1990 · Arcadia Systems · Basketball · Sports

Magic Johnson's Fast Break

Nintendo exclusive

DRIVE, PASS, SHOOT, SCORE! Magic Johnson's Fast Break is slammin' jammin' basketball action. Play against the computer or an opponent. Up to four players can play simultaneously.

Released: 1 April 1990
Platforms: NES
Genres: Basketball Sports
Developers: Arcadia Systems
Publishers: Tradewest

About

Magic Johnson's Fast Break (alternatively titled Magic Johnson's Basketball) is a side-scrolling basketball sports game developed by Arcadia Systems and published in 1988. The game features the name and likeness of Los Angeles Lakers point guard Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr., and was endorsed by PepsiCo.

In 1990 Tradewest published Software Creations' adaptation of the game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It was one of several celebrity-endorsed sports games published by Tradewest, and was promoted with a television advertisement campaign. An adaptation to the Apple IIGS was cancelled.

Keywords

basketball
celebrity tie-in
in-game advertising
crude renditions of real people

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

The game features two generic basketball teams. Most versions of the game have one- and two-player modes. The NES version is one of a handful of NES software titles to support three- and four-player simultaneous play using either the NES Satellite or NES Four Score console accessories. The multiplayer modes allow competition in single games, but there is no tournament play.