Hankerin’ for NBA Jam on your Xbox 360 or PS3? I hope you’re ready to pony up and buy a copy of NBA Elite 11, because that’s the only way you’ll get the HD-wearing, online-play-sporting version of the game. Announced in the wee hours of the morning, a one-time use code for the game will ship with every copy of NBA Elite 11 for Xbox 360 and PS3, similar to the EA Online Pass, Battlefield Bad Company 2 VIP, and Cerberus Network codes of recent EA games.

Don’t get your hopes up too high though, since it’s not the complete Wii version upscaled for your HD screen. The new Remix Tour Mode won’t be included, so if you had plans on boss battling against Magic Johnson and other classic basketball heroes, stick with the Wii edition. The only modes available in this downloadable version will be Play Now, Classic Campaign, and four player Online (which has yet to be announced for the Wii). To be honest, those are the main modes I want anyway.

This is definitely a smart move by EA. People were going to pay $50 for the Wii version, so why not spring an extra $10, buy your full NBA title, and get an HD version of NBA Jam complete with online play? I have a feeling sales of NBA Elite 11 will certainly benefit from this move. Now I’m going to have to debate if I want to get NBA Elite 11 or not…

[via ESPN]