The kings (at least sales-wise) of the sport game, EA, return again with NBA LIVE 2005. I must admit that I was quite a big fan of the LIVE series up until LIVE 2000. LIVE 2000 was the pinnacle of the LIVE franchise and for a few years after the series was on a downward spiral. LIVE 2004 was the beginning of a resurgence though and LIVE 2005 goes a long way to returning the franchise to its previous glory. It doesn't seem like that at first though and only through some dramatic slider adjustments will you get the game you want.

Although LIVE 2004 certainly had its good points, these good points were buried in a quagmire of bugs, glitches and general sloppiness. You could see what the developers wanted it to be though and it seemed as though they were at least looking in the right direction. Some serious play-testing could have fixed many annoyances, but there needed to be a complete rethink in regards to the AI. It was a game that wanted to be more of a simulation in a series that had increasingly started venturing into arcade territory. It was a rather huge overhaul from LIVE 2003 and LIVE 2005 continues in this vein.

What really stopped LIVE 2004 from achieving it's apparent goal was that although the game undoubtedly succeeded in creating something more sim-like with it's rigid defensive mechanics, the AI simply didn't want to play along when it came to it's style of play on offense. The computer always played an up-tempo, throw and hope style game where the human player was restricted to playing in a more subdued and patient manner if they didn't want their team to fall apart. This is unfortunately the case once again with LIVE 2005. Although it must be said that steps have been taken to alleviate the frustration that the computer AI caused.

In LIVE 2004, not only was the computer AI rather annoying on offense, on defense they'd push you around like a rag-doll. The constant bumping was a bit of a nightmare and often left you feeling out of control. Obviously EA have seen the error in their ways because there is no such problem in LIVE 2005. The computer actually plays a very good defensive game. It's still quite tough to bust them open, but this time it's because they play a pretty smart game. While it's still too easy to draw double-teams in the hope of getting your other men open, for the most part there is little to complain about. What I will mention though is the computer's ability to catch you on fast-breaks or any open court offensive raids. Even if you're controlling a far faster player than your computer defender, they still appear to be faster than you. It's very frustrating and unnecessary.

Offensively, the computer still plays too loose. They don't bother with looking for open shots or setting up plays. They run the ball up court, stand right in front of your defender and just let it fly. Never-mind the fact that you're right on top of them, not giving them an inch of room. The most frustrating thing about it is that these shots so often go in. If you're going to give me the tools to defend, please let me use them. One tool that you can use is blocking. Get your big men out there and show no mercy. You can swat them away to your heart's content if you've got the right defender on the court and the computer doesn't show any mercy either. I've never seen so many hook-shots blocked. I thought that was the whole purpose of the hook-shot, that it's so hard to block!

One thing the game does very well is the way you can't dominate a game with average players. You have to use you top players wisely. Rotating them intelligently and never leaving your team undermanned is very important. You'll immediately notice the difference when you're up against a good team, especially when defending in the post. The highly rated post players really come to play and just don't let up. Luckily, defending in the post is great fun and it's actually possible to leave your guards to their own devices as they handle the job admirably. Concentrating on post defense also helps your defensive rebounding immensely.

LIVE 2005 packs in the off-field options too. Not only is there a very solid dynasty mode with decent scouting options and stat tracking. Also included is the All-Star weekend with the slam-dunk and 3 point competitions included. The All-Star weekend is not just a gimmick either, it's actually quite substantial. The slam-dunk competition in particular is quite deep and difficult to master (for me anyway). Add to this a street-ball mode and all your regular multiplayer modes (minus Xbox Live as EA once again assume what games PAL Xbox owners want to play online) and you've a pretty lengthy game in your hands.

In the looks department, it could be said that LIVE 2005 looks rather like a turnip. A turnip, if you didn't know, is a rather unattractive vegetable and LIVE 2005, while not resembling an actual turnip, is not a particularly attractive game. The player models are bland, though animate quite well, and stadiums and courts look pretty jaggy. Not helping the look of the stadiums is a crowd that looks as though it's jumped out of LIVE '96. Clipping is also prevalent with player's arms passing through backboards and the ball passing through players. If you pause the replays at the right time, you can actually capture images of players with basketball beards. If you're as sad as me that is.

The commentary is some of the best you'll hear anywhere. The commentators follow the game quite closely and at times give surprisingly detailed descriptions of the action. The music consists entirely of hilarious though grating rap. It can thankfully be turned off, but those of us with more acquired tastes are restricted to this silence as there is no support for custom soundtracks.