Report from Vancouver (Updated w/Gameplay Info)

[Riot]

Thanks a ton shane! You're doing an awesome job.


About my question, I just hope they don't come in as all-stars. Have it more realistic, I hope it's better than last years. Sounds good though. Great Job again Shane.

[Metsis]

Shane, between me drooling along with the others...

So the training mode can now only increase players ratings? The pre-season training along with the training done with the dynasty points?

If this is so, well I'll love it. Really never did anything wise with those Dynasty points on Live 2004. Maybe now I'll train my players asses off.

And this adds a whole new depth into the single player training.

Well, it all sounds too good to be true... Damn saliva starting on me again, gotta stop.

[ratman]

Shane, between me drooling along with the others...

So the training mode can now only increase players ratings? The pre-season training along with the training done with the dynasty points?

If this is so, well I'll love it. Really never did anything wise with those Dynasty points on Live 2004. Maybe now I'll train my players asses off.

And this adds a whole new depth into the single player training.

Well, it all sounds too good to be true... Damn saliva starting on me again, gotta stop.

Yes, the training will only increase ratings. you will use the dynasty points for the training, but the points will also be used for rookie scouting throughout the season. so make sure not to use all your points for training, or else you wont be able to scout those euros or HS guys.

[Riot]

I got a boner. I need the gameplay.

[Metsis]

Yes, the training will only increase ratings. you will use the dynasty points for the training, but the points will also be used for rookie scouting throughout the season. so make sure not to use all your points for training, or else you wont be able to scout those euros or HS guys.

Well, this brings up another question... I know you can see this coming...

So with the dynasty points, you can train your players via training sessions, buy some dynasty extras or scout players... Is that all or can you something else with the dynasty points that isn't mentioned on the list?

Just wandering... Scouting/training, you have to select so this adds new stuff... A selection outside of the game that doesn't involve players getting traded! Great... I have wanted to see some sort of decision making process in the game for a long time.

You can now actually train up, if you are going to long in the play-offs or do some serious scouting if you are in rebuild mode. This is great stuff...

But is there more? Please tell me...

[th3answer]

is this a slider for mid range shot and pro hop? it's exists the home advantage? the double team in low post is fixed?

[Riot]

Is the bug still there, when the 1st year of the dynasty, the league leaders in points will be acurrate, like the leader avg. 30 or so, but after year 1 in the dynasty, the league leader in points average is 19. Is that bug fixed?

yeah, shane do you know anything about that?

[Wall St. Peon]

So with the dynasty points, you can train your players via training sessions, buy some dynasty extras or scout players... Is that all or can you something else with the dynasty points that isn't mentioned on the list?

That's all, sorry. It'd be nice if you could save those points to lure free agents, but alas, not this year.

is this a slider for mid range shot and pro hop? it's exists the home advantage? the double team in low post is fixed?

Uh...no, there's no slider, I don't think. The prohop is balanced better, and the midrange jumpers actually occur now and are makable by the user. The double team is fixed.

yeah, shane do you know anything about that?

It should be fixed....it better be fixed, because I ranted about that in the survey they sent me and I mentioned it again at the summit. They said that would be fixed when they did the ratings.

[Metsis]

There is a problem with the 1st season stats compared to 2nd etc. season stats are that they have the real data according to which to simulate game results... But as the game progresses and the player attributes are changed and teams change players, you cannot run the simulation with the original results.

If it did run with them, well you all saw Live 2001 simulation where 40 year old Shaq was pounding 35ppg, 15rpg etc.

Trading is what makes it so hard... When you trade a player that was 'The man' on one team to a team with accomplished stars how does his stats change? That is an excellent question. We used to have a rigid dstats system that was still in Live 2003. I saw one team averaging 105 ppg with the starting five and bench chipped in some extra too and the starting five also grabbed like 40 rebounds... It was just horrible...

It is tough to make it realistic. And so that it does not give horrendously different stats between season one and two.

And take in the factor that you have to reflect the style of play of each team into the stats and you have way too many cooks making a single cake. It will never be perfect... They are working on it...

I hope there are no big lapses this year (as there has always been), but don't expect miracles. This is probably the most difficult task of the entire game... Balancing out the stats and gettting the "right" stats to each of the guys.

We'll just have to wait and see... The dynasty points have finally something worthwhile doing... I can't wait.

[lobe]

Gameplay is so much BETTER!! NOW!!!
and the way they seperated how your player can and cannot participate on the AllStar weekend, is great, cant wait more development, coming from them... Thanks for such a great great Feedback about the Summit LOL

[33]

Thanks for all this infos about the gameplay part !!!!!

I have some questions about the gameplay : I know...that was unexpected...!

My first question is about the "in the air" action :

- In the 2004 you were able to adjust your shoot (layup/dunk), it was great but sometimes seemed a bit strange (just a bit 'cause it was awesome!!!).
Is there the same option here during a lay up or a dunk ?
If there is, would that be more realistic ? like changing your lay up into a windmill behind the board (Jordan like), or make a 360 lay up around the PF ? (Starks like) Or changing your ball handling arm ? (Kobe like)

Can you make a pass during a lay up or a dunk like in the 2001 version ?

- One more and that will be all....for now...

What about he cutscenes ?
Are there any during the game ?
Especially after a foul, when the player is going to the foul line.

Ok thanks a lot, and if it's not the right place to ask those questions, tell me so.
Thanks anyway. It's the best site ever !

[XianeX]

Shane, I’d like to thank you for giving us this sneak preview. I (and I’m sure everyone else) appreciates you taking the time to tell us all this info. Thanks!

I was the Raptors and I played the Heat in Miami. Sadly, Shaq didn't get the ball every time down the floor. However, he still ended up with about 15 points and 12 boards, which isn't bad considering the majority of his points were from offensive rebounds

Does this mean there’s a lot of offensive rebounds or did Shaq get the boards because he’s a huge, dominant force? Will a skinny 6”10’ guy be able to do a performance like this on a regular basis?

The computer's offense is vastly improved, and I'd almost say they made the court a little wider, as the spacing for both computer and PC players is much, much, much improved. Because spacing is improved, the computer drives to the hoop, and double teams and their effectiveness are decreased.

Does the computer only drive or do they take a few dribbles and try to nail the midrange shot? If we go to the baseline 3, do we often go out of bounds without doing anything (ie: NBA Live 04)?

The double teams also seem smart, as they double teamed Chris Bosh in the corner and in the post, but left Jalen Rose and VC alone until I got inside the three point line. I don't know if that was a fluke or if the PC was recognizing my players ball handling ability, but it happened.

What do you mean by “left Jalen Rose and VC alone”? I don’t quite understand that statement but I do like that they’ll be double-teaming the big men.

Spacing and the absence of the speed bug allows you to swing the ball around for an open shot. You can start in one corner and move it all around the outside before the defense can rotate and get an open shot. It's so much fun to finally be able to do this. The PC also does this, which I love. There weren't too many early shots in the shotclock for them, generally around 10 seconds was when they did.

At times did the computer or you try to drive and penetrate the D and then pass it out? Did it work much?

Another thing that I really liked was the running of fast breaks. A few times I turned the ball over at the top of the key, so the only person who could get back on D was my point. Anyway, I'd get back and near the hoop, but three of the PC's players were streaking down the court...the ballhandler in the middle, two other guys on either side. He'd either drive towards the hoop and dish or just dish it out for an open three. Whatever they did, it was a well-executed fast break - just like in the NBA.

Do they make smart decisions or when they have an open lane for the layup do they pass the rock? Hopefully they know when/if to pass it and when to take a shot. Do they ever take a pull-up jay (ie: Mike Bibby)?

That was against the Lakers, and Kobe had 20 some points and VC also had 20 some points. Both were shooting around 50 percent, and Kobe was unstoppable to the hoop and hard to do anything against. But again, it wasn't frustrating...it was refreshing because he is just that damned good. It was a lot of fun.

How was the computer shot selection? Were they jacking up impossible shots or were they working the clock, the defense and looking for a good shot?

The blocked shots are much fewer, and that's probably because of the speed bug's absence. You guys have no idea how good of a game Live is and probably was because that speed bug ruined it. I think there were something like 5 blocks total for both teams in the Miami game (2 for me, 3 for miami) and maybe 4 in the LA game. They're down drastically, and they're by the right people.

So we won’t see Early Boykins swatting any PFs or Cs, right?

The computer takes midrange shots! And you can make midrange shots! Don't really need to say anything else...

What would your ratio be for 3 Point Shot to Midrange Shot to Close Shot?

Some other questions:

Do teams play like their real counter-parts (ie: Dallas with the fast break, Utah with the half-court offense, etc.)?

Will defensive specialists (ie: Ron Artest, Bruce Bowen) shut your superstar down like in real life or at least hold them in check?

Thanks for answering these questions!

[th3answer]

and about free throw? Are there the signature shot?

[Nick]

Wow, awesome report Shane! I was worried that Live05 wouldn't improve that much as they spent all their time on the dunk contest, but it sounds like gameplay has been tuned excellently and dynasty sounds completely different, finally! I'm pumped! :D

I'm a bit dissapointed that you can't play the rookie vs. soph game unless you're invited. I think it would be handy to be able to play this game regardless, so that you can get to know the generated players better, kind of like "scouting". Ah well...hopefully we can atleast watch it.

Well, i have some questions to kee you busy.

- Can you save replays in 5-on-5?
- Can you save replay in dunk contest or any other mode?
- What are the replays like in dunk contest? Can you chose instant replay for a dunk you've just done?
-If so, then does it play it at normal speed? what i'm saying is, in the vids i saw from IGN, the dunks you do are in slow motion. Do you get to see them at normal speed in the replay?

Anyways, thanks for doing all this Shane. You're a champ.

[th3answer]

in the normal game Shaq has a signature shot? tnx

[BrotherJRB]

Thanks for the info Shane

Dynasty questions

1) Do you control what style your team plays in dynasty? Like can you set how much your team will fastbreak and what style of defense they use?....such as the start up screen before a game in 2004 showed the differences between half-court/fastbreak tendencies and zone/man defense tendencies.

2) Were the simulated box scores realistic....especially in respect to a nice 8-9 man rotation playing average minutes(stars 35-45 minutes role players 15-30 and scrubs getting DNP-CD). Not like previous versions where starters all played around 40 minutes and everyone off the bench played 5-10 minutes.

3) Did the computer use any offense other than the "dynamic" sets from last year? Were their any triangle offenses or motion offenses used against you by the CPU?

Much obliged for the report, very well written.

[Raptorel]

One question:

How does the free throw shooting really is. I mean, in NBA Live 2004 I was able to get with Shaq in the 90% percent of free throw shooting, with the free-throw difficulty at 100. My overall "career" game is about 92.5 % from the free throw line. I really don't go under 80 % even with guys like Ben Wallace with 45 free throw rating.

[GordonBulls]

man u guys ask a shitload of questions, just wait and be surprised when the game comes out

[Wall St. Peon]

Everyone read what Metsis said. The stat guy is working his ass off to balance it right, and they have to take a lot of things into account when making ratings. For instance, Ray Allen only shoots 35 percent from three point range and Devean George shoots 38 percent. Who's the better three point shooter? George, statisically, Allen realistically. They have to tweak ratings after they enter the official stats from the NBA to correct little glitches like that, and then after that they have to tweak the gameplay and simming accordingly. It will never be perfect...

In the 2004 you were able to adjust your shoot (layup/dunk), it was great but sometimes seemed a bit strange (just a bit 'cause it was awesome!!!).
Is there the same option here during a lay up or a dunk ?

Yes....I didn't use it much b/c it was kind of new. You just press the dunk bottom, I believe it was, again in midair and they would adjust, plus using the right stick while you're in the air to switch hands and what not...which again, I didn't use much b/c I wasn't used to it.

Oh! On offensive rebounds, you can either try tipping it in or tip slamming it or grabbing the board....I forget the buttons though. :$

If there is, would that be more realistic ? like changing your lay up into a windmill behind the board (Jordan like), or make a 360 lay up around the PF ? (Starks like) Or changing your ball handling arm ? (Kobe like)

It's much more realistic. EA's goal with the freestyle and freestyle air is to rid the player of cumbersome animations that take the player out of control of their on-screen player. That way, you aren't stuck in a scripted animation, and you can change it....it adds a lot of realism to the game and lowers frustration. Freestyle air will probably be too easy this year, but I aleady explained their logic for doing so, and it makes a great deal of sense.

Can you make a pass during a lay up or a dunk like in the 2001 version ?

Yup, and they're nice passes too...think Kobe dumping it off to Shaq for a dunk.

What about he cutscenes ?
Are there any during the game ?
Especially after a foul, when the player is going to the foul line

I didn't notice. :embarassed: I think I skipped them like I always do....

Does this mean there’s a lot of offensive rebounds or did Shaq get the boards because he’s a huge, dominant force? Will a skinny 6”10’ guy be able to do a performance like this on a regular basis?

Against Shaq I think Donyell Marshall had about 3 offensive rebounds, Bosh maybe 2, but Shaq himself had about 4, maybe 5. The balance was about right. Against LA, I was ripping it up on the offensive boards, but that's because they were subbing in Caron Butler at the four after Grant got into foul trouble (yeah, I know, weird, but they're fixing that). The balance seems much better, and the boxing out is very effective because I always crash the boards with one of my big men myself....they held me away from the board very well, but not frustratingly well.

Does the computer only drive or do they take a few dribbles and try to nail the midrange shot? If we go to the baseline 3, do we often go out of bounds without doing anything (ie: NBA Live 04)?

They do a bit of everything. They set screens and drive, set screens and dish, drive to the hoop and dump it off or kick it out, drive and finish....it plays very realistically. Because freestyle is more effective for them, and like I said, I think they made the court a bit bigger, there's more space for them to maneuver and make it to the hoop. I think they had great AI last year, but it was ruined by old bugs. Midrange jumpers are taken now, and they do make them. THat's how Kobe scored most of his points against me...he pump faked until he got me in the air a few times, then drained it, or he'd get a screen and shoot it, and he shot a couple fadeaways for me too.

The corner stuff is realistic...the computer stepped out of bounds a few times on doubles in the corner, and I did as well. Also, when I forced the computer to drive baseline, they stepped out a few times. There's more unforced turnovers this year, but not many...say, maybe 3 that I noticed.

What do you mean by “left Jalen Rose and VC alone”? I don’t quite understand that statement but I do like that they’ll be double-teaming the big men.

What I mean is they stayed back around the three point line or came out in single coverage, but they'll double big men in the post. Not too much, but they do do it if they could force a turnover. Turnovers were more from trying to pass it out than out and out steals. I didn't play a team that plays zone, so I don't know how that works.

At times did the computer or you try to drive and penetrate the D and then pass it out? Did it work much?

Both I and the computer dribble-drove-dished. It does work, as the defense collapses and you can pass it out for the open shot.

Do they make smart decisions or when they have an open lane for the layup do they pass the rock? Hopefully they know when/if to pass it and when to take a shot. Do they ever take a pull-up jay (ie: Mike Bibby)?

Yes and yes. Not that many pullups, but they do take them.

How was the computer shot selection? Were they jacking up impossible shots or were they working the clock, the defense and looking for a good shot?

They were working the clock, passing the ball quite a bit until they found a good one. Like I said, the computer even will swing it around the outside.

So we won’t see Early Boykins swatting any PFs or Cs, right?

Nope. There were a few weird blocks, like players that should block shots, but they weren't like small guys on big guys, they were tall guards on shorter guards. But there was only like one of those per couple players, so while it's higher, it's tolerable.

What would your ratio be for 3 Point Shot to Midrange Shot to Close Shot?

Miami only shot about 10 threes, mostly by Eddie Jones and Rasual Butler. They shot maybe 35-40 shots inside the arc, and they shot about 30% from downtown and 55% from the field. LA shot something like 12 threes in the 3 and 3/4 12 min quarters I played, which isn't bad. The shot selection is much better, mostly because they drive and the freestyle is effective for the cpu.

Do teams play like their real counter-parts (ie: Dallas with the fast break, Utah with the half-court offense, etc.)?

They haven't tweaked the offenses yet, so I'm not sure.

Will defensive specialists (ie: Ron Artest, Bruce Bowen) shut your superstar down like in real life or at least hold them in check?

Oh, they'll definately shut you down. Kobe was hard to do anything against, but you could get past him (with Mo Pete). I think I only had like four points with him, and he started, on 2-12 shooting. It wasn't annoying defense, either...he was just that good at it. Artest is probably more difficult...

I have no idea on the replays, I didn't look because I don't care that much about 'em. Sorry.

As of the slow motion, here's how that works. The slow-motion is the amount of time you have to do a trick. There's more slow-motion on Rookie and practically none on Supestar. Basically, you have to be insanely good at dunking in the dunk contest in ordoer to pull off the tricks because you have so little time to complete them. It's really, really cool.

1) Do you control what style your team plays in dynasty? Like can you set how much your team will fastbreak and what style of defense they use?....such as the start up screen before a game in 2004 showed the differences between half-court/fastbreak tendencies and zone/man defense tendencies.

I didn't see one, which sucks.

2) Were the simulated box scores realistic....especially in respect to a nice 8-9 man rotation playing average minutes(stars 35-45 minutes role players 15-30 and scrubs getting DNP-CD). Not like previous versions where starters all played around 40 minutes and everyone off the bench played 5-10 minutes.

Yeah, they were. It actually looked like they had a kind of sixth man thing going, and I asked them about that. They said that the player at the top of the roster would get the most minutes, and then it would work down from there. The fixed the sub logic as well to avoid having scrubs come in for a star. You'll have guys like Aaron McKie playing 30 minutes a game at two positions instead of 10-15 miuntes at two positions. There were no DNPs, but there were players who didn't play (do you get what I mean?).

3) Did the computer use any offense other than the "dynamic" sets from last year? Were their any triangle offenses or motion offenses used against you by the CPU?

I honestly couldn't say. I only played 5 on 5 for about an hour...so yeah.

How does the free throw shooting really is. I mean, in NBA Live 2004 I was able to get with Shaq in the 90% percent of free throw shooting, with the free-throw difficulty at 100. My overall "career" game is about 92.5 % from the free throw line. I really don't go under 80 % even with guys like Ben Wallace with 45 free throw rating.

it's not that easy this year. I suck at free throws, so I sucked even more when I had a poor free throw shooter go to thte line. You might still be able to get crazy stats like that, but I couldn't tell you for sure. One nice thing they mentioned is that for a clutch free throw shooter and a non-clutch free throw shooter is that their free throw ratings go up and down, respectively, in the last minute or two of play. A clutch player's ratings also go up in the last couple minutes of play. Nice touch, imo.

One other thing I'm not sure I mentioned:

I told the guys that it sucked to have to inbound with your Small forward when that's your best player. If you have five seconds left and no timeouts, there's no way you can get the ball in the small forwards hands in enough time for a decent shot. They'd never thought of that, so they're going to try to fix that in the next couple weeks...hopefully they have time, because that would be nice if they could fix that.

[Riot]

yes!!!!!!!!

Change that small forward thing.

[Wall St. Peon]

yes!!!!!!!!

Change that small forward thing.

They're going to try, but expect it to be the same this year, fixed the next. They don't have much time till it has to be finished (like 2 weeks for the consoles to go over them, then it goes gold 2 weeks before it comes out).

[Riot]

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Anyways, in the 4th quarter I normally make sure my star player isn't at the SF (I normally don't have problems with MAH WOLVES)

But also I just use the matchup screen and have him guard the small forward if I feel I have to move him. I wish you could pick what people inbounds like you take that player and have him take the ball. Then the CPU moves him to the inbound stop, anyone get what I'm saying?

[Dave C.]

it's not that easy this year. I suck at free throws, so I sucked even more when I had a poor free throw shooter go to thte line. You might still be able to get crazy stats like that, but I couldn't tell you for sure. One nice thing they mentioned is that for a clutch free throw shooter and a non-clutch free throw shooter is that their free throw ratings go up and down, respectively, in the last minute or two of play. A clutch player's ratings also go up in the last couple minutes of play. Nice touch, imo.

So does this mean that our beloved "CLUTCH" Rating is back ?


Also do the arenas (so far) look more different (different lightnings , some seem darker some lighter)
Last year except of the courts they didn't looked that different when u played a game.

Are there chants for teams such as the crowd scream "let's go heat" or chants of city / team names ?

[Riot]

yeah, how's the crowd? Is homecourt still meaningless?

[BrotherJRB]

Shane I don't remember if these have been answered before or not but

1) Is the spacing between timeouts and inbounds more realistic? Do you have time to actually sub instead of the CPU inbounding instantly? It was so frustrating in 2004 when my PF would pick up his 5th foul with 10 minutes left and I couldn't sub him because the CPU inbounded the ball before I hit the start button

2) Do the players reset in respectable positions after a dead ball or are all the players still at the other end of the court where the foul occured?

3) Do the players actually run down court this year or do they do that slow side step and run into each other?

THanks again....gotta admit I think I am excited about Live for the first time since 2000!

jr