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Sony’s NBA debut isn’t as impressive as we were expecting. It’s clear when playing the game that the game was rushed to meet launch. Sony’s NBA series has struggled to keep up with offerings from 2K Sports and EA Sports for some time now, but with NBA 06 and NBA 07 on PS2, the publisher seemed to get back on its feet. The best thing about those games—The Life (i.e. the story mode)—doesn’t make the jump the PS3 though.
NBA 07 includes only the most basic gameplay. The game includes quick play, season and playoff modes. The season mode isn’t incredibly deep. Yes, you can trade players but that’s pretty much the extent of it since you’re limited to one season. There is no dynasty or multi-season mode, and I mentioned above you won’t find The Life here. NBA 07 tries to make up for this by including a number of minigames. You’ll find the skills challenge, three-point shoot-out, and own the court (where you take shots from certain points in the court to own that section). Interestingly, the dunk contest didn’t make the jump either. You also get NBA Replay. This mode has several challenges for to complete which will certainly test your skills.
The actual gameplay in the game isn’t bad but there are some noticeable flaws. Since the launch of the PSP game, the NBA series has had a glow when you shoot that tells you how good your shot is. This has been modified in the game into a slider of works but the functionality is the same and I personally like it. You use the second analog stick to perform crossovers, spins and jukes and can execute fancy moves like alley-oops as well. You can also use the Sixaxis’ tilt functionality to perform the right analog sticks. Rotating, moving, and pulling (or pushing) the controller will execute these moves although it’s often just easier to use the right analog stick. The post game works well since it gives you a good amount of control. You hit L1 then use the analog stick to make the move.
The game does have a few flaws. The most noticeable is that playing defense is a futile attempt. You can try but all the A.I. needs is a cross over or a juke and they go in for a dunk. You can do the same, too, which contributes to an NBA Live-esque arcadey feel for the game. There are a lot of steals in the game if you try to pass too far, the AI blocks a lot of shots, your AI teammates don’t do a particularly good job of getting open, there are some problems with fouls and backcourt violations being called too aggressively, the ball speed seems to change arbitrarily, and a few other issues. Keep in mind that none of these break the game. It’s perfectly possible to play through a game of NBA 07 and come out satisfied and I suspect that more casual gamers will feel that way. However, it’s important to note these flaws as evidence that there are better games out there.
NBA 07 does have an online mode but it isn’t anything special. You do find support for 2 players in a traditional five-on-five game. There are leaderboards but not much else. The game also supports offline multiplayer for up to 4 players.
NBA 07’s graphics aren’t bad but they’re not as good as we expect from a next-generation basketball game. Both NBA Live 07 and NBA 2K7 look considerably better. The arenas are the highlight of the visuals thanks to some good architecture and detailed crowds. The courts share that level of detail as well. There are some lighting issues to contend with that distract from the overall look of the arenas and courts though. Where the graphics really lack is in the player models. The characters are detailed but most of them don’t look like their real-life versions. Like other sports games, the game makes heavy use of sweat and like other first-entries the effect is overused. The animations are generally good though not as fluid as they are in other games. NBA 07 looks best from afar. The game doesn’t look much better than a current-generation game on standard definition but does look great when played in high-definition. It’s one of the few games to support 1080p.
The audio in this version seems rushed. The game doesn’t have actual commentary which was included in the other two versions of NBA 07. There is an announcer calling basic play types but it isn’t comparable. The sounds of basketball are faithfully recreated in the game though. Expectedly, the soundtrack is largely comprised of hip-hop with some rock songs.
NBA 07 isn’t a terribly broken game but the game does have quite obvious flaws. The decent but not excellent graphics and the rushed audio also really hurt the game. While we have yet to play NBA 2K7 for the PS3, if it is anything like the Xbox 360 version, gamers would be better off with that game. -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Nov 20, 2006
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