NBA Live 2004 Review

While it will appeal most to those who want a game with an arcade slant, NBA Live 2004 makes a worthy addition to any basketball fan's collection.

As far as new features in Live 2004 go, perhaps the most significant change is the separation of the shoot and dunk buttons. This means you're able to force your player to attempt a dunk or layup even if you aren't facing the basket or don't have any momentum going toward the basket. If you're too far away from the basket for a dunk, your player will try for a teardrop or a layup off the glass. This change impacts the post-game in a positive way, as you have more control over the type of shot you want to take. No matter where you are, you can always opt for the jump hook or fadeaway jumper. However, if you can get a powerful low-post player, like Shaq, and back him down under the basket, you can often just hit the dunk button, and he'll spin around and throw it down on his defender. If you try it on a defender who does have good position, however, the computer will either call you for the offensive foul, or you'll simply miss the shot with all the contact you create.

Post players, like Chris Webber, can take advantage of the drop-step.

Another interesting addition is the pro hop button. By pressing this button on a drive to the basket, your player will execute a jump stop. As in real life, this maneuver can give you an extra bit of separation from the on-ball defender, freeing you up for a layup or dunk. In Live 2004, the jump stop sometimes feels a little too powerful. Even if you haven't gotten by your man, doing one can often push back the defender enough for you to get a cheap dunk. There are still drawbacks to using it. It's slower than going up for the layup directly, so that split second of delay may be enough time for a help defender to come in and block the shot. You need to weigh the pros and cons of trying to gain separation from the on-ball defender versus the possibility of getting swatted from the weak side or from behind--which is actually possible in Live 2004. Unlike last year's version, blocked shots in Live 2004 don't always go sailing out of bounds or into the back court, which is a nice change. You're usually able to rebound a swatted ball.

From the post, the pro hop button changes, in context, to become a power dribble button. By pressing it, your player attempts to drop-step around his defender. The downside is that your man will pick up the ball at the end of the maneuver, so if you haven't gotten clear, you've lost your dribble.

Rounding out the list of major new features added to the offensive side of the ball is the ability to take control of a player without the ball. By pressing the right thumbstick down and then selecting another button to choose one of the four off-ball players, you're able to move about the court to try and get open. Once you've moved to a good spot, you're able to call for a pass or an alley-oop at the basket. EA has also integrated freestyle control into moving without the ball, so you're able to make sharp cuts, spin off of defenders, slide step, and use other moves to get free from defenders for an open shot.

On the defensive side of the ball, you'll notice a new trapping feature has been included. If you double team the man with the ball, you'll see the two defenders position the ballhandler into a trap. The ballhandler can either pass or shoot out of the trap, but if he doesn't get rid of the ball in time, he'll usually get stripped by the defense. The trap gives the inside-outside game an added dimension of realism, as you're able to use a guard to harass a post player who has just received the entry pass and can prevent him from attempting a good shot.

Traps are a great way to try and force a turnover.

At the default settings, NBA Live 2004 is noticeably slower paced than last year's game. You need to execute a lot better and more carefully out of the half-court set to be successful--particularly the higher up you ratchet the difficulty. The freestyle moves are still very useful, but they're no longer a free path to a dunk. If the defender has a good position in front of the ballhandler, the two players will collide, and the offensive player will be thwarted on his drive. The slower pace makes defense feel like less of a futile chore and more rewarding if you can get stops. If you don't like the default game settings, EA has given plenty of different slider bar options to adjust game speed, fatigue (turned off by default, even in "simulation" mode), block, steal, and foul frequency, collision radius, and more.

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