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EA announced NBA Live 15 features and game modes

• Crisan Mircea
• October 14th, 2014

EA announced the improvements made to the game modes in their upcoming basketball game, NBA Live 15, the main rival of 2K Games’ NBA 2K15. From stable servers to new and upgraded features, Electronic Arts showcases what they have in store for this entry in the franchise.

The developer emphasizes the importance of being connected with friends and with the developments of the real world NBA, stressing out that they aim to provide a stable connection. “With EA SPORTS’ best-in-class online technology, players will never miss a beat online with friends and the NBA. Server stability is a top priority for us, and NBA LIVE 15 will certainly deliver the goods”, EA says. This is coming after several NBA 2K15 players complained about server issues, so the company’s remarks in this direction are actually trying to point out their games’ advantages over the competition. One thing is clear: at least the marketing department over at EA does a great job.

So, on to the online modes. EA stated that the game will feature Daily Challenges and Experiences that reflect what goes on in the real world NBA championship. One of the game’s modes is “Head-to-Head” seasons. This means that you can work your way from League 1 to League 10 and play against friends and rivals along the way. If you win matches, you can level up and compete against stronger opponents. The “Best of Seven” mode is based on the NBA Finals. You can invite friends to play in a Best-of-Seven series and determine who is the best NBA Live Player among you. The JORDAN rising star mode, which involves creating a player and rising through the ranks in order to achieve legendary status, was also upgraded with more options to create and customize your star and with multiple play styles.

Other features that will be available in NBA Live 15 include an enhanced create-a-player experience, with 13 position/play style combinations and approximately 20 new shoes to outfit your character. An important addition to the game is the new in-game performance grading system. According to EA, NBA Live 15 contains more than 85 gradable on-court actions, as opposed to 22 from NBA Live 2014. Furthermore, the skill point progression is improved. In NBA Live 15, you will be able to earn more playing time by moving to a new role within the team as you level up. Skill points can be earned through unlocking career achievements and milestones.

Live Season mode also brings players new challenges, extra features and ways to play. Hot Spot Challenges replicate real-world performance to the point where you can take the same shots in the same situations as players in the real league. NBA Rewind will also make its appearance in the game, but, instead of being able to relive each real game once it ended, you can now jump into the game at any point during the match. For instance, let’s say you are watching your favourite team lose. You don’t like where the match is going, but you know you can’t make a difference in the real NBA. However, you can turn on your game and jump into the action, leading your team to victory. It doesn’t change the fact that they lost the points in real life, but you are at least getting a certain sense of accomplishment by winning the match yourself, in NBA Live 15.

A new feature included in NBA Live 15 are the Hot Spot Challenges. This game modes require you to score from every position of the court from which a real player managed to. Then, EA reveals the Big Moment Challenges, which send players in pivotal scenarios from the history of the NBA, where they have to try and change the way the respective match ended.

Last, but not least, EA added the adidas Learn LIVE gym to NBA Live 2015. This mode was created following feedback received from fan and is intended to be a tutorial, in which players learn the controls. You can access this mode as soon as you boot up the game, to learn every move available in the game.

For the full list of new modes, improved modes and other changes, you can access the official EA Sports website. NBA Live 15 will be released on October 28, 2014, on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Initially the game was supposed to be released at the same time as its competitor, NBA 2K15, but EA decided to postpone the game in order to polish it further before release. Or so they say.