NBA Live 2004

This is the only game in town for GameCube owners, so what?s the damage?

NBA Live 2004 ramps up the defense and piles on the features for an impressive all-around game, but some game-balance issues remain.

Full-Circle Freestyle
The coolest feature in last year?s game was the innovative Freestyle control that fueled a high-powered offensive experience. The problem was that the defense got left out in the cold, turning games against the computer into blowouts and reducing matches against friends to dunkfests. NBA Live 2004 corrects that issue in a major way?for better and for worse. Some tweaks, like the more effective shot blocking and steals are great, but other additions, like the new defensive A.I., are extremely unforgiving. Setting traps and smarter teammates who set picks more often help boost the plus column. The fancy NBA Step move is cool, but it?s way too powerful a move on offense and can be heavily abused.

Players who got comfortable with last year?s default difficulty will be in for a rude awakening as performing well in anything above the rookie setting takes a great deal of practice?even scrub teams are hard to beat. Still, that?s not such a bad thing in most gamers? books as long as the tools are there to master and beat the system. Luckily, Live 2004 supplies what?s needed, and players should be back in competitive shape about a third of the way into a regular season?s worth of games. Speaking of season, the revamped Dynasty mode takes a cue from other EA Sports titles and has come back with a large host of customizable features and unlockable items. While there are more custom-player options than ever, you can?t help but wish that even more were available and to be able to continually train and manage players realistically rather than buying time-based power-ups.

System Shoot Out
The overall visual and audio presentation across all console versions doesn?t vary too much from one another. While the players in general look a bit cartoonish, they animate in a satisfying way that heightens the action on the floor. The Xbox version does have a slight edge in graphics, but it doesn?t overshadow the others. Audio is uniformly great as well, offering fantastic commentary by Marv Albert and Mike Fratello. NBA Live once again takes the ?best soundtrack? award with popular artists like Outkast and Chingy.

When it comes to sports games, the GameCube?s controller always seems to suffer in points due to its unconventional button arrangement, but surprisingly it?s not an issue this year. The default setting has been specialized for the GameCube, and it works wonders. That said, the PlayStation 2 controller still handles all the action the best with the other two close behind. The toughest control-related item is the two separate shot buttons?one for jumpers and one for lay-ups/dunks. There?s no good reason for this, and it can mess up your game at the most heated moment in a match no matter how accustomed to it you become.

Right Thurr
The match-up between NBA Live 2004 and ESPN NBA Basketball 2K4 has never been as close as it is this year. Live offers a large selection of special features, online play for the PlayStation 2 version, and a healthy dose of fun. If the offensive and defensive balance were just a bit more fine-tuned, and the Xbox and GameCube versions had online support, NBA Live 2004 would have the legs for multiple plays through the Dynasty mode and a clear shot as the top hoops game. Still, GameCube owners don?t have any other hoop sim choices this year, so it?s the definitely the top game for them at least.

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