Amazon.com: NBA 2K7: Xbox 360: Video Games

36 Reviews

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
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4.3 out of 5 stars (36 customer reviews)

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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Golf of NBA video games: frustrating and awarding, October 19, 2006

By	David P. Castellani "Casty" (Hyde Park, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars

Smooth as silk fluid gameplay and animations are the stars of this show. Decent Next-gen graphics that cannot be fully appreciated unless on high-def. Those who say otherwise, must be kidding. There is no way the original Xbox or PS2 could handle such renderings. Renderings,animations, shooting and dribbling styles are practically personalized for every player. Each character looks remarkably like their real life counterparts (in a somewhat cartoon-like fashion) with a few scary exceptions mentioned in other reviews found here. It looks like a souped up arcade in the tone of graphics and powerful fluidness that plays strictly like a sim. And this is where the game falls on its face if you are coming off of Live.

The controls at first chance seem unnatural, clumsy and backwards. Pulling off jukes, crossovers etc is not controlled by the right-stick and who knows why. Instead the signature 2K Isomotion (fancy dribbling) as they like to call it is handled by holding down the right trigger (the one you are already using for running, turbo) and using the left-stick (yes, the one that you are already using for movement). Jabbing the left stick around in specified directions while holding the right-trigger will cause your player to perform crossovers, jukes and other various ankle breakers.

However, if you are like me and you are coming off of Live -- you'll continually find yourself going to the right stick to pull off such moves. Which instead shoots the rock as the right-stick is assigned to the shot-stick (isomotion for a variation of Js, post-ups, lay-ups and dunks). Imagine how frightening this can be at first for former Live players. I'm dribbling down the court with Nash, I go to pull a cross over on my opponent to give me some space to make a run yet instead (accidently hit the right stick) I fork up a brick well beyond the arch. Left astonished and with my pants down, the D grabs the easy board and goes for the fast break on the return. I want to stomp on my controller into pieces before the end of the first quarter of my first game.

Now, don't get me wrong -- the shot stick actually starts to make sense after a few disastrous plays but comes with a heavy learning curve. One that is very awarding when succesful and even more so if ever truly
mastered. But it'll take some time. Your first drained three with your favorite star (ie Nash for Cash)feels like an overwhelming accomplishment in itself. Remember, this game is a sim and a strict one at that. If you are looking for the easy ride and mediocre learning curve, look elsewhere.

This is the golf of NBA video games; Frustrating, demands devotion and will kick your a__ as soon as you think you have it figured out. But with great challenge comes great awards and that couldn't be any truer here. Each play down the court will have to be well planned and executed; this game leaves little room for error. The days of 2nd nature, almost thoughtless gameplay have been throw out the window. Live fans will shreak in horror as I have and will want to run the otherway. Give 2k7 some time, patience and little bit of effort to grow accustom to the controls and you may find this game more awarding than any other you played before it. The shot stick is very intuitive and maybe too much so for its own good. The days of one button for every type of shot are long gone. Yet realize the shot stick allows you (the player) to almost fully control exactly what your player executes that is very dynamic to each scenario. Instance: Take the ball down w/ Nash (ofcourse), I cross-over dribble (pushing the left stick in the opposite direction of my ball hand while holding the right trigger), open up some space, I lead pass (w/ the B button) to Marion who jukes left and spins right (Isomotion glory) and drives to the hole. Shaq comes to meet the drive to the hole, I pump fake with Marion (quick jab on the shot-stick) and throw a behind the back pass (Right trigger + A button) to Stoudemire who throws down a power dunk or reverse or cocked slam (fancy) based on which direction I throw the shot-stick while holding the right trigger. Or I could go for the layup by moving the shot-stick w/o holding the right trigger. Or throw it back to Nash, pull down on the shot-stick and release at the peak of his jump for the tri-facto.

Case in point, the controls are difficult to master but enable endless possibilities and that is where all the thrills and fun of this game come from -- but not without painful frustration to learn them.

Notes: Isomotion can be tough to chew, getting used to the left-stick to both move and perform isomotion jukes, dribbles will never quite feel like 2nd nature. Dunks and lay-ups are way too difficult to pull off,
I love the variety and options but missing easy buckets happen too often. Free-throws are intuitive as you use the shot-stick (pull down and release at the verge of forward momentum for a perfect shot, every player has his own unique style for shooting free-throws).

Update: You can use the X button for shooting, easy buckets in the paint, layups and dunking. The dunks, layups and post-ups are more straight-forward than fancy or controlled but if you want the sure-shot bucket in the paint, its usually best to go with the X button than over-complicating the situation with the shot-stick. The shot-stick comes in handy for tri-factos or mid-range jumpers as holding the right stick and then releasing at the peak of the jump feels more natural. It also comes in handy for wide open fast breaks when you want to devestate your opponents with the windmill, power slam, cocked slam or various other fancy dunks. The shot-stick is also useful if your in a scenario that calls for the reverse dunk/layup, tear-drop or various post-up moves (ie hook, fade).

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars it's real, September 29, 2006

By	white chocolate (NJ) - See all my reviews

Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars

if you want the most realistic basketball simulation game out there... this is it. no more dunkfests kids. learn to play real basketball by running plays and knowing how to shoot the ball. the graphics are awesome. signature style is as cool as it sounds. if you don't want to play a simulation bball game, just turn option to arcade.

makes nbalive irrelevant.

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26 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Arenas and retroes still need working, but otherwise great game, September 26, 2006

By	Brian Shaw "bshaw20" (Orlando, FL USA) - See all my reviews

Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars

- I recently snagged this game and immediately played it non stop. The intro is neat but after awhile I wish I can skip it.

- The ridiculous "Kid Pix" retroes are still there. They have yet to fix that.

- There are no starting lineup introductions. The halftime show "Stamp Of Approval" is alright but maybe it will be skipped after playing several games.

- The mascot is not stationary this time, it goes around the stands, does stunts, and basically, it's not boring anymore. The cheerleaders/dancers are clones though! It is scary!

- Speaking of scary, the player graphics took a step back, some players look identical, but some are downright freaky. Especially Nowitzki, he looks like a zombie, Ginobili also looks like a weirdo. There are a lot of "generics" used for the rookies. Steve Nash has his long hair in this game, even though he has it shaved recently. Maybe they anticipated it growing back for opening night.

- I like the individual shooting styles. Elton Brand's is not that accurate, but for most of the stars they got it down. Kobe, LeBron, Iverson, Wade, Marion, Allen, and of course Shaq. Some players have generic shooting styles. There are also individual celebrations, but they are not overdone. You can edit any player's shooting style.

- Free throws are kind of hard because of the individual shooting style but you'll get the hang of it. Like Shaq's, he has that hesitation and it really feels like you are controlling him and the way he chucks those bricks. Larry Bird also has his shooting motion.

- The Legends team has changed as well. The Nickel is gone, and so is Barkley and Jordan. In their place comes Karl Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Tim Hardaway. Jeff Hornacek and Iverson are also legends. I find it weird that the PA and annnouncers don't say several legend's names, just numbers. Payton has a flattop in his legends incarnation, and Snaq is a legend but with 90's West yet the number is #32.

- Announcing team is back - Kevin Harlan and Kenny Smith. For some reason the commentary is still similar to 2K6. It needs to be improved upon. Craig Sager is also there, but he just has canned comments.

- The right stick menu is awkward. If I want to exit, I cannot use the controller's back button. I have to use the right stick and it takes me to the main menu and not the submenu that I was in.

- Yes, there is edit numbers in the game. It won't allow you to assign a player number if you have another player in the same team with that number. Not only can you edit numbers, you can also edit positions, headbands, ratings, and even the player's height - you can make Jameer a 7-footer if you want. Also the shooting animation for any player can be edited, even the generics. It's funny to see Iverson shoot with the Marion animation, or assign the Shaq animation to Boke.

- The shoe color can also be edited.

- There is a create your own team in the game, kinda like the Custom Jammers from NBA Live's past.

- The rosters are as of August 1. The Magic don't have BO in the game but he is a FA. Augustine is nowhere to be found. At least 2K7 has Battie unlike Live. The default starters are Jameer, Redick, "G", Howard, and Battie.

- Ariza is in the game but the announcers and the PA don't say his name for the third straight year in this series. What's odd is the PA and announcer say the rookie's names (like Redick.)

- The PA announcer is glitchy. Sometimes he will say the full name, sometimes just the first name, and sometimes just the last name, and sometimes - not at all, just silence.

- Th inbounding stupidity is still there, the inbounder will step inbounds before throwing the ball.

- A nitpick, the Spurs baseline logo should say "San Antonio SPURS Basketball" yet this damn game flipped it it says "Basketball SPURS San Antonio." Coyote does not have his name in the back of his jersey, but Clutch does.

- Speaking of mascots, Stuff looks weird, particularly the head. It looks like it's bigger than the body, or something.

- Dwight Howard seems small, I think Joe Johnson is bulkier than him. He also, by default, wears black shoes at home.

- There are several rookies in the game, the Bulls also have Safolosha, and the Lakers have Farmar. Speaking of Lakers, Boke has the new #24 in here.

- The Magic dome is definitely a generic. Phoenix, LAL, LAC, NY (called Knicks Arena), New Orleans Arena, SBC Centre, and Toyota Centre are definitely authentics. There might be more. The scoreboards are all real, however. The Magic's banners only say "Division Champions" and not the year.

- One neat thing about this game is that when you view stats, there is a section called "Scoring Summary" and it has every player who scored and what time they scored. Then you can do a instant replay of that particular score (it keeps it in memory.) You can basically make a highlight reel, but you have to save them individually.

- The overtime stupidity is still there. In OT you don't switch baskets but in this game you switch to the other basically you are gonna be shooting at the hoop from the first half.

- The handoff is also in the game and is very easily picked off by the comp.

- It's hard to pickup a loose ball for some reason. The player gawks at it first and then it hesistates before the animation changes.

- The game defaults everytime to auto subs, timeouts, and late game fouling.

- If you do the D-pad substitution you cannot sub a guard in the Center position unless that guard's secondary position is F or C.

Overall this game is the best in this series. It is still kind of similar to last year's game as far as gameplay, and the graphics particularly the player faces took a step back.