Sony hasn't published a good basketball game since the original NBA ShootOut, so I wasn't expecting much from its latest release, NBA 07 Featuring the Life: Vol 2. I really don't like last year's version, and after seeing Madison Square Garden referred to as The Arena in New York City (that better be placeholder), I was convinced that I was in for some serious disappointment. But despite the awkward MSG shenanigans, this is actually a pretty damn good basketball game, all things considered. It's not the prettiest, most polished sports title of the year, but it is fun to play.

There are really a lot of things that Sony's gotten right here beginning with the gameplay. The way I see it, NBA 07 is very much no worries basketball. I don't have to worry about calling plays or fooling the defense with lots of fancy acrobatics. I rush down the court, dump the ball into the paint, dunk. I draw the double team, pass the ball to a wide-open three point master, swish. The game moves at a good, crisp pace, the action rarely slows down (though the game does chug every once and a while), and fancy moves are fairly easy to pull off. There's no starting line-ups, half-time show, or commentary to speak of, yet none of that really seems to mind. The gameplay is really all that matters, whether it's the now enjoyable shot meter or the all-new (and quite useful) Rebound Hotspot (lets you know where the ball's going to land). This is just a good, solid basketball game. Hell, I'm even impressed with most of the players' faces. Whereas Visual Concepts really botched some of the players' mugs in NBA 2K7, Sony really did a marvellous job capturing their likenesses. Shaq looks like Shaq and Yao looks like Yao, just the way I like it.

Unfortunately, and despite the accurate faces, NBA 07 isn't especially attractive. Of course, that probably has a lot to do with all these Xbox 360 sports games I've been playing, but even for a PS2 title, nothing about NBA 07's visuals shine. The same goes for the animations. Having played 2K7 quite extensively, it's disappointing to not see the same player shimmy in Sony's game. That's definitely an area that I think the developers need to improve.