NBA '07 Review (PSP)

For about a week, I was convinced that I was going to award NBA 07 PSP with a 3.5/5. It appeared to contain everything that I wanted from a basketball game, from speedy gameplay to plenty of modes to sink my choppers into. But the more I played exhibition games the more it angered me. The game just doesn't play fair. It's got its mind in the gutter, a realm where cheaters prosper and good-natured players are brutally stepped on and tossed onto flaming spikes. I've still got some love for it. Sony's pumped it full of some really sweet mini games, but the AI is about as brutal as an old school nun with a ruler. Act up for even a second, and it's going to smack the hell out of you.

At first, I attributed the ass whippings to being inexperienced. It had been a full year since I played a Sony-developed basketball game. I surely must be rusty. But after ten straight losses (all double digit defeats), the old shadow of doubt crept over my shoulder and whispered into my ears. Something just wasn't right.

Unfortunately, the losses continued to pile up. I managed to steal a game here and there, but it was always some last second buzzer beater that by all accounts I shouldn't have made, primarily because the AI does whatever it takes to send me packing. Doesn't matter how many times I crossover or spin because the defender is almost always in my way. Furthermore, the computer can get any shot that it wants. A last second three, a slam-dunk (with three bonehead defenders just standing underneath the basket), or an off-balance fade-away is second nature to the AI. That's not to say that it doesn't screw up its share of jumpers, but when I have a wide-open look...clang! Clang, clang, clang! No dice, especially with the good old shot meter, the halo above a player's head that changes colors depending on how good a chance they have at making a basket. Wide-open...green halo (green being the best color, red being the worst)...one second left...CLANG!

It also doesn't help that continuous pump fakes result in a travel and players will mysteriously pick up their dribble when I haven't ordered them to. There also seems to be a problem with spin moves. Players spin wide, so it's very easy to wander out of bounds. And since the AI is so ridiculously cheap, one or two mistakes can lead to a 20-0 run. That's how fast the momentum shifts.

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