unknown user at the University of Chicago, whom I'd like to thank too! ;)
 
The Kentucky Arcade, for providing us with two NBA JAM machines, as well as
two Neo-Geo's, two Street Fighter II: Championship Editions, two X-Men,
two Ms. Pac-Man's, two Galaga's and three Mortal Kombat's.
 
Is it my imagination, or is the Kentucky Arcade becoming more and more like
a Noah's Arcade? ;)
 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

---CUT HERE---

You might see another revision in two weeks if the information continues to
taper off like it has.

Till then.

--
Randolph S. Vance
RSVANC00@mik.uky.edu (NeXT Mail)

QUOTE: "I'll watch some TV, it'll help me to RELAX!" -Ren Hoek
