NBA Live 06 Review (Xbox 360)

"For a huge gaming company like EA, heading into the next-generation of consoles is quite a trying time. The world’s number one sports game developer creates a game for nearly every sport every year a console is still the latest technology. When a new system rolls around, the bar must be set – high - as the rest of a given sports series will most likely rely on the engines developed for the freshman effort.

NBA Live 06 is a title that many b-ballers have their eye on, as it was one of the better looking 360 games in Beta at E3 and in pre-launch media. The regular gen version of NBA Live 06 received some oomph from a Freestyle Superstar system and the return of All-Star weekend, but EA’s freshman 360 offering will have none of these extras upon which to rely. Can a “no frills” NBA Live 06 hit nothing but net with the Xbox 360 crowd, or will it take more to tickle their twine? Let’s find out.

Gameplay

As mentioned above, NBA Live 06 is fairly stripped down as compared to the later versions of the franchise on the regular Xbox. No slam dunk (looking forward to this in later games though) contest. In fact, there are no All-Star weekend festivities in NBA Live 06 at all. Those who have come to love the Freestyle Superstar system (like myself) will have to wait for that too, as NBA Live 06 for the 360 features a straight-up EA moveset with generic analog dekes on the right stick (EA’s patented Freestyle Control system), and little else in the way of personalization." [more]