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OS Scores Explained College Hoops 2K8 Overview (Xbox 360)
Pros
Legacy mode; Customization; Newly edited rosters
Cons
Gameplay didn't pass the test of time; Simulated upsets happen too frequently; Outdated graphics
Bottom Line
The Legacy Mode is more than enough to offset unsatisfying gameplay. Given the current low price of this game, it’s a no-brainer purchase.
8.5
out of 10
College Hoops 2K8 REVIEW

College Hoops 2K8 Review (Xbox 360)

 
College Hoops 2K8, though well-received, didn’t exactly rack up the accolades when it first came out almost five years ago. In fact, Operation Sports gave the game a measly seven on the old review scale -- nowhere near an score for what has been considered an all-time classic by the OS community. But since then, a devoted cult following has sprung up around the game. A large community of gamers continues to play College Hoops 2K8 religiously. For this piece, I revisited the game based on the current OS review standards and used rosters from the 2011-12 season to see how well the game holds up and how we might judge this much-beloved title if it came out today. 
 
Critics of the sports gaming genre claim that many new games are little more than a roster update. Well, thanks to some talented and dedicated gamers, College Hoops 2K8 gets that roster update every year (and at no cost to gamers!). For this piece, I used Raiderfan’s most recent roster set.
 
The fact that high-quality rosters like Raiderfan’s exist speaks to one of the game’s strengths – customization. Individual players can be edited all the way down to their potential ratings. The create-a-school feature is solid as well. Add on the many unlockables, including jerseys and arenas, and there’s a lot to do in this one.  
 
Gameplay
 
In the gameplay department, it’s hard to complain too much about balance issues – of which there are plenty – because the game’s sliders function so well. Unfortunately, the core gameplay is really showing its age, and that’s a problem sliders can’t fix. Driving to the hoop is awkward. Quite frankly, the game doesn’t play well on the default camera angle. It’s very difficult to find space to drive to the hoop on default settings, and without using an end-to-end camera, it’s next-to-impossible. The inside game is difficult to control and your players miss a surprising percentage of inside shots on default settings. 
 
One feature worth mentioning is the “sixth man” momentum effects. When the home team is playing well, a little meter on the screen fills up to reflect their success. As the meter fills, the crowd grows increasingly raucous and home team players gain a boost in their ratings. The visiting team can halt this momentum by making their own great plays or calling a timeout. It’s a simple feature that’s executed very well. Games at neutral sites even include a meter for both teams, which shows nice attention to detail by the developers (Why is this not in NBA 2K?).
 
The gameplay isn’t terrible; it’s just unsatisfying, especially now that we’ve seen what is possible on current-gen consoles. For me, NBA 2K11 was the first game to really nail the interactions between a dominant point guard and his on-ball defender. After getting used to breaking down CPU defenses with speed or driving to the hoop and kicking the ball back out for a wide-open three, it’s tough to go back to a game where those things don’t really happen. In its time, College Hoops 2K8 had top-notch gameplay. But it can’t compare to recent titles.
 
 
Game Modes
 
Thankfully, the game’s version of a career mode, called Legacy Mode, is still stellar. Gamers have two options: Career and Open. The Career version has you starting out at a small school, building your reputation and ratings en route to better job offers. Meanwhile, Open Legacy Mode allows you to take over any program and max out your coach’s ratings right away. Whichever option you choose, you can swap teams between conferences, customize schedules and even add your team to a variety of in-season tournaments. 
 
Legacy Mode remains one of the deepest and most fun career modes ever seen in a sports game. The key to the mode’s success lies in how well recruiting works. You can begin tracking players as high school freshmen, and maintaining contact through their first three years of high school pays dividends when you’re recruiting them as seniors. Player ratings are gradually revealed through contact and scouting actions. Recruiting doesn’t include any of the “pitches” we see in the NCAA Football series, but it still feels rich. Perhaps the coolest part is that lower-ranked recruits can still turn in to difference-makers. Features like player progression and morale work better than expected as well. Simply put, Legacy Mode stands the test of time. 
 
Another cool Legacy Mode feature is the season preview, weekly wrap-up and Selection Sunday shows. The in-season shows aren’t complicated, but they add another layer of realism and immersion to the mode. The Selection Sunday show, though, is still awesome. There’s legitimate tension in watching the brackets revealed game-by-game. The show even identifies bubble teams before the brackets are revealed and finishes with a “who’s in/who’s out” breakdown of these teams. Again, immersion matters, and this feature is still a highlight. 
 
Unfortunately, the simulation engine generates too many weird upsets. Sometimes, you don’t want to play a game against Radford or Western Kentucky when you can just sim past it and move on to a more interesting game. But I lost simulated games against both in my first season – before winning simulated games against multiple top-10 opponents. College basketball is unpredictable, but this game takes it a little too far. Then again, I'm sure Duke and Missouri would have something to say about this.
 
Final Thoughts
 
Overall, the graphics and gameplay of College Hoops 2K8 don’t hold up very well. In fact, I’m surprised at how little I enjoyed the actual basketball games. But Legacy Mode remains one of the best career modes in sports gaming history. If 2K slapped college uniforms on [I]NBA 2K11’s[/I] gameplay and attached to the College Hoops 2K8 Legacy Mode, the result might be the greatest sports game ever. 
 
Graphics: Player models and faces that were goofy four years ago now look ghoulish. Animations are okay, although some player movements are clunky. The arenas, though, are beautifully rendered and incredibly detailed. 
 
Sound: Although the commentary gets old quickly, the crowd noise is great. It’s rare that a college sports game captures the intensity of an NCAA crowd, but this one does. 
 
Learning Curve: This game is challenging even on the default settings. But the controls are simple enough that anyone with a passing familiarity with basketball should figure things out in no time at all. 
 
Replay Value: Immense. Legacy Mode is deep, engrossing, and fun. It’s not hard to see why so many people are still playing. 

Member Comments
# 21 strobox88 @ 03/20/12 11:16 AM
I guess I'm one of the only few that still enjoys this game over the newer games as well. I have NBA 2k12 for the PC and occasionally have my moments when I drop CH 2k8 and play that game straight for about 2-3 days, but strangely always end up finding my way back to CH 2k8 where I will go on 1-2 week streaks playing 1-2 games a day in my open legacy with Kansas.

Sure, the game is outdated, but I still get an awesome college basketball experience with the game with each game I play that I can't find in any current NBA 2k games. The graphics are good enough for me to enjoy the experience. The only thing that would be better to me right now is for 2k to revive the CH 2k franchise and give us a new game.

Hell, even if EA decided to comeback with a college basketball game, I'm willing to hop on the bandwagon if they decide to make the game super deep like CH 2k8.
 
# 22 R1zzo23 @ 03/20/12 11:37 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by mlr1
i guess im one of the few who has no problem with the old gameplay...i love it
Quote:
Originally Posted by strobox88
I guess I'm one of the only few that still enjoys this game over the newer games as well. I have NBA 2k12 for the PC and occasionally have my moments when I drop CH 2k8 and play that game straight for about 2-3 days, but strangely always end up finding my way back to CH 2k8 where I will go on 1-2 week streaks playing 1-2 games a day in my open legacy with Kansas.

Sure, the game is outdated, but I still get an awesome college basketball experience with the game with each game I play that I can't find in any current NBA 2k games. The graphics are good enough for me to enjoy the experience. The only thing that would be better to me right now is for 2k to revive the CH 2k franchise and give us a new game.

Hell, even if EA decided to comeback with a college basketball game, I'm willing to hop on the bandwagon if they decide to make the game super deep like CH 2k8.
I'm with you guys. The game play is certainly outdated, but when I do go back to CH2k8, it's not a deterrent. Usually I go back in binges, for about two-four weeks at a time.
 
# 23 masprague @ 03/20/12 11:46 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by redskinst21
tried buying this game on amazon or ebay tonight and cant find anything less the 40 for used. no way im paying that. no store within 100 miles has it but a 2 hour drive may be worth it but cost me 40 in gas so im screwed either way
I found a copy of both PS3 and Xbox, with cases and inserts, at my gamestop. Bought them for a grand total of less than $10 bucks on Friday. For kicks, I put them on Amazon and sold them both by Sunday. The xbox one for $40 and the ps3 for $30.....not a bad deal for me.
 
# 24 ven0m43 @ 03/20/12 03:09 PM
I have a 360 and ps3 version of the game. I dont play the ps3 version and I might be willing to sell it.
 
# 25 jenglund @ 03/20/12 03:19 PM
I'm another one who has played this for years, and thought this year might be the year I couldn't go back, based on NBA2k12. The spacing in college hoops is hard to get readjusted to, but after playing a few games, I remembered what I was doing and have been having a great time.

I'm back in my Nevada closed legacy with a great team (three stud sophomores) that should make a deep run for the next couple of years.

The depth, with both recruiting and on-the-floor strategies, keeps me coming back. You can win in so many different ways...get a beast of a front line and slow it down, or run up tempo with good quick guards.
 
# 26 Mjphillips @ 03/20/12 03:46 PM
It's funny how the reviewer says that drive and kick outs to open shooters doesn't really happen. The cpu does it to me all game long when I over commit and vice versa. I am also able to blow passed the cpu defenders using speed when I have the right matchups. The reviewer makes it seem as if the fundamentals of basketball are not in this game. (Maybe that's an over-exaggeration) To me this game does almost everything right. I have played a little of 2k12 and a lot of 2K11. Those games don't give me the same enjoyment. I honestly don't feel like I'm in control on those games especially with the 3rd qtr magic that always happens to one team or the other EVERY game. The crazy layup animations really annoy me as well, but that's me.

All in all, with the tools provided on this website; this game is pure greatness. You have to use custom playbooks which are easy to setup and apply for the cpu teams you face. If the cpu never misses, turn the shot success slider down for them. Same thing, if they hit too many threes. The sliders are very responsive IMO and one or two clicks can make a world of difference. Once you find a medium, you will have games where the cpu is on fire and other games where they can't buy a bucket.

I don't know. It just feels like this review said things about gameplay that I don't feel are true if you make some adjustments. Playing on default will NOT play a good game of basketball. Plain and simple! If we are on this website, we all probably know that about all current sports games. Oh yeah, try controller configuration C with the off ball controls for your cpu teammates. They can do some really cool cuts and picks. Happy gaming fellas.

Thank God for this website!!!!!
 
# 27 TarHeelPhenom @ 03/20/12 06:24 PM
College Hoops 2k8(actually 2k4) is the gold standard when it comes to a Legacy/Career mode as well as recruiting. It's so deep it's ridiculous. To be able to start recruting kids as freshmen in high school. To actually be able to see the recruits play...any recruit you want...play at the camps...to actually play the games yourself is some I LONGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG for in NCAA football by EA. That alone keeps me coming back man!!!
 
# 28 dnikafoeno @ 03/21/12 02:05 AM
Yes! I still play this game along with nba 2k12.. If you get the right sliders this game is still fun. I see new animations still time to time and starting to see different play calls if you adjust certain players tendencies. I really hope 2k makes a new game soon and keeps all the features.
 
# 29 jcofor25 @ 03/21/12 04:49 AM
I always find myself sucked back into legacy mode everytime I play one game
 
# 30 jcofor25 @ 03/21/12 04:56 AM
Just entered the 36-37 year
with Oregon St. for the second year. Had the league leading passer on my team. Dropped 26 dimes on game and broke the NCAA record. Graduated
 
# 31 cbjr @ 03/21/12 06:58 PM
Whose rosters and sliders are the best for the PS3 version? I haven't been able to find any in searches.
 
# 32 strobox88 @ 03/21/12 09:41 PM
The OS rosters ver 2.8 now, I think.
 
# 33 websteel @ 03/21/12 10:36 PM
I absolutely hate that they are still not making this game. I think about the possibilities this game could have an it makes me sad, ha. But I'd do anything to get this game back with 2k making it.
 
# 34 foote92 @ 03/22/12 06:56 PM
I loved college basketball games, they need to come back!
 
# 35 Flithy @ 03/22/12 07:02 PM
havent played this in years lol
 
# 36 jersez @ 03/23/12 06:00 PM
I always miss college hoops around this time of the year hopefully the wonderful mods will do college hoops 2k12 this year.
 
# 37 wisdom less13 @ 03/23/12 10:52 PM
Read this article and realized I needed a college basketball fix. Had the game when I first had a 360 and traded it in for God knows what. I try two GameStop's by my house, and nothing...I bought NCAA 10, and Tiger Woods 12 just to scratch my itch. Didn't like NCAAs gameplay. I then go home and go on a tear of calling any video game store in my state, basically haha I end up calling some hood game store at a town by me and they have it. $10 and change is all it cost. I'm happy to be reunited with this game again thanks to this read. Funny, because I was prepared to spend about $60 online to buy this game. Now back to Revisiting...
 
# 38 Jakeboutte @ 03/26/12 06:26 AM
Never played it, sad t say. I just picked up NCAA Basketball 2010 though...hopin to get the up to date rosters
 
# 39 Colts18 @ 03/26/12 08:38 AM
Yea as others have said CH gave me so many memories that I feel like I am turning my back on my country by no longer getting joy out of this game. Legacy is good but the gameplay is so old. It hurts me that we can't get an updated version.
 
# 40 w00dy Hayezz @ 03/26/12 12:28 PM
I just bought this today for $5.99 at Gamestop!!! SCORE!!!
 


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