Official ConsoleSports.net NBA Live 08 Review |
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Written by Craig Gonzalez
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Monday, 12 November 2007 |
 OK, I have NBA Live for about month now and it’s really taken me awhile to come up with this review. It should be noted that I thought EA’s basketball games have been absolutely atrocious for the last couple years and were virtually unplayable. I have gone on record to say that the last couple years of NBA Live and March Madness have been the worst basketball games that I have ever played, but then I played the demo of NBA Live 08 and then got the full version of NBA Live 08 shortly there after.
While I don’t think NBA Live 08 is up to the level of the NBA 2K series, I do feel that Live is heading in the right direction. I really like how tight the controls are and the fact that I feel like I am in control of my player. It’s also pretty fun playing in the post and using the R-Stick in order to make moves in the paint. Now, I do think that it is a bit too easy to score in the paint as I’ve had some dominating games down low with Antonio McDyess. Anybody that knows the Pistons knows that Dyess is no spring chicken and really can’t dominate down low, but maybe that can be fixed in Live 09? Oh, and can we have the shot and dunk button be the same button as well?
Another thing that I didn’t like about the past versions of Live and MM is that the ball physics were terrible and it seems that this year the ball physics are much better, but not quite perfect. I would also like to see some more animations especially with how the ball hits the rim as it seems that the ball hits the same spot on the rim when it misses. I also see a lot of the same animations from the players in general and that I often see them a bit too often. Speaking of the players, I would like them to actually grab rebounds out of the air more often rather than watch them hit the floor before deciding to go pick them up.
I get the feeling that the game plays a pretty wide open games of basketball. What I mean is that I feel that I can pass the ball around a bit and actually make wide open shots. One thing that would frustrate me with the competitors product is that it seems that you would miss shots even if you are wide open a lot of the times, but I don’t get that feeling in this game. There are times when I feel that my shooting percentage is too high and that I can hit anything, but then look at the stats and see that maybe my percentage is a little high, but not nearly as high that I thought it was going to be. As I previously stated, though, I do see a bit too many points in the paint. Passing is pretty much the same as NBA 2K8, but it can be difficult to run the fast break because the players stop when they receive a pass rather than continue running. That is one thing that annoys me in basketball games as it’s rare when you are able to hit guys in stride and have them keep running.
The Franchise is pretty nice. Obviously it gives you the depth you would want in franchise mode, but one thing I really like in the NBA Live 08 franchise that I don’t think I’ve seen before is that it gives you the ability to start your 2007-2008 season BEFORE the 2007 NBA Draft. So, if you didn’t like how your team drafted in the real NBA draft, you can run the draft yourself and build your team from there. I really like that feature as I know some guys like to get right into the draft and scouting and what not, and since all the players that are available in the draft are in the NBA now, their names and their info are in the game. That’s a great feature that I can’t believe hasn’t been done before. Maybe it was done in NBA Live 07, but remember, I couldn’t play it. ;)
All-star weekend is pretty fun, but I found it difficult to hit three-points in the three-point contest. The dunk contest has an interesting dynamic as you have to hit different button combos at key points of the dunk. You can’t just go up there expecting Jordan-esque type jams by hitting one button, you really have to practice at it.
At the time of this review, EA just announced that Online Team Play is now available in NBA Live 08. That’s right, you can play 5 on 5 with 10 different consoles online! That provides a whole new dynamic to the game as you can actually form teams with your friends and take on other people. It’s almost like going to the playground and playing some pickup ball, but in a virtual world with real NBA teams and players.
The graphics are pretty good in the game as well. At first I wasn’t sure if I liked the player models are not, but after getting used to the game and the graphics I think they look pretty good and think they are on par with NBA 2K8’s player models. The arena’s look decent and sound good, but I think the lighting in the arena’s is a bit too dark. Yes, you can adjust the overall brightness of the game, but it affects the brightness of the players. I would like them to balance that out on the next release as I feel it would add to the overall atmosphere in the game.
They also added the Signature Moves and the Hot Spot layout as well. The Signature Moves are where your guys can pull of their signature moves in the game. I haven’t had the best success with it, but it’s probably because I’m not very good. However, I have been able to pull of some moves with Chauncey Billups and it’s really rewarding when the shots go in. The Hot Spot indicator is a good addition in theory, but it can be quite cumbersome to pull up the graphic overlay when in the heat of battle. I think that on top of the graphic overlay, they should also add the cell phone like meter than NBA 2K8 has.
While I do like the progress of the Live series and feel that it can compete with the NBA 2K series, this years rendition isn’t quite to that level yet. It’s still missing some key features and doesn’t provide quite as much fluff with the presentation as well as limited player and ball animations and physics. NBA Live 08 is still a fun game to play and I am now interested to see what the future holds for the series as they have proved this year that they are gearing up to get back into the race.
NBA Live 08 Score: 7.5 out of 10
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 14 November 2007 )
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