22-Feb-2005 To appreciate the depths and master the subtleties of a sports game you really need to know your subject matter. With a bit of practice they might get a fairly solid grip on things, but gamers with only a passing interest in football or ice hockey will never excel at PES or utilise every option NHL has to offer like a hardened fan of the sport will be able to. This is where EA Sports Big comes in. They strip down some of the world's most spectacular sports to a streamlined, fat-free, thrill-a-minute version that can be enjoyed by everyone. And for many years now, NBA Street has been the pinnacle of Electronic Arts' desire to distil every sport into a pulsating ball of pure, adrenalised entertainment.
Pulling off spectacular tricks has been honed to perfection in this latest version. The right stick is used to activate special moves assigned to each direction. Combining this with the triggers enables the player to unleash an endless flow of outrageous manoeuvres too, and thanks to some impressive animation each one looks absolutely astounding. It's one of those games that's almost as enjoyable to watch as it is to play. Gamebreakers are the zenith of V3's extravagant trickery, and now you can combine the air-grabbing skills of all three players into one eye-popping, hoop-slamming extravaganza. Get it all spot-on and you've scored a four-pointer.
The only problem with games of this type is that there's no established World Cup to win or league table to top. Long-term appeal for a three-on-three knockabout has always been NBA Street's biggest problem. Not any more. EA Big has obviously liked what its seen in DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball (although haven't we all, ho ho ho?), and decided that acquiring a world-beating team isn't going to be nearly as simple as just unlocking all the best players anymore. Now you've got to keep your squad of b-ballers happy by offering them gifts, rotating players to give everyone their turn on the court, and trying not to upset their fragile egos by playing important games when they're otherwise engaged.
This Court Is Now In Session You've only got ten weeks to build up your reputation and compile a squad of unbeatable superstars. Along the way you'll get to unlock classic players, clothing, hairstyles, all the usual bonus stuff. It's a superbly addictive single-player challenge that makes V3 infinitely replayable, as you'll never know just how your sensitive players will react each time you play. All in all, the new NBA Street is the perfect example of how updates of existing titles should be done. Every single area has been improved way beyond what we would have been content with. Sports games don't get much more polished.
Xbox Gamer staff
// Overview
Verdict
Great to look at, superb to play, lovingly updated in all the right areas, and now with the bonus
of a great single-player challenge. Mastering it never feels like anything other than pure fun.
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