Reviewed: October 23, 2008
Reviewed by: Jeremy Ewing

Publisher
2K Sports

Developer
Visual Concepts
Kush Games

Released: October 7, 2008
Genre: Sports
Players: 1-4

8
9
9
8
8.0

Supported Features:

NBA 2K9 offers these new and updated features:

• Shot Stick Advanced - The revolutionary Shot Stick control system takes it one step further, allowing you to change your shots in mid-air.

• Adaptive AI - Adaptive AI will read, react, and adjust in real time to your strategies. Your teammates will initiate cuts, picks, and post-ups based on how you handle the ball, while your opponent modifies strategy to fit the pace of the game.

• The Association 2.0 - The BEST just got even better. With NBA.com, you'll have access to all the latest rumors, trades, scores news stories and more, plus new features like Player Personalities, Ambitions, and Player Roles, a plethora of customizable options, and NEW mini-game drills make this is the deepest and most robust Franchise mode on the market.

• 2K-HD - Drastically improved facial and skin textures, better uniforms, improved eye movement and more realistic crowd reactions bring the game alive like never before.

• All-New Broadcast Team - Analyst Clark Kellogg and sideline reporter Cheryl Miller join color commentator Kevin Harlan to create one of the most knowledgeable broadcast teams in the game.

• Better Replays & Cut Scenes - End each quarter with enhanced, multiple angle replay highlights, and be rewarded like never before with all-new, true-to-life celebration sequences after you capture the NBA championship.

• Living Rosters - Weekly roster updates guarantee you're playing the most up-to-date NBA game ever. If a trade happens in the NBA it happens in your game. Rosters are automatically updated behind the scenes, so you're never late on a trade and always have the hottest players on your starting team.

• NBA 2K Online Features - 2K Sports' industry leading online service gets all-new features like 5-on-5 Multiplayer mode with Total Team Control and a new ranking system--from Bench Warmer to Rookie to Pro to Superstar--that shows you how to match up against your opponents.

• 2K Share - Create, upload, and share rosters, sliders, and even players created with the all-new Player DNA feature. This also includes the newly revamped Reelmaker, where you can now direct your own digital video highlight reels and post them on 2KSports.com or your personal web page for all the world to watch and admire.

NBA 2K9 dwarfs the competition with team selection offering ridiculous numbers of teams to choose for play. All current NBA teams plus the Jordan team, 00-06 All-Star teams, International Stars, 50’s-60’s Legends team, 70’s-90’s East and West All-Star teams, and last seasons East and West All Stars are all available for selection and each have their own home arena. Play selection is quiet large as well with each team having around 25-30 offensive plays as well as the typical defensive sets to choose from. 2K Sports also institutes an automatic update feature that keeps rosters as current as possible with trades and signing in the real world.

Visually NBA 2K9 matches EA blow for blow. There is no detail left untouched. Arenas look flawless from the courts to the players. Player models drip with sweat and the crowds come alive with the action. As usual NBA 2K9 is one of the prettiest games on the system. Facial expressions change in game after a missed shot or a big dunk, and the players react with what seems like real emotion to in game situations.

Adding to the emotion of the game is a great array of sounds. Offering top-notch Dolby Digital surround sound keeps player in the game. From crowd chants to stadium sounds, announcers to on the court noise, 2K misses nothing in the sound department. As is the case with most sports games, the audio really adds a major level of intensity to the game and makes you feel more in touch with the experience.

The “reel” thing that caught my interest with 2K9 was the ReelMaker feature. This allows players to capture video of their most dramatic moments and relive them later. Everyone likes a little smack talk when they’re on the court, and there’s nothing better than showing all your friends the game winning bucket you sank against your buddy.

The $60 price tag on NBA 2K9 is slightly more than the price of NBA Live ’09, but as we all know, sports game usually drop quickly, so I’m sure it will even out. My synopsis is that NBA 2K9 is a good game and worth the cost, but for the casual basketball fan the gameplay may be a little more difficult than they are looking to get themselves into. For the hardcore hoopsters, the realism is maybe a little more “on” than with Live.

Both games have lots of upside and are well worth the investment if you are interested in a basketball game. Unfortunately for 2K Sports, I would have to give EA the advantage for this year though. It’s not by much, but I just found myself enjoying Live a little more than 2K9.