It is that time of the year again gamers, a time where all sports merge and become one massive gaming experience. By the end of this month there will be college football, pro football, hockey, golf, soccer, and NBA basketball games for Xbox 360 owners to choose from. This is a list of only EA games; add in the other franchises and there are more sports titles to choose from than any sports fanatic should know what to do with! The title on hand today is NBA Live 07, which is the new rendition of the ever-popular NBA Live franchise. NBA Live 06, which came out around the Xbox 360 launch period, was a decent title but one that left gamers wanting more. More in terms of gameplay and more in terms of features, but one thing that was great then and is still great now are the graphics. Read on to find out why not only is this a good basketball game, but it is the best version of NBA Live to be released. However it does have some more kinks that will surely be polished by EA over the next few years.
NBA Live 07 packs in more than enough features, handling everything from 8-player online play to the insanely fun NBA All-Star weekend. This time around EA decided that more is better and they included the following game types: dynasty mode, free play, Xbox live, and the All Star weekend mode. The dynasty mode is deeper than ever this year and allows players to take the reigns as general manager and control every aspect of their favorite NBA team, oh and you also get to play the games. After finishing a few seasons you should really check out the All Star weekend mode. Here you can choose your favorite long range shooter or air walking dunker and take them into the three-point or dunk contests. These modes are simple but fun because there is nothing that beats hitting that final money ball (2 points) with only a second left on the clock. The dunk contest is intuitive as well and includes many features such as tossing the ball off the backboard or bouncing it 8 feet high to capture high scores from the judges.
EA has really stepped it up this year with the Xbox Live mode as well. The normal game types are there; ranked, unranked, quick match, custom match, etc. but the ability to play with up to 4 players per Xbox online is as fun as it gets. We tried out an 8-player match and although there were a few lag hiccups, overall it was one of the most fun experiences I have had playing a basketball video game. Unfortunately for EA most of the features and game modes we have come to expect from any basketball title are these and they are nothing more than that. Still, NBA Live 07 packs enough things into the box that any basketball fan should come away happy that they own this game. The AI department of NBA Live 07 hit a home run this year (or is that baseball), anyway simply said this is some of the best sports AI that I have seen in a basketball game to date. If you need to go get a drink in the middle of the game don’t worry about pausing because your teammates will pretty much take care of defense for you, while this is a plus on one hand, it can also be a minus on the other. Games are likewise more difficult and it is harder to blow out any opponent, in my opinion though this makes for a more realistic game than previous versions of NBA Live before.
The best new feature of NBA Live 07 (although some gamers may disagree with me) is the new superstar feature or total freestyle type control scheme. Using the right basketball player and the right analog stick, you can not only pull off some insane moves or dunks, but the feature really adds something to the gameplay and will effect the outcome of any match up. If you master these controls you can easily take out the Heat with the Timberwolves. Each player has special attributes; such as Wade, who is a superstar shooter and slam-dunk type character. If all three bars are lit up under the player’s superstar feature then just give a quick whirl (there are about 4 different moves) to the right joystick and Wade will pull off a amazing windmill dunk from the free throw line. Use Iverson and he can do a pump fake from the three-point line. The other controls are pretty basic but round out the gameplay in NBA Live 07. While this new feature is not entirely polished it was nice to see EA add something new to the mix.
