Taking it to the NBA 2K9

Thanks to Nic and IAH games, I was able to get a copy of NBA 2K9 for the XBOX 360 and having been playing it over the last few days. I have been a fan of NBA 2K since about the time I discovered 2K6 and instantly made the change from NBA Live to the 2K series. Since then, Live has been behind in every facet of the game – NBA 2K makes the game feel and look so much more realistic. It’s kind of like how I’ve been a Pro Evolution Soccer gamer for the last 5 or so years as it has been miles ahead of FIFA (although I think FIFA got them this year, but thats for another post). As you can tell, I like my sports games.

The first thing I noticed was how much the whole game looked like a television broadcast. From the opening loading sequence to cut scene video highlights in-game, it gave it a feel like you were watching a game on tv. Usually, I like to turn off all of the replays, but game after game, I found myself watching all of the highlights during the game (at stoppages, half-time, end of game). This was a nice addition from last years version.

Once again, the graphics are great, making use of the 360. Players look realistic, uniforms, stadiums all fit together smoothly.

The audio commentary this year has improved slightly. Although a lot of the comments are the same as last year – there is a new commentator who has taken the place of Kenny Smith (he’s gone to NBA 09 I think), but a lot of what he says are just the same lines Kenny said in last year’s game. However, the most pleasing thing about the commentary is the correct timing of when they say things. Last year, they would say lines totally unrelated to the game, but now if Kobe is on a hot streak, they will mention it. They will even react to a big dunk by yelling.

This takes me to gameplay. First of all, this is a true basketball simulation. There are many different controls put in place to try and make it as realistic as possible. You can probably just pick up the controller and play the game, but without any prior knowledge of the game, it might be a struggle. This was evidenced the other day when I played some games with Chris and Sam from the Slingers.

I ran through the isomotion tutorial and there are many different moves you can do, some still difficult to pull off in the game, but the post moves are nice.

The AI of the game is pretty good overall. Players cutting, setting screens off the ball, and knocking down the open shot is much more likely in this version. Blocking shots is way less ‘huge’ than last years as players do not always go for (and get) the big swat. Most of the time, the blocks are little deflections, so when you do see a big pin-the-ball-on-the-board, its pretty satisfying and also surprising. Help defence comes on pretty strong, maybe a bit too strong and the offence is definitely catered for the bigger player. A small guy like Allen Iverson has big trouble trying to get a shot up going to the basket, as he will most likely get blocked. He also struggles to hit those dribble pull-ups that we see him do so often in the NBA, because defenders get a hand to his shot too easily. Those players who can dunk well rule the keyway. Star players are also pretty dominant too (except Iverson) and makes for some exciting plays.

In the Association mode, there are new features like allowing the CPU to do things for you. For instance, you can set it to scout players, draft rookies, re-sign staff, etc, without you having to worry about all of those things (I don’t really like to do it, so this is a welcome addition). Of course, you can still do them if you want. The home screen gets a bit confusing at first – the news roll is good and interesting, allowing you to see other game results. Unlike last year, if you want to see the upcoming days and games, you need to go to another menu SimCentral. This is a bit of a hassle. Also, there is no more alert text msg system like last year. So if you have someone on the trade table, you need to constantly be checking in that particular menu for any offers.

Overall, 2K once again have produced a fantastic basketball game that I look forward to every year. I’ve tried out NBA Live 09 and couldn’t even get through a whole game, it was so bad. Even with the FIBA international teams in Live, the game is terrible. So if you spend your money on one basketball sim this year, NBA 2K9 is the one to get. If you still haven’t switched over from NBA Live to NBA 2K, then go on and do it – I know its hard, but you’ll wonder why it took you so long and you won’t regret it.

Photos: From Gamespot.