Reaching certain team goals delivers ‘reward points’. They are vital to player development, since they are your currency for sending players to individual camps to improve specific attributes. You also have the chance to put players through practice drills for a set number of hours each week to improve their skills. Outside of the menial tasks like setting ticket and vending prices, there is just about nothing that The Association does not give you access to handle yourself. The depth and detail of your roster and coaching control place it among the best franchise modes in sports games.
Up-close replays are notorious for revealing flaws that the normal game camera hides. 2K9 has nothing to hide, with the replays looking as solid as the plays themselves. Animations are fluid and players react naturally whether going up for a block or swiping for a loose ball. The only slight issues with gameplay are some questionable goaltending calls and some occasionally sluggish play defensively. From time to time players seem too stuck in the mud when leaping for a block or rebound to blame it on fatigue. Otherwise, the game plays exceptionally well. Computer controlled characters maintain their assignment on defense, and fill the lane smartly on fast breaks. The controls are solid, though anyone expecting the over the top exaggerated crossovers and dunks will be disappointed. The emphasis is on a more realistic style of play, and the player animations definitely illustrate that. That is not to say that you cannot shake free of a defender with a crossover, but the shifty dribbling has a more subtle look. The shot stick may not be your first choice to use for shooting jumpers in-game, but for throwing down dunks it works well. It also serves you well when posting up a defender, delivering some quality post moves to get open shots.
Gamers used to checking online for several days after a big trade for the roster update can relax. Each time you connect to Live and start the game, it searches the 2K servers for updated rosters. The promise of daily roster updates may seem a little outrageous and unnecessary, until you realize that they are updating for trades and injuries, along with the way each player is currently performing. Players that are on a hot streak will see a boost, while those in a slump will take a hit in their attributes. While it is hard to see this in action just yet, it is an impressive concept. It remains to be seen how large of a boost a bench scrub gets for a single huge game, or how bad of a hit the likes of a LeBron James will take if he struggles in back-to-back games.
While the always-fantastic 2K leagues are still here, the newly added Team-Up mode will impress you more. Team-Up gives allows you to play with four other players on the same team, against another team of five Live players. It completely changes the way you play the game, as moving without the ball becomes a new skill to grasp. The game rewards and docks your teammate grade for almost every smart and poor play you make on the floor. Allowing an opponent to score on you or just leaving your assignment gives your grade a hit, and keeps gamers honest on the defensive side of the ball. More importantly, poor shot selection is a negative; though stopping ball-hogs on your team is more effective by calling them out verbally. Between the constantly changing teammate grade and the full stats after the game, you gain a sense of pride and ownership over how you play each game. There is nothing quite like defeating another team on a last second buzzer beater, and having your team celebrate with each other over the mics.
The only issue with online play remains the same lag and disconnection issues that have plagued 2K Sports titles for years. When everyone's connections are solid and the servers are breezing along, the online games are extremely enjoyable. When the lag hits bad, it makes the game nearly unplayable until the servers catch their wind, gamers stop talking over their mics, or the gamer with the bad connection leaves. There are also typical team versus team modes to test your skills against another player, but controlling all five members of your team feels less rewarding after Team-Up. The Blacktop dunk contest and pickup games make an appearance online, too.
They nail the look and feel of a TV broadcast, almost to a fault. Most players look pretty close to their real-life counterpart, despite an overly glossy appearance in replays; which is supposed to look like sweat, but often makes them look ceramic. The stadiums themselves look wonderful, with just the right amount of reflection on the floor catching the electronic scoreboards all around. The crowd also looks fantastic, with far less fan repetition than most games. The biggest eyesore is the realistic overload of product placement. From the T-Mobile halftime report to Team Jordan player of the game to the Gatorade thirst meter, it gets exhausting. The announcing team of Clark Kellogg and Kevin Harlan deliver some brilliant play by play and color commentary on the game. They might not know exactly when a game is out of reach in a blow out, but they do a great job of keeping up with the action and delivering solid commentary on the plays without getting repetitive too quickly.
NBA 2K9 is an amazing title that is just a little spit and polish away from perfection. The Association and Team-Up modes will keep you busy well past the season’s end, but you cannot help but feel that it would have benefited from stripping out some of the weaker modes (Rookie Challenge and Season) in favor of fixing the nagging online connectivity and lag issues.
