EA needs to get some competition in the college basketball area to keep them trying.
Review 150
Released: January 17, 2007
Publisher: EA Sports
Developer: EA Canada
Game Genre: Basketball Sim
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Gameplay: 50%
Graphics: 30%
Durability: 20%
Gameplay (4/10)
I expected a lot more from a next-gen game, especially since the NBA Live games have been so impressive. To begin with, the camera angle is insanely awful. The game is anything but smooth, and there's a huge lack of reality. The default halves of 10 minutes are not nearly long enough to get a full game's worth in. The new composure system is a great idea that was not developed nearly as much as it should have been. I haven't even seen composure affect the team yet.
For example…the first game I played, I used the Akron Zips. They have a decent team, but not tournament quality. I played against the #8 Gonzaga Bulldogs. I won 67-27 with the default settings.
As if that wasn't enough, many aspects of the game are just plain awful. The fatigue system outright sucks. There is no fatigue on the default settings. I never had a player get tired. To top that off, there is also no setting for automatic substitutions (which, with no fatigue there is no reason to sub anyway). The free throw system is way too easy, there are way too many fouls and, as I mentioned before, a horribly inaccurate scoring system.
Graphics (5/10)
The graphics are also very lackluster. The camera angle (as I mentioned earlier) is very far away and also switches when the ball reaches different areas of the court. This results in a lot of disorientation that is nearly impossible to get used to.
Durability (5/10)
Overall Score (4.5/10)
Final Thoughts:
EA needs some competition in the NCAA basketball market to keep them trying.