NBA2K5 Impressions

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 12:56 pm

blueduke wrote:I'm getting TO's by the cpu as well. I've also found out through a friend a way around the cpu trading problem.................turn salary cap to "off" and trade overide to "on" and you can overide any trade the cpu makes.

That's funny...I do the same thing when I start EVERY league. I actually thought that the trade override "on" thing was if I wanted to trade someone it would let me push it through rather than depending on the AI to decide if it was a good trade. I'm about a week in and I haven't seen any funny business.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 1:05 pm

I generally like the game, but I have two problems:

1) The CPU doesn't take nearly enough 3 pointers. Last night in a game vs. Denver they took 1.

2) Low foul totals. In the same game I played SA vs. Denver and there were 10 fouls called during the entire game with foul sliders to the max.

Any suggestions? All in all these problems are minor compared to last year. It doesn't surprise me because these were two problems with NCAA College Hoops 2k4 (can't tell you if it was a problem with NBA because I kept that game for less than one week).

spooky157 · Post by **spooky157** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 1:42 pm

Leebo33 wrote:I generally like the game, but I have two problems:

1) The CPU doesn't take nearly enough 3 pointers. Last night in a game vs. Denver they took 1.

2) Low foul totals. In the same game I played SA vs. Denver and there were 10 fouls called during the entire game with foul sliders to the max.

Any suggestions? All in all these problems are minor compared to last year. It doesn't surprise me because these were two problems with NCAA College Hoops 2k4 (can't tell you if it was a problem with NBA because I kept that game for less than one week).

I'm getting almost too many 3 point attempts by the CPU. Just tune down the sliders a few notches for the inside shooting, a couple of notches for the midrange and jack up the 3 point range a couple. At the half Seattle (CPU) is 3-11 from beyond the arc.

I've turned the foul sliders all the way up as well and I'm getting a decent number of fouls. For my team, Marbury went to the line 14 times in a game last night. The Iso2 works well in drawing a lot of reach in fouls when you time it right and adjusting your shot in mid-air on drives draws plenty of shooting fouls.

After putting in lots of play time last night I've grown to really like the game a lot. Getting used to the timing of the Iso2 was the key for me.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 2:20 pm

Thanks! I am seeing a correlation between the sliders and 3 point attempts. I just played a half and the Suns took 6.

btmmayor · Post by **btmmayor** » Sat Oct 02, 2004 5:18 pm

spooky157 wrote: I'm getting almost too many 3 point attempts by the CPU. Just tune down the sliders a few notches for the inside shooting, a couple of notches for the midrange and jack up the 3 point range a couple. At the half Seattle (CPU) is 3-11 from beyond the arc.

I've turned the foul sliders all the way up as well and I'm getting a decent number of fouls. For my team, Marbury went to the line 14 times in a game last night. The Iso2 works well in drawing a lot of reach in fouls when you time it right and adjusting your shot in mid-air on drives draws plenty of shooting fouls.

After putting in lots of play time last night I've grown to really like the game a lot. Getting used to the timing of the Iso2 was the key for me.

Great tip!

BasketballJones · Post by **BasketballJones** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 12:28 pm

Initially, I wasn't marveled by the gameplay though it 's a great improvement over last year. Playing as the Pistons v Rockets Yao never shot the ball. I replayed the same game, same settings and Yao dominated inside. Pistons v 76ers with no adjustments to sliders and strategy Iverson took a half dozen shots no 3s. Replayed it again Iverson drained three treys in a row. My conclusion is you are going to get a variety of CPU game scenarios. I'm enjoying it more as I play.

Regarding fouls, I'm drawing more as I take the shotclock down to 8 seconds.

Defenseively, I think they could have added the freestyle control of Live. However, I'm getting more enjoyment and feel by sticking with one player and not so much playing the ballhandler; working on positioning.

The more I play, the more I see a true simulation game as opposed to arcadestyle which Live is in an enjoyable way. Overall, 2k5 is a solid game.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 1:00 pm

BasketballJones wrote:The more I play, the more I see a true simulation game as opposed to arcadestyle which Live is in an enjoyable way. Overall, 2k5 is a solid game.

I think NBA 2K5 is a great game and is an outstanding value at $19.99 (this week at $14.99), however, I just do not understand how Live is considered to be more arcade. In fact, I would be interested to hear any examples of how Live is more arcade *this* year. Out-of-the box NBA 2K5 is highly arcade with shooting percentages in the 75% range, almost no foul calls, and too many hightlight reel slam dunks. Live also has arcade elements out-of-the box with too many blocks, no fatigue, etc. However, with slider adjustments I really don't think one game is any more or less arcade than the other. I'm getting absolutely fantastic stats in NBA Live with the proper sliders. I think the stats in played games (haven't checked anything as far as simming goes) with slider adjustments are as close to reality as any game I have ever played in any genre. They are that good and I've thought about sharing some screen shots of the box scores.

I've played both games a lot this weekend. I am pretty much split. ESPN is a bit more enjoyable in the transition game and the force field around players is smaller. I like playing defense a lot better in Live and I like freestyle over ISO. The main reason I am playing Live more is because I prefer the number and variety in fouls and the related strategy involved, I abhor the free throw shooting method in ESPN, and I prefer the CPU offense variety in Live.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 1:34 pm

Live is more arcade for the following reasons:

Players skating along the floor and warping to points for dunks/blocks etc.

Too many blocks even with sliders.

Freestyle control is way too effective.

Horrible, horrible fatigue model.

Those 4 reasons are HUGE when it comes to playing a simulation. Then of course there are things I don't like about the game. Transition game, players too big for the floor, a nice and big force field, etc. I cannot wait for the PC version because there are some thing to like about the game, it just has to be tweaked above and beyond the sliders. Good core, just not as good as ESPN on the Xbox...especially at half the price.

I already sold my Live last night on ebay in anticipation of the PC release.

Leebo33 · Post by **Leebo33** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 4:57 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:Live is more arcade for the following reasons:

Players skating along the floor and warping to points for dunks/blocks etc.

Too many blocks even with sliders.

Freestyle control is way too effective.

Horrible, horrible fatigue model.

I can't argue with the skating along the floor, however, the players warp to points in ESPN as well. Hit a button and wait to see which animation the game chooses. I don't feel like I am in control.

What is wrong with the fatigue model? I have it on 43 and it seems about right.

I don't know what to tell you about the blocks. I guess it is possibly a user skill issue (either I suck on defense and can't get enough and/or I am good on offense and only get blocked about 5 times a game with block sliders on zero).

fsquid · Post by **fsquid** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 5:59 pm

I think both games blow and will just download the Live PC version in a couple of weeks.

BasketballJones · Post by **BasketballJones** » Sun Oct 03, 2004 10:58 pm

I think exaggerated or loose, casual are better words than arcade for Live. I don't own Live 05 but from what I've played it's an improvement over 04 which I enjoyed. I can't pinpoint the major differences due to the lack of playing 05 but I like what I see. Huge improvement for ESPN over last year, which sucked. I bought a terrific hockey game and solid basketball game for the price of a good basketball game. So Live will be something to look forward too.

Kazuya · Post by **Kazuya** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 1:29 pm

Well, despite having no interest in basketball right now (season being a month away, plus I'm in full football mode) I ended up buying the game. Fry's had them for $17.99 and I couldn't resist (If anyone from Sega is reading, the $20 price tag is definitely working from an impulse buy standpoint).

I never could decide which of the three basketball games I hated the most last year, but out of all them I played ESPN the least, simply because it at least took some playing to discover how bad the other two were. ESPN was instantly bad. So I fully expected to be sitting here today telling you how bad ESPN 2K5 is and how much I hate it. Except...

I don't hate it. As a matter of fact, after 1 1/2 games, I kinda like it. Don't get me wrong, it's not the game that will revolutionize basketball games (still waiting on someone to supplant Konami's "Super Basketball"). But so far it's surprisingly good. Much, much better than last year. All of this is based on out of the box, no slider adjustments...

Good:
I love the default camera right out of the box.
The rim action of the ball is very good, although there is still some silliness from the original NBA2K going on there. While I'm on it, will it kill VC for them to ever make a believable net animation?
I know some have complained about sluggish control, but so far I think the control is pretty good. I like some of the standing still dribble animations, and I love the driving animations.
Some of the animations are just beautiful to watch. I know it's probably generic, but it seems at times like moves are tailored down to the individual player. Dirk leaving his hand outstretched after shooting an open 3. Finley's patented fadeaway in the block. Just a lot of things that feel and look natural while they occur.
Bad:
Not a lot of fouls. This doesn't bother me as much as some, but it's not very realistic.
I feel like there are too many high-arching shots, especially under the basket. It's just not realistic to see Marcus Camby pull down a board a foot away from the goal, and shoot a rainbow hook for the putback.
I still hate icon passing after all these years. Let me hold down a trigger button dammit.
Passing itself is probably the one aspect of the game I'm having the most problem with. I just can't get much of a transition game going right now, mostly because I can't get the ball where I want. And of course, the point guard has to pretty much come back and take the ball out of the big man's hands on defensive rebounds, which kills a lot of transition opportunities.
Undecided:
Before I went to bed I had to try the Full Authority. I do think it's interesting, but IMO it might be a little too involved and time consuming. I don't see the reason why I need to set the defensive tendencies of every player four times a game.... you'd think your center would know to stay around the rim.

On another note, it's interesting how much VC has been biting from EA lately. Pro hop, right stick crossovers... I guess next year they will feel compelled to throw in a dunk contest. Now, I'm sure it goes both ways in a more subtle fashion, but as someone who played a decent amout of Live last year I was surprised at how similar to Live some of the control feel was.

So all in all, the game is much better than last year. I'm sure my opinion will change as I play the game more, but right now it seems like a steal of a deal at $20. Any game with Del in the soundtrack is a keeper for me....

bdoughty · Post by **bdoughty** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 1:36 pm

I guess next year they will feel compelled to throw in a dunk contest.

To be fair ESPN College Hoops 2K4 had a dunk contest in it. While it was implemented differently in 2K4 (button combos/timing) it was still a a Dunk contest. Guess EA though it was a good idea and was compelled to add it.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 1:39 pm

Kazuya wrote:Any game with Del in the soundtrack is a keeper for me....

That's exactly what I'm sayin'...LOL. Seeing him at the Glass House in Pomona, CA on October 13th...can't freakin' wait.

Kazuya · Post by **Kazuya** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 1:48 pm

bdoughty wrote:
I guess next year they will feel compelled to throw in a dunk contest.
To be fair ESPN College Hoops 2K4 had a dunk contest in it. While it was implemented differently in 2K4 (button combos/timing) it was still a a Dunk contest. Guess EA though it was a good idea and was compelled to add it.

You may very well be right. I have no doubt they both rip each other off shamelessly, but this seemed kind of blatant.

Kazuya · Post by **Kazuya** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 1:53 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:
Kazuya wrote:Any game with Del in the soundtrack is a keeper for me....
That's exactly what I'm sayin'...LOL. Seeing him at the Glass House in Pomona, CA on October 13th...can't freakin' wait.

He's not coming to Dallas when he swings through Texas for some reason... maybe he didn't enjoy his last visit through. I saw him at the Gypsy Tea Room downtown a few years back (with Blackalicious) and he came out like an hour late and (of course) higher than a kite. If I wasn't a Hiero fan I probably would have been pretty pissed off, but I ended up just laughing my ass of as he stumbled through the set....

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 2:24 pm

That's funny...DJ Quik was like that a couple weeks ago when I saw the Beasties.

skinsfan · Post by **skinsfan** » Tue Oct 05, 2004 5:28 pm

ESPN 2K5 is a pleasant surprise,as last year's game was irrepairably broken.My biggest gripe so far is playing defense isn't very interactive-you can go for blocks and steals but everything else feels outside of your control.Sometimes the guy you're controlling will be moved by the cpu to double team someone, for example.The cpu controlled defenders generally play pretty well,though.

sigma · Post by **sigma** » Wed Oct 06, 2004 9:56 am

I just got it yesterday because I came into 20 bucks. I think it's a really nice game. The 'player lock' is much better than in Live as the players play like they have a mind of their own. I just finished beating the Pistons with the Lakers 75-70. Yeah, I know the score was low but oh well. I was 'locked' onto the PG spot. Kobe didn't shoot well and he only had 12 points. But, he had 11 assists and 2 blocks.

This game will do more than hold me over until pay day.

Waddupcouzin · Post by **Waddupcouzin** » Wed Oct 06, 2004 1:00 pm

I've been playing this game everyday, and I personally think it's the best in the series so far. Yes, even as good as my beloved 2K2. I had to bump the inside and midrange scoring down on All-Star(2 notches). I haven't touched NFL2K5 since I bought this game on Wednesday!

LOVE...

The Camera Angle, and the fact that I can use the Angle I play out of Broadcast online while another player uses a different angle

The graphics...We All know VC's steez by now.

I like 90% of the animations...some can be a bit quirky, but for the most part I really like animations.

Playbooks! Period.

Atmosphere.

I plopped in 2K3 just for the hell of it a couple days ago, and the strides made with this game(leaps) is unbelievable!

spooky157 · Post by **spooky157** » Thu Oct 07, 2004 12:25 pm

This game has shot way up the charts for me and is quickly becoming my favorite online sports game. Maybe I've been lucky but I'm getting great games with random opponents online at the Superstar level. Every game has been sim style all the way and flows just like a real NBA game. I've played one guy who runs around the court like a chicken with its head cut off and managed to beat him soundly. The real good players online can make the game look and flow beautifully while the bad players who turbo all game long and mash on the Iso2 give the game an ugly and disjointed feel.

The best thing about the game is that I have yet to see any real cheese tactics that work. Whether you have a guy who likes to play one-on-one with T-Mac, in the post with Duncan, or move the ball around as beautifully as the Kings, it all plays out like a real NBA game.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Thu Oct 07, 2004 12:34 pm

I was getting worried because the last two games, both teams shot over 50% in my Association. Then I fell back to earth.

Me (Suns): 31%
Dallas: 33%

I won by 6 because I got to the line more and had more offensive rebounds. The final score: 81-75 This, after I scored 125 against Sacrament where Peja went off on me. I love this freakin' game. It's different every time, sometimes drastically different as proven above.

wabash97 · Post by **wabash97** » Thu Oct 07, 2004 12:42 pm

Count me as being mightily impressed with this game the more I play.
Once I got the hang of the movements I'm getting fouled more, finding ways to out-quick players in good matchups, and getting good looks from moving the ball around.
And, as was mentioned, the variety in styles and game-to-game variety really makes it fun to play. And even the variety of player styles, I think, is well-represented - at least to the degree I've noticed this far. I can't get cement-footed players to dunk, but when I've got Ricky Davis he's trying to sky over three people anytime he's near the lane. Fun.

B

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Thu Oct 07, 2004 1:02 pm

What sliders settings are you guys using? I went with someone's over at OS but I haven't played with them long enough to garner an opinion just yet.

Admittedly, I'm having a difficult time getting into this game thus far. I don't know if it's the controls, the boredom playing D, or I haven't found a good camera angle, etc. I do want to hold on to the game because I thought it would be cool to port the players from College Hoops over, but I don't know how much play time it'll get once that game comes out. Not to mention NHL2K5 and NFL2K5 just have that more complete feel. I did take notice of one of db's post about working the ball around instead of just shooting right away, and that definitely adds to the enjoyment.

wabash97 · Post by **wabash97** » Thu Oct 07, 2004 1:14 pm

I'm using sliders (adjusted a bit) from someone, I believe, named "scoman" over at OS. Decent, so far. I also use free throw assist because it seems players hit at a rate determined by their percentages, rather than me messing with the worst free-throw meter of all the games.

I like the ISO cam, tilted and zoomed out a little, because I like to see the whole offensive zone, but I don't prefer the overhead view.
Also, I play on normal speed at 8 min. (I think). So far, seeing good results as I learn the game. My offense is still streaky.
One thing I've found that makes defense more interesting: I pick one matchup on the floor (off the PG), and try to defend only that matchup. It makes it more interesting to try to follow players through their offenses, decide when to switch on picks and try to get defensive boards.

B