The NBA Live demo dropped on Aug. 11 and I couldn’t wait to play it. Every year I hear about the newest NBA Live effort, and every year I’m at least a little bit curious as to what the game will look like.
As someone who grew up playing both NBA Live and NBA 2K, I’m a fan of both franchises and like numerous renditions of both games.
Ever since the NBA Elite 11 fiasco, I've been patiently waiting for the day when NBA Live returns to the level that we all remember from back in the day.
NBA Live 2005 with Carmelo Anthony on the cover, the classic soundtrack, and the fun 3-point shootout. That level of greatness.
After seeing some snippets of NBA Live 18 gameplay and a ton of opinions on Twitter and YouTube, I decided to keep a running tally of my thoughts while playing the demo.
1. I LIKE THIS INTRO. I GOT I GOT I GOT ROYALTY GOT LOYALTY INSIDE MY DNA.
2. Oh boy, not face scan time. I have to download a companion app, don’t I?
3. Lighting? /Walks around house
4. It’s working ... never mind it’s not working.
5. My arms are getting tired ... FOR THE LAST TIME MY FACE IS IN THE CIRCLE!
6. It works. It’s loading. I’m scared.
7. Holy crap, it looks like me. I’m scared. The machines are out to get us. My head looks kind of small but OK.
8. Even in the demo version, Russ and KD are on opposite teams.
9. The accuracy of how the players look compared to their real-life counterparts varies from player to player. I wasn’t expecting perfection here, though, so this isn’t much of a surprise.
Although you do still have the occasional scary one.
But that aspect of the game is not as important to me.
10. This shot meter is going to take some getting used to. It feels slower than what I'm accustomed to. Adjusting the game speed to 90 made me more comfortable with it.
11. This menu and soundtrack are lit. LOOK AT THIS PLAYLIST!
12. The servers are down. I guess I’ll come back later.
13. Servers back!
14. They never have my last name (Yeboah) in the game.
15. Wow, they have hairstyles for days!
16. It is I, Kof Harden
17. The narrator just said I tore my ACL and sprained my MCL and tore my meniscus?! DO I EVEN WANT TO PLAY BASKETBALL ANYMORE?!
(The subtitles and video don’t match up)
18. These park/pro-am loading screens and intro videos are informative and possess dope visuals.
It gives those people who don’t know about a historic park/playground some insight on the court they are stepping on. Those gamers asking “What the hell is the Drew League?” or “Why is Rucker Park so famous?” get their questions answered. It’s a fun lesson. The only downside about these loading screens is that I didn’t seem to have an option to skip them.
19. Playmaker type seems fine to me.
20. Oh look, there’s no layup meter!
21. The upgrade system for unlocking animations, traits, and stuff is really cool.
I can also swap out traits on a game-by-game basis? Awesome.
22. Choosing Playmaker was a bad choice.
23. NBA Live got Kyrie right!
24. Adjusting the game speed might be necessary depending on what sports games you usually play.
25. The play-by-play commentary needs improvement.
I know I’m being a stickler, but it sounds like I’m playing NBA Jam. It feels like Mike Breen and Jeff Van Gundy didn’t record their audio at the same time. There isn’t any true back and forth between them. It’s not a big deal, but it is something I noticed.
26. The first part of the demo seemed super stiff and then I realized that my custom character was a scrub who didn’t have any dribble moves.
Being used to playing NBA 2K, I thought the game speed seemed slow at first. I was having a hard time getting used to shot timing and defense, but increasing the game speed setting helped me get more comfortable.
27. WE GOOD NOW! I HAVE DRIBBLE MOVES! COME GET SOME, IT!
Game winner?
LIT!
28. I like how it shows me who I’m going to pass to before I even think about passing. The visible line is helpful for court vision and control.
Which helped me complete this play.
In most sports video games, who you’re going to pass the ball to can often be implied.
However, there are always instances in sports video games where you pass to the wrong player because you didn’t use icon passing and just assumed that they would make the move that you wanted to make.
While icon passing can easily solve these problems, sometimes using the standard pass buttons are easier and this white line can help both casual and advanced gamers from those “I pressed the wrong button, I swear!” moments.
29. The tutorial has a checklist for when you complete moves? I dig it.
30. Hype Brothers back?! We’re about to be lit!
I get to reunite with my former teammate (Nick Howard) and show the world that I can still ball after all the stuff that has happened to my legs. I have Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman talking about me on First Take, so I know I must be a big deal.
31. Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhh
The Warriors might be off-limits.
32. Wow, Klay Thompson’s jumper is kind of unfair.
33. Let’s get into these drills.
34. Oh, this is why I’ve been terrible at defense so far.
35. I really, really, really like this menu. LOOK HOW CLEAN IT IS. LOOK AT IT!
36. EA Sports made a conscious effort to let you get used to the controls before you start to play. These constant control reminders will be very helpful to the casual gamer.
Almost every loading screen features a teachable moment for players who are new to the game.
37. There are also options for beginners in case you’re just starting to learn the game. They recommend plays for you and they’re pretty easy to run. The instructions that then show up on the court are very easy to comprehend.
38. The demo also gives you prompts and then lets you know if you accomplished the task that it asked you to complete. It’s a good feature for on-the-fly learning.
39. I had fun with this demo.
I approached this demo trying my hardest not to compare it to 2K every step of the way and I ended up having a good time. After all, it’s still a video game.
Unlike the NBA Live 15 and 16 demos, I didn’t find myself wanting to quit and never play the game again. The game modes and new features kept me intrigued throughout the demo.
40. How you like this demo is going to depend on what you prefer in a video game.
Of course, the gameplay is a little bit different from 2K, but I encourage you to try it out for yourselves because I’m not going to sit here and try to gauge what you prefer in a basketball game. It may be the presentation. It may be the experience. You might like an arcade feel. You might like a video game that’s as close to realistic as possible.
41. My takeaway from the demo is NBA Live is taking a step in the right direction.
No, the demo isn’t perfect. Some of the animations flat-out don’t make sense or come off as the game trying too hard to be cool. But these negatives weren't enough to make me completely give up on it. After this preview, I’m actually looking forward to trying out the full version.
Ball is life.