NBA Live's gameplay has always come under scrutiny in recent years when compared to its biggest competitor, but this year's game has really stepped up and improved greatly in this department. In fact,
NBA Live 10 is quite easy to get into, although there are still many moments of shock that occur when the computer does something that seems to change the course of the game... which usually becomes a frustration moment.
However, the overall gameplay of NBA Live 10 is vastly better than in previous years, especially on the defensive end. This year, defenders will generally find their positions and update their matchups quite quickly, even when switching defenses on the fly (a very cool way to mix it up when you feel you can't stop your opponent, by the way). There are certainly times on the court when the defense breaks down, but it's generally much better than in previous years. On offense, however, it gets very frustrating to see your teammates not keep the floor spread out through spacing, as often you'll find two or even three offensive players occupying the same area, which essentially breaks down your play. Defensive stealing has been tweaked as well to balance out the game, but now the ball will often pass through defenders on truly bad passes instead of being knocked down, which isn't exactly a good thing.
As far as ease of use goes, NBA Live 10 does have a fairly complex toolset to perform moves (both offense and defense), but the controls still feel very intuitive and simple to use. Also, this added control makes playing the game a lot more fun and not having to remember certain controller combinations is a blessing for newcomers. Instead, the Right Analog Stick does all of the dirty work for you.
The presentation has been generally amped up as well this year, giving more options with the Dynamic DNA, for example, to pass up to date information of the real NBA to your console. You'll be able to go in and see not only current stats and attribute shifts, but also trends that real-life players are performing on a daily basis that directly affect gameplay when transferred to your game.
One of my favorite features is the ability to use Freestyle Passing, a quick way to perform more accurate passes, as well as no-look passes that surprise the defense. While Freestyle Passing will sometimes have you throwing to a player that you didn't intend to hit, for the most part it works very well, especially on fast breaks when a fast-twitch reaction is more conducive than bringing up the passing icons or taking a chance at hitting the right man with the normal pass button in a crowd, which in general doesn't work all that well.
Like its competitor, NBA Live 10 has a host of game modes ranging from your basics like Quick Match and Franchise to the adidas Live Run (online squads) and Online Leagues. The newest feature for this year's foray is the Dynamic Season. Here, you'll be able to play along with the real NBA season by playing "Today's Games" or rewind to a moment in the past and change history. All of the computer-controlled team scores and game stats will then be downloaded and merged into your season.
One of my favorites to play online is the team matchups. When you get with a bunch of random players, it usually feels a bit like you're back in elementary school and everyone goes toward the ball. However, once players begin to get acquainted with each other (either as Friends or even within a single gaming session), players generally develop more spacing, will set picks for each other, and pass the ball rather than being a ball hog. When this happens, it's like being on the playground without all of the sweat.
It should be said that I did encounter some very severe framerate issues (see Game Mechanics below) while playing NBA Live 10. There were also smaller graphical glitches that were annoying. However, features like the ability to quickly call in coaching decisions on the fly are great and can really change the course of the game. Other game modes like jumping straight into the Playoffs or creating a Fantasy Team are pretty fun too, but they are more cosmetic than implemented into the meat and potatoes of NBA Live 10.
