NBA Live 08 (Wii)

There's a reason real basketball isn't played with a nunchuk.
1/31/2008 12:00 AM | 0 Comments | Page 2 of 2

While you can just play a single-game, a truer test of your chuk-ing skills would happen in Season mode. Take your fave franchise and lead it through a 29-, 58-, or full 82-game season. But given the type of play available -- either far too simplified in the Family Play mode or overly arcade-y in the advanced mode -- the majority of gamers may shy away from an 82-game slate. Live 08 on Wii does its best when dishing up the balling in small doses. Those looking for quick-hit hoops will probably spend a lot of time in the Superstar Challenge mode. Here, you'll get to pick a scenario based on a real-life game from last year. Last Dec. 4, Gilbert Arenas scored 38 points to beat the Mavs. In the Challenge mode, you'll begin with a limited amount of time on the clock and Arenas will start out with 28 points. Your job is to get him up to 38 and also win the game.

Those looking for mini-game-style quick-hit hoops action will end up in the NBA Live 08 Party mode. While I'm guessing that a real party thrown by someone like Kobe or Allen Iverson would be a little more interesting than a virtual three-point shootout or dunking contest done with a plastic remote, that's what you'll have to settle for. The dunk contest is actually pretty fun and it will challenge your Wii skills more than anything else on the disk. The dunk is broken up into two parts -- getting the ball above your head and slamming it through the hoop -- and both are time-based. Easy dunks may just involve timing the pulling back and flicking forward of the remote, but the fancier, higher-scoring ones will require some acrobatics. The three-point shooting contest will let you get your timing down as you try to drain rack after rack of balls. The controls feel tight here, and you definitely know if you've bricked one solely from how your release felt.

Hoops fans that are serious about their game would do better with the PS2, PS3 or 360 versions of Live 08 or -- if they're looking for the cream of this year's b-ball crop -- any version of 2K Sports' NBA 2K8. Live 08 for Wii is an interesting animal. It's worth a rental if you just want to see how the game plays with the Wii remote and Nunchuk, but it's still clearly a work in progress. There are some fun arcade-style mini-games, but there's not nearly enough here to make me want to give up my Wii Sports' bowling career.

This review was based on a retail copy of NBA Live 08 that was supplied by the publisher. I think the UPS guy is jealous of him.