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Tuesday, May 24, 2011
11:06 AM - May 24, 2011. Posted by ChaseB. Written by Steven Bartlett
It's funny, we've talked about NBA 2K11 so many times on the site this year, yet we never posted a strategy guide talking about The Jordan Challenge.
We just can't let that stand.
More than five million copies of NBA 2K11 have been sold at this point, the franchise has become synonymous with video game basketball, and the Bulls are in the Eastern Conference Finals. Simply put, we need to correct this error before NBA 2K12 is unveiled at E3 in June.
Read More - Besting The Jordan Challenges (Part 1)
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
02:11 PM - March 16, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
Welcomed by the rhythmic sounds of a fighter’s heart, drums from The Roots beat slow and steady as the opening track brings Fight Night Champion to life.
Players are thrown right into the storm, assuming the role of Andre Bishop in a boxer’s tale. As the humbled and focused Bishop, players live out this champion boxer’s storied history and battle through his path to redemption.
Read More - Fight Night Champion Review
Monday, March 7, 2011
03:33 PM - March 7, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
I recently had a chance to speak with two video game executives. One conversation was with a video game agent whose job it is to find and sign new projects with the biggest game publishers in the world.
The other conversation was with Simon Sherr, the lead animation director for EA Sports' current-generation titles. Simon previously worked on animations for major motion pictures like The Matrix and Transformers.
During both of these fascinating conversations, we discussed the direction of the sports games industry and came to the same conclusion: The video game business has many parallels to Hollywood.
The top ten development studios in the world now dominate the bulk of the market share in console gaming, following the same way major movie studios dominate the big screen.
In addition, Hollywood is now intertwined with gaming. The influence is ever so present in Fight Night Champion, whose script was written by Academy Award nominated writer Will Rokos.
Read More - Fight Night Champion Initial Impressions
Friday, February 25, 2011
03:33 PM - February 25, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
Los Angeles -- NBA All-Stars traveled to elementary schools in Greater Downtown Los Angeles to spend time with the local communities. Players from both the Eastern and Western Conference All-Stars showed up in work boots and fresh Nikes to Take Back LA as part of the annual NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service.
Volunteer efforts took place at both Frederick Douglass Academy Elementary School and Virgil Middle School in Los Angeles.
Friday and Saturday proved to be an amazing few days at NBA All-Star 2011 weekend -- more than 1,500 volunteers from the NBA family worked together to create places for kids and families to "live, learn and play."
With the leadership of community-based organizations such as City Year and Kaboom!, school yards and classrooms across downtown LA were transformed over the weekend.
Players who contributed included Pau Gasol, LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, Tim Duncan, Al Horford, Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and others.
Operation Sports readers may get involved with NBA Cares by clicking this link.
Operation Sports was represented throughout the weekend, participating in the volunteer efforts while capturing the scene.
Check out our Facebook photo gallery here detailing the events (and why not add us as a friend while you're there, or even click "like" on the pictures).
Monday, February 14, 2011
02:27 PM - February 14, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
Operation Sports’ Steven Bartlett and TD St. Matthew-Daniel to interview the NBA’s brightest basketball stars live in LA, just prior to All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm on February 18, 2011
Los Angeles, Feb. 14, 2011 -- Operation Sports basketball contributors Steven Bartlett and TD. St. Matthew-Daniel will be live at this year's NBA All-Star Weekend 2011 in LA on Feb. 18 and 19.
Communicate live via Twitter with TD @MrSimCity and Steven @Hurricane414 on Twitter as they give live updates while at NBA All-Star Weekend. Operation Sports will have exclusive access to the NBA All-Star’s practice just prior to NBA All-Star Saturday night presented by State Farm on February 18, 2011.
NBA All-Star 2011 in LA will bring together some of the most talented and passionate players in the league’s history for a global celebration of the game. The 60th NBA All-Star Game, which will be held on Sunday, Feb. 20 at the Staples Center, will reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages. TNT will televise the All-Star Game for a ninth consecutive year, marking Turner Sports' 27th year of All-Star coverage. NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm will feature the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest, Haier Shooting Stars, Sprite Slam Dunk, and Taco Bell Skills Challenge. Other events at NBA All-Star 2011 will include the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge & Youth Jam, NBA All-Star Celebrity Game and NBA All-Star Jam Session presented by Adidas. This will be the fifth NBA All-Star game held in Los Angeles, which also hosted the event in 2004, 1983, 1972 and 1963.
Here is the included schedule for Jam Session (all times Pacific)
http://www.nba.com/jamsession/2011/schedule.html
Main points
- Celebrity game on Friday at 4:00 pm
- Sprite Dunk Showdown on Friday at 8:30 pm
- All-Star practice is on SATURDAY 10:30 am
Saturday, January 22, 2011
09:05 PM - January 22, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
It’s Fight Night. I’m dodging and weaving, eyes focused on the heart of my opponent. The right cross is thrown. I dig my soles into the canvas and parry with the left. He’s moving to the inside, his stance strong as his feet swiftly shuffle forward. Jabs, crosses and uppercuts smash leather on leather as I cover up. I’m shook, and all I can do is grasp to hold on.
My controls don’t allow me to circle out and survive past round four.
Having a strong, evasive defense creates champions. Ali in his prime, and Mayweather Jr. are true students of the sport. These champions are authors of untouchable footwork.
Read More - What If You Could Float Like a Butterfly in Fight Night?
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
08:26 PM - January 11, 2011. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
Dwyane Wade in LA. Carmelo under the bright lights in MSG. LeBron to the Suns. The landscape of the NBA is changed at the click of a button, the stars of the league realigned.
A fantasy draft in NBA 2K11 may be one of the most entertaining things you can do to liven up your Association mode. NBA 2K’s AI general managers also draft intelligently, selecting the league’s youngest and brightest stars early in the draft to build around. Rondo, John Wall and Derek Rose are all consistently chosen within the top 10 of the draft.
When building your draft boards, some of us dream about the luxury of having a CP3 or Dwight Howard available to us. But sometimes the ping-pong balls just don’t fall in your favor, and you may find yourself drafting towards the end of the first round.
Regardless of your draft position, you can still build a strong foundation of a team around players not named Kobe, LeBron or Durant. Here are some players to build around when the superstars are no longer on your draft board.
Read More -- NBA 2K11 Fantasy Draft: Scouting for Success
Friday, October 29, 2010
02:24 PM - October 29, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
My shins sore and calves tired, we began sparring -- practicing the technique from the lesson of the night. Putting any apprehensiveness to rest, I took a combo to the face that smashed my cheek off my black rubber mouth guard. Whoa. With that out of the way, I’m ready to continue my studies in Muay Thai with a new-found confidence. I flashed a smile for a second, shook my head and went back at it.
Journeying into the world of MMA has provided me with an inside perspective to review the new EA Sports MMA title from EA Tiburon. And while we both may be new to the sport, we have something in common: fundamentals.
EA Tiburon firmly grasps mixed martial arts, and the developers have created their own interpretation of the sport, which in this case is a technically sound fighter with innovative gameplay design. This is a representation of MMA at its finest.
Read More - EA Sports MMA Review
Saturday, September 25, 2010
01:13 PM - September 25, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
There is an ongoing basketball gaming dilemma.
Every year 2K Sports and EA Sports battle it out to become the king of the basketball universe. In fact, besides trading blows when it comes to features and gameplay, they seem to be recruiting the most talented developers like they are head coaches going after McDonald's All-American players. For example, Mike Wang was originally a NBA 2K developer. He went to the NBA Live/Elite franchise but then returned to 2K after finishing development on NBA Live 10.
The point is these companies want to be the best around. The dilemma is that basketball games are really hard to make.
Read More - The State of the Association
Thursday, August 19, 2010
11:20 AM - August 19, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
OS recently had the chance to speak with Madden NFL 11’s creative director Ian Cummings during a conference call. Check out the interview below.
Operation Sports: How does the "shoulders squared locomotion" feature function? Can you comment on the philosophy behind it? It would appear that players naturally want to turn it up field -- when was this idea brought to the table?
Ian Cummings: The locomotion system for us was about really getting back to the core of the game, you know? We just had so many problems that we couldn’t really solve with the old system, and so one of the big facets of locomotion is actually layered animation. And, typically a run cycle is a small clip of animation, but what we have been able to do with layers (we implemented a little bit of it in Madden NFL 10 with quarterbacks being able to throw out of sacks early) is really the ability to separate the parts of upper body from the lower body.
Read More - Madden NFL 11: Ian Cummings Interview
Monday, August 9, 2010
01:01 PM - August 9, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
The Madden name carries tremendous weight. It is a decorated franchise that has been equated with football simulation greatness at various points in its life cycle. At other times, some gamers have also been quick to point out its various flaws and have been very critical of the franchise as a whole.
The point is that gamers expect Madden to feature the tightest gameplay controls and an endless amount of on-field strategy. These are the types of expectations that Madden has to attempt to live up to on a yearly basis.
And so with the release of Madden 11 becoming a reality, the developers at EA Sports Tiburon are now going to be fed to the lions once again -- the Operation Sports fans surely being the harshest of critics in the forums of an impassioned sports gaming nation. The game has also been given to a gaggle of media members so they can review and examine every decision and every new feature.
But this year it would seem that the Madden 11 team has answered their critics with a resounding question of their own: Are you not entertained?
Madden returns this summer refined on every level (with some obviously being more refined than others). The gameplay is smoother, the graphics are more vibrant and the game has come to life with added vitality. This is the most entertaining Madden I have played since the Playstation 2 days.
Read More - Madden NFL 11 Review
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
04:35 PM - August 4, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
After one of the hottest free-agency summers in the history of the National Basketball Association, gamers around the globe will now be adjusting their favorite gameplay styles to fit with the latest styles and trends in the Association. Much like pro baseball in this country, we now have a group of top-tier teams that will run the league. In our new era of hoops, tradition will go head to head with the star power of the now.With that said, here are the top five teams you will running into online in NBA 2K11 and NBA Elite.
Read More - Fave Five NBA Teams for Online Gamers in 10-11
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
So you want to be a skateboard legend and revel in the comparisons to the likes of Tony Hawk and Rob Dyrdek? Well, then prepare your body and mind to fearlessly smash the tricks out the local skate parks and establish your name in the game.
EA Black Box’s Skate 3 has buried some heavy soles into wet cement to ensure that its legacy will not soon be forgotten. The game carries legitimacy and weight without a slip or a stumble. Simply put, I have never played a title that has the same depth of controls as the Skate series.
Read More - Skate 3 Review
Friday, May 14, 2010
12:07 PM - May 14, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
MLB '10 The Show on the PSP is a continuation of a tradition. Like previous editions of the games on the portable device, lil' brother is contiuing right where big brother left off. Everything that you love from The Show franchise from Sony Corporation Entertainment America (SCEA) you will find in your hands for your PSP.Read More - MLB '10: The Show PSP Review
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
01:27 PM - May 12, 2010. Posted by RaychelSnr. Written by Steven Bartlett
Arnie Palmer and his manager Mark McCormack were the first to ink a player-manager relationship decades ago. These two would help shape what we now know as athlete representation and management.
Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online (TWO) has a lot in common with the management of a professional athlete.
In TWO, I cannot help but feel as if I am managing a golfer’s career like an agent. I make huge financial decisions and career moves for him off the links by entering him in to the best tournaments and landing successful sponsorships.
From there, I get to control his success on the course with my TruSwing controls.
Read More - Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online Review
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