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As far as the basketball games go, the genre falls into three categories: simulation, arcade and a combination of the two. NBA 2k6, which dropped the “ESPN” prefix used the last couple of years, is no doubt a simulation, although it moved this year toward more of a hybrid. Examples of the arcade would be EA Big’s NBA Street or Acclaim’s NBA Jam series. EA’s NBA Live series represents a hybrid game because it blends realism with enough dashes of “this doesn’t happen in real life!” The 2k6 series dates back to the Sega Dreamcast when NBA 2k was released in 1999. The basketball game proved to be the first legitimate threat to EA’s Live series. After the Dreamcast folded, the 2k series ported to the other consoles and the expanded market prompted a move to pick up ESPN sponsorship. But ESPN jumped ship to the Live series and things got scrapped once again. The series is noted for realistic and thorough gameplay, along with sharp graphics.
Presentation/Graphics : 93
The game has a myriad of tweakable sliders. After noticing my games – even when playing with swatting machine teams like the Pistons – resulted in maybe one or two blocks game, I ramped up the sliders all the way. The next game I had eight. The main single player game modes are The Association and 24/7: Road to the EBC. The 24/7 mode is interesting, pitting you against celebrities and street court players. You must also build individual skills and you can even design your own sneakers. The Association is an amazingly thorough franchise mode, comparable to EA’s NCAA Football. You can micromanage practices, rosters and strategy.
Presentation/Audio : 65
The witty and cozy commentary booth had always been a strong suit for the 2k series, whether it was football, baseball or basketball. Back then, they used fictional announcers, but now the game has Craig Seger, who doesn’t add much beyond injury reports. The neat background information about players or the humorous one-liners are absent in the game. The players talk a bit, but they are often muffled out by the crowd, who cheer and boo, but never with much emotion, a la the Utah Jazz in the late 1990s. You get an adrenaline rush from the crowd in the college basketball games, but they often just cheer loudly all the time – and not in spots. NBA 2k6 has some intelligence programmed in, but not the passion. The in-game music is all hip hop and rap.
Interface/Options : 93
The game has a myriad of tweakable sliders. After noticing my games – even when playing with swatting machine teams like the Pistons – resulted in maybe one or two blocks game, I ramped up the sliders all the way. The next game I had eight. The main single player game modes are The Association and 24/7: Road to the EBC. The 24/7 mode is interesting, pitting you against celebrities and street court players. You must also build individual skills and you can even design your own sneakers. The Association is an amazingly thorough franchise mode, comparable to EA’s NCAA Football. You can micromanage practices, rosters and strategy.
Gameplay : 94
This is where the game shines, although there are some holes. As far as a realistic gaming experience, NBA 2k6 has long been the king, with no other game coming close. But there were problems last year with the passing system. This year, coupled with the increased individual player style, brings more flavor. There is a lead pass (the circle button) and the ability to have dual player control, which sets up give and gos or alley oops. The ability to do those maneuvers is nothing new to the genre, but the effectiveness – or its lack thereof – is what is fresh. Unlike most basketball games, NBA 2k6 requires you to think before you pass. This goes for an in-bounds pass after a made basket, an entry pass to start the offense or an interior post feed. If you smash the pass button without looking to see if there’s a defender, the ball will be stolen.
Setting up passes is a bit difficult, though, because the players often run inside the three-point line like heated molecules. Often times you will drive the lane and draw a help defender, only to have your teammate run to a clogged space on the floor. Logical basketball would call for a teammate to run to an open spot, or, at the very least, stay where he is at for an open three pointer. But that almost never happens.
Still, the pace of the game is wonderful. You can slow a game down or speed it up, depending on your personnel. This especially shows with the big men. An especially fast post man, like Amare Staudamire, will torch plodders like Adonal Foyle or Erick Dampier. Unfortunately, while you can pick from 20 or 30 half-court sets, you cannot pick a form for a fastbreak offense. You can choose to send your players early into the open court, instead of defensive rebounding, but you cannot have two wingmen, one guy running to the block, a point guard and a trailing big man, which is a common practice. Now the form would not be used for quick transitions, say after a blocked shot or steal, but it would be nice to have a team get out and run with some organization. The Phoenix Suns do this to near perfection.
The post game has improved, giving you four or five moves and counters. I still think hook shots or drop steps lack the grace many NBA big men (think Shaq’s pirouettes in the lane), as many animations take numerous frames to complete. Video games, like the All-Star game, are generally tailored to the guards and swingmen who can handle the ball and go up for dunks. Videogames tend to play faster, with human players choosing not to milk all 24-seconds of the shot clock. Larry Brown would go insane if his teams played the way they do in 2k6. But overall, the game provides a rich experience. It makes you think and adjust, depending on who the opponent is.
Replay Value : 95
Combine one of the deepest franchise modes with solid gameplay and you get a game that will likely remain in the PS2 for months. The one deterrent to basketball games is the length of the season: 82 games plus the playoffs. Unlike the more manageable football games, basketball seasons take a month or longer. Most games would choose to simulate the seasons, which happens quite briskly in 2k6 (simulating a single season in EA’s MVP Baseball often requires you to monitor the progress – automatic injury menus pop up and you must recognize them – may take a half hour or longer).
Overall : 91
I enjoyed playing this game, as a former basketball player and a big fan. There were enough nuances and respect for fundamentals that I felt like I could use my basketball I.Q. as an advantage. And yet, the game is playable, even for someone who has never touched the game. Was I jaw dropped? No. 2k6 is a continuation of a long tradition of solid basketball games. The improved passing and individual styles were substantive additions, but I think the first NBA Street will be considered the strongest game on the PS2.
