Arguably the best game of basketball on the market today.
The game play in NBA 2k8 is very good, the players move up and down the court realistically and the pace of the game is very much like a real NBA game is. One cool feature is the hundreds of different shot styles for different players. Your favorite player shoots exactly like he does in real life, from Kobe's fade away to Shawn Marion's flick style jump shot. This customization doesn't stop at shooting either. Some of the best dunkers in the game now have their own dunk style, such as Vince Carter and Lebron James. Learning to cross over and juke may take some time for those who are unfamiliar with 2k basketball games however once you do get the hang of it the gameplay is a lot of fun. What surprised me about the gameplay is I found no real problem with it. The missed layup problem is much less severe than it was in previous games and aside from the game freezing on me too much (which I blame on overplay of the game) the game play is very good.
Graphically the game is superb. The character models look pretty good and most of the players look very similar to their real-life counterparts. One thing I did not like was the appearance of the created players/drafted players. Most of the drafted players look ridiculous sporting huge afros and faces that resemble those with down syndrome. It would have been nice if 2k had spent more time making created players that resemble normal human beings. As for the arenas themselves, they look fantastic. Each arena really has the atmosphere of an NBA arena.
2k8 has a number of different game modes that provide for a lot of playability. The biggest mode is the Dynasty mode, in which you take control of a team and play through multiple seasons. There are few things more satisfying for me in 2k8 than leading the Charlotte Bobcats to an NBA title. So basically, if you've always wanted to see your favorite NBA team become a dynasty, this is your best bet. Dynasty mode has a lot of depth and you really feel like you have full control over the team. A new mode added this year is the dunk contest. The mode is self-explanatory, and its a nice addition to the game although I think NBA Live's version of the dunk contest is better.
Overall NBA 2k8 is a great basketball game and possibly the best basketball game ever made. If you're a fan of basketball games its a must have. The game is fun and easy to pick up and playing against a friend can be a lot of fun, especially when you dunk on him.