The Game’s Basketball!

Another year, another sports franchise release; I’m not being cynical, just stating fact. It is late 2007, which means the 2008 games are rolling out of showrooms: with us today is 2K Sport’s NBA 2K8. As the opening title screens tell us, this game is fully licensed and endorsed by the NBA, and a few other companies, so this is the real deal. This of course means that players, and fans of the NBA, have the opportunity to take control of their favorite teams and favorite players and make all of those cuts, calls, and decisions they’ve shouted at their TV from the couch over the season.

The first item worth mentioning is just how drop-dead gorgeous the NBA 2K8 visuals are, and the developers seem to know this as they revel in showing them off: taking any opportunity to zoom-in on close-ups of the impressively textured character models or pull the camera back in a way to show off as much of the graphical detail in the basketball arena as possible. Individual members of the audience can be singled out in the background and there is little “fog” or background fading or blurring; the graphics stay crisp and detailed.

While there are not a lot of slam-bang special effects or eye-candy, there is a polished gloss to the visuals that lends the game an overall air-brushed look (ironically unblemished and unrealistic in a game that strives for such realism); not something I am aesthetically fond of personally, but I cannot deny that it does succeed in giving the game a more crafted artistic look rather than simply coming off as an exercise in photo-realistic rendering.

The Rules are Simple: Full-Court, 2-Points per Basket, Shot Clock of 10 seconds

NBA 2K8 looks great, that’s fantastic, but how does it play? This game plays like most other realistic NBA-inspired sims (probably a lot like NBA 2K7, but that is an assumption on my part): the player controls a 5-man team with the options to switch between players on the fly to quickly cover the opposing teams current ball handler. You can also steal or block shots (Consequently also the ability to foul members of the opposing team if not familiar with the rules of the sport, a lesson I failed to learn quickly); and of course, the sink a mean slam dunk or make that epic, game-winning three-point shot from near half-court.

There are multiple game modes in NBA 2K8, although, one has to find them first. When players start the game, there’s no real main menu: exhibition matches automatically start up. Only through clicking the left analog stick does the main menu appear. Players can choose from a list of mini-games, an exhibition match, hosted either locally or online, or the much-vaunted full season. Full season play is where this game really shines.

One recommendation I want to make regarding full-season play is to not use the “speed play” option that lets the computer determine who would win or lose any given match; my team lost the first 7 matches when I tried this in order to expedite the season. That’s dirty pool mister. I digress, but the full season option will be a haven for NBA fans as players gain the option to control everything.

The game begins – as do most – with team selection. I found it interesting that when choosing a team, players are not presented with rosters or team “stats” (shot power, averages, speed), but a picture of the owner, the salary caps, and other information associated with book-keeping. NBA 2K8 really does do a great job of putting players in the position of a team owner, or a team coach, not necessarily the team players themselves; NBA 2K8 never really immerses players in the court experience as most of the game strategizing takes place in roster and team management as an owner, which in my humble opinion – is a mistake.

On-court gameplay is trends toward being slow and unexciting, at least while playing single-player. I’m sure playing online or in one’s living room with a buddy would be great, as it usually is, but the single-player season and exhibition experience gradually devolve into running up and down court, shooting baskets, and essentially playing a war of attrition that never manages to emulate the excitement of a real basketball game. 

If You Miss a Basket, We Shoot You; All You Need to Do is Make 10 Points

The control scheme when playing the “main” game is easy to learn, but strangely becomes counter-intuitive when playing the otherwise fun and distracting mini-games. The slam-dunk contest features a confusing sequence for performing a slam dunk; which requires running up to the basket and fiddling, twice, with the right analog stick all while manipulating a power bar. It’s not terribly difficult once a player gets the timing down, but it is frustrating to learn, and difficult to discover without consulting the in-game help menu. Controls should make sense; they should be intuitive and flow easily, not subject the player to inane button-mashing.

Regardless of the aforementioned flaws, NBA 2K8 should easily appeal to basketball fans. The full season option gives players all the tools they could want for managing their favorite team. While, the game involves a fair amount of micro-managing, its stellar visuals and easy to pick-up play (mini-games aside) help to make NBA 2K8 a solid title.