Positives, Negatives, Gameplay And Overall Outlook

Evaluating the NBA Live 19 demo has been like riding a rollercoaster of emotions packed unfulfilled, fulfilled, and exceeded expectations.

The game is launching on September 7 with as much momentum as it has seen in years, and with that positive push comes more scrutiny. I’ve broken down my experience into two basic categories (positives and negatives). It’s VERY IMPORTANT to remember: this is just a demo and part of the reason for this preview is to clean up rough areas.

Some of the things in the negatives section could be cleared up in time for the retail launch.

The Positives

• Improved Renders – There is no question, NBA Live 19 has more accurate renders at or near launch than we’ve seen in years. In recent versions, the series would struggle mightily to present attractive images of the league’s best players and rookies when the game launched. So far, most–if not all–of the player renders we’ve seen have been solid. That is evident in the demo with the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics. There are some missteps with Terry Rozier and to a lesser degree DeMarcus Cousins, but nothing that can’t be overlooked.
• Some Sweet Layup Animations – Some of the dribble setups and layup animations will draw an “ooh” out of you. When a drive really works well and you chain the moves together properly, you will see some of the best finesse finishes in virtual hoops.
• Collision Detection in the Paint – On drives and contests at the rim, the collision detection is really good. That’s from body-to-body and body-to-ball. It increases the realism as it pertains to play in the paint.
• Still, the Best Halftime Show – Nothing has been added to the halftime show, but no other sports games seem to be working to improve this part of their game. Thus, NBA Live maintains its best-in-class halftime presentation.
• Shoe Game is Tight – Everything about NBA Live’s shoe game is excellent. From the detail on each sneaker to the changing styles for top players like Kyrie Irving, it’s done at an elite level.
• Floors Look Great – The arena floors shine so brightly in the demo with this almost perfect shine that they almost look as if you can touch them. It’s a small detail, but noticeable.
• The Street Courts Look Great – From the spot in Brazil to the Chicago court early on in the Live 19 demo events, the look of these venues are packed with personality.
• The Social Media Cameras – Live also offers an additional piece of noteworthy presentation with the cellphone camera shots after dunks and big plays. It would be better if the shots caught more of the play that caused the presentation element, but still a nice touch.
• More Scanned Women – I love that it appears more of the WNBA has been scanned for this year’s game. Last year, that dulled the impact of the groundbreaking move.

Negatives

• Ball Physics Are Still Bad – One of the worst things about NBA Live gameplay is the way the ball bounces. I see some improvements in the dribbling, but the caroms off the rim are just as strange and ugly as they have been over the past few versions.
• Still Quite a Few Strange-Looking Animations – While the dribble animations and drives when chained together can look nice, there are still some wonky looking sequences near the sidelines and baselines. The sideline wall is also way too strong. It’s difficult to run out of bounds–even if you’re trying to.
• Poor A.I. on Defense, Especially in Transition – Defensive A.I. was an issue in past versions of the game, and that remains the case in the Live 19 demo. I’ve seen several instances in transition where CPU-controlled players are abandoning their assignments
• Too Much Clipping on the Perimeter – This is a major issue for me, especially as games, in general, look more realistic. There is too much clipping and pass through in plays on the perimeter. This can’t be totally eliminated, at least not yet, but it seemed excessive in the demo.
• Distinct Difference in Single-Player, Online, and Head-to-Head Couch Play – Gameplay against the CPU is much smoother than it is against human opponents. Animations, rebounds, just about everything felt better and more responsive playing the CPU. I don’t care for that inconsistent experience.
• Overpowered Players – Steph Curry and Irving are obviously stars, but both players are a little on the unrealistic side if they get it going. I already had multiple games with Curry draining 10 or more threes, and Irving wasn’t far behind him when it comes to shooting accuracy. On top of his marksmanship, he’s almost unstoppable off the dribble. That might sound like a scouting report, but it isn’t. It’s the reason he, Curry and likely others will need to be nerfed in the retail version.
• The Street Courts Need More Basketball Sound Effects – I love the look of the outside courts, but I don’t like the lack of basketball sound effects. You can hear the music and atmosphere much more than the ball bouncing or rim rattling. This is likely tweakable in the settings.
• I Don’t Like the Loadout Approach – In an effort to maintain competitive balance, Live goes with a loadout concept for your player’s special abilities. It was designed to add some level of strategy and teamwork when picking the style of player you will use in conjunction with your teammates. That sounds good, but it fits much better in non-sports games. Real basketball players don’t approach a game saying, “I’m going to leave my jump shot at home this game and bring my speed.” What makes players great and dynamic is their ability to do multiple things at an elite level. I don’t like it when non-sports gaming concepts invade the genre to the point that removes the elements of real sports from the title.
• Player Models Still Aren’t Very Good – From the neck down, many of the players still look unrealistic. Players like DeMarcus Cousins are too thin and the shoulders on many of the players are slumpy. A professional artist that I spoke to pinpointed the issue with Live’s artistic design. He said, the team struggles when it comes to figure drawing, and that seems to be a logical explanation for their consistent problems with creating player models.
• Arena Lighting is Off – While the arena floors look stellar, it seems the TD Garden is a bit too dark. That’s the only NBA arena we can see in the game. It will be interesting to see if any of the other arenas have this problem.
• Bad Commentary – I’m hopeful this changes once the game is released, especially since the Live series is going to see the same kinds of in-season updates as Madden 19. However, for now, Jay Williams and Ed Cohen’s dialog isn’t meshing will with the gameplay at all.

If you want to take a look at my first session with the game, take a look at the video below. I talk about my likes and dislikes in the video, but you can add a picture to the text. NBA Live 19 officially releases on September 7 for PS4 and Xbox One.