Stage 1: Impressions |
Stage 2: Analysis |
Stage 3: Evaluation |
I knew after Stage 1 that NBA Live 08 was shallow. A complete lack of defense - in regards to the AI's ability to play it, and the human player's control over it - saw to that. After extensive playtime with this game, I am sorry to report that NBA Live 08 is broken. I have encountered at least two glitches that make this game unplayable.
The first glitch relates to the aforementioned lack of defense. The AI defenders in NBA Live 08 are so incompetent that it is possible to end up with a scorer uncontested below the basket every trip down the court. In effect, every player in NBA Live 08 can be Shaquille O'Neal circa 1998, but without a mediocre rap album and the worst fighting game of all time on his resume. If this weren't bad enough, the game-breaking glitch arises with only a little bit of patience.
If an offensive player is below the basket for only a couple of seconds (before "DUNKING NOW" as the game blares at you to do), nearby defensive players will be stupid enough to take a step into the scoring lane. At that point, the offensive player can initiate a dunk and draw contact every single time.
It is game-breakingly easy to draw the foul on a dunk.
To illustrate, I played an exhibition match with the Boston Celtics against the Chicago Bulls. Kevin Garnett recorded 25 dunks in a grand total of eight minutes of play. Garnett drew a foul (by blatantly ramming into into the moving defender) every single time, without fail. For those without knowledge of professional basketball, Garnett got to shoot a free throw in this situation because the foul is called on the defender who belatedly impeded Garnett's progress. Therefore, every single Celtics play was a three-point play.
Free throw shooting was kind of fun, because flicking the Wii Remote to fill a power guage is more engaging than hitting a button combination. The Wii Remote can also be flicked to grab rebounds and block shots. But none of these motions are necessary, or even recommended, to win a game.
The second game-breaking glitch plagues the only good thing the game had going for it: shooting. I said in Stage 1 that lifting the Wii Remote towards my body and then flicking it forward at the peak of the on-screen player's jump to release a jump shot added an element of timing to the shooting mechanic that NBA Live's button-based contemporaries sorely lack. Unfortunately, a properly timed jumped shot is a poor indicator as to whether or not the on-screen player will actually sink one.
Will this shot go in? Beats me.
While playing with the Los Angeles Lakers, I missed three consecutive jump shots with Kobe Bryant (from inside the three-point line) that I thought were well timed. Frustrated, I launched a running shot from just inside half court. I didn't stop to plant Kobe's feet. Kobe wasn't even facing the basket. He made a blind half-jump with arms flailing. Swish.
I am convinced that not only is offensive play broken, but that the success of jump shots is largely random.
This game won't be saved by its presentation, either. The player models look decidedly last-generation, and none of the faces (including that of cover-athlete Gilbert Arenas) are as accurate as even NBA 2K3 for the Microsoft Xbox. When standing still, the players look shiny enough from some combination of light and sweat that it appears as though they're covered in lacquer. In motion, they are even worse. The animation is generally stiff, but the game suffers some serious problems with collision detection and clipping. I'm also pretty sure I saw some players moving without the ball who blinked, disappeared, and then mysteriously reappeared upcourt.
GREAT SHOT. . . from the other end of the court. Only in NBA Live 08!
The one bright spot: audio commentary from veteran play-by-play man Marv Albert, and former TNT analyst Steve Kerr. The dialogue they recorded for the game is almost always specific to the players, teams, and situations on court. It is delivered with such ease and natural charisma that a listener in another room might think they were hearing an NBA broadcast on television. Albert and Kerr are two of the best ever at their profession, and their performance here earns them The Wiire's Audio Award. I'll even take it one step further and say that these two have set a new standard for commentary in a sports video game.
Unfortunately for them, hiring Marv Albert and Steve Kerr to broadcast games in NBA Live 08 is like hiring Luciano Pavarotti to sing in an abandoned building. Never has so much vocal talent gone to waste in a place that anyone in their right mind should avoid.
NBA Live 08 is a failure. How low can it go? Stage 3 will have the final grade!
Stage 1: Impressions |
Stage 2: Analysis |
Stage 3: Evaluation |
