EA to reboot NBA series

EA Sports will reboot its NBA Live series of basketball games this autumn with new physics and control systems, as well as a new name: NBA Elite. NBA Elite 11, due for release in October on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, will follow last year's NBA Live 10.

The new controls, says EA, are built around a "hands-on control" scheme that maps a player's movement to actions on the court, as opposed to triggering predetermined animations. In the game's new skill-based shooting system, success will rely on accurate player input rather than "randomly generated dice rolls," the megapublisher said.

EA's NBA-licensed basketball games have sold more than 25 million units since 1995, according to TRST/NPD data. EA will be hoping a rebranded, reinvigorated NBA franchise can see off the competition from 2K Sports' NBA 2K series.

The changes were rumoured last week, thanks to leaks and a cryptic teaser posted by EA (shown above). NBA Live 11 will be released this October and is not yet rated by PEGI or the ESRB.

For more on the reboot, check out GameSpot's Q&A with EA Sports creative director David Littman.