EA has a real bad habit of milking franchises, although not as bad as Koei. But still bad enough. But this time, they've actually concentrated on the gameplay. Although we still wonder why they couldn't give us the gameplay and more modes, but we guess milk is a hard habit to break. Maybe a Got Milk ad is in there future.

So what's different about the gameplay? The answer is strategy. The officials are tougher so you'll have to pick your steals and slam dunks, or you'll get called for fouls. All the NBA star players have signature moves that reminds us of the old Lakers vs. Celtics game EA did nearly fifteen years ago. You can use these moves when you really need to score. There's also hotspots for each player. When the player is in their hotspot, they're more likely to make the shot. Their field goal percentage is much higher. So you really do have to think and strategize when scoring, especially since the AI seems to do some rubberbanding like so many other EA games.

Game modes haven't really change, but there's a free throw shooting contest and free style camera control which we really like. And they have integrated the game with ESPN so now you can play the games that are occurring as you watch the real NBA. Kinda cool. They have Steve Kerr as the announcer. They've also added eight international teams including China, France, and Greece.

Graphics haven't changed that much from the previous versions. And the sound is the same. But the most important change is probably online league play. We've been waiting for this since NBA Live first came to the 360. Why they didn't do it earlier is beyond us, because league play is an important aspect of team sports. So now you can join a league online and see if your team is the best. Especially with the new gameplay mechanics, it can be really challenging.

Finally, EA does a new release of a franchise right. The added gameplay mechanics means online play can be really fun. Do you go with your star player? Because that's what most online gamers expect. But if you move a player to their hotspot, and use your star player as a decoy, you might get an open shot. These kinds of questions are always on our minds online. Sell your old copies of NBA Live and buy this one, for the strategy and the online league play. You'll have a much better time. But if you're an NBA Live fan, you're probably doing that anyway. So enjoy.