NBA Live series
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NBA Live 07, the latest version of the series, due for release September 26, 2006. |
The
NBA Live series of
basketball games,
published by
EA Sports, is currently one of the leading
National Basketball Association simulations on the market. Its main (and only major) competitor is
Take-Two Interactive's
NBA 2K series.
The series started with
NBA Live '95. Subsequently,
NBA Live '96,
97 and so on, until the naming was changed from utilizing the last two digits of the year utilizing the entire year number in the name. For example,
NBA Live 2002, uses this naming system. Starting with
NBA Live 06, the series returned to the original two-digit naming system).
The game is based on the
NBA Playoffs series, starting with
Lakers vs. Celtics and the NBA Playoffs, released in
1990 for the
Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis This game was played from a horizontal view (while later versions moved to an
isometric view before ultimately moving to
3D on newer consoles). The game was one of the first to feature an NBA license, containing both real NBA teams and player likenesses and signature moves. For example,
Kareem Abdul Jabbar's goggles are clearly visible, and his sky hook shot is animated with very high accuracy. Detailed player numbers were also visible. The game featured all eight teams that made the NBA playoffs that year, as well as both
NBA All-Star teams.
The next game in the series was
Bulls vs. Lakers and the NBA Playoffs, released in 1991, followed by
Bulls vs. Blazers and the NBA Playoffs in 1992. Unlike the first game, these two releases were titled after the two teams who were in the
NBA Finals the previous season, while the original release apparently chose the Lakers and Celtics due to both teams' historical success. Each revision added more teams and players, as well as signature moves. The series also included an Olympic basketball game,
Team USA Basketball (1992) which uses the same engine. The final two games in the series was
NBA Showdown for
SNES, this game can also be looked at as
Bulls vs. Suns,
NBA Showdown 94 for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis this were the final games before the transition to the
NBA Live series.
The
NBA Live series was originally released for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and SNES. Both versions usually have the same features; players can play against each other, or against the computer in exhibition, season or playoff games. One difference was that the SNES version did not allow users to create their own players until
NBA Live '96,
97, and
98, but the Mega Drive/Genesis version did.
NBA Live '98 in 1997 was the last
NBA Live game for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and the SNES.
NBA Live 2005 added the
Slam Dunk Contest into the game features.
In-game commentary is currently done by
Marv Albert and
Steve Kerr.
Kenny Smith and
Ernie Johnson provide the commentary for the Slam Dunk competition. Previous commentators on the game have included
Verne Lundquist,
Don Poier,
Reggie Theus,
Bob Elliott, and
Mike Fratello.
Due to licensing problems, some players did not appear in certain versions of the game.
Michael Jordan (although he previously gave his likeness to EA's
Jordan vs Bird: One on One and
Jordan In-Flight) and
Charles Barkley (who endorsed
Barkley: Shut Up And Jam! games) for instance, appear in
NBA Live '97 as
Roster Guard and
Roster Forward. The former, however, returned in
NBA Live 2000, which received a special mention in the game cover (in
NBA Live '96, Jordan and Barkley, as well as
Larry Bird,
Magic Johnson and others could be unlocked simply by giving that name to a created player). Barkley had returned in
NBA Live '98 after rejoining the
NBPA.
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Screenshot of the Xbox 360 version of NBA Live '06. |
NBA Live games have been released for the Sega Genesis, Super NES,
PlayStation,
Nintendo 64,
Game Boy,
Sega Saturn,
PlayStation 2,
Xbox,
GameCube,
Windows, and most recently with the
PSP and
Xbox 360.
PlayStation 3 will debut in the series with
NBA Live 07 along with the release of the PS3, as well as a version for Nintendo's
Wii.
*1995: New York Knicks vs Houston Rockets
*
Used an action shot from the 1994 NBA Finals which featured seven players.*1996:
Shaquille O'Neal*1997:
Mitch Richmond*1998:
Tim Hardaway*1999:
Antoine Walker*2000:
Tim Duncan*2001:
Kevin Garnett*2002:
Steve Francis*2003:
Jason Kidd*2004:
Vince Carter*2005:
Carmelo Anthony*2006:
Dwyane Wade*2007:
Tracy McGradyImage:NBA_Live_95.JPG|NBA Live 95 coverImage:NBA_Live_96.JPG|NBA Live 96 coverImage:NBA_Live_97.JPG|NBA Live 97 coverImage:NBA_Live_98.JPG|NBA Live 98 coverImage:NBA_Live_99.JPG|NBA Live 99 coverImage:NBALive2000 cover.jpg|NBA Live 2000 coverImage:NBA_Live_2001.JPG|NBA Live 2001 coverImage:NBA_Live_2002.JPG|NBA Live 2002 coverImage:NBA_Live_2003.JPG|NBA Live 2003 coverImage:NBA_Live_2004.JPG|NBA Live 2004 coverImage:NBA_Live_2005.JPG|NBA Live 2005 coverImage:NBA_Live_06.JPG|NBA Live 06 coverImage:NBA_Live_07.JPG|NBA Live 07 cover
NBA Live series soundtracks*
EA Sports, publisher of the NBA Live series
**
Official site of NBA Live '07 at
EA Sports**
Official site of NBA Live '06 at
EA Sports**
Official site of NBA Live 2005 at
EA Sports*
nbalive.org, features "mods", roster updates, editing tools and more for the NBA Live series
*
NLSC (NBA Live Series Center) The largest NBA Live fansite on the web
*
4th-quarter.net Another mod and fansite
*
UAAP-NCAA Live Series Center - Hosts the UAAP-NCAA Live mod for the
NBA Live Series
