Toronto Thumbs

SUPER MEGA CROSS-PLATFORM REVIEW
NBA 09

Basketball season is upon us once again, and to many gamers that means a fresh new crop of NBA games to decide on.  I’m not going to attempt to compare the big 3 ballers against each other in this review, rather I’m going to tell you about my experiences with NBA 09 in all its incarnations: PS3, PSP, and PS2.  So hold tight and let’s get ready for some Foot…  err Basketball!

NBA 09 - PSP

We’ll start with the PSP version of the game, simply because I found it to provide the best experience of the 3 versions.  Building on the success of NBA 08, NBA 09 contains a crazy amount of content for the NBA fan.  Beyond the traditional NBA mode where you can jump into a quick game, Franchise, Season, or Play-off mode, the devs have managed to fill this tiny UMD to the brim with extra content.  The different modes range all the way from great: Conquest mode (more on this later), to bordering on horrible: The Carnival (carnival games with a b-ball twist), and some like pinball that sit firmly in between.

All this is beside the point however, as the reason you’re reading this is that you probably like basketball.  That said, none of the above matters compared to the on-court experience provided, which I am happy to say doesn’t suffer because of everything else that is offered.  Some fantastic graphics start us off, with player models being really well done on Sony’s little handheld that could.  The court environment and sounds are also great, with a real attention to detail being evident.  I, being a Raptor fan, was happy to see a faithful recreation of the Air Canada Centre, the Air Canada scoreboard managing to look just right.  Team entrances are present to flesh out the whole experience, and the overall presentation gives of that polished vibe you don’t often find in a handheld sports title.  With some really tight full-featured basketball gameplay, the camera played nice and allowed me to see and do everything on court, with the only problem I found being the on-the-fly passing could sometimes be completely off target.

The aforementioned Conquest mode was especially intriguing and allows players to start with a team, and with a very RISK-esque type strategy, plot your basketball domination of the United States and beyond.  After each match, players can be won or lost based on the outcome, so it can be crucial to pick the proper team to play against, based on your and their team skill, and your chance to recruit players you desire.  Players will also receive medals based on their performance which can upgrade that player’s abilities, again adding to the strategy of the mode.  It was really a refreshing addition to the NBA experience, one I actually find myself playing more than the traditional mode.

Overall, the PSP edition of NBA 09 offers a full basketball experience on the go, and stands up well to the standards of any basketball game regardless of platform.  A game that looks and plays great AND features a ridiculous amount of additional content to keep any NBA fan busy, it is definitely worth a look.

Posted in PSP, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Reviews |