NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

[Housh123]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

I have to point out, the double-team is there. I got hot in my combine game and got doubled when I crossed halfcourt -- had to pass out a few times, turned the ball over a few times. They will double you at certain points.

But was it like a cheating, you lose the ball if the guy is within a foot of you double or was it like a true double where you do have time to pass out


I put my game on HOF on 2k and the CPU can literally race over to me and rip me during my pass animation like I don't mind actually being doubled I just want them to be realistic.

If Avery Bradley and 6' 3 and Kyrie Irving at 6' 3' double team freaking 7 foot 3 Boban Marjonovic I'm sorry but they aren't getting the ball. He's simply too tall. He's gonna hold it up and either still shoot or pass. You can't do that in 2k


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[trekfan]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

But was it like a cheating, you lose the ball if the guy is within a foot of you double or was it like a true double where you do have time to pass out


I put my game on HOF on 2k and the CPU can literally race over to me and rip me during my pass animation like I don't mind actually being doubled I just want them to be realistic.

If Avery Bradley and 6' 3 and Kyrie Irving at 6' 3' double team freaking 7 foot 3 Boban Marjonovic I'm sorry but they aren't getting the ball. He's simply too tall. He's gonna hold it up and either still shoot or pass. You can't do that in 2k


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I didn't feel it was cheap. The guys doubled me and forced me to a corner, so I had to chuck a pass in the paint and hope for the best.

[Barncore]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

Precursor
I haven’t played NBA Live since 2008. I didn’t catch any of the 2010-2016 era, other than short videos on youtube to laugh at. So i have no feel for what NBALive has been like to play the past few years. My impressions are coming from a perspective of playing 2k for the past decade.

I used to have Live '99 on Playstation that i played occasionally, but it was really NBA Live 2001 on PC that sparked my obsessive love for NBA and would ultimately become my entry into following the NBA world full-time. Now here we are in 2017 with players with stretchmarks. My point is, although i jumped onto the 2k bandwagon a decade ago i have a soft spot for NBALive and i'd love nothing more than for them to consistently produce a quality product to compete with 2K.

Ok now that that's out the way, here's my "stream of consciousness" style first impressions...

Opening Pro-AM game
Looks very nice. Very pretty. Accurate proportions. Looks like a real life game….until players start moving around.
From within the first minute you see enough “slightly off” looking movements for the suspension of disbelief/realism element to dissolve a bit from the get go, so your brain instantly turns into “ok, this is more of an arcade thing than a sim”, which is fine. So that’s the perspective i’m going to enjoy the game from. There's nothing wrong with that, just an observation.
It's things like: The transition between animations is a bit clunky (relative to 2k anyway). Ball physics and net physics are a bit off.
Something looks a bit off about a player passing to another player (when the player releases the ball/pass it's sorta clunky. The ball momentum doesn't look right or something).
Players float in weird ways sometimes. I.e. once they’re in the air their momentum can go in unnatural ways. Nothing major or horrible, but just enough to give the impression that it's obviously a video game and not a real game.
Players constantly appear like they’re carelessly/openly dribbling the ball RIGHT in the defender's reach. They don’t protect the ball at all. If it were real life they would get stripped straight away.
Stuff like that. But i don’t want to give the wrong impression, it’s not bad at all. There are good movements too (like driving). I’m just explaining which things make my brain perceive it in an arcade way. You gotta use your imagination a little more to fill the holes which, to be honest, is an experience i kinda miss from the old games!

I don’t know how to play lol. This will take some getting used to.

I like on ball defending. I feel like staying in front of my man is within my control, unlike 2k.

Damn, blocks are mean spirited in this, lol. It’s like players are massive jerks about protecting the rim, haha. So mean. I like it.

It looks cool when players drive on defenders. And the control of it (on both sides of the ball) feels right too. Maybe the most pleasing element of gameplay so far, for both offense and defense.

There’s a strange familiarity to this game that i remember feeling when i used to play NBA Live back in the day. There’s a common thread that ties the gameplay to the old school games from 2005-2008 era but i can’t quite put my finger on it. Something to do with the way the A.I. maybe. The style of human decision making is similar. Or something.

The One / MyPlayer thing
Why do they ask you to choose your player’s height in centermetres and KG's lol. I'm Australian and even I had to google a height/weight converter.

This is fun. God it feels good to play a basketball game that’s different to 2k. This is all about the arcade fun.

Did i just see a player dab? Aw that’s lame.

My MyPlayer (is that what they're called in NBALive?) is dominating against NBA pros in the Drew league lol. Things seem to be less about having high attributes and more about gaming. And positioning. I scored 18 pts (out of 21) with a 75ish rated player against players like LeBron, Harden, Paul George, etc. All i had to do was drive and then dunk when close enough. Might have something to do with the difficulty setting though.

Hard to stop any player from finishing inside (human or CPU) once they get an opportunity to dunk or layup in the paint.
And sometimes players seem to do layups/dunks that don't suit their style/ability/body. I.e. Kevin Love does some overly acrobatic things.

I feel like it’s kinda silly that as you move up through MyPlayer and upgrading your skills, your animations constantly change along with it. It's like their muscle memory that they've been building all their life gets re-wired and they play like a different player every 2 or 3 games haha. Not realistic.
But i spose this is more of an arcade thing. So, oh well.

Also i got drafted #2. Good on me.

1st Cavs vs Warriors game
Those player intros look fantastic. Shame there is no crowd noise though.

Nobody is missing shots lol, especially Golden State. It’s fun though.

Frame rate is inconsistent.

THE HALFTIME SHOW IN NBA LIVE 18 IS AWESOME HOLY ****! Take note 2k. Love how it rotates through the different segments quickly, and has a back catalog of highlights to access. Absolutely love it.

Driving layups and dunks are a verrrrry high percentage shot. Especially with wings. In my first game GSW shot 60% and CLE shot 56%. On All-star. Default sliders

I like the way you can string moves together. For as real as 2K looks, it’s hard to “stay in the moment” with it. It’s more like you just fire off long animations the whole time. But in this you can stay "present" and string things together, which is satisfying when you get a nice highlight from it. That's good for immersion and fun.

Conclusion
I still need to play more before making any lasting judgements. But first impression is that although the gameplay is still a bit bare bones relative to 2K, the game is fun and looks good. Ultimately, the decider for whether i buy the game or not will be based on what their franchise/dynasty/season/whateveritscallednow mode is like. If they can offer me an in-depth NBA landscape in that mode then i'm in. I'm a Season mode junkie -- a love that NBA Live 2001 is responsible for giving birth to.

[KingTocco]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

I think some of us on here should link up just to make sure we get to enjoy this how it was intended to be enjoyed






The main thing I wanted EA to do is make a game that had to be played differently from 2k

You really HAVE to play this game slower and very like real basketball


My first couple games was me realizing that all the arcade stuff on 2k has ruined my mind as to what a basketball game should look like. I had like 6 turnovers myself trying to push tempo and get it down Court to a teammate






But and if you've read any of my posts on here or the 2k board I must say I DID NOT GET DOUBLE TEAMMED OR RIPPED ONCE FROM THE POST UP IN ANY GAME I PLAYED YES!!!!!!



I had to get that out. It was freaking nice catching the one pass a game I got and being able to feel out what move I should make without getting ripped or fouled. That alone puts Live SLIGHTLY above 2k on my list right now.


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I actually feel the exact opposite as you, I don't think you have to play this game slow or like "real basketball" at all. This game feels way more like a fast paced, 1 on 1 type of game to me.

I also think this game is way more arcade than 2K, it's not a bad thing it's just different.

They definitely made a game that plays differently than the competitor but I'm not sure it's for me.


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[KingTocco]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

I want to give Live and EA credit where it's due but I also feel like a lot of these hyped up posts and great impressions are partially from 2K exhaustion.

I'm glad people are having fun and I know it's super early, I'm just curious to see once 2K comes out and the dust settles how Live does. It will be important for them to sell fairly well to justify dumping more resources into Live 19 and so on.


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[Housh123]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

I want to give Live and EA credit where it's due but I also feel like a lot of these hyped up posts and great impressions are partially from 2K exhaustion.

I'm glad people are having fun and I know it's super early, I'm just curious to see once 2K comes out and the dust settles how Live does. It will be important for them to sell fairly well to justify dumping more resources into Live 19 and so on.


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Yeah to me the jumpshooting and post play is flat out horrible and clunky. Not unplayable but yeah it's noticeable


Everything else without thinking about it too hard seemed ok. I got to level 20 and dont feel like doing the 2 challenges with kids anymore



If I got back on I'd probably see more stuff


I really love the CPU opponents tho. In Live 16 they were hard to beat on the higher levels so I hope they keep that. Having weekly challenges is going to be fun. I assume if a guy drops 50 or something he'll be the team captain of that weeks challenge. Or let's say Vince Carter Reaches a milestone this season maybe they'll make a team of 5 Vince Carters from all his years and you'll have to beat them idk but they did good with that idea


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[Justdatdude]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

Is this new or has the court scratches always showed up on the court? That's dope!

[11anthony]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

Does anyone know if it possible to get fouled on jump shots? Can't believe EA took it away on Live 16.

[Quentin32]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5_K7tiRJBs&feature=youtu.be&app=desktop

[trekfan]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

I want to give Live and EA credit where it's due but I also feel like a lot of these hyped up posts and great impressions are partially from 2K exhaustion.

I'm glad people are having fun and I know it's super early, I'm just curious to see once 2K comes out and the dust settles how Live does. It will be important for them to sell fairly well to justify dumping more resources into Live 19 and so on.


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You're not wrong. I love 2K, have since they launched back on the Dreamcast, but last year was BAD. 2K17 was solid to good out of the box, then went bad with the patches, and eventually ended up at passable. Massively disappointing.

Live's reappearance on the stage has clearly made 2K up their game.

That said, I think Live has something here -- The One really stands out as a MyPlayer mode done right. The gameplay, while still not close to 2K's in terms of animation smoothness/signature shots, is solid. I like the looser, arcadey feel but it doesn't feel cheap or like I can blow by anyone as long as I mash turbo. I have to pick my spots -- true to NBA life.

[Barncore]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

A few more comments on The One...

I didn't like that because i can't use the face scan companion app it meant that i had to choose a preset face for my player rather than create my own face. I ended up just creating a fictional character instead because of that.

I liked that my player actually had some decent ability from the get go. Starting out as a superhyped scrub wasn't fun or realistic in 2k.

[BlackMambaTheDream]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

I'm usually hyped after the NBA Live anouncement until i try the demo.

Not the case with this one, really enjoying the gameplay.
Hope we're in for 2 great basketball games every year from now on!

[Gotmadskillzson]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

Demo is a 3 out of 10 for me. This game plays like a highlight reel arcade fest. Different strokes for different folks. Halftime and post game show is the same as it was in Live 16. Way too easy to do full court passes. Coach adjustments are still way too shallow. At times it felt like I was playing NBA Street or the old school Run-n-Gun arcade game. Just don't feel like a team NBA based game. Instead it feels like a 1 on 1 streetball game disguised as an NBA game. Teammate AI is brain dead which further make it feel like a 1 on 1 streetball game. The blocks are too over the top. Not every block need to be sent that damn far. Rebounding is just awful. You will see a player right there and not even attempt to get the rebound or if he does attempt, some how he misses it.

Oh well.......game look good in pictures though, depending on the player because some players look weird and don't look like the real life player.

[spike83]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

Can someone tell me if the streetball courts, Rucker Park, etc will be playable in a quick game setting outside of "The One." Am having fun with them in "The One" storyline with as someone said earlier, "the looser, arcadey feel." I can easily see using this for casual fun while having the "other game" as my primary.

[CMH]

Re: NBA Live 18 - Demo Impressions

Does anyone know if it possible to get fouled on jump shots? Can't believe EA took it away on Live 16.

Took it away? There were most definitely shooting fouls on jump shots in 16.


I am very impressed with 18. Definitely buying it.

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