NBA Live 07
January 5,2007 - NBA Live 07 hasn’t changed much from NBA Live 06; in fact, the changes are so few and far between that players who purchase each yearly installment will undoubtedly come away unfulfilled by this year’s outing. It is to be expected toward the end of a console generation since more energy is put into the next-gen versions, though curiously the Xbox 360 version is the less preferable choice if you must get the game, but such a reason cannot excuse EA Sports for not doing much with last year’s code.

All of the modes from Live 06 return, including All-Star Weekend mode, which houses the incredibly fun and addictive Slam Dunk Contest. Players may very well find themselves putting more time into their slam dunks than into their teams in Dynasty mode, but that’s only because it’s so complex and competitive. Thankfully a feature called Slam Dunk School is incorporated into the game, so that those new to the mode can become educated on how to properly pull off both novice and expert dunks. It serves as a superb tutorial and practice ground for the actual contest, where the computer AI insures you’ll have a hard time hoisting up the trophy.

As aforementioned, Dynasty mode returns for the die hard simulators, though it’s very well possible to play each and every game throughout the season. You serve as the coach of the team and are responsible for hiring an assistant coach, assistant, trainer, and scout. All available coaches are rated in particularly vague categories such as offense and defense, which ultimately do not help you effectively groom your players into better contributors. Throughout the season you task these coaches with certain responsibilities. For instance you can have an assistant work with a certain player to improve their offense, defense, and athleticism, though it would’ve been better if you could put priority on certain aspects of each such as shooting, passing, stealing, or blocking since the system in Live 07 may improve a shooter’s shot instead of his passing ability.

Your scout can track particular draft prospects which can provide you with information prior to the off season whether the guard you have your eye on is a stud or a dud, though the reports do not offer much depth. In truth, the entire draft process is fairly mundane, with little insight ascertained from scouting reports which sullies the effectiveness of the cornerstone feature required of any good franchise mode of any sports game.

The actual on court action is has its good and bad moments, an unfortunate trend for the aging NBA Live franchise. Superstar players are back this year and not much has changed. Superstar moves, which are performed by a combination of the left shoulder button and right analog stick, vary in levels of intricacy, with level one moves consistently failing in creating any separation between ball handler and defender. If you can master the higher level moves, you can dominate your opponent at the lower difficulty levels and give yourself a better chance at scoring on more difficult settings. In each game there’s also a pair of “x-factors,” non-superstar players who can have influence on a game when they get hot. The feature works and it’s nice to know there is a player on the team capable of stepping up when your starters need a breather.

Games, however, boil down to one simple strategy: can your team run the fast break? Being able to run the fast break is vitally important to winning games, and in some ways it can be too effective. If you’re able to snag the rebound and hit one of your guards in transition, you can score nearly almost every time. If you’re forced into running the half court offense though, the computer plays some fairly stiff defense. Unfortunately players sometimes fail to run obvious cuts to the basket, and scoring in the half court offense is more so about lucky mismatches instead of skill.

There are other issues during games though, such as wild passes that never reach their targets and opposing players who have the uncanny ability to easily run past your players while in perfect defensive position. At other times you might pass the ball to one of your teammates and lose control of that player as they get to the basket through whatever means possible. The worst part is when it happens the player you lose control of has no intentions of shooting unless you command him too, which seems completely strange. It’s unclear whether this is an intentional feature or a bug, but either way taking control out of the player’s hands without his or her permission is not a desirable feature.

There are also separate lay-up and dunk buttons which were implemented with good intentions, but if you’re too close to the rim for a lay-up and choose to go for it you can clank it off the rim. If you’re too far from the rim and try to dunk, you can find yourself flying into a defender with no chance of putting the ball in the basket and usually get called for charging. Unfortunately, there presence only unnecessarily complicates the simple act of scoring in the paint.

In terms of presentation, the player models look nearly identical to Live 06 without any distinguishable improvements. The chemistry between play-by-play man Marv Albert and color commentator Steve Kerr is obviously apparent and is a marked improvement over the typically boring and repetitive commentary featured in most sports games. Greg Anthony and Ernie Johnson do an excellent job calling the All Star Weekend, and some of the remarks they make during the slam dunk contest will actually make you chuckle. The soundtrack is also packed with great songs by artists like Talib Kweli, The Black Eyed Peas, and Gnarls Barkley.

NBA Live 07 is a solid game of basketball, but not one worth your money if you have Live 06. There are a couple of nice new features, but none of them make this installment a must buy. If you aren’t a fan of the 2K series and haven’t bought Live in the past couple of years, then, and only then, is NBA Live 07 a worthwhile purchase. Otherwise, it’s only good for a rental at best.

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