By: Chris Tha Dogg

     
Ever since EA released the practically mediocre installments to the NBA Live series known as NBA Live 2001 and NBA Live 2002, their reputation of being able to constantly produce quality basketball titles year after year was damaged badly. Their failures fueled the oncoming success of Sega Sports' NBA 2k series. Ask just about anyone who played either NBA 2k1,2k2, or both, that those are some quality NBA titles, offering hours of fun gameplay and realism depth.

As it now seems, EA Sports pulled together and got on the ball with this year's installment of NBA Live 2003. This game really nails the jackpot. While it may not be the most realistic NBA basketball game out there, it certainly does capture the adrenaline rushing, sweat-bathing, hard-breathing feel of professional basketball. EA has beefed up the character models a bit, making them more realistic and reckognizable to their real life counterparts. Add to that some tight controls introducing EA's new "Freestyle" system which gives you true freedom over you players movements and ball-handling. The Freestyle system utilizes the the right anolog stick to allow the player to perform a specialized move in any direction he pleases based on the direction pressed. For example; if you have your point guard bringing the ball down the court and the defender is trying to play you tight, and you want to punish him by shaking him up a bit; then dribble one direction then tap the right anolog stick in another direction to perform a quick, fluid crossover, leaving your defender shaken and you with an open court. There are variety of moves you can pull off using the freestyle system; ranging from crossovers, to stutter steps, to spin moves.

NBA Live 2003 sports a nice amount of gameplay options such as 1 on 1 matchups, practice, and even online play via the PS2 Network Adapater or a USB modem. 2003 includes a pretty nice, hip-hop-based soundtrack which includes noticeble songs such as Full Moon by Brandy.

Overall, NBA Live 2003 is a great, fun basketball that is sure to turn the heads of all those who doubt it. The best thing about this game is that its core gameplay is where it truly shines featuring fast, fluid, fun gameplay. Overall, any basketball game fan will most likely find NBA Live 2003 a sure hit.