It’s been a while since I’ve played a basketball title seriously, so it was great to get back into the scene of “ballin’”.
The game starts like most of the EA Sports franchise games, although of course it's not EA at all but rather Midway who is the latest to delve into the world of ferociously competitive basketball. I always remember Midway for “War Gods” - not the most popular of titles, but a good proving ground for the human animation that sports titles are so heavily based around.
First off, NBA Ballers: The Chosen One is a real breath of fresh air when it comes to your usual tread of basketball. You’ll almost instantly notice the classy neo-jazz soundtrack that breezes throughout the game right from the start screen, giving it that old-school new-school feel.
The first thing you’re expected to do before playing the Story Mode and after creating your profile is to create a "baller". It is here that you can mould the physical features of your character, as well as as choose a nickname. It's all a bit similar to Fight Night, but admittedly it's a well established formula. You then allocate a few skill points to get your baller started for his first game.
The basic aim of the game is to battle your way through actual current NBA ballers to rise to stardom and be the "Chosen One". The story mode is played in tournaments represented by episodes, with each game represented by chapters that each have different game types, ranging from 1 vs. 1 to a 3-player free-for-all. Cut-scenes featuring Chuck D accompany the start of every episode in a sports network news type theme. An actual 5 vs. 5 basketball game between proper teams is not an option in this game. No fantasy drafts or all-star teams to pick from, just professional players against players.
The emphasis is on playing using AND1 type tricks fuelled by what the game calls "juice". The juice bar is quickly used up and slowly recharged, but (carefully used) can mean the difference between winning or losing the game. The juice concept allows you to perform many (unlockable) special moves, even a 720 degree dunk! Simpler moves include super dunks and even grabbing your opponent and pulling him or pushing him around the court when fouls are not recorded.
When you land enough consecutive shots, or pull successful ball handling tricks, you get the chance to use a special move. This takes you to a cut-scene showing the execution of your special move, and ending in a snapshot showing what boosts your character has gained - such as skills in the likes of +3 steal ability or +5 speed. You unlock special moves at end of winning games, and can assign them in the same fashion you assign your player new clothes, and even bling.
Each game you play will have different rules to keep you from feeling like you’re doing any repetitive jump shots or slam dunks. These can be anything from "first to 11 points" to "no recorded fouls".
At the end of every game won you gain skill points that are automatically assigned. Not something you’d be used to, but it saves you a lot of time and lets you play a lot more. They are assigned based on your performance in the game, so if you keep trying to pull off three-pointers and keep trying to steal the ball from your opponent rather than just posting, you’ll find that the game will automatically assign more points to those skill sets.
Apart from that you also unlock gear that you can use to customise your baller to bring him even closer to the type of character that you would want the world to see as a Chosen One of the NBA ballers. The gear ranges from hats and skull caps to loafers and even earrings.
Multiplayer is similar to other sports games, but a plus to this game is you can play all four of your controllers on a single screen, so it's great if you have friends over and don’t want to play a split screen game.
Ironically, the many interesting and unique elements of this game actually add to its repetitiveness in an almost ominous way. My final word on this release is that it is nothing special. The method of playing basketball is definitely a fresh take on the way the game is played in other titles, but the graphics are average and the gameplay fun value tends to run out very quickly.
While you can play this game autonomously and finish it for the sake of finishing it, it generally won't fill you with a sense of accomplishment. Having said that, there are loyal fans of the NBA Ballers franchise and this will definitely be someone's cup of tea. Have a go, you can always trade it in at a later date.
