Arch Rivals took street basketball and added punches, shoves, and a rowdy comedy tone Midway dubbed "basketbrawl." Released in 1989, two players per team fight for the ball as much with their fists as with rebounds, with big sprites and an exaggerated humor that NBA Jam would later inherit almost word for word. It's, in fact, the key piece for understanding where that formula came from: without Arch Rivals, the 90s arcade basketball phenomenon doesn't make sense.
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