NBA ALL-STAR GLEN RICE TO ENDORSE NBA IN THE ZONE '98

The Charlotte Hornets' #41 to be Part of Konami's Sports Series Team

Buffalo Grove, IL, July 14, 1997 -- Konami of America, Inc., a leading developer of electronic entertainment for the home video game and coin-op markets, announces the signing of Glen Rice, of the National Basketball Association's Charlotte Hornets, to endorse NBA In the Zone '98, Konami's latest title for the Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation. Rice will be featured on all NBA In the Zone '98 packaging. He will also be in all print and television advertisements, as well as promotional tie-ins for both games.

"I'm excited to be a part of NBA In the Zone '98," said Rice. "Konami's NBA In the Zone titles are the best basketball games ever made. The simulations are so realistic you feel like you are on the court playing face-to-face against the league's best players. As a huge video game fan myself, I'm happy and proud to be a member of the Konami Sports Series team."

NBA In the Zone '98 captures the gameplay of the award-winning NBA In the Zone 1 & 2, and takes the most realistic five-on-five basketball action to the next level. The officially licensed game features real NBAplayers and teams, and incredible player realism due to motion capture technology with 3D mapped polygon graphics. NBA In the Zone '98 includes signature moves of players and all the offensive and defensive moves expected from a true simulation, including: behind-the-back dribbling, no-look passing, pivoting, stealing, blocking and many more. Full rosters (12 players per team), full-season play and the ability to trade and substitute players makes NBA In the Zone'98 the most realistic basketball game designed.

"To say that Konami is thrilled to have Glen Rice on board to endorse NBA In the Zone '98 would be putting it mildly," states Ken Dirnberger, president of Konami of America, Inc. "Not only is Glen one of the NBA's premier players, he's a team leader who knows what it takes to achieve greatness. Being the big video game fan he is, we're elated to know that he's part of the Konami Sports Series."

Rice was selected by the Miami Heat in the first round (fourth pick overall) of the 1989 NBA Draft and was traded to the Charlotte Hornets in 1995. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the 1997 NBA All-Star Game after scoring 26 points in 25 minutes and setting a new All-Star Game record for points in one half. Rice was named to the All-NBA Second Team and earned Player of the Month honors for the month of February 1997. He finished the 1996-97 season ranked first in the league in three-point field goal percentage, second in minutes per game and third in scoring.

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Konami of America, Inc. is a leading developer of electronic entertainment properties, specializing in the home video game and coin-operated markets. In addition to the Konami Sports Series, which includes NBA In the Zone 1 &2, MLBPA Bottom Of The 9TH, International Track & Field, The Final Round and Goal Storm, Konami's consumer titles include Castlevania and Contra, among other top sellers. Konami's coin-op legacy includes such hits as Run and Gun 2 and Crypt Killer. Konami of America, Inc. is a subsidiary ofKonami Co., Ltd., a publicly traded company based in Tokyo, Japan.

Source:

Press Release

Konami's bad boy of a basketball game jostles to center court just in time for the NBA stretch run. Intuitive control, full NBA and NBAPA licenses (except for Mr. Jordan), and plenty of GM options promise plenty of action for players eager for hard-core hardwood realism.

No two-dimensional jamfest, this. In the Zone aims for in-your-face authenticity with full five-on-five action and plenty of options, including any or all of nine standard NBA rules. An extensive database faithfully replicates the strengths and witnesses of your favorite NBA players.

You'll need each team's full 12-player roster, especially if the realistic stamina option is turned on. Four-player choices include Exhibition, All-Star, Playoffs and Season, with a smorgasbord of additional options for each. NBA fanatics will be thrilled that Konami has included the official 1997-98 schedules for all 29 teams, while mellower fans will be pleased to have a choice of 28- or 56-game seasons, plus playoffs.

The developers have faithfully implemented the offensive and defensive formations used by each of the NBA' s teams, but unfortunately you can't customize those formations. General manager options allow you to trade players and signing free-agents. With no salary cap and no limits on trading, you can pull off a Nets/Mavericks-style blockbuster.

In the Zone offers 10 camera angles, but since you can't switch views without pausing, only about half are practical. You pass and steal with the A Button and shoot and block with the B Button. The C Buttons handle faking, pivoting and other moves, as well as switching the player you control. You can't reconfigure your controller.

The developers motion-captured more than 300 moves, including enough spectacular dunks to keep you surprised for hours. If you want arcade-like action, you can create players up to 7 feet 11 inches tall and weighing 349 pounds and endow them with superhuman shooting, speed, ball-handling and other capabilities.

Five-on-five play means that the system must control nine players when only one controller is plugged in. AI tends to be sluggish, with players clogging the lane and waiting for something to develop. In short, In the Zone is a better bet in multiplayer mode.

Crowd noise and realistic play-calling juice up that NBA feel. And since the rosters are official as of October ?97, Latrell Sprewell is here. The graphics could be a bit crisper, but in general, this is a fun 3-D b-ball pak. Hardwood hotshots should check it out.

Source:

www.nintendo.com

From downtown!

For the first time ever NBA In the Zone '98 jams it home on the N64. Feel every rim rockin' dunk with the RUMBLE PAK feature as you take your team through a full regular season and into the NBA Finals. * All 29 NBA teams plus 2 NBA All-Star teams * Over 300 NBA players including Shaq and Sir Charles as well as Pippen, Penny, Ewing, Malone and Glen Rice * Play Exhibition, the NBA Playoffs and the 1997-1998 NBA Season Schedule * Full season stat tracking for every player * 300 different motion captured moves * Trade or create a player * Real NBA arena announcer Ray Clay * Rumble Pak compatible

WHEN YOU'RE IN THE ZONE, NO ONE CAN STOP YOU!

Source:

Back of Box - N64 (US)