NBA 2K2

Sega keeps the ball firmly in its court, and NBA 2K2 stakes its claim as the best basketball game on the Xbox.

The Trifecta
NBA 2K2 on the Xbox is officially the third interpretation of the game to appear on as many consoles, and it?s also the third basketball game for the Xbox. Just the same, it is?without a doubt?the pick of the crop.

Graphically, 2K2 presents all the impressive, beefed-up character models of the PlayStation 2 version without the jagged edges that plague that system. Everything has a nice rounded polish, making the game appear more natural. The fine 2K2 animations are all intact, and some of the replay cameras have been tweaked to better highlight the action.

The controls work extremely well with the Xbox pad as it mirrors the topnotch controller layout from the Dreamcast version almost exactly. The left analog stick handles all the action with flare, and the right stick sets up all your play calls like an all-star point guard. The analog shoulder triggers deftly handle the free throws, which will be very familiar to Dreamcast roundball players.

The sound department is the only area where improvement is still needed. The highly repetitive commentary draws the obvious foul. Court effects and player chatter is solid, while the ambient sounds in Street mode fit the loose play style perfectly.

Awesome Baby!
As in incarnations before this, the computer A.I. of your opponent and teammates is the shining feature that blinds the competition. The game flows realistically, and the players look like they are actually making decisions. You have to play smart just to stay in the game as sub par play will put you in a scoring deficit every time. EA?s NBA Live has better character models and Microsoft?s Inside Drive has the best-looking arenas, but Sega?s NBA 2K2 is the complete package for basketball on the Xbox.

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