“Give that man a teddy
bear!” intones play-by-play announcer Kevin Calabro.
What does that have to do
with NBA basketball? No clue, really, unless it is an obscure reference to
carnival arcade games and sharpshooting that earns the teddy bear prize. While
NBA 08, from SCEA for the PlayStation 3, has some stumbles in terms of AI, the
most glaring miscues in the release come from the sound track and the announcing
that seems to not match up with the action.
Mark Jackson, the color
commentator, may remark that the missed three pointer was because the shooter is
not known for his ability to shoot, let alone knock ‘em down from outside. But
the game stats show that the shooter has hit 10 treys and has 45 total points.
His season average for hitting three-pointers in 72% and he has a league-leading
48 ppg average. Oops, missed that one.
Or how about when the
opposing team knocks down a pair of free throws and Calabro states with
authority that free throws could well make a difference in a tight game like
this one. Problem is the opposing team is trailing by 35 late in the third
quarter. No, Calabro was not being sarcastic – at least the tone didn’t imply
so, especially when, moment later, he talks about how the winning team could
phone in the rest of the game.
Ok, so the sound is not so
great, but what about the gameplay and the graphics. Graphically, NBA 08 is
first rate. The arenas look terrific; the ball dynamics are first rate. This is
a game that clips along at 60 frames per second at 1080p. Put that on the big
screen (in this case a 42-inch Sony Bravia) and enjoy. The cut scenes are very
well done, replaying that showtime moment. (And showtime moments do collect on
the scoreboard. If you perform a showtime moment, you will register a lighted
bar under your team name. The opposing team can erase it by performing such a
moment; but collect three showtime moments and you get a temporary game
attribute buff.)
But one of the solid aspects
of the showtime replay is also a game downfall. For whatever reason, you may be
transitioning back onto defense after a great dunk play and the game switches to
the replay, and your player movements are suspended. When the other team
inbounds, you may be out of position.
Playing as the Phoenix Suns,
it seemed odd that point guard Steve Nash always seemed to pop up, after the
Suns made a basketball, where the shooter was. You have a shooting guard pop one
in from the baseline and yep, Nash is suddenly there as the other team inbounds.
This happened several times and lead to some questions about the game’s AI.
There are more than a few
instances where players will step out of bounds for no particular reason, and
applying a little full-court pressure on defense will garner an over-and-back
call more than would happen in the real game.
Is your favorite NBA team a
perennial cellar dweller? Well, because there are no trade restrictions in the
game, you can turn that team into the class of the NBA. Not only will you be
able to play through the 34 weeks of the NBA season, and the playoffs, but Sony
has brought back NBA Replay – a mode that allows you to download the key moments
of the NBA season and attempt to replay them exactly as they were performed in
real life.
The SIXAXIS controller gets
a bit of a revamp, in what Sony is terming the Free6 Control scheme. Not only
can you use it offensively to make crossovers and jukes, but defensively you can
tilt the controller forward to put your defenders’ hands down or tilt it back to
raise your hands to guard either an attempted pass over the top or to block a
shooter’s view of the basket. On offense, moving the controlling will pull off
step backs, spin moves, push offs, hesitation moves or crossovers. As for the
game controls, the SIXAXIS aside, the game is functionally easy on gamers. The O
button is the shot button with the square used for dunks and layups. The
triangle is for jumping and rebounding while the X button passes the ball. There
are set plays tied to the directional keys, and you can move faster with the R1
button while the R2 button, in conjunction with the triangle hotkey provides the
alley-oop – but timing is key here as your players will react immediately and
you had better have them in position or you will merely turn over the ball.
Just as
shooting is tied to the meter (you want to hit green) that SCEA has used in
previous iterations, the rebounding skill is also tied to timing. When a shot
goes up that will miss, there will be a glowing area on the floor. You must
position your nearest player quickly and hit the triangle button. Failure to do
so will likely mean losing the board.
The game allows gamers to
create a player, and edit him as you move through the season through the
progression hub (tied to the start button). Accomplishing in-game goals nets big
experience, which translates to credits. You can improve skills or use the
credits to buy new gear; the gear, though, is tied to level and you will need to
gain experience to level up and buy new gear appropriate to the level.
Game modes run the gamut
from exhibition to season to playoffs. There is multiplayer online and offline,
and not only includes games but skill challenges as well. You may be tasked with
hitting a jumper from a certain spot, or completing a certain number of assists,
or dominating the boards. The NBA Replay challenges are downloaded weekly. There
are also three mini games.
When in season mode, you can
control the game through the coaches’ menu – which basically entails calling
timeouts, or making substitutions. The interface for this is easily managed and
the learning curve is very small.
There are unlockables, like
classic jerseys (some of them are just downright ugly), player cards, trophies
and game balls. In all there are more than 90 challenges you can accomplish.
NBA 08 may seem, judging
from the review, that there are a lot more setbacks than there are positives,
but that isn’t quite true. While the game does have its share of stumbles, it
also has some truly terrific elements. The shooting mechanics are great, the
graphics are amazing and the game is fun. There are a lot of challenges for
players of any level. Sony has a bit of a way to go to make this title the cream
of the crop, but the elements are there. Building on the foundation is all that
is truly needed.
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Gameplay: 7.4
There are some
blaring AI issues, but aside from that the games flows well.
Graphics: 8.5
Some clipping issues
but the animations and physics are well done.
Sound: 6.5
The music is solid,
but the play-by-play is out of touch with the game. The arena noises are solid.
Difficulty: Medium
Concept: 7.5
A good foundation,
but there is still work to do. The SIXAXIS control scheme is solid and the
shooting mechanics are very nicely configured. The lack of restraints on trading
(only your conscience will govern your actions) are a bit of a problem. And the
AI needs to be fixed.
Multiplayer: N/A
Not available until
the game ships, NBA 08 will have full online support with downloadable
challenges and online games.
Overall: 7.5
This is a case of
the good versus the bad: great graphics against poor commentary, great shooting
mechanics squaring off against AI miscues (stepping out of bounds or backcourt
violations), solid downloadable challenges versus lack of trade restrictions …
NBA 08 does score where it counts though – the game is fun to play. NBA 08 is
the second PS3 iteration of the franchise. The first was a launch title. NBA 08
is the second developed for the system. This, more so than NBA 07, is the
foundation that Sony needs to build on for the next title. Given that, this is a
solid title to build from.
