Nothing earth shattering. But, this is a fun and playable college basketball game.
That said, College Hoops 2K6 is a pretty good game. I've played NBA Live 06 which look really good but didn't play that well and I tried NBA 2K6 which played well but didn't look as good. College Hoops 2K6 is much like it's NBA counterpart. From a graphics standpoint, it's just ok. I mean, there are some really nice features like the field of focus from the cameras that allow things in the background to blur out. The sweat is nice and the overall look of the game, arenas and players is pretty nice. The first thing I don't like about the look is the animations are a bit choppy. A player will run full force down the court and when he gets near the basket you'll hit the shoot button and he'll suddenly go to a typical jump shot animation. Forget all the forward momentum, he'll just stop on a dime. That's a little frustrating and ruins the realism. The overal character models aren't bad, but aren't as real as many other games. The players look a little plastic. The worst thing is Greg Gumbel at the post game. Wow, it's like 1996 graphics all over again. Not to mention the fact that he looks like a super-wide, 2D version of himself. I mean, Gumbel is no small man, but he looks bigger than John Madden in this!
As far as sound goes, that, too is mediocre. The ambient noices in the arenas are nice and the overall game sounds are fine. The commentary is pretty good, including the color commentary and the overall discussions that happen during the game. This is the first sports game where I can create my own player and they'll say my last name. Corny, yeah, but I like it. I know other games have done it before, its just that none of them had my name in their database. The worst things about the sound are the college band music being so repetative and loud and again the Gumbel post game. I've only played a half-dozen games and I've already heard him repeat himself. If it doesn't add to the game, it shouldn't be there.
In terms of gameplay, College Hoops is pretty simple to learn. Nothing too tough about it. The characters react pretty well to your movements and it's generally responsive in the ways you'd expect. There is a bit of a jumpiness to it when you're playing defensively. you seem to be moving around a lot even when you're just trying to spin around or something. I wish there were some other button uses, like directing a pass or thowing up an alley-oop. But, overall, it's not bad. More playable than the EA basketball games in my opinion.
All in all, this isn't a great game, but it is one of the more enjoyable sports titles I've played on the 360. Sad thing is, that doesn't say much for the other sports titles we've had to date.