NBA Live 19

EA takes baby steps in refining the gameplay while adding enough content to keep you entertained for quite a while. The entry barrier for new players is pretty low, which should be beneficial to the game's community. Oddly though, the graphics are of a lesser quality than last year's iteration and the commentary is still off.

Though lacking in polish in some areas and simply outclassed by the NBA 2K series in others, NBA Live 19 seems to have finally carved the series a niche in the basketball game market. It’s less of an NBA game and more of a street basketball one, but if the modes that come out of this transition are this fun, what’s the problem?

NBA Live 19 is slowly closing the gap with NBA 2K19 the giant. The game chose a more spectacular path, more fun to basketball fans and it's pretty successful.

NBA Live is a series currently in the shadow of the almighty 2K, but with this year's entry there are signs that things could be changing. Yes it's not as good as it should and much more work needs to be done, but there truly is a place in the market for a more casual basketball game.

All in all, NBA Live 19 is a solid tip-toe towards what I think could be a great competitor in the basketball video game world. Even though The One is excellent and should be played, everything else is lacking and feels phoned-in. If EA were to put as much effort and innovation into their other modes as they did with The One, they’d have a real contender for best basketball sim out there. But please (please) change the shot meter.

In the end, any progress made, whether it’s leveling up my player or regaining control of my court, just feels aimless. If I’m simply being rewarded with cosmetic options, I don’t see the point of furthering my character’s career.

NBA Live 19 is currently chasing NBA 2K19 as far as relevance is concerned, but it's also paving a path all its own. Live’s addition of real streetball/pro-am courts, leagues like Dykman and Drew League, as well as the WNBA presence are a welcome addition to the hoops simulator world. With improved gameplay mechanics, a future version of NBA Live could actually compete for the crown.

NBA Live 19 has provided a fun, slightly hybrid arcade/simulation style of basketball that works well on the court. There is still room to add features and improve some aspects of the gameplay, but the series has taken some long strides in the right direction since rebooting. That is good news for hoops fans such as myself, who feel that some healthy competition is a good thing.

If EA can branch out of the canned animations to make the controls more responsive, the already decent gameplay could take a dramatic leap forward. The core at the heart of NBA Live still shows promise, but chalk this one up to a year of growing pains.

While NBA Live 19 is a definite improvement over NBA Live 18, it still has a lot of the same issues that have bogged down the series in the past. On the bright side, Live has risen to a respectable level, and it can be a fun game, with flaws that hurt the realism. On a whole, it is too inconsistent to be considered elite. This was a year where the franchise expected to make a huge leap from doormat to contender, but it still falls short of the postseason.