"At least John Madden isn't doing commentary"

NBA Live '98 was the next installment of Electronic Arts' Basketball series. It was also released on the Genesis, SNES, Saturn, and Playstation.
Genre-Sports
Release Date-1997
Publisher-Electronic Arts

Game Play-
7.6/10

The game play in NBA Live '98 is pretty much the same as NBA Live '97. NBA Live '98 is pretty easy, even on the hard difficulty. And there is no Michael Jordan, which is weird. The draft mode is by far my favorite. But, who has the time to play eighty-two different games? I certainly don’t have either the time or the patience to play a full season. The player’s different moves are captured quite nicely though. Another problem is that the games are quite weird. The scores either exceed or fails compared to real NBA Basketball games. You really have to mess around with the rules to replicate the NBA average score of 75-105. It took me a long time to figure that one out.

The 3-Point Shootout, where you see how many 3-Point shots you can make in a set amount of time, is pretty fun. Granted, the guy with the best 3-point percentage in the league can usually make the most three-pointers, so winning it can be pretty easy to do.

Control-
5.6/10

The control in NBA Live '98 is pretty bad, so you have to set the keys to your liking, which does not work out well if you have a Windows 98 keyboard, because I keep pressing the button that minimizes the program and doesn't pause the game in the process. So you have to use a different older keyboard. The controls are a little loose also. The directional keys and the move keys are pretty rickety. You have to take a lot of time to get used to the key placements in NBA Live '98.

Graphics-
8.1/10

I admit that the graphics could have been much better, but you have to take what you are given. The players look like their real-life counterparts. The arenas are detailed, but if you have a slow computer, you have to disable certain options. But, the graphics pretty much look like real basketball games. The crowds could have used more detail too. The polygons look kind of blocky, though.

Audio-
5.9/10

The music in NBA Live 98, well there is only one track. Electronic Arts could have put in standard arena music. The sound effects sound basketball-arena like though. The swishing of the net, the dribbling of the ball, and the cheering of the fans is near arena-perfect, except for the guy who boos at everything. Also, when you score at your opponent's arena, only a few people clap. At my stadium, no one claps for the opponent. One problem. The announcer does not give the first name of the players, which kind of disappoints me in a way. It's really confusing, because what if you want to play as the Indiana Pacers? There are two Davis' on the team. (At the time this game was made, there were)

Enjoyability-
7.7/10

I admit that NBA Live '98 is pretty fun, but do really you have the patience for a full eighty-two game season? I didn't think so. In order to make eighty-two games fun, they should've put a little more excitement into the game. The solid game play may keep you coming back for more, depending on if you like basketball or not. I'm a pretty big fan of basketball, and most people that play these games are big basketball fans.

Score Rundown-

Game Play-7.6/10 - Buying '97 again, good for you
Control-5.6/10 - He shoots, he goes to the Windows Desktop!
Graphics-8.1/10 - Yay. I have nothing else to say
Audio-5.9/10 - Boo! I hate everything. BOO!
Enjoyability-7.7/10 - Too much time for one season

Score-34.9/50

Percentage of gaming goodness - 70%

Overall-
7/10

Doodleheimer's Recommendationitivity-

I would only buy NBA Live '98 if you like basketball. If you have a lot of free time on your hands, NBA Live '98 may be a good game for you. So maybe you should buy NBA Live '98. And I mean maybe. But, unless you really liked the 97-98 NBA season, really like Basketball games, or whatever, it doesn't make much sense to purchase this, seeing as how the rosters and characters are outdated and all.

Street Price-$4.99

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/06/01, Updated 05/20/02