Great graphics and gameplay for the most part. Amazing presentation. A great basketball sim.
The NBA benefits from a rare anomaly by today's sports gaming practices, and that is true competition. I do believe this open market for development has lead to what is now arguably the tightest race of the major sports on consoles. This review is as much an argument for competition as it is an assessment for the game that single-handedly put basketball back on my radar, and given hope to the future of presentation in sports videogames. This is NBA 2K9.
Gameplay: Its amazing to see just how far basketball controls have come in a few short years. Basketball by tradition is a fast moving, perpetually evolving team sport filled with subtle gestures, quick cuts and player specific motion. The controls in NBA 2K9 are really a 2 headed monster. One on hand they are brilliantly mapped out and cover virtually any and all actions you'd want to perform on the court. The dual analogue control scheme that revolutionized EA's NHL series has found its way to the NBA. The left stick moves your player around, while the right controls your shots. This is not a brand new concept for hoops videogames, but the years of tweaking and development have finally produced a superior playing product. The combination of the 2 sticks and left and right triggers provide an incredibly deep and comprehensive gameplay experience. The other head of the monster is that these controls – while simple for very basic movement – become daunting when attempting advanced maneuvers. There is a very steep learning curve to NBA 2K9. Unless you are a seasoned veteran of the series, it will take hours to nail down the amazing ISO-Motion player moves you'll need to win games. The list of moves and corresponding controls is so long that their complete explanation exists only on 2K's website. If you have access to the internet I highly advise watching the training videos to learn the ISO-Motion controls. Everything from crossovers, hesitations, spins, fades, behind the back passes, step backs, fakes, back downs, hopsteps, screens, pick and rolls and the like are just scratching the surface of what your players can do. Take your time to master the buttons and sticks if you want to experience all that 2K9 has to offer. Moving the ball around and finding space is only half the game. Going to the hoop is an entirely different set of controls. Dunking the ball is extremely rewarding if and when the situation is right. NBA 2K9 will force you to seek out that lane to drive to the basket. A combination of right trigger and right stick direction will execute some impressive player-specific dunking animations. Shot Stick "2.0" is a graduated feature this year that allows your player to make quick re-adjustments in mid-air to evade blocks while trying to flush the ball. Timing is everything. If performed correctly, your last second up and under can inspire you to publish your own personal highlight on 2K's website.
As difficult as it may be to jedize your skills, 2K has put in more sliders than and theme park for you to adjust the difficulty and behavior for both your players and the CPU. 2K also offers a fantastic online community in which to play games, track stats and share sliders, rosters and settings with other gamers.
2K9 is filled with great game modes as well. These supplements really provide the variety necessary to give the game some lasting appeal. Standard quick game, season, practice, situation and online modes are available. On top of these, the 2 standout modes in NBA 2K9 are The Association (franchise mode) which has some very deep statistic tracking and story elements, and the highly enjoyable Blacktop mode. This is where you take the game of hoops from spectacle of the hardwood to the friendly inner-city confines of an urban park. Here you can play pickup games, shoot 21, horse and work your magic in dunk school to take to the Sprite sponsored Dunk Challenge.
The gameplay just feels right. However, passing to the intended recipient can be difficult at times. There are moments where a number of players will be moving and crowding together that make it difficult to select the teammate you want to dish the rock to. There is a helpful icon-passing system that works well, but will require practice to pull of quickly and fluently. Defense is also very tight. Lock down defense is a simple pull of the left trigger. Once locked on you will be able to "shade" your opponent by flicking the right stick in any one of nine directions to either apply pressure or sit back to cut off passing lanes. Being locked on does make you susceptible to a pick and roll. It seems like every style of play has some kind of counter that keeps the gameplay balanced. You will be encouraged to keep evolving your strategy to win games. The computer AI is excellent and will adjust to what you are doing.
Basketball is a game of runs and momentum. This has been exemplified in NBA 2K9 where the game can feel unrealistically hot and cold at times. Players will magically start to miss easy open jumpers, or your opponent will being hitting 3's with painfully sharp accuracy. This can make for a very frustrating gaming experience if you're on the losing end, but it does work both ways. The "clutch factor" is unrealistic, but luckily can be turned off in the game's menu.
Online play and support are incredible. 5 on 5 multiplayer is smooth for the most part. The official NBA 2K9 website offers gamers a chance to see how they are performing in their leagues, upload and view highlights and to see what your competitors are doing. It's a shame this profound online support didn't find its way on the console itself. It would have been nice to be able to see all the benefits of the website in the game.
Gameplay = 9/10.
Graphics: NBA 2K9's graphics are a bowl of mixed nuts. From a purely technical standpoint 80% of the game is top notch while the rest of its content is in need of more work. This does not mean 2K9 is not a beautiful looking game by any means. Separating graphics and presentation in this game is like trying to un-mix salt and sugar. It's hard to judge where one begins and the other ends. Food metaphors aside this is one of the best looking sports games ever made. Most of the player models are nicely done and easily distinguishable. 2K has made some great progress in its work on rendering lifelike faces, flowing jerseys and signature moves in recent years. A few players have clearly been given more time than others, where some plastic looking ballers show their ugly models during zoomed in shots. There are also some jaggy edges to the sleeves of players uniforms that don't animate so well around nicely rendered player's shoulders. Commentators look wooden and expressionless as they introduce the game. The Dunk Contest host, who sounds great, looks like he is performing a ventriloquist act. These blemishes only appear on close-ups camera cuts.
NBA 2K9 absolutely shines from gameplay camera angles. Much of these strengths will be covered in the Presentation section of this review, but by in large you will be challenged to determine whether or not you are watching an actual NBA televised broadcast. The players move extremely lifelike and smooth. Animations are plentiful both on and off the ball. AI behavior and player movement is so dynamic that you will never see the same play execute exactly the same twice. Each possession feels unique and fresh. Kudos to 2K for mapping some incredible graphics to superior gameplay. The experience of playing and/or watching is the most realistic videogame rendition of the sport.
The developers have clearly gone through painstaking work to showcase an atmosphere that rivals attending a real venue. The crowds are phenomenal from afar. They move and behave like real people – standing to applaud, walking to and from the exits and sitting on their hands during blowouts. The hard-court looks great too. From the shine of lights off the polyurethane floor to the highly animated player benches, virtually every element has been given the care it deserves. It all adds up to one of the best looking sports games ever made. Some more work is needed on player models to bring the graphics up to par with EA's NBA Live franchise, but this is really only an issue on a select few players during close-cropped replays.
Not much else can be said about the player animations except that they are incredibly dynamic. The seemingly limitless variety of signature shot types, while challenging to perform without hours of practice, look phenomenal when executed properly. Jumpers, hook shots, post up moves, fadeaways and dunks all look realistic.
There is a tiny issue with players feet "skating" a little on quick cuts and stops. Panoramic shots of the arenas suffer from choppy frame rate issues. Also you'll notice players stuttering ever so slightly when transitioning from one after-gameplay animation to another during close-ups. These "problems" are minor and do not affect the 90% of the game that takes place between the whistles. Even with these technical issues, this is easily the best looking basketball simulation ever made.
Graphics = 8.5/10
Sound: NBA 2K9 is a great sounding game. One of the first things you notice in any modern day sports title is the commentary, and 2K Sports has clearly made that a primary focus. Kevin Harlan is a good play by play caller whose timely comments will blend seamlessly with the authentic visuals. He applies just enough emotion and variation to keep games fresh and exciting. Clark Kellogg is this season's color commentator. He sounds great too, but you will start to notice a few extremely repetitive expressions peppering his analysis. One annoying call is his quip on a player making a bad decision after turning the ball over. Enough already.
The crowd sounds almost sounds as good as it looks. Your fans will ride the waves of emotion that rise and fall throughout the game. When home teams are on a nice run the crowd cheers loudly. Consequently your fans will boo their team if opponents start to dominate. Perhaps the best audible addition to NBA 2K9 is the team-specific chanting. "Lets Go Rap-tors!" sounds amazing and puts gamers right in the action by offering an additional level of authenticity.
The sound effects on the hardwood take a backseat most of the time, unless you select to play the game with the "On The Court" audio setting. This brings up a great strength that leads into the Presentation aspect of NBA 2K9, and that is the incredible level of visual and audible customization. This will be covered more in the Presentation section of this review. The squeaking of sneakers, the swoosh of a flush and the chatter of team mates are those small elements that take this game above and beyond a generic videogame. Layering all of these sounds together: commentary, hip-hop music, PA announcing and crowd noise make NBA 2K9 sound as close to real life as you can imagine. More play calling variety is needed to really make each game of an 82 game season feel unique.
Sound = 8/10.
Presentation: Wow. This was the first non-EA sports game I've played in 2 years (MLB was the last). NBA 2K9's presentation is arguably its greatest strength. Here is where developers take all the hard work done by the graphic and sound departments and homogenize them to output a truly dynamic broadcast quality aesthetic.
Virtually everything that I am going to discuss here has one thing in common: customizability. Lets start with the cameras. The default gameplay camera is a perfect replication of a televised broadcast angle. Framing the game properly is a fundamental start. It's possible not only to tweak the zoom and height of each camera, but to switch it out for an arsenal of other playable angles. So if "broadcast" isn't for you, then sideline, pressbox, nose-bleeds, action, panoramic, wire and the fan-favorite "2K" cam are just a tip of the visual iceberg. The cinematic direction that includes cutting to responsive player close-ups and applying transitions are done extremely well. These emotive dynamic cuts ensure that you are never taken out of the experience.
Instant replays take full advantage of the camera system. Each highlight is shown with changing broadcast-true angles. The accompanying commentary is fairly generic and could use some more play specific analysis. The halftime and post game wrap-ups are good. Highlight reels are great looking, but could also benefit from dynamic play by play perspective commentary. The Top 3 plays, Game Recap and Player of the Game highlights are brilliant. All of these components are miles above what the competition is doing, but still not quite up to par with what 2K did with NFL2K5 years back.
Franchise mode (The Association) and Season mode are backed up with some deep stat tracking and storylines. 2K Sports is doing great things in putting games in perspective. There are daily headlines that summarize the action from around the NBA as well as speculating on trade rumors and the impact of league events. This is an incredibly immersive feature that makes playing a franchise in NBA 2K9 feel like much more than a solitary basketball game. This is an extremely deep simulation that uses supplementary modes and tools to showcase its solid graphics and tight gameplay.
The live ticker that shows real life sports scores is a great feature. It would be nice to be able to see scores and highlights of other 2K9 franchise/season games as they happen.
The biggest problem with NBA 2K9 is its navigation system. For as difficult as it is to master the controls of your players on the court, the menus are equally as challenging. Being able to find and access all of the modes, sliders and options is far too difficult. There are way too many different menus that contain confusing terminology and questionable hierarchy. Navigating through this system can feel like being lost in a maze. This will most certainly frustrate gamers who don't know specifically where to find what they are looking for. 2K Sports really needs to simplify and streamline its features properly next season. There are so many incredible modes and customizable features that are just too hard to find.
Presentation = 9/10
Overall: NBA 2K9 is a wonderful sports game. The controls are well mapped to the controller with somewhat intuitive analogue stick combinations. Casual gamers will find this game difficult. It will take most players a few hours to get the basics down pat and even more time to take advantage of the advanced moves. Given enough time, NBA 2K9 becomes the most realistic basketball simulation on the market. The graphics are good. Technically they are a mixed bag, where some player models still require further development. For the most part everything looks just like it should. The game looks and performs best from all of its gameplay cameras, where player movement and crowd atmosphere will rival that of a real televised game. The presentation is absolutely top shelf. Rival developers can learn a lot from the effort 2K Sports has put into this aspect of their NBA franchise. It goes to show just how far a superior presentation can take a sports title from a solid single-play game to an immersive ever-changing broadcast quality experience. The menus are a big pain and the commentary needs some more variety. Ultimately, if you put in the time to learn the advanced gameplay controls NBA 2K9 will reward you with one of the best virtual renditions of a prime time sport.
Final Rating = 8.8/10