[NINJAK2]

Quote: Originally Posted by loadleft

I'm not sure what my tone is! At least not the one you're referring to. I usually post long drawn out comments so that reading between the lines is not needed and my point is clear. That said here it is short and sweet. I am a huge Live fan! I don't even play 2K, I've done so twice 2007 & 2009. I don't have an agenda. I am not against the shot stick. I believe the reason EA brought in guys from the community is to get comments and impressions early enough to be able to make changes, in turn I think expressing concerns here gets them seen also for the same reason. I think blindly doing anything would be turning against the proven track record that EA has and assuming that this time it'll be done right. Jano we're not far apart, I am just harping on lets not go way over to the stick skills side and forget that this is basketball. When I was a kid there was a little game of table top basketball that had a vibrating court with holes in it. Inside the holes were these little spring loaded "shooters". The object was that as the ball rolled around and fell into one of these holes you had to trigger the shooter (kinda like pinball) to shoot the ball into the basket from that spot (the location of the hole). It required skill (lots of it) but not much basketball knowledge. I don't want to play that game anymore, you get my drift, LOL Although I've answered why I don't think "wait and see" is the right move. Would someone from the wait and see crowd please explain to me what to do on a discussion board while you're waiting to see?

You are doing a great job explaining your points load and I certainly see your points, I just don't know if I can agree with them entirely. To be good at any video game, stick skills are a huge requirement regarding being successful in the long run and it will probably always be that way. No matter what game you play (StreetFighter 4, COD, HALO, Madden, killzone, etc) how good you are on the sticks will usually play a huge part in whether you win or lose. These are in the long run just games that operate off of user input.

As in a football game like Madden, if you are good at calling your offensive plays but don't know how to put the right amount of touch on your pass attempts or use jukes, spins, etc you may not be as successful as you'd hope-no matter your knowledge. If you want BBALL knowledge to ultimately decide success, the only option is to get people to play coach mode with you where stick skills aren't pivotal to wins and losses. IMO their shot stick is just another way for users to seperate themselves from other users in the skill department.

If someone were to take the time to practice Rondo's jumpshot in practice mode and get down his timing and release to a science he should be able to hit that mid range more often if you leave him wide open. This doesn't mean he will hit like Kobe Bryant just that he may be more successful with him than someone else who doesn't put the time in with Rondo. I've seen games where Rondo has hit a fair amount of his mid range shots, the difference is that he isn't consistent. Those real life games where he is consistent could represent those moments where he is focused and shooting in rhythm.

I've always felt that if these hoop games want to ensure that knowledge plays an equal part in success (ex:running plays) I feel that players who run and complete plays should get an ever so slight upgrade in chance % of shots going in compared to the iso monster who attempts to give it to Kobe everytime down and runs no semblance of an offense.

Great posts by everyone here