Exactly! I've never been a ESPN/Sega supporter but to say the Live has all the features is weak. ESPN has made their, already deep, 24/7 mode deeper, made their franchise much more involved with "The Association", and (from the gameply videos I have seen so far) the gameplay looks much more sim-like and realistic. Hmmm.. let's see, what am I going to be playing more without getting stale.. a mode where I can create myself, build his skills up (RPG-like) and play endless amounts and variety of games based on the calendar; or an all-star weekend? I was a BIG Inside Drive guy (which they have cancelled) and didn't like either the Live or ESPN franchises but, after reading the facts and looking at the gameplay videos that Operation Sports has posted for both games, ESPN is my choice this year.
I never ID, but I've seen a lot of ID fans go crazy over the clips for ESPN 2K5. They really like the way ESPN plays, and I think it took some things from ID. I never knew a lot about ID, but if some of the new cool things were in ID, I probably should have tried it out. I heard the rating system was pretty awesome as well for ID.
The only things I thought ID lacked was a) Extra features (ie: 24/7, all-star weekend, etc.). It was really just single game, franchise or online. b) Presentation. I thought the commenting was pretty good (even had Kenny Smith crackin' remarks) but the overall feel just was kind of bland. I felt that the gameplay was THE best even though it really didn't have any extra flair. I really thought ID was real close to breaking out with an amazing game this year or next but, if everyone is buying EA & ESPN, I guess they had no choice but to bow out.
i've bought both for the last 3 years and i think espn has put out the better game in each of those years. however, live narrowed the gap a little more last year but i still thought espn was the better game. this year it looks even closer. i really don't care so much for things like a dunk contest, just looking for the game that offers a good simulation of nba basketball and solid gameplay.
You mean NBA Live (no year, because this was the series' first year, 1995) with the awesome opening video showing Hakeem and Otis on the bench from our first championship?!!!! I'd love to get my hands on that opening sequence. Still sends chills down my spine when I think about it. Back to the topic, I'll get the game with the most Rockets footages in its opening sequence. Would somebody report back his finding here?
If you have a PS2 or Gamecube, do NOT get NBA Live. The framerate is simply HORRIBLE on those two systems. The look is reminiscent of b-ball games on N64 or PSone. Only on XBox does the game operate as it should. I have a GC myself, and have been a loyal Live buyer for years, but I must say, this year I'm very dissappointed and pissed. I'm probably going to return the game tomorrow. If you dont want to take my word for it, just take a look at some of the comments in this NBA Live forum: http://boards.ign.com//board.asp?brd=6701&ui=cb_board Specifically the threads titled, "LIVE 05's graphics worse than last yrs???!!!! " and "I am getting game tomorrow.....I heard the ps2 graphics are bad...is this true?"
anybody have either yet? i saw 2k5 at futureshop (canadian equivalent of bestbuy) today, but gonna wait for live 2005. edit: nevermind..i see the posts are in the hangout.
I bought ESPN for the past two years (PS2). I was not extremely dissapointed with last years version, but it didn't seem too different from 2K3. Honestly, I haven't played Live in about 2 years, but I haven't read any reviews to show me that the playful/NBA-Jam feeling has been removed from the game. With that being said, I picked up 2K5 about an hour ago, and I hope it's better than last years. You can't beat a new $20 game. To put it in context, I also have a date tonight, and I know this one night is gonna cost me more that $20. Even though we can get the games early (which is good), the rosters aren't complete (which is bad). If this game is like the old ones, that means I will have to wait until the start of the season (when rosters are set) to officially start my simulated season.
