NBA Live 09 Stole My Manhood, and Made Me Cry

I love Becky Hammon. With out a doubt, number 25 from the San Antonio Silver Stars is my favorite basketball player. Do I love Becky Hammon enough to buy NBA Live 09 for Wii? Yes, and no. Yes, if it meant that I was going to get to personal shooting lessons from her. For anything else, absolutely, positively, not.

NBA Live is a step backwards from last year's paltry effort There is still no player lock, no creation mode, no franchise mode, and limited replay value. Instead of bringing quality features to the game, the developers decided to spend time adding Mii integration and arcade like ball trails.

The basketball is still fast and loose with spotty controls and inflated shooting percentages. Defense is a non-issue, as most of the offensive moves in the game have no counters. The addition of IR pointer passing has improved the fast break to the point that the game becomes more of a dunk fest than anything else. Successful scores are celebrated with an explosion of stars, and it is very possible to become so hot that flames will engulf the ball, giving you a literal hot hand.

There are virtually no fouls called, and the few fouls that are called are signaled by large headed personal avatars called Miis. For those of you unfamiliar with the Wii and Miis, just think of a large bobble head character without the bobble.

Then again, at least the Miis are present. Many of the real NBA players that should be in the game are missing, and several team transactions that should also be present, are absent. Adding to that, many players that are in the game are on the wrong teams, play the wrong position, or have the wrong jerseys.

Worse still, there are no plan to upgrade the rosters via downloadable content, and the 365 DNA option that is present in the other versions is completely missing from this version. The only thing that this game has in common with the other console versions, is a functional online component, which while competent, is still behind it's brethren in the areas of depth and functionality.

Besides online, there are a few other positive features this season:

* WNBA All Star Team - You can play as many of your favorite WNBA Superstars

* Slam Dunk Contest - The Slam Dunk Contest Returns with Improved Motion Controls

* 3 Point Contest - Virtually the Same as before

* 21 and 2 on 2 - Two new multi-player options

* It doesn't Cost $60

Final Word: NBA Live 09 is the 2^nd best NBA based basketball on the Nintendo Wii. Sadly, there are only two basketball games on the Wii, and the first title, NBA Live 08 was mediocre, at best. This title is definitely not worth a buy. In fact, only rent if you have a certificate for a free rental. It is that bad.