![\"NBA](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/nba-2k26-review-ps5-20250908-13.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nNow an annually releasing series, NBA 2K started in 1999 for the Sega Dreamcast. At the time, it was just another drop in a sea of \u201890s basketball games. Now, it\u2019s an institution with constantly updating graphics and mechanics.<\/p>\n
NBA Live<\/p>\n
Around the time that NBA 2K first started, NBA Live was the king of the jungle. Up until 2018, it was another annually releasing series going alongside (and against) the behemoth known as 2K.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s had a storied history as well. It started off as the NBA Playoffs series. The first one, 1989\u2019s Lakers versus Celtics and the NBA Playoffs, featured eight teams who were part of that year\u2019s playoffs. This went on until 1993 when it evolved into NBA Showdown, one of the first games to feature every NBA team. In 1994, Showdown reinvented itself once again into NBA Live and turned into an annual series before its unfortunate cancellation in 2018.<\/p>\n NBA Street<\/p>\n If sports simulators aren\u2019t your thing, NBA Street is an arcade-style series that has ups the fun with trick shots and streetball rules. It features three-on-three hooping with 29 teams and 5 players from each. Whereas NBA 2K and NBA Live helped gamers live out their dreams to become an NBA superstar, NBA Street was one for the gamers who just wanted a fun time.<\/p>\n The series spawned a few sequels since 2001 but eventually met its end in 2007. Now, however, you can continue the legacy in the recently launched NBA the Run, a spiritual successor created by developers of the original NBA Street games.<\/p>\n NBA Jam<\/p>\n \u201cBoomshakalaka! He\u2019s on fire!\u201d<\/p>\n Even if you\u2019ve never played NBA Jam before, you\u2019ve probably heard its most iconic catchphrase. NBA Jam was so influential that it\u2019s considered one of the most important games of the SNES and the arcade cabinet generation.<\/p>\n Besides impressive graphics for its time, it was a spectacle. Because it had no fouling system, you can physically bully people out of your way. You can catch fire if you\u2019re too good at shooting, hence the \u201che\u2019s on fire\u201d line. You can jump to gravity-defying heights to make a dunk. Plus, the game features so many fun Easter eggs, including one that turns you into a literal tank on the court.<\/p>\n Double Dribble<\/p>\n Technically a sequel to Konami\u2019s Super Basketball, 1986\u2019s Double Dribble was a fairly straightforward simulator that attempted to feature realistic gameplay in a very two-dimensional time. For its time, the game was remarkable because it featured highly detailed animations for fancy moves like slam dunks.<\/p>\n However, the game came out before the rise of the NBA\u2019s massive popularity in media. It doesn\u2019t have a license to feature actual teams or players. Then again, haven\u2019t you heard of the Boston Frogs or the New York Eagles?<\/p>\n One on One: Dr. J vs. Larry Bird<\/p>\n Contrasted to the above\u2019s five-versus-five or three-versus-three formats, 1983\u2019s One on One featured, as the title says, a mano-a-mano duel between Julius Erving and Larry Bird. With an isometric half-court layout, either player takes turns dunking or shooting over the other.<\/p>\n While one-versus-one modes are available in today\u2019s games, One on One let players live out their fantasies as two of the biggest basketball stars at the time. It even let you shatter the backboard Though the game isn\u2019t much of a talking point nowadays, it was so popular for its time that it helped establish Electronic Arts as a household name in gaming.<\/p>\n Atari\u2019s Basketball<\/p>\n As the father of modern basketball games, 1978\u2019s Basketball, built for the Atari, was the first game to feature the full-court format so popular today. Like One on One, Basketball features only two players. The game was so rudimentary that the two hoops were represented with two sticks, and the two players were different colored blobs.<\/p>\n However, in 1979, Atari released an updated version with detailed graphics. It was also controlled with a trackball, the first of its kind to do so. Though it didn\u2019t have named superstars or teams, it\u2019s clearly the predecessor of the games we all know and love.<\/p>\n Basketball!<\/p>\n And now, we\u2019ve come to the beginning. Released on 1973, Basketball! is officially the first basketball video game in history. Since it\u2019s on the Magnavox Odyssey, the very first home gaming console, that comes as no surprise.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n