NBA Live 06

To mark the 25th Anniversary of NBA Live, we’re taking a look back at every game in the series with retrospectives and other fun content! This also includes re-running some features from our 20th Anniversary celebrations, with a few revisions. Whether you’re a long-time basketball gamer who grew up with NBA Live and are keen on taking a trip down memory lane, or you’re new to the series and want to learn about its history, we hope that you enjoy celebrating the 25th Anniversary of NBA Live here at the NLSC! Today, it’s a retrospective of NBA Live 06.

After the success of NBA Live 2005, NBA Live 06 proved to be a pivotal moment in the series; one that NBA Live is still feeling the effects of today. Because of those long-term ramifications, it’s all too easy to forget that NBA Live 06 is a tale of two games: a last gen and PC release that was at least on par with its predecessor, and a new gen launch title that was a disappointment. It’s unfortunate that the latter often overshadows the former, but it’s understandable, given the lasting impact that it had. Nevertheless, I’ll be covering both versions of the game in this retrospective. Let’s look back at the good, the bad, and the ugly in a significant year for NBA Live.

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I’m still cooking up some big projects that I hope I can finish before March Modness 2019 is over, but in the meantime, I’m tipping off my releases with a couple of smaller mods. Following up on my previous NBA Live 18 and NBA Live 19 title screen updates for NBA Live 2005-08 PC, I’ve released a new title screen featuring the NBA Live 19 All-Star Edition artwork.

In an overdue release, I’ve also gone back and updated my Next Gen Title Screen mod for NBA Live 07. The first release used the pre-boot screen as it was easier to crop for use in the original NBA Live 07 file, but this release uses the file from NBA Live 08, which means I’ve been able to use the actual title screen from the Xbox 360 version of NBA Live 07.

Download the NBA Live 19 All-Star Edition mod here, and the new NBA Live 07 Next Gen mod here. Be sure to stay tuned for more March Modness releases!

It’s always nice to see new uploads for old favourites. Today we have a file addition for one of my own all-time favourite basketball games, NBA Live 06 PC. Wudlock has created a custom AIACT file that results in big men taking more outside shots, in order to update the gameplay to resemble the current NBA style. Give it a look at the link below!

Wudlock
Big Man Three-Pointer AIACT

Thanks to everyone who continues to contribute to our Downloads database! If you need help uploading files, be sure to check out this video tutorial. For more information about downloads, the modding community, and File Additions bulletins, please see this FAQ in our Wiki.

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. This week, I’m taking a look back at my memorable NBA Live 06 Dynasty with the Chicago Bulls.

Even as the years have gone by and technology has allowed basketball video games to get better and better, we still have our all-time favourites from yesteryear. As I’ve said in previous Wayback Wednesday features, it can be a lot of fun to revisit old games – it’s one of the main reasons I do flashback content every week – but some of them do show their age, making it difficult to spend a lot of time with them. On the other hand, some games are easier to stick with or revisit time and time again, with their overall experience being just as satisfying years later.

For me, an example of such a game would be NBA Live 06 PC. The reason I’ve been able to dust it off time and time again is because I’ve kept the save file of one of my all-time favourite basketball gaming experiences, namely my Dynasty game with the Chicago Bulls. It’s a game that spawned not one but two Dynasty story topics, so I felt that it would only be appropriate to reminisce about it in a Wayback Wednesday article. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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I recently whipped up a few fixes for the Primacy ratings in the default rosters of NBA Live 06, NBA Live 07, and NBA Live 08. These fixes are intended to address the issue of Primacy ratings being recalculated whenever there are trades or injuries in Dynasty mode, a problem that unfortunately occurred in all three of those titles. The fixes are simple, consisting of a batch file that will restore all of the original Primacy ratings.

For those who are unaware, a player’s Primacy rating is what determines his place in the pecking order in terms of shot attempts, both in gameplay and simulation. The recalculation is intended to adjust shot distribution following trades and injuries, but the results aren’t always desirable, nor are the original ratings restored when players are fully healed and back in the lineup. This generally resulted in prominent scorers putting up far less points than they should have.

While the current roster updates that I used to release for NBA Live included their own fixes for Primacy ratings, I never bothered to release a version that was intended for use with the original rosters. It wasn’t until Breems reminded me of the issue in his story topic – which uses default rosters for NBA Live 06 – that it occurred to me that it would be useful to have fixes based on the original files. As such, here they are:

• NBA Live 06
• NBA Live 07
• NBA Live 08

Once again, please note that these fixes are only intended to be used with the default rosters. If you are using one of the old NLSC roster updates, please use the included fix to ensure that all of the newly added players are updated accordingly. Hopefully, the retro gamers in our community can put these overdue fixes to good use! Thanks again to Breems for the heads up, and for testing the NBA Live 06 version.

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. This week, I’m taking a look back at the Tandy Rec Center in NBA Live 06.

In addition to the commendable job that EA Sports has done with the team arenas in NBA Live, the series has boasted some interesting and well-designed venues beyond the NBA hardwood. From the street courts in NBA Live 2003 to The Temple in the Xbox 360 versions of NBA Live 06 and 07, to The Hangar and the global courts we’re set to experience in NBA Live 19, NBA Live’s art team has done some great things with real and fictional venues alike. One practice venue that doesn’t get mentioned very often however is the Tandy Rec Center in the PC version of NBA Live 06.

A little out of the norm for a sim-oriented NBA video game, it nevertheless stands out as one of the more unique venues featured in the NBA Live series. Since I’ve already taken a look back at several of the old practice and 1-on-1 courts in NBA Live, I felt it would only be fitting to profile this distinctive gym from one of my all-time favourite games. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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I’m tipping off my own contributions to March Modness with my first mod release of the month: an NBA Live 18 Title Screen for NBA Live 2005-08!

Taken from the PlayStation 4 version of NBA Live 18, this will replace the final title screen you see before the main menu comes up. Although it’s hosted in the NBA Live 08 section of our Downloads database, it’s also compatible with NBA Live 2005, NBA Live 06, and NBA Live 07 PC. Unfortunately I’ve had to resize and crop it a little to fit the art file, but most of the screen is still visible. It should hopefully make a fine addition to any other 2018 season releases from our community.

You can download the mod here. Be sure to stay tuned for more March Modness releases!

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. This week, I’m aiming to replicate Kobe Bryant’s 81 point game in NBA Live 06.

Monday marked the twelfth anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s career high 81 point game against the Toronto Raptors. The Los Angeles Lakers legend’s torching of Toronto put him in second place behind Wilt Chamberlain for the most points scored in a single NBA game. It was a spectacular feat, and I remember my jaw actually dropping when I checked the scores that day. Between Shaquille O’Neal’s departure and the arrival of Pau Gasol, the Lakers languished in relative mediocrity in terms of the standings, but Kobe was putting up some numbers for the ages.

After his legendary 81 point game, NBA.com threw down a challenge for basketball gamers to try and replicate Kobe Bryant’s performance in either NBA Live 06 or NBA 2K6. For this week’s Wayback Wednesday, I decided that I’d dust off NBA Live 06 PC – one of my all-time favourite basketball games – and give it a shot myself, over a decade later. 81 points seems like something out of a video game, but just how easily can it be done on the virtual hardwood? Let’s take a look back…way back…

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We’ve reached our final batch of long-lost releases, and we’re wrapping things up with some mods for one of my all-time favourite games, NBA Live 06 PC. The files I found in my archives include JaoSming’s NBA Street 06 and lighting mods, and an NCAA mod for the 2007 season. They’re in our Downloads section for safekeeping, so if you feel like dusting off NBA Live 06, check them out at the links below!

JaoSming
NBA Street 06
JaoSming’s Lighting Update

NCAA 06 Mod Team
NCAA 2006-2007 Rosters

Thanks to everyone who continues to contribute to our Downloads database! If you need help uploading files, be sure to check out this video tutorial. For more information about downloads, the modding community, and File Additions bulletins, please see this FAQ in our Wiki.

A couple of new files have recently been uploaded for one of my all-time favourite games: NBA Live 06 PC. Today’s additions include a jersey update for the Cleveland Cavaliers, and a mod that adds the NBA Live 18 logo to the menus. Check them out at the links below!

yunicorn
2016/2017 Cleveland Cavaliers Jersey

magiciangirl06
NBA Live 18 Logo

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. This week, I’m taking a look back at Freestyle Superstars in NBA Live 06.

As basketball video games have improved along with gaming technology in general, our expectations have also grown. When it comes to aspects such as realism, advanced or flashy moves, signature styles, and player differentiation, the bar has been raised higher and higher. Signature moves were present in EA Sports’ NBA Playoffs series, and skill levels were more defined beginning with the implementation of player ratings in NBA Live 95. However, star players still didn’t quite stand out from the pack. Freestyle Superstars was arguably EA’s first major effort to incorporate individual playing styles, and properly represent differing skill levels.

It was a concept that had its drawbacks, but I also believe that it was innovative and reasonably successful. Although the criticisms of Freestyle Superstars are fair, it’s a little underrated in terms of being an important stepping stone in the progression of basketball video games. How so? Well, let’s take a look back…way back…

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This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. This week, I’m taking a look back at the presence of NBA Live 95 in the PlayStation 2 version of NBA Live 06.

Generally speaking, sim-oriented sports titles aren’t what most people think of, or indeed reach for, when it comes to retro gaming. They don’t always age well, mostly because they appeal to a demographic that wants to see more and more realism, as well as play with current season rosters. As such, they’re not as popular among retro gamers, to play or collect. That being said, there is a contingent of basketball gamers who do enjoy playing and modding older titles, so it’s certainly not unheard of. Finding a way to keep playing old favourites, or at least fire them up every once in a while, is something that people in our community do have an interest in.

When it came to the PlayStation 2 version of NBA Live 06, EA Sports made that a little easier by including an emulated version of NBA Live 95. It was a rather unusual example of bonus content, so let’s take a look back…way back…

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We have another new file addition for NBA Live 06 PC today, as magiciangirl06 has uploaded a new 2017 court update for the Washington Wizards. Check it out at the link below!

magiciangirl06
2016/2017 Washington Wizards Court

Today’s lone file addition for NBA Live 06 PC is a new version of magiciangirl06’s Boston Celtics court update for the 2017 season. Check it out below!

magiciangirl06
2016/2017 Boston Celtics Court (Updated to v2.0)

Today’s lone file addition for NBA Live 06 PC is a new and final version of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2017 court. Download it at the link below!

magiciangirl06
2016/2017 Cleveland Cavaliers Court (Final Version)