With only a few days left before the NBA kicks off and runs seemingly most of this year and next there are a lot of questions on fans minds. Can the Lakers win a ring with a healthy Bynum? Will the Rockets self destruct or gel with the new addition of Ron Artest? Will KG and the Celtics repeat? And finally can NBA Live finally overtake NBA 2K9 as the best hoops video game on the market?
Ever since the NBA Live franchise dropped the rock a few years ago, 2K sports has been continuously improving on their basketball game to the point where they can rightfully claim they make the best hoops game year in and year out. This year isn’t much different.
The presentation is revamped to make the gaming experience seem more like watching an NBA telecast. Pregame loading screens are peppered with real game highlights of players from selected teams and quarter breaks are highlighted by virtual plays from the just ending quarter. Kevin Harlan returns to do play by play and is joined in the booth newcomers Clark Kellogg and by Cheryl Miller, courtside.
The graphic presentation on 2K9 is not as polished as 2K8 but the game play is much improved (though there should be a slider for offensive charging fouls). Most if not all of the glitches from last year’s model are gone and the advanced play calling, post-up and isolation features make 2K9 the most advanced basketball simulation to date.
On the entertainment side, 2K9’s soundtrack is hot as well. It features songs by The Cool Kids (who perform the game’s theme song 2K Pennies), Gnarls Barkley, N.E.R.D., The Meters, The Pharcyde and many more. Not to be outdone NBA Live 09 features joints by Kid Cudi, Flipsyde and Beck.
On the flipside NBA Live ’09 has been vastly improving annually for the last couple years. This year the players are not sliding on the floor like they have skates on, the graphics are really good (I’d venture to say they are more fluid than 2K9’s) and the game play is not nearly as arcade-like.
Both games are FINALLY utilizing the web to improve their games with daily updates of player information. NBA Live is going hard with their DNA feature which tracks players on court tendencies based on what they do in actual NBA games and puts it into the video game. For example if Tracy McGrady gets hurt in real life he won’t be available in the video game or if Rashard Lewis starts hitting 50% of 3 point field goals then his percentage will go up in the game. The feature is great but it gets in the way of game play due to the score overlay bar on the screen which tells the user various information about the shots the player they control is taking.
NBA 2K9 has a daily update feature as well. However neither one of these functions accuracy and relevancy can truly be judged until the season gets in full stride, so the jury is still out on what sounds like a phenomenal idea
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