EA Sports has gone through many phases over the years. In the early to mid 90's, they were unquestionably the best sports video game maker. But then they messed with success and tried to get too cute with some of their games, letting other companies pull ahead of them in quality.
The franchise that has suffered the most in recent years is NBA Live, with 989 and Sega consistently making better games.
Maybe Grizzlies Coach Hubie Brown could say it best.
"So, you're EA Sports. In the early 90's, you showed tremendous upside. You had such winners as Lakers versus Celtics and the Madden series. You're hitting everything you shoot, you're diving for loose balls, and you're playing strong defense. But then you start to get lazy and the rest of the league starts to catch up. Eventually you realize you're making mistakes, and you start to fix your problems."
Well, Hubie's right. With NBA Live 2004, EA Sports has put out their best basketball game in years.
Before we get to the game, the cover must be addressed. Now, with the EA cover jinx alive and well, I guess the graphics department decided to go for the ever elusive cover jinx Triple Crown with reckless abandon. With Mike Vick out and the Falcons sucking, a Madden cover appearance is officially cursed. And the guy in the NHL department at EA certainly didn't see Atlanta Thrashers' Dany Heatly forgetting how to drive a Ferrari when they released their game. But how the hell do you expect Vince Carter to live up to any expectations a cover boy should have? Can you imagine the conversation when they decided to put him on the cover?
EA exec # 1: You know, with all the optimism for this basketball season, we should put someone on the cover that really represents what the league is all about.
EA exec # 2: You're absolutely right. Let's put Vince Carter on the cover. He gets hurt two months into the season, can't play any defense, shoots the ball too much, and can't help his team win a playoff series. But Sportscenter shows his dunks a lot.
I just don't get it. Anyone would have been a better choice. Why put a guy playing basketball on the cover, when most of this year, he won't be doing it? They should have had a picture of Kobe in a courtroom. At least that would be an accurate depiction of where he'll be spending his time.
Anyway, on to the game.
It starts with the graphics and continues with the game play. This game has it all, signature dunks, momentum swings, and the cool new freestyle control.
Live 2004 has great play control. During games, you'll notice how everyone moves without the ball, how called plays really work, and how you can actually play defense. The game momentum swings realistically. If your team is mounting a comeback, the computer gets flustered and makes poor decisions, just like teams in the real NBA.
The most recent addition to the franchise is the freestyle button. You may have seen it advertised in the 15,000 commercials EA runs during NBA broadcasts. The button is really a cool idea. You can use the R3 analog stick to make your player do things with or without the ball. When you are on defense, the button can be used to steal the ball. But when you get on offense, the real magic begins. If you have the ball and you aren't dribbling, you can swing the ball around and pivot. This can create space for a shot or allow you to gain a step on a defender. When you are dribbling, you can use the freestyle button to spin or perform crossover dribble.
When I first started to play the game, I immediately created myself. After playing the new Tiger Woods game, I figured I would have an extensive create-a-player option list. Boy, was I wrong. They only offer a handful of different options for your player. Where's the patented Jerry Rice I'm-going-bald-but-can't-accept-it dread look? They have 16 different types of so-called "old school" goggles, but they look like the ones Horace Grant wore in Orlando. Where's the Kurt Rambis glasses? One nice touch is in the shoe option. I armed my player with black Chuck Taylor All-Stars. Jimmy Chitwood and the rest of the Hickory High team would be proud.
NBA Live 2004
Platorms: Playstation 2, Xbox, Gamecube, PC
Developer: EA Canada
Publisher: EA Sports
One of the things I can't stand on these new EA sports games is the music, and Live 2004 keeps the trend alive. This crap sucks.
They have 14 songs on the game, which should lead to a little variety; at least you would think so. But the same two or three goddamn songs played every time I got to a menu. It got to the point where my girlfriend couldn't even sit in the same room as me when I played the game.
She said it best when she bolted out of the living room shouting "I can't take it anymore. This music makes me want to shoot myself. It's that get in your head, make you go crazy kind of music."
The dynasty mode was also a little disappointing. Don't they talk to the other departments down at EA headquarters? Madden has such an extensive list of things to do as an owner. You can even set the beer prices - no such luck with Live 2004. All you can do is manage your roster. They can't even do you the favor of using a dollar amount on your salary cap. Instead, you're stuck using fictitious points, and good luck figuring out how many you can use to sign players.
Overall, the game is fun to play. The only major screw-up is with the all 80s team, where the omission of Bernard King is completely unforgivable. If King's knees didn't give out, people would be talking about him in the same breath as Larry Bird. He was that good.
Even without the gizmos that make other EA games so fun to play, the bottom line is no one who likes basketball is going to stop playing this game because they can't set beer prices at the Staples Center.
NBA Live 2004 may have its weaknesses, but the bottom line: anyone who likes NBA basketball will love this game. I give it a solid B.
Reach the reporter at nicholas.kramer@asu.edu.
