A look back at NBA Live 99
by Matthew Damian

Unlike the real NBA, NBA Live 99 was ready to tipoff on time

The biggest challenge facing NBA Live 99 wasn't the competition, it was the NBA lockout. After arguably the most successful NBA season in the history of the game, the lockout killed off any hype for the new season. Fortunately for basketball and gaming fans, NBA Live 99 wasn't on hiatus, and the team at EA produced the best Live yet.

Building on NBA Live 98's awesome success, Live 99 brings back every mode, from exhibition to season mode, playoff to 3 point shootout…it's all here. Live 99 sports a new mode to as well: Practice Mode.

The new Practice Mode is a great way to work on your jumpshot, but is really limited to just that. The most useful tool in practice mode is the ball trajectory feature. It tells you when to release the ball using a colored line centering to the basket. It's tricky at first, but once you figure it out your rhythm will improve in the game.

Virtual players would get fired up after a Shaq Attack

Practice Mode was the only new gameplay mode in Live 99, but the important addition might have been the beefed up season mode. For years gamers have wondered what it would be like if you could play consecutive seasons, and Live delivers. Not only does it offer consecutive seasons, but players will improve and decline at the end of each NBA season. Not only that, but CPU teams would initiate trades and you could even partake in a fantasy draft before the season. The stat tracking in season mode is impressive, and the menus are the best the series has seen. This mode was reaching new heights for the Live series and made the transition to a real Franchise Mode in the following years live a lot easier.

Graphically, Live 99 was also groundbreaking. Players would display real emotion after plays, shaking their fist after a dunk or clapping their hands after receiving a sweet pass and making a lay up. On replays you could even see player's expressions changing. The player models also received a nice upgrade. When playing Utah it's easy to distinguish which player is Karl Malone just by his body shape. Likewise, it's almost impossible to tell the difference between Stockton and Hornacek from a distance, just like in real life.

The biggest problem with NBA Live 98 was the amount of points scored and the ease to score them on superstar. While NBA Live 99 isn't the hardest game to score with, it's a lot tougher than its predecessor. On superstar, the AI has been improved also. No longer do you see Greg Ostertag or Luc Longley taking the bulk of the shots, or the shooting guard retreating to the corner to fire up fadeaway 3 pointers. The ball movement amongst CPU teams forces you to actually play defense, and if you don't challenge a shot be prepared to get burned. As always, there is an Arcade Mode for the nostalgic players amongst us who want to relive NBA Jam memories. The separation between the two modes is a definite plus, and is great for the casual basketball fans out there. Hardcore fans probably will stick to simulation, but it's good to have the option.

Player graphics continued to improve

The only drawback from this mode is the "Fatigue" bug. Players simply don't get tired. While this bug is relatively small, it still subtracts from what would have been a major upgrade. [This was fixed in the PC version by EA's official update - Ed]

Unfortunately one area of the game that struggles compared to last season is sound. Gone is the exciting Vern Lundquest and he has been replaced by Grizzlies' play by play man, Don Poier. Don is different, and doesn't hurt the series at all. It's just that Lundquest was better. The crowd AI has improved slightly. When opposing teams go on runs on your home floor, you can hear the silence in the arena. If you start turning the ball over, a chorus of boo's will be heard from the home fans. A nice touch, but this really is an area EA didn't focus much on.

Antoine Walker was not one of the more popular cover athletes

Presentation in game also took a small step backwards. The TNT/TBS games are still listed in season mode, but gone is Ernie Johnson and his reporting from the studio. Once again, it's not an area that is lacking (especially when you consider the presentation during the season) but it could have been better, especially considering the success of these area's in last year's version.

When you take away the improved graphics and game modes, NBA Live 99 is still impressive with more realistic gameplay, despite the fatigue problem. The gameplay remains fast and additive without compromising too much on the realistic side of things. Add to that the boosting of Season Mode and you have a worthy upgrade over a successful NBA Live 98. Now if they could only change the cover athlete...

Did you know?

• EA released two patches for the PC version: A roster update and bug fix patch, and a second roster update closer at the trade deadline.
• NBA Live 99 marked the debut of multi-season mode. While players improved and declined, there was no rookie draft or free agency.