NBA Jam HD to see the light of day on the PS3 and 360

Breaking news out of EA offices early Tuesday morning, indicate NBA Jam will indeed be making its way to the PS3 and Xbox 360 this fall. Originally thought to be a Wii exclusive, NBA Jam will see the light of day on all consoles, but only in a packaged deal.

Starting on October 5th, buyers of EA’s NBA Elite ’11, will also get a one time use code for a downloadable version of the NBA Jam HD remake. EA has stated Tuesday that this will be the only way to play NBA Jam on the PS3 and 360 this fall. The game will not be available for download on the PS Store or XBLA.

According to the Destructoid report, “NBA Jam on the Wii will still be the only way to get the full experience, since the PS3/360 version will only come with three modes: Play Now, Classic Campaign (the traditional ladder-style tournament), and four-player Online Play (which remains unconfirmed for the Wii version, with only two months to go before launch). This keeps the all-new Remix Tour mode — which includes boss battles against NBA legends such as Magic Johnson and comprises “about 20 hours of gameplay,” according to EA Sports marketing VP Jordan Edelstein — exclusive to the Wii version”.

Many gamers will probably add this to their heated argument against EA and their DLC ways as of late. Knowing that their new NBA Elite would be in tough water against 2K’s NBA 2K11 and the Jordan cover, EA saw this as a way to give Basketball fans a shot at Jam on consoles. The problem is, only by a serious commitment of $59.99 will Jam see the light of day. It seems they have also found a way to keep some type of exclusivity to the Wii as well.

Being a HUGE Basketball and NBA Jam fan, this has pretty much sealed my purchase of NBA Elite ’11 this fall. I have a feeling EA will make a killing on this deal. No matter the quality of Elite, the nostalgic feel of NBA Jam will bring a ton of gamers into their new title when it ships on October 5th (coincidentally the same day NBA Jam drops for the Wii, and 2K11 releases).

No word yet if the NBA Jam HD title will see achievements and trophies added to the 360 and PS3 or not. More to come on this as it develops.