Australian Gamer Review

STEP 1: AG, STEP 2: ?, STEP 3: PROFIT

NBA 2K7

Reviewed on: Xbox 360
Available on: Playstation 2, Xbox 360, Xbox

Think of NBA 2K7 as NBA 2K6 plus one. Of course where you put that +1 is up to you, but if you've been following the sort of timeline that Steven Hawkings has been pimping, then I'd recommend putting it after the letters 2K.

Players: 1 - 2 Players
Genre:
Release: 2006-11-10

Developer: Visual Concepts
Distributor: 2K Sports

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My personal experience of competitive basketball consists of cluelessly shuffling around a court at the local recreation centres Wednesday Night "Z" Grade league.

It wasn't exactly an experience I enjoyed. I always felt self conscious because of my nipples showing through the air holes of my oversized jersey. It's hard to have hands up on defence when you have to cover your manlihood.

At the age of twenty I decided that videogame basketball would be a better physical recreation option. There's no need for Gatorade or sports drinks when you're sitting on the couch at home and you can always pause when it's time for a tequila sunrise.

With that in mind, I pulled on my old jersey and spun up NBA 2K7 for the Xbox 360. As the game disc howled into full rotation the words of the immortal NBA coach Red Auerbach echoed in my mind, "Fundamentals... are... Fundamentals".

Before I go any further, I need to admit that NBA 2K7's menu system hurts my brain. It reminds me of the time I took the Scientology Test in return for $5 and some cookies. In case anyone is interested, the test centre is in the Hay Street Mall, but the cookies are Homebrand. I don't recommend it to anyone and I cracked it pretty bad when the 10 minute test took 2 hours. Anyway, that's neither here nor there and I disgress before I go completely off track, that the menu options system in NBA 2K7 is horrible. All the sliders are there to change the game from basketball to mugby, but there is no easy way to go back a screen should you change your mind. So, you're forced to navigate every screen, every single time. I thought at one stage that I might be unknowingly opening the Hellraiser cube and unleashing Pinhead and his minions on an unsuspecting world. It really is that bad.

The good news is that Dan the Automator has produced a custom soundtrack for the title, so there is pleasant music playing while you try work out how to start the game. In a way it's like Rez for PS2, except there is a game hidden underneath the wonderful music.

Think of NBA 2K7 as NBA 2K6 plus one. Of course where you put that +1 is up to you, but if you've been following the sort of timeline that Steven Hawkings has been pimping, then I'd recommend putting it after the letters 2K. At this rate it can't be long until we start getting quarter year updates. I've heard that the away uniforms for Madden are only available as a transaction on Xbox Live. This sort of thing needs to stop before we end up with a game where the ball itself is a microtransaction. "Control 10 guys on a court, ball not included!". That would be one short review.

Graphics are better than 2K6 but not a significant leap forward when compared to other next gen titles. Time has certainly been spent well on custom animations such as Dwayne Wades' floaty jump shot but some player models such as Dirk Nowitzki wouldn't look out of place holding a flaming torch in a village full of Ganado.

Mascots are included on the sidelines, but I was disappointed when I played the Denver Nuggets. I'm sure there are more nuggets in Denver than mountain lions. The commentary makes no sense when played backwards and there are no unlockable hot coffee mods. It saddens me that Visual Concepts watered down their game rather than accommodate the mature content it so richly deserved. Players get injured but no one ever gets suspended for shooting up a strip club. Played forwards the commentary gets old quicker than a K Fed album launch party. They are pretty boring, trust me, I went to three.

My hero (and the man who should have been on the cover) Red Auerbach was the first coach to utter the immortal words "The team at the end of the game with the most points will be the winner". I put this sort of simpleton statement down to the fact that "Old Red" liked a bit of "drinkie drinkie", "smokey smokey." Part of me wishes that Red was the cover model for 2K7. An 80 year old might look a little strange driving to the hoop in a singlet, but that man could hold his liquor, and I respect that. Sometimes at night I dream of buying a Winnebago and travelling with Red to Mexico to drink tequila shooters from between strippers breasts while Shaq hands out lemon wedges. It helped make Larry Bird the player he was, it can work for me.

On the offensive end 2K7 achieves most of the goals of being a fundamentally correct basketball game. Shot percentages are realistic and your AI teammates make a decent effort to move into empty space or follow plays. This year's innovation is the use of the right analogue stick for shooting. Old school players can still use a digital button to shoot which is what most players will probably end up doing as use of the right stick is not quite fluent enough to give consistent shots. The shot stick returns on the free throw line where the player has to pull back and release the ball in time with the player on the free throw line. It takes time to master but is as good as any technique used for free throws yet, creating a fair percentage for good shooters and making life difficult for players not so well skilled at the stripe.

Most players will use a combination of pick and roll calling and special dribbling moves to get their players free for shots. With the right stick tied up with the new shooting the right trigger is used for special moves and again it comes a bit unstuck. The right to left crossover through the legs is effective but most other isomotion moves result in a turnover or your player pushing up against an invisible wall. The result is that most of the structured offence turns into calling a series of picks and pulling crossovers until your man is free for a jump shot. It's like basketball for mimes stuck in imaginary glass cubes. Mimes in shorts without makeup. Yes, those kind of mimes.

On the break things are much more enjoyable. The fast break pass is difficult but enjoyable to use, resulting in great replays when everything comes together. Care has to be taken when passing to teammates during specific animation routines as this can result in turnovers. Players shoot threes on the break much more effectively than last year's game and the dunks are spectacular without becoming too unrealistic. The shot stick works well on the break giving the option of left or right drives and its nice to have the option of just how your going to lay in your easy points in the open court.

The defensive end similarly suffers from a few niggles but more or less gets the job done. The AI struggles to inbound the ball and placing a large player on the imbounder results in an unrealistic number of intercepts and tipped passes. Two human players on the same team can create an impenetrable human shield in front of the AI inbounder, an issue that definitely should have been picked up by play testers. While this can just be ignored in games against the CPU, it's a bug that's bound to be a subject of controversy in Xbox Live games.

The AI is ruthless on the fast break and idiotic during structured offence. It's not unusual to see the AI guards milking the clock for 15 seconds before starting a play. Blocking shots is difficult and attempting to do so normally results in lost rebounding opportunities. Rebounding and the animations accompanying it are very solid and it's nice to finally see fouls called for reaching over the top or pushing rebounders from behind. If there was one facet of NBA 2K7 that is spot on it is the rebounding especially on the defensive end. Good blocking out is rewarded with boards and seeing as this often leads to fast break points it is during these moments that 2K7 shines.

There's an arcade street game called 24/7 mode. Kiefer Sutherland isn't in it, but I have heard his dad Donald Sutherland is an unlockable because he will do anything for money, and if you don't believe me then watch Space Cowboys with Clint Eastwood. Now that movie stank like a Denver Nugget.

Don's 24/7 mode has a token story about a legends tournament and a young man with an extra ordinary big nose with a dream. Well, my created player was a young man with a very large nose, but yours can be anything using the reasonably extensive "create a player" tool. You may even choose to create a zombie bride for Dirk Nowitzki, I've heard he's lonely now Steve Nash has left the Mavs.

The street game is a little more arcade like, "off the heazy" returns, much to the mirth of my friends who never tire of bouncing the ball of each others heads, but the rest of Don's 24/7 is all a bit tacked on. Its kind of like being on Renovation Rescue but finding that they didn't do up your garage, and let the tyres down on your car just to be nasty.

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Final Verdict

"Red Auerbach's Rub Salt on My Glistening Body, Grab 20 Foot of Rope From Home Hardware and Fuel Up The Campervan 'cause We Are Going To Mexico For Some Team Bonding NBA 2K6 +1" is everything the title promises and more. Unfortunately the cut down Australian release NBA 2K7 is too much like last years game. Recommended if you held out last year, otherwise you're probably better off renting Donald Sutherland movies with your cash instead.

Pros
Some players look remarkably like the undead, which may amuse you. Next version not due out for at least 15 minutes. Donald Sutherland in 24/7 Mode.
Cons
Some players look remarkably like the undead, which may scare your little brother. Jewel Shell Case only holds 200ml of tequila. No Kiefer Sutherland in 24/7 mode.