Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video? - Operation Sports Forums

Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video?

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  • RaychelSnr
    Executive Editor
    • Jan 2007
    • 4845

    #1

    Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video?

    <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qnOJ8GnheXc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

    Almost twenty years ago, I was introduced to the sport of hockey after my father received a copy of NHL 98 as a gift. We installed it on our PC and were presented with the classic EA SPORTS slogan as the game booted up.

    Suddenly, the opening video kicked into gear. As a low-pitched voice-over engulfed the speakers, questioning whether I was “afraid of the masked man”, the sport of hockey launched into my life with a two-minute long compilation of some of the preceding years' NHL season highlights. The heavy soundtrack and skillfully edited video imprinted itself on my mind instantly. A similar thing happened with numerous EA SPORTS titles from that time period. Since then, I've had a particular appreciation for these introductory packages.

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  • NC12
    Rookie
    • Dec 2014
    • 79

    #2
    Talk about nostalgia

    Comment

    • crandolph
      Rookie
      • Jul 2010
      • 157

      #3
      Totally agree. Some of the best were the wrestling games. Wrestlemania 2000 was a great one (no pun intended). Also, what happened to awesome sports game "endings" for when you win the championship and stuff. I believe that NHL 07(??) had an outstanding one.

      Comment

      • bcruise
        Hall Of Fame
        • Mar 2004
        • 23274

        #4
        Re: Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video?

        My favorite EA intro:

        <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s6aqV0y4eWc?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

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        • w11slim
          Rookie
          • Jul 2008
          • 10

          #5
          I loved the Live intros back in the day. Intros got you hype to play.

          Comment

          • baconbits11
            MVP
            • Oct 2014
            • 2582

            #6
            Re: Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video?

            The Triple Play Baseball ones were really good too!



            Nowadays everyone has too short of an attention span, it's button through everything. If sports game makers were still doing those, no one would see it.
            Last edited by baconbits11; 03-14-2016, 03:50 PM.

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            • Orlandosimgamer35
              Banned
              • Aug 2015
              • 29

              #7
              NBA 2k5!!!! I remember the intro was straight fire!

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              • King of Kings
                Rookie
                • Mar 2010
                • 385

                #8
                I loved those intros. I always pretended they were the opening sequence for the "broadcast" of the game I was about to play for my imaginary sports world.

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                • garyjr33
                  Pro
                  • Dec 2011
                  • 517

                  #9
                  I personally loved the NHL 99 intro and NHL 2000 intro. Also, loved the MLB: The Show 12 intro.
                  NHL: Rangers
                  MLB: Yankees
                  NFL: Giants
                  NCAAF: Illinois Fighting Illini, Lafayette
                  NCCAB: Illinois Fighting Illini, Lafayette

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                  • LAKingsGeek
                    Rookie
                    • Apr 2012
                    • 5

                    #10
                    NHL 98 is hands down the best sports video game intro ever. I still get chills watching it. I'm pretty that's why they are all but extinct these days. After a few years of trying to top NHL 98 they just gave up and said "why bother?" ;-)

                    Comment

                    • spacefunk
                      PGH for GTA VI
                      • Feb 2003
                      • 1524

                      #11
                      I honestly don't remember any specific sports or wrestling game intros. No big loss.
                      The New England Patriots cheated to win four Super Bowls.

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                      • Bolt957
                        Pro
                        • May 2010
                        • 689

                        #12
                        I'll never forget the intro for the very first NFL 2K on Dreamcast.
                        PS5 PSN: MellowTheMyth | Xbox Series Gamertag: MelloTheMyth

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                        • Hooe
                          Hall Of Fame
                          • Aug 2002
                          • 21554

                          #13
                          Re: Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video?

                          I think NBA 2K10 rendered FMV intro videos obsolete with the Michael Jordan playable intro, which was jaw-dropping at the time.

                          The playable intro gets players into the game faster, and when executed well (like the NBA 2K10 intro was, it hit pretty much every note) it creates more excitement about a game than a simple FMV. An opening video is cool the first couple times, but eventually the user will just impatiently button through it.

                          In some cases it also provides a first opportunity to teach new players the game mechanics they will need to succeed later. Recent Madden NFL have used the playable intro as a tutorial of sorts.

                          I don't think we'll ever see the intro FMV come back, to be honest. The playable intro is just a better feature to achieve the same purpose, I think.

                          Comment

                          • Turbojugend
                            MVP
                            • Sep 2013
                            • 2242

                            #14
                            Re: Whatever Happened to the Sports Game Intro Video?

                            Originally posted by crandolph
                            Totally agree. Some of the best were the wrestling games. Wrestlemania 2000 was a great one (no pun intended).
                            Yes! The AKI wrestling games were great, but even if the game itself was sub-par (WCW Nitro/Thunder), a good rasslin' video intro usually got me hyped to play. And who can forget Sting driving the big rig at Hogan in the Revenge intro? Classic stuff!!!
                            www.heyimbill.com | sports poster art and other cool stuff

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                            • Fraser G.
                              Rookie
                              • Feb 2016
                              • 67

                              #15
                              Originally posted by garyjr33
                              I personally loved the NHL 99 intro and NHL 2000 intro. Also, loved the MLB: The Show 12 intro.
                              Although I didn't mention NHL 2000 in this article, I totally agree that it's one of the best. There's a segment where the music almost stops dead while a Nashville Predators player glides along the top of the bench...it's so well edited. I've always loved that bit.
                              Last edited by Fraser G.; 03-14-2016, 06:20 PM.

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