NBA Live 2001

"Pretty good but"

Here it goes:
Gameplay - Well standard EA NBA Live controls that most of us hardcore EA NBA ballers know by heart...so nothing new there. You either hate the game style or you love it.

Audio/Video - The A/V is pretty decent(essentially the same as NBA Live 2000 and 1999...but why can't EA take the extra time to get pictures of the rookies(I mean there are only two rounds in the NBA draft)...they should be able to capture the faces a little better especially for players who have played a year(take a look at Ron Artest, Lamar Odom, Andre Miller in addition to many more players...and then you'll see what I mean) and then put a photo of them in the game(as opposed to the shadow)

Replayability - The replayability is decent although I'm not into NBA games enough to play multiple seasons(I save that for Franchise modes in football games). But you can always try to beat every challenge in the challenge mode to bide your time.

To buy or to rent? - I went out and bought the game. But, I'd say that if you are looking for a small step up from 2000 then yeah get the game for the Challenges(you can earn points to unlock MJ, the ABA ball, other gimmicks, features, and skills), otherwise rent it see if you like it...then burn your own copy.

Pros-its a sports game(I love sports). If you enjoyed the other games in the series you will enjoy this one, the Challenge mode,

Cons-The damn screw jobs.....I mean missing easy fast break layups and dunks should be outlawed when you are going to the hole with a halfway decent NBA player...I mean..I drove the lane about 10 times during the span of just one game during the season and I'd say 9 of the ten dunks and layups missed...now multiply that by a good 40 games I've played so far. Not looking too good is it.
Another con is the fact that some players look absolutly nothing like their real countparts(I offer Odom and Artest as evidence once again). EA had better shape up the ''finer'' points of the series in the coming years.

As always....I will indeed continue to seek out this NBA series..hoping that it will get a tad better. In conclusion NBA live 2001 is a pretty good game overall, but there are a couple of points that turn me off a bit.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/14/01, Updated 03/14/01