2K Sports Nba 2k9

As any knowledgeable caveman will tell you, it's tough to reinvent
the wheel. Some might say impossible. The developers behind the yearly
stable of sports games that we all love struggle with a similar problem
every season. How do you change a videogame enough to make it worth
sixty bucks while still staying in the confines of the given sport?
It's a lesson that 2K Sports learned the hard way last year with NBA 2K8, a game that underperformed in the eyes of most critics.


Luckily NBA 2K9
is here to return the series to its once comfortable perch atop the
basketball world. While no one will argue that it's a massive overhaul
from what we've seen from the series in the past, the additions that
have been made advance the gameplay enough to conquer the competition.


The biggest changes, surprisingly enough, actually do come on the
court. It's a welcome switch for a genre that so often rests on its
laurels. NBA 2K8 was home to plenty of issues including gameplay that
felt a step too slow and a newly adapted defensive mechanic that nearly
broke the game. Lockdown defense is back again, but it's been changed
for the better. Shaq can no longer guard Steve Nash by simply slamming
down on the left trigger.





The new system still relies on the left trigger for activation, while
it uses the right stick to determine how you orient yourself with
relation to the person with the ball. That leads me to my main
complaint with the mechanic, that being that it's only usable when the
man you're guarding actually has the ball. Why can't I hold the left
stick and, based on my opponent's position, deny him the ball on the
right or left side? Still, the lockdown stick is much better than it
was and it allows you to pick out the tendencies of an AI player and
exploit them easier than before.


Moreover, AI as a whole has been tuned up during the off-season.
Dual player control is a much larger part of the gameplay as you can
now tell your guys to screen for you and either pop out for a jumper or
cut to the hole and the specialized animations that follow look great.
Not only that, but your players also make solid cuts off the ball if
they notice a defender is overplaying them on one side. Running plays
is also streamlined so it's a bit easier to hit the open man.


The shot stick, a staple of the series, has been modified a bit to
allow players to change their shot in mid-air. It works very similarly
to what you remember in year's past, but it's now more responsive if
you get stuck in mid-air with no place to go and need to go for the
fancy up-and-under move. Oh, and a word of advice, do not try and play
this game on a keyboard. Like all other sports games on PC, NBA 2K9 is
best played with an Xbox 360 controller.


Keeping the conversation on the offensive side of the ball, you'll
immediately notice that the speed of this year's game has been
ratcheted up. It's not to the level of an arcade basketball title, but
there's certainly a stronger propensity to get out on the open floor
and run the break. That's not to say that there aren't annoyances when
players won't keep their momentum going down the court when catching a
ball, but seeing two players explode down the sidelines and calling for
an outlet pass on a rebound is authenticity at its finest.


The animations, like in all NBA 2K games, are great to watch.
They're realistic, they almost never falter and the little nuanced
actions that you see when players interact are great. If the refs make
a call, a player will get upset. Get knocked down and they'll help each
other up. Run out of bounds and run into the mascot and there's an
animation that plays there too. Same goes for the coach. It's these
little touches that help push 2K9 beyond what we've seen elsewhere and
it's even more noticeable on PC. The crowd has some great detail and
player models really pop on the court with some great detail that
spreads to other portions of the action as well.






One issue that has also been corrected for NBA 2K9 is that of
missing shots that pro players should be making. This happened all too
often on drives to the basket or shots from within ten feet. This
season is the first time where 2K Sports seems to have gotten the
skills of the players right. Kobe and Lebron are going to score their
points, there's little that you can do to stop that from happening.
This game realizes that and, while it doesn't take defense out of the
equation entirely, there's much more leeway on hitting some of those
tough jumpers. Build up some momentum and you'll really see some
buckets start to drop.

The Association, dubbed this year as The Association 2.0, is back
with as much depth as you'd expect. The immediate change to the mode
has to do with the user interface which now incorporates NBA.com into
the presentation. Sadly, that's one of the biggest follies in NBA 2K9.
The system does provide some cool updates as to what's going on around
the league (updates to actual career milestones) but it's incredibly
hard to navigate. It's made worse by the 2K Nav feature, something that
I've never been a fan of. All in all the off-the-court presentation is
easily the weakest part of 2K9.


The other "under the hood" additions to Association 2.0 are where
the mode sees its main improvements. First, you can now scout players
to get a needed edge for an upcoming game. Gone are the specific number
ratings for every player and they've been replaced by more generic
letter grades. To get a precise number you'll need to invest in some of
those crucial scouting reports.

2K Sports
has also tweaked the financial and trading systems a bit to be more
authentic. There are now Bird Years and Bird Rights that flesh out NBA
2K9's CBA to mirror the genuine article a bit closer. There are also
clauses within contracts and the ability to construct trades between
three teams that offer more than the typical one-to-one offers. This
all ties into the new player ambitions that help you to better gauge
the mindset of the athletes on your team. For instance, while playing
as the Celtics I was offered a straight up trade: Ray Allen for Michael
Redd. I accepted, but Ray Allen refused to waive his no-trade clause
because being on a winning team was part of his set of ambitions. It's
a cool system that's made all the better by the fact that it actually
works.






A staple of 2K Sports games has been impressive multiplayer
experiences but sadly 2K9 on PC is seriously lacking in this
department. Like, totally lacking. Like, there's no multiplayer –
online or off – to be seen anywhere in the package. It's a giant
disappointment, especially when you consider that playing online
originated on this system. There's no five-on-five play, no league
play, and no quick games available. Very disappointing.


While I've already called the off-the-court presentation values the
worst part of 2K9 (and they are), when you're on the court, you're
going to be treated to a great looking game. The player faces are still
hit and miss, though they're now more hit than miss, but the crowd has
been pumped up considerably and does a great job of adding life to the
scene. Then there's the new duo of Cheryl Miller and Clark Kellogg who
join Kevin Harlan for commentary duties. The trio does a good job but
doesn't pack as much excitement as other virtual commentators are able
to. Finally there's the new highlight reel generator that essentially
takes every scoring play for a star player and compiles them into a
clip show. It's cool and you can skip it if you want; what's not to
like?





NBA 2K9 is basketball game for the purists out there and has plenty for
diehard basketball fans to enjoy. At a price of $19.99 I can almost
forgive the absence of multiplayer, especially when you consider how
much game there is still is to play. There are tidbits built in to
appease casual fans, but there's no question that with things like Bird
Years making their way into this year's game that 2K9 is made for
aficionados. Even still, anyone who has seen a pro game will be able to
find the similarities and the finite details that make NBA 2K9 the best
game in town.

7.0	Presentation Why is there no one sitting at the T-Mobile Halftime desk? Off-the-court values are terrible while everything on-court looks like a genuine broadcast. Camera system for online play could be better.
8.5	Graphics Great looking player models that are improved from last year. Still an odd looking face here and there. Animations are silky smooth.
8.5	Sound A solid soundtrack highlighted by Cool Kids? 2K anthem. The commentary is solid but doesn?t go beyond the call of duty.
8.5	Gameplay Refined gameplay that captures the speed of the NBA game without reverting to being an arcade title. A few annoyances here and there are all that hold this one back from a guaranteed spot in the Hall.
6.0	Lasting Appeal The lack of online is a massive disappointment. Association 2.0 has all the length and depth anyone could want from their franchise. Blacktop is a clear afterthought but it's still cool.
8.0 Impressive	OVERALL (out of 10 / not an average)

NBA09 este cel mai reusit joc din seria de NBA cu o grafica f.buna si mult inbunatatit fata de NBA08.