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Review

NBA Live 08

6.0

Format Xbox 360

Developer EA Games

Publisher EA Games

Genre Sports

11-Oct-2007 Maybe you should settle this one out of court

Oh dear. So last year we put NBA Live '07 and NBA 2K '07 head to head, and despite Live's polish we chose 2K as our champion. And now here we have Live 08 taking another shot at claiming the crown, but it doesn't look like anything's going to change- getting to grips with the new features of Live '08 is like watching a superb athlete trying to slam dunk a beach ball.

EA's tried to take the easy way out here. Rather than re-addressing how their game plays at a base level, they've decided to pile new features on top of last year's game, hoping they'll fix things but knowing that they'll look great on the back of the box. The result is interesting but fairly complex basketball that makes it that much harder for people to just pick up and play the game.

First, you've got Quick Strike Ball Handling, which in theory lets you sling the ball behind and to the sides of your player using the right analog stick, helping you blast past defense. In practice it's clumsy and unresponsive. Then you've got Go-To Moves for superstar players, and Dominate the Paint dummy shots, which are more handy but still clog up the controls in a game that really shouldn't be using every button on the 360 controller.

But the main offender here is Hot Spots. By holding down the left bumper when you're near a hoop, the ground turns to a colour coded grid based on who you're controlling and showing where they're more likely to get a basket if they shoot, or dunk. Except to make this mechanic work players have had their specialities exaggerated, so one player might find it easier to land long shots than closer ones, while another gets a huge bonus when shooting from the right of the hoop. You'll find yourself passing the ball to another player just to see /their/ Hot Spots, which isn't exactly what we want from a sports sim.

Still, Dynasty Mode makes a return and it's still awesomely in-depth in letting you manage a team. Reams of info's there if you want it when it comes to decisions like hiring staff or setting training schedules, and now there's all new Player Chemistry bars showing how your team is interacting together. And of course you can still whip up custom eight foot tall mutants in the player creation mode, or even make yourself and then hire yourself as the Knicks star player.

You won't go wrong with NBA Live '08, but it's really not giving the 110% you want for your money.

OXM Staff

Overview

Verdict

A big, strong hopeful that could be stronger

Uppers

Pretty graphics, great soundtrack

Comprehensive team-management mode

Crisp presentation

Downers

Poorly thought out controls

Animations can be variable

Screens

Interactive

No comments have been posted yet.

Screens

1 / 4 Screenshots

Reviews:

NBA Live 08

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