NBA Jam creator Mark Turmell says the long-time conspiracy theory that the game was rigged against the Chicago Bulls is true. Turmell says the game is programmed so that the Bulls will automatically miss any last-second shot attempt against the Detriot Pistons.
"Being from Michigan originally I’m a big Detroit Pistons fan,” Turmell told Ars Technica. “Making this game in Chicago during the height of the Michael Jordan era there was a big rivalry with the Pistons and the Bulls. But the one way I could get back at the Bulls once they got over the hump was to affect their skills against the Pistons in NBA Jam.
“So I put in special code if the Bulls taking the last-second shot against the Pistons they would miss those shots,” he said. “So if you’re ever playing the game, make sure you pick the Pistons over the Bulls.”
NBA Jam first released in 1993 as a basketball arcade game published and developed by Midway. It features gameplay presented as a 2-on-2 basketball game with NBA team's most popular players (excluding Michael Jordan who refused to license his likeness for the game). NBA Jam was met with extraordinary success and spawned numerous follow-up games.
[Via]
