NBA 2K7 360 Demo Impressions

kevinpars · Post by **kevinpars** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 7:03 am

The NBA 2K7 demo is up on Live. I just saw that it was up on Major Nelson's blog this morning, so I have not downloaded it yet. If this game is anywhere near as fun as NHL 2K7 has been so far, I am set until baseball season.

AJColossal · Post by **AJColossal** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 11:32 am

Anyone play it? OS impressions have been through the roof positive.

I'm liking that the game seems to be limiting charge to the basket and dunk cheesiness. All the individual player moves, shots, and tenedencies for so many of the players (including the lesser-knowns, not just the stars) sounds really cool too.

Wilk5280 · Post by **Wilk5280** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 2:56 pm

played it for 5 minutes and loved it.

Not enough time to really give impressions, but it was a very good 5 minutes. Can't wait until I can sit down and play it as well as digest what's going on.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 3:20 pm

All I can say is HOLY CRAP. I loved last years and this one just has SOOOO much more to it. More post moves, more defensive sets/moves, more animations by far and the same fluid gameplay from last year. I cannot wait till this drops...it's gonna be insane.

One thing I did notice is that it's not close to being a complete build. They don't have the player names in the database yet so none of the players names are announced...just numbers. At least I hope it's not complete in that regard.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 9:10 pm

Wow! Wow! Wow! I just can't believe how much more immersive this game has become from a year ago. And not to knock last year's product. It was superb. However, I just can't stop marveling at the atmosphere. You have a plethora of animations from the cheerleaders, fans, mascot, coaches, players on the bench, the towel guy, etc. It's simply amazing. The lighting looks perfect.

I haven't even talked about the gameplay yet! Williams on the Heat might brought the ball up the court a differently a few times. The fluidity of the players just looks phenomenal. I don't know what level the game is being played on, but I can finally hit jump shots when I'm open! Also, you can't just throw the ball down towards the basket with the lead pass. More times than not, it'll get deflected. I'm just in awe of how beautiful this game looks and plays. I cannot wait until release day.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 9:12 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:All I can say is HOLY CRAP. I loved last years and this one just has SOOOO much more to it. More post moves, more defensive sets/moves, more animations by far and the same fluid gameplay from last year. I cannot wait till this drops...it's gonna be insane.

One thing I did notice is that it's not close to being a complete build. They don't have the player names in the database yet so none of the players names are announced...just numbers. At least I hope it's not complete in that regard.

The demo I played, they did in fact call out the players names. There was only one player in which they called out his number. Number 34 on the heat I believe. The announcer called everyone else by their name.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 9:23 pm

This game is seriously unbelieveable. I'm seeing different animations (cheerleader running off the court after a timeout, the mascot falling down on the sidelines while the game is going on, the mascot playfully teasing behind the refs during a timeout, etc. etc.) The game just feels so alive and real.

While on defense, Terry threw the ball over Haslim to Dirk who had a mismatch with Walker on him. Dirk easily drained the shot just inside the free throw line. I love getting the ball down to Shaq and holding the left trigger to bank it off the backboard. Speaking of Shaq, we might see a good deal of Hack-a-Shaq online. Man, it's tough as heck to shoot free throws with him. I haven't made one yet!

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 9:24 pm

The announcers call out the players by name...I meant the PA announcer.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Thu Sep 14, 2006 10:56 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:The announcers call out the players by name...I meant the PA announcer.

Ahh, I didn't catch that. I gotta think that'll be fixed though.

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 10:17 am

Well, I downloaded the demo last night. I'll start with my negative first. I don't like the sideline cam in basketball games. I really wanted to try the game using the end cam but you can't. I know why they locked the demo with this camera though, that's because at a quick glance it looks friggin real. Fortunately the camera angle has nothing to do with the game itself since I don't like that camera angle in any basketball game. The game itself is amazing. You can tell where all of 2k sports efforts went this year. NBA 2k has always been a good baller but the end of the NFL 2k series has marked the beginning of the NBA 2k series getting superstar treatment rather than star treatment. How guys continue to by Live blindly is beyond me. Hopefully this demo will open some people's eyes to this game.

anchester · Post by **anchester** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 10:34 am

The gameplay was fantastic, but I have 2 criticisms.

1) where are the indicators below the players showing what the strengths are (3 pointer, steals, blocks, dunks, etc)

2) Toyota replay stuff could not be skipped.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 10:37 am

I don't like sideline cameras in basketball either, but I will say that is the smoothest one I've seen yet.

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 10:48 am

I must be missing something. Is there a way to do a jab step in this game? Is there any 'triple threat' position that's funcitonal? I can't seem to beat anyone on the dribble, since I can't find a jab step, can't do a crossover, or any kind of deke, or fake pass or anything. I did have some success down low by spazzing on the L-trigger and getting some kind of drop-step action, but I'm have real frustrations trying to make space for a shot on the perimeter or a drive towards the basket. Help would be appreciated.

Also, it's good to see I can still do that fancy dribble up the floor where the ball never touches the ground

. Ball physics still disappoint me, though I haven't noticed the ball passing through the rim from below, or through a player's butt or arm on the way up for a dunk, at least not in the two or three quarters I played in the demo. That and the mario-style running in place in a crowded lane seem to be alive and well.

I'm not sure I'm a fan of these little 'musical interlude' replays. They may add to the 'holla!' feeling when you make a big shot, but they really seem to interrupt the action and break the flow.

AJColossal · Post by **AJColossal** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 11:16 am

Re: moves out of the "triple threat" and such, OS has a demo impressions page and they go into a lot of the moves you can do.

As for my impressions: WOW.

This game reminds me of The Show in the sense that it's a testament to how much the little details can immerse you in a game. The different shot styles add SO MUCH to the realism. I saw distinct shooting styles for Terry, Nowitzki, Williams, Shaq (shooting FTs is hilarious with him!) Wade, Antoine Walker (holy s*** it's right on), and several others.

One of the producers said it best when he said last year they made a great basketball simulation but a poor NBA simulation. I really feel like the players now play just like their counterparts. There wasn't really a moment where I said, "Shaq doesn't do that, or Nowitzki would never do that in that situation". It all felt very real.

All the other gameplay nitpicks I had from last year regarding the CPU not being fouled enough, offensive rebounding, and court spacing (you can actually hit an open man on the arc without the D supernaturally getting back in position) seemed to have been addressed and taken care of.

What's probably the most impressive is that this is only a demo. Aren't demos supposed to suck for the most part?

Again, WOW.

MizzouRah · Post by **MizzouRah** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 12:10 pm

Damn... I wish I liked pro basketball.

grtwhtsk · Post by **grtwhtsk** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 12:13 pm

Guys, when is the release date?

Wilk5280 · Post by **Wilk5280** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 12:34 pm

ships 9/25

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 12:57 pm

anchester wrote:The gameplay was fantastic, but I have 2 criticisms.

1) where are the indicators below the players showing what the strengths are (3 pointer, steals, blocks, dunks, etc)

2) Toyota replay stuff could not be skipped.

1. People use those? I turn those off first thing. I'm sure they'll be in the full version...2k loves those things and sticks them in everything.

2. Press Start...Toyota Replay skipped.

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 1:29 pm

AJColossal wrote:Re: moves out of the "triple threat" and such, OS has a demo impressions page and they go into a lot of the moves you can do.

Do you know which of the four or five threads, and on which page I might find some help? Or could anyone just drop a quick answer on how to do basic moves in this game?

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 1:32 pm

Well the crossover is simply right trigger and then press left to right on the left joystick. The left joystick is the key to all of the moves along with the right trigger modifier (turbo). As for post moves...everything is mapped to the shot stick (the right analog). Back down the guy with the left trigger and then use the right stick (rotate it different ways) to get different moves.

warnerwlf98 · Post by **warnerwlf98** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 1:39 pm

anchester wrote:The gameplay was fantastic, but I have 2 criticisms.

1) where are the indicators below the players showing what the strengths are (3 pointer, steals, blocks, dunks, etc)

2) Toyota replay stuff could not be skipped.

The indicators are there. They're just more difficult to see. Look at the blue highlighting underneath the selected player. If you have Wade selected, look close to see the star. Jason Terry has one too, but I can't make out what it is.

cdastros · Post by **cdastros** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 1:46 pm

Zeppo wrote:
AJColossal wrote:Re: moves out of the "triple threat" and such, OS has a demo impressions page and they go into a lot of the moves you can do.
Do you know which of the four or five threads, and on which page I might find some help? Or could anyone just drop a quick answer on how to do basic moves in this game?

I think, to do triple threat hold both left and right triggers down. Once you dribble the ball you cant do triple threat anymore.

Again, I am not 100% sure, but to cross over dibble hold right trigger and push the left analog stick the oppossite direction of the ball hand? Example, D Wade is dribbling the ball in his right hand, push right trigger and push the left analog stick to the left for the crossover. The camera angle makes this kinda hard.

If you want to take a player and go one on one with a defender. First call the isolation play by pushing the D pad to the right to bring up the play calling menu. Then select the isolation play. Now take a player like D Wade and try and get by your defender. Once you get by your defender you can use the Y button to get by the help defense to take it to the basket.

This game is very sick, and I cant wait to get the retail version to learn all the moves and use a better camera angle. Forget just sports game of the year, I think video game of the year is more appropiate.

TeamXbox has a great thread on moves http://forum.teamxbox.com/showthread.php?t=469979

Arkin710 · Post by **Arkin710** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 2:21 pm

I think that the player models at the free throw line are a little weird. Shaq looked kind of strange. Still, the game looks and plays great.

AJColossal · Post by **AJColossal** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 2:38 pm

Arkin710 wrote:I think that the player models at the free throw line are a little weird. Shaq looked kind of strange. Still, the game looks and plays great.

I guess one criticism of the graphics (which are fantastic overall) could be towards some of the player faces. Jason Williams looks like a burn victim from some angles.

spooky157 · Post by **spooky157** » Fri Sep 15, 2006 3:18 pm

A few questions for you guys who've played the demo:

1) How's the help defense in the paint this year? In 2K6 you could pretty much count the layup once you blew past your primary defender.

2) Do players spot up for the 3 much better, especially along the baseline? They were always spotting up on the line last year, leading to long 2's.

3) Is the pick n' roll still way too powerful?

Game sounds great so far. I can't wait to pick this one up when it drops. Hopefully my 360 will be ok by then. I've been getting the 3 red rings of death lately.