NBA 2K3

"I step in the right direction, but still needs a little work"

I love sports games. I enjoy most sports and the ability to play a sport at any time through the use of a game system has always been appealing to me. I am a stat-hound, I will pour over the stats and box scores from the games the night before and I keep track of all of my favorite players and I usually know how they are doing. Basketball games have always been good in that sense, what the game lacked in my mind in earlier versons of various b-ball games was the feel of a real game. The stars should carry the burden, not the SG like a certain game used to do. In fact, it's been a while since I even picked up a basketball game for any game system because I really was annoyed with the way it played.
Leave it to Sega sports to bring me back to the fold. I have heard good things about the NBA2K series, and the fact that A.I. is on the cover (Go sixers!), well, it has that going for it as well. So the other day I saw the game at the local EB and I decided to pick it up. After thirty games into a season I can safely say that I know the game enough to review it.
Graphics- 9. Good character models and attention to details, like signature shoes on star players and arm and leg wraps. The courts are clean and and the action is never confused looking. crisp and clean.
Sound- 7. Nothing really stands out in the sound department, but it isn't bad. Sometimes the arena announcer is a little confused and gets more excited by the away team scoring than the home team, but not too distracting.
Control.- 10. The PS2 controller fits great with this game and all the buttons are use in a smart and effecient way. I haven't had a problem that is due to poor control.
Gameplay - 7. The game plays good, but once you learn the quarks of the game you can win almost all the time. I didn't cheat, but I traded (without trade override)to attain players that I thought would help me win, and they are. almost too well. I play on the hardest level and I still win by an average of 7 points a game. plus the way the all-star team and the MVP is decided is a little off. the league's leading scorer should be in the all-star game when his team is tops in the conference. Other than that it is a solid engine that plays smart.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/19/03, Updated 03/19/03