NBA Live 07
Posted November 20, 2006
One thing about writing reviews that most people don't understand is that you end up playing the same game far too many times. Not necessarily the same exact game, but games that are in the same genre and offer little change from one year to the next. While I haven't played NBA Live in a couple of years, it was apparent early on that even though this is the 2007 version of the series and with the small details added, it's definitely not the best iteration.
Gameplay:
Like any sports title, once you've played on version of it you know the basics and they transfer from title to title, including basic controls and strategy. Also like most sports titles out there now, even NASCAR titles, a season and dynasty mode is included here in NBA Live 07 which allows you to work your way through multiple seasons with your favorite team as both GM and player. To help the title evolve some new tweaks have been added which impact how well your team gels on the court and as a result how well they will perform.
Team Chemistry is critical to a team, if you hate the guys you play with what's the driving force in making them look good and winning a game? Chemistry is a new factor to consider during your dynasty and there are eight different factors that will blend together to see how well your team gets along. Some items have nothing to do with the team, such as size of the market your team is in, while others are individual items such as time played in a game. A happy team plays well together so keeping the peace is a vital part of the game, and leaving the CPU to decide things for you will only get you so far so direct control over the factors you can control are essential.
Players can also get fatigued this time around, too many games without a rest or too many practice sessions before a game will lessen the drive your team has. It becomes important to schedule days where the team does nothing to allow them to rest up after a particularly grueling week of games, if you don't even the best team will succumb to the weakest of teams.
The other big changes to the game are most definitely the Total Freestyle Control option as well as the X-Factor. TFC to me felt like an over complicated way of making you take shots and perform dunks. To perform a dunk you needed to start out with a gather (one button press), then as you finished that animation tap another button for a dunk. To me this felt overcomplicated and convoluted, taking me out of the spirit of the fast paced game. Even when entering the dunk competition in the hyped up All-Star Weekend mode with no external pressure, it was far more complicated than necessary. Another thing TFC brings is multiple player types, the dunker performs as mentioned above while other types (eight in total) include the three-point man and the blocker. These controls are mapped to the right analog stick and become a little tricky to use while in the midst of a fast break or trying to stop a rush.
The X-Factor on the other hand is another way to introduce hot steaks into the gameplay. Rather than just say someone is on a streak after the game, they become a key player during the game providing you've done the necessary things to make then vital to the game. X-Factor players are not current superstars but players who when the pressure gets on can perform. In order to activate the X-Factor you need to keep the indicated player involved in key plays, making shots and setting up plays. Once you've done this enough they come superstars for a brief time, which may be enough to seal the game up.
Naturally you can take this game online and compete with other players over Xbox Live, and while games can be found it's a little slower out on the standard Xbox as more people migrate towards the 360. The online offerings are your standard matches and even 4 and 8 player tournaments can be set up. Similar to the Tiger Woods 07 offering of ESPN radio and sports tickers in game, NBA Live 07 also offers this service to keep you informed on all the happenings in the real world.
Graphics:
Let's start with the good part about the graphics, this game supports 720p. What this means is that for gamers luck enough to play on an HDTV set it will look decent. Notice I said not spectacular, as yes this is still an older generation title. It's actually quite apparent the change in graphics when you see a title that supports 720p on both the last generation (Xbox, PS2) and the now-generation.
While for a Xbox game, things do look quite nice there's something that feels just off about how things look. As most are aware, as technology makes things more and more realistic, the human eye nitpicks to find subtleties that throw off perception, and in this title I found the heads of all players to be too large and out of proportion with the rest of their bodies. This did actually frustrate me enough to make note of it, and I find that a real flaw. Otherwise, the game looks quite sharp; arenas are filled with reactive crowds and replays look quite sharp. It's just the small things that make the bad feelings outweigh the good for me.
Audio:
Hip-hop beats permeate the soundtrack, leaving little choice for gamers who aren't into the genre of music to do other than turn down the volume, as custom soundtracks are not supported. On the court, the full on set of shoe squeaks and ball dribbling sounds are intact as well as the crowd which roars and boos with the action onscreen.
The commentary as any sports game does get repetitive, especially if you find yourself going to your star player, or the X-Factor guy more often than not. The best way to avoid serious repetition is to mix up your style of play, or turn off the commentary altogether. Even though the game is hosted by Marv Albert and Steve Kerr, it still does drag on after the first dozen or so games played.
Conclusion:
If it wasn't for the fact that the graphics were upgraded for 720p I really would have found not much to enjoy in this title. The additions to the game personally didn't make the title any more enjoyable than any other version of NBA Live I've played. The X-Factor is a good little concept, but combining that with all the other tweaks really diminished the impact that this particular player can have. Why would I bother including a lower ranked player in the play as much when I can just as easily use a player who can shoot better, jump higher and make better passes?
I can't quite say that this title is worth running out and picking up – especially when you consider the much more appealing alternative. Skip it.
Gameplay:
Like any sports title, once you've played on version of it you know the basics and they transfer from title to title, including basic controls and strategy. Also like most sports titles out there now, even NASCAR titles, a season and dynasty mode is included here in NBA Live 07 which allows you to work your way through multiple seasons with your favorite team as both GM and player. To help the title evolve some new tweaks have been added which impact how well your team gels on the court and as a result how well they will perform.
Team Chemistry is critical to a team, if you hate the guys you play with what's the driving force in making them look good and winning a game? Chemistry is a new factor to consider during your dynasty and there are eight different factors that will blend together to see how well your team gets along. Some items have nothing to do with the team, such as size of the market your team is in, while others are individual items such as time played in a game. A happy team plays well together so keeping the peace is a vital part of the game, and leaving the CPU to decide things for you will only get you so far so direct control over the factors you can control are essential.
Players can also get fatigued this time around, too many games without a rest or too many practice sessions before a game will lessen the drive your team has. It becomes important to schedule days where the team does nothing to allow them to rest up after a particularly grueling week of games, if you don't even the best team will succumb to the weakest of teams.
The other big changes to the game are most definitely the Total Freestyle Control option as well as the X-Factor. TFC to me felt like an over complicated way of making you take shots and perform dunks. To perform a dunk you needed to start out with a gather (one button press), then as you finished that animation tap another button for a dunk. To me this felt overcomplicated and convoluted, taking me out of the spirit of the fast paced game. Even when entering the dunk competition in the hyped up All-Star Weekend mode with no external pressure, it was far more complicated than necessary. Another thing TFC brings is multiple player types, the dunker performs as mentioned above while other types (eight in total) include the three-point man and the blocker. These controls are mapped to the right analog stick and become a little tricky to use while in the midst of a fast break or trying to stop a rush.
The X-Factor on the other hand is another way to introduce hot steaks into the gameplay. Rather than just say someone is on a streak after the game, they become a key player during the game providing you've done the necessary things to make then vital to the game. X-Factor players are not current superstars but players who when the pressure gets on can perform. In order to activate the X-Factor you need to keep the indicated player involved in key plays, making shots and setting up plays. Once you've done this enough they come superstars for a brief time, which may be enough to seal the game up.
Naturally you can take this game online and compete with other players over Xbox Live, and while games can be found it's a little slower out on the standard Xbox as more people migrate towards the 360. The online offerings are your standard matches and even 4 and 8 player tournaments can be set up. Similar to the Tiger Woods 07 offering of ESPN radio and sports tickers in game, NBA Live 07 also offers this service to keep you informed on all the happenings in the real world.
Graphics:
Let's start with the good part about the graphics, this game supports 720p. What this means is that for gamers luck enough to play on an HDTV set it will look decent. Notice I said not spectacular, as yes this is still an older generation title. It's actually quite apparent the change in graphics when you see a title that supports 720p on both the last generation (Xbox, PS2) and the now-generation.
While for a Xbox game, things do look quite nice there's something that feels just off about how things look. As most are aware, as technology makes things more and more realistic, the human eye nitpicks to find subtleties that throw off perception, and in this title I found the heads of all players to be too large and out of proportion with the rest of their bodies. This did actually frustrate me enough to make note of it, and I find that a real flaw. Otherwise, the game looks quite sharp; arenas are filled with reactive crowds and replays look quite sharp. It's just the small things that make the bad feelings outweigh the good for me.
Audio:
Hip-hop beats permeate the soundtrack, leaving little choice for gamers who aren't into the genre of music to do other than turn down the volume, as custom soundtracks are not supported. On the court, the full on set of shoe squeaks and ball dribbling sounds are intact as well as the crowd which roars and boos with the action onscreen.
The commentary as any sports game does get repetitive, especially if you find yourself going to your star player, or the X-Factor guy more often than not. The best way to avoid serious repetition is to mix up your style of play, or turn off the commentary altogether. Even though the game is hosted by Marv Albert and Steve Kerr, it still does drag on after the first dozen or so games played.
Conclusion:
If it wasn't for the fact that the graphics were upgraded for 720p I really would have found not much to enjoy in this title. The additions to the game personally didn't make the title any more enjoyable than any other version of NBA Live I've played. The X-Factor is a good little concept, but combining that with all the other tweaks really diminished the impact that this particular player can have. Why would I bother including a lower ranked player in the play as much when I can just as easily use a player who can shoot better, jump higher and make better passes?
I can't quite say that this title is worth running out and picking up – especially when you consider the much more appealing alternative. Skip it.