Live 04 and ELITE comparisons

[manny3118]

7 years ago, EA Sports released NBA Live 2004, which I'm sure many members here think about in nostalgic terms. In reality though, this might have also been the game that has arguably set back a franchise we've been familar with for years now, and might have effectively placed sim-gaming to the backburner in ELITE.

Live 04 introduced freestyle dribbling, a mechanic which sounds awfully alot like EA's Total Player Control being introduced today. The user was given the ability to dribble using the left analog stick at will, giving what was thought more control and flexibility to the user. But there was a problem with this-- the players all had the ability to use specific dribble moves at any time, and the differences between individual athletes were not pronounced. Players slipped and slid around the court as a result of players implementing these dribble moves with little consequence, and as a result, the user was given a basketball game which rewarded dunks and blocks with overexaggerated sound effects. Rocket dunks, the introduction of the pro-hop, the overuse of that same pro-hop, all of that eerily similar to what ELITE has showcased up to this point. An arcade game which was fun to play, but not fun to look at in simulation terms.

Now imagine if that game had online capabilities? Can you imagine the preverbial cheese online? The exploitation of the control of the freestyle dribbling, the exploitation of the glitches of the freestyle dribbling? And would any of that resemble basketball? Of course not. But the business model worked, and made the series sucessful in respect to the last generation consoles. I'd speculate that ELITE could very well fulfill that dream.

The next gen system brought, however, new expecations; players are not prioritizing realism. EA, however, sees promise in the multiplayer arena, and is obviously trying to capture the magic of the last gen business model-- appealing to more of an arcade style game. The question I propose is this-- do the users here at OS feel that the LIVE 04 business model can be successful like it was before, or are users more mindful in respect to realism than they were 5 or 6 years ago?

[Kaanyr Vhok]

Live 03 introduced freestyle. Live 03 was in my opinion a terrible game. I often called Live 03's freestyle a worthless hula dance because it didnt do anything. It was just there for show. The gameplay was very unrealistic. You still had PGs doing generic 360s and windmills on and through big men.


But things changed. Live 04 made incredible strides. The collision detection, defense and realism improved dramatically. I cant name a game that improved more than Live 04. The 5 man mo-cap gave the game realistic spacing and a realistic transition game. At the same time the comp took a major step back. Live 05 was even better and most would say the best NBA Live game until maybe 2010. Live 04 wasnt bad online. I remember cherry picking being the greatest flaw.

The important thing with Live 04/05, NHL, and Fifa is you cant just do it with controls and innovation. You have to have the gameplay and it really helps if the competition slumps. NHL 2k8 had 'new' controls and great goalie physics but the comp was just as strong and had the graphics advantage. Its the same with ELITE. Unless you bring the gameplay all you have is an added learning curve and if the comp is strong you have to really bring it.

[Bgamer90]

You're thinking of NBA Live 2003. Not 2004.

NBA Live 03 was very "arcady" but NBA Live 04 was a big step up toning things down. Live 04 and 05 were the best NBA Live games imo. Also, NBA Live 2003 did have an online mode (PS2 only).

[glenn16]

live 03 & 04 were the best Lives alot of ppl will tell you that, and elite dont compare to it

[jrose57]

04 and 05 best ever, seems like 2k11 will top those two this year though, hopefully~