NBA Live 2005 Hands-On

At Electronic Arts' annual summertime press event, we got an opportunity to try out the latest version of NBA Live 2005 on the Xbox. EA had just announced the new All-Star Weekend feature of the game today, and our version of the game included all the new included gameplay modes, which will also be available in other versions of the game.

NBA Live 2005 will include new gameplay modes and enhancements. Click "stream" for a larger view.

Just like in the real-life NBA All-Star Weekend, there will be four events represented in NBA Live 2005--the All-Star game itself, the rookies-vs.-sophomores game, the three-point shootout, and the slam dunk contest. All of these are available as separate gameplay modes, or within the context of season and franchise mode. The centerpiece of these four events is the slam dunk contest. Live 2005 will include a new feature called "freestyle dunking," for use in the dunk contest. Instead of just having you press a single button to execute a dunk as you (still) do in a regular match of NBA Live, the freestyle dunk mode is a complicated affair that pieces together up to seven different animations to create your custom dunk. In all, the developers boast that thousands of different dunks will be possible. In our play testing, we were able to execute 180 reverse dunks, 360 slams, between-the-legs jams, and even Vince Carter's signature elbow-dip dunk.

You'll start with your player holding the ball, by himself on the court. As you run toward the rim, you tap any of the four face buttons to execute your takeoff. The four basic takeoffs are one-footed, two-footed, one-footed with rotation, and two-footed with rotation. Once you're airborne, the face buttons change function into trick buttons. You must press and hold the trick button for the perfect amount of time before releasing, in order to successfully execute your dunk. If you don't hold it long enough, you'll abort in midair. If you hold it too long, your dunk will clang off the back iron.

Sound simple? Things start to get complicated with the shoulder buttons. By pressing either of the shoulder buttons along with your takeoff or trick, you can modify the takeoff or trick. So on the Xbox, executing an A, B dunk is not the same as an L+A, L+B dunk. Things also change slightly depending on your positioning on the court and your takeoff point relative to the basket.

Still following? You can make even more spectacular (and exponentially more difficult) dunks by first executing a toss. Just like in the real-life dunk contest, you can lob the ball high off the ground and catch it off the bounce. You can punch it with your elbow and grab it off the glass or toss it up one-handed and bank it off the shot clock. You can even start with your back to the basket and bounce the ball off the ground. In practice, the toss requires you to time and place your takeoff perfectly--any slight variance to your start position on the court alters the timing off a toss dunk significantly. During our brief play-testing time, we managed to properly catch our own tosses only a few times, and we never actually managed to successfully dunk off a toss. Perfectionists who live for such gameplay are sure to derive immense enjoyment from NBA Live 2005's dunk mode and dunk contest.

While the game includes a practice mode for you to practice your dunking in a gym, the real venue for freestyle dunks is the slam dunk contest. In it, you'll be able to choose from dozens of different players (each team will have a representative--some may have more than one), but the only players included will be ones that make sense. Lakers fans for example, may pick Kobe Bryant in the dunk contest, but don't expect to be able to use the low-flying Luke Walton. You can set up the contest for up to four players or set the computer to handle a couple of participants. In the contest, you'll see lighting set up in an all-star fashion, with colored and shaped spotlights, extra JumboTrons in the background, and non-participating players sitting on the sidelines in warm-ups and street clothes. Do an especially nasty dunk and you'll see those players jump up in a frenzy with cameras and camcorders in hand. You'll also see a five-man panel of NBA legends such as Julius Erving and George Gervin holding up numbered signs to score your dunks. TNT's Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson will be on hand to provide commentary for the side events of NBA All-Star Weekend. But don't worry, Marv Albert fans. The marvelous play-by-play man and Mike Fratello still handle regular announcing duties for the primary game.

We also had a chance to try out the three-point shooting mode. As you can imagine, it's pretty basic. You can select any player (not just sharpshooters) and even bring in old-school legends like Bob Cousy and Larry Bird. The right trigger button picks the ball up off the rack, while any of the four face buttons serve as your shoot button. From there, you simply fire off as many basketballs as you can in 60 seconds off the five racks stationed around the arc, just like in the real-life contest.

We finished our extensive hands-on gameplay by playing a half of the regular basketball game. EA has included an all-new graphics engine, with improved player faces, and an upgrade to the lighting engine. Even at this early stage, the game is looking very sharp, and additional new animations have also been included. Much to our relief, one of these new animations is a soft lob into the post; to be sure, there are a good number of new passing and defensive animations.

One of the biggest improvements to the gameplay is added defense against the jump stop maneuver. Veterans of last year's game may remember that the jump stop (or pro hop) was oftentimes just a free pass to a dunk, as it allowed you to push back a defender and give yourself great position under the basket. This time around, if you don't aim your hop into an open space, you'll lose control of the ball and turn it over, or simply get it stripped. You may also get tagged with an offensive foul if you run over a defender with your hop. Rounding out the list of new changes is added control over offensive rebounds. Instead of having no control over whether your player attempts a tip-in or putback dunk or just pulls down the board, you can now use three different buttons to crash the glass. Press the dunk/layup button to try a putback dunk. Hit the shoot button to try a tip-in. Or just press jump and pull down the rebound.

Overall, we're excited at all the new changes being brought forth in NBA Live 2005. The new freestyle dunks and All-Star Weekend modes should add a great deal of value to the game, while tweaks to the graphics engine and core gameplay should amp up the presentation and realism of the game a great deal. Stay tuned to GameSpot for more information on NBA Live 2005 as they become available.