NBA Live 08 vs. NBA 2K8
By William on Saturday, October 20th, 2007 at 8:13 AM PST In Microsoft
Basketball games tend to be extremely disappointing each year for me. I love the sport, but they never seem to get it right when it comes to NBA games. This season is no exception, but they are at least getting a little closer to where they need to be. Right now, the question is whether to pick up NBA Live or NBA 2K. I tested both games on the Xbox 360 for this quick comparison. This is not intended to be an in-depth review, but rather my first glance opinion of the two games.
Graphics
NBA Live 08 dominates NBA 2K8 in the graphics department. EA has finally gotten the players to move smoothly and as fluid as I would expect from a next-generation title. NBA 2K8 was simply way off with their choppy animations and the players have an unrealistic feel to their looks.
Sound
The sound is about equal in both titles. NBA 2K8 has really great crowd noises which help put you in the element, and EA has more fluid announcing. Marv Albert is far past his days of biting hookers in hotel roomsand continues to be a great announcer for basketball games.
Gameplay
Both games have improved this year, but I would give the advantage to NBA 2K8. The ball dribbling is far more realistic than it is in NBA Live. The low post game which is my style still needs drastic improvement from both franchises.
Replay Value
The titles are close to equal in this department, but I would still give an edge to NBA 2K8. Online leagues are really what make 2K8 a more exciting game to play. If you plan to play offline, the games are about the same.
And The Winner Is
NBA 2K8 is the better game, but not by much. I am still surprised that we have yet to see a really great basketball game in the next generation. Maybe next year, we will have better luck. NBA 2K8 made all the changes necessary to make it a better game than 2K7 and NBA Live simply did not. They are both pretty close in all categories, but 2K8 is simply a more enjoyable game considering the changes made from the previous years. I’m patiently waiting for the day one of the major companies released a basketball game that hits the spot. So far, we have never really been able to experience a realistic basketball video game. Perhaps we never will, but I can only hope.
im cool
I’ve gotta disagree with you on quite a few points. Player models look better in Live 08, but the actual animations (thanks to that new foot plant technology, mainly) give 2K8 the upper-hand in my opinion.
Live 08’s announcing is leaps and bounds ahead of 2K8. Gotta love Marv.
I play out of the post as well, and I’m actually rather satisfied with 2K8.
Replay value has also gotta go to 2K8 by a wide margin because of all the extra game modes and in-depth Association mode.
I’ve Been A Hardcore NBA Basketball/Video-Game Fan….Dating Back To The 90’s Playing “Double Dribble” And “Jordan Vs. Bird” (Nintendo) – To Presently Buying Both “NBA 2K8″ AND “Live 08″ (PS3). Every Year Since I Have Tried To Purchase The B-Ball Game That Comes As Close As Possible To Real NBA On-Court Action, As Any Real True Fan Would!!! Bottom Line, If There’s Anyone Looking For A Creditable Opinion On Choosing Between Both Of The Titles (And Not Just A Debate)……..”NBA 2K8″ Is As Realistic As It Gets.
I getting 2k8, 2k games have always had the upper hand in basketball video games.
2K hands down is WAY better than live, what good is realism if the physics are poor?
And not to bum anyone out; 2K7 is better than 2K8; hell 2K7 is better than LIVE 08; even with the repeditive annoucers.
I’ve been playing Live since NBA Live 2005, and I’ve jyst been a fan of it since then, although i did buy 2k5 and 2k6. I did not get the same feeling of Live, 2k does not have all-star weekend, but it does have the street games which is good at first, then gets very boring and challenging. I will admit Live has still some small glitches to work out, but I think that they have really stepped it up with post moves, hot spots, go to moves, and FIBA teams. I also love the pregame practice, and questions. There are some other things that 2k has over Live but I say Live has the upper hand….NBA Live ftw!!!!!
I beg to differ…
Both Live 08 and NBA 2k8 are huge steps ahead for each series. I too have been an avid fan of bball games dating all the way back to EA’s Lakers vs. Celtics on PC(which for its time was the ultimate in bball gaming) and TV SPorts Basketball for the Amiga.
I was disgusted by Live 07 last year. The game had dreadful animations, and a gameplay so arcade like, it felt like a bad port of the NBA Jam games with 5-on-5 play. Live has been losing the battle of bball games for quite some time and in 07 it wasn’t even close, but this year EASports has made the battle very close indeed.
I still think 2k8 is better than Live, but Live for example has the edge in the post moves department. Live still is too much of a dunkfest, but I’m also not a fan of 2k’s solution to this problem, which is, the game simply does not allow you to dunk in certain situations when in real life the player would dunk. Anyways I think this year is a good one to get both games, but if you can only allow one, I suggest getting 2k8, it still is the better package overall…
I dont know but they were both really close this year. i bought them both and i like the smooth gameplay on 2k8 but on the real, the graphics were horrible. Live was perfect except the gameplay wasnt as good as 2k8.
but overall, i gotta say 2k8 because i like the association mode on it and its just more realistic
Live is a much better game.
NBA LIVE was always the best I have 1997 when you dunk the ball like jordan if someone is on each side of you, you kick both of them on the floor. But that was then.2K8 for 08 is better LIVE 08 and those who think the differ. Say it with me: Let your pride go just let it go. Get your money worth.
I have been a live fan all my life, until now, i downloaded the demo of live and 2k8 on my xbox 360, and 2k8 completely destroys it. NBA live is a dunkfest, way to easy to get inside. 2k8 u really have to work for your inside scoring. The clothes on live look really fake how they move, NBA 2k8 clothing moves smoothly. Honestly 2k8 is taking over the basketball game world, i wish that i could switch to Live but its just not as good.
Fuck you NBA 2K8 sucks the big one. Seriously the worst game ever designed, the creators should do the world a favor and shoot themselves in the head. Terrible graphics, terrible play style, and stupid looking players (Ray Allen, check it out!) FUCK THIS GAME IN THE ASS!
Both these games suck, but 2k8 is just terrible. It is by far the worst Basketball game ever. That game is so boring, it gives me a migraine headache. Live 08 is pretty bad too, but it’s not as bad. How come no NBA 08? I haven’t tried the game, but at the point I will. Basketball games are crap nowadays. All about this stupidass fashion of “flashy gangsta” nowadays.
08 (I havent ried) sounds 20 Times better. Fucking 2k had Duncans head bigger than his boddy.
He looked like some deformed Kid posting up on everyone…
So yep they toast.
fuck live 08 2k8 rocks i have 2k8 for ps3
i was wonderin if any of your NBA 2K8 games have any shoe editing glitches cause when ever i edit a player their shoes just automatically change to a random color or a generic shoe.
All of you are sick in the head! NBA Live 08 is the best B-Ball game of it’s time. 2K08 is booty! And on that 360 it rocks!!!
live 08 is better game graphically and control wise. i think live 08 win by a very small margine
Im lookint at both games with an open mind, i have nba 08 for ps2 and it absolutley sucks there is no dynasty, it focuse more on the life so like u create a plyer and you pick a team so forth, which game is better, cuz its so hard to choose
nba live rules this year its finally realistic
I’ve played both games alot. LIVE simply has better graphics, no questions there. but the game play of 2k is much better, more realistic. i get soo frustrated with LIVE and the stupid fouls (that they never call) eg when u go for a lay-up, dude pushes u, no foul and the ball goes out of bounds. ALSO! I HATE how in LIVE theres a loose ball and NOBODY can pick it up…they all just watch it roll off the court. EA used to be pretty good with NBA games but over-all they suck now, even NHL games are crap, only thing they have going is Madden. If u want graphics but crap gameplay, go for live..if u want crap graphics but more realism, go 2K
Live 08 is better, when I go to work me and my employee have two seperate systems, I have the ps3 and my employee has the xbox 360, he was bringing 2k8 for his system and they were fine with it, I then decided to bring my ps3, and live 08, and when they got a hold of it not only did they ask for me to bring both the ps3 and the live 08, but my employee said he wouldn’t bring his games any more because he enjoyed playing my games better. Who ever said that the live 08 isn’t realistic is out there minds, not only do the graphics look better but the game play as well, and if your not happy with the lack of foul calls can can bring the foul meter up. The game is so much better, go ask the kids that I work with, and my employee at that, he is plannig to buy the ps3 and live 08 now. so its live 08 hands down, best system ps3, hands down.
First of all – it don’t matter whether it’s the PS3 or the X360. I played both games on both systems and they are completely identical. Don’t get me started with the sixaxis bullcrap on the PS3 or the vibration on the x360 because you just do not notice either one missing from the other system. So in all reality PS3 or XBOX360 is all the same for these two games.
As for the guys saying that you can adjust the sliders in Live 08 – You can do that in 2k8 as well so no big whoop there. The point is, the game should be ready made, and it should not involve me adjusting a bunch of sliders just to make it work.
I now have played both games extensively and can truly say that whilst Live 08 is a bigger leap compared to Live 07, 2k8 is still the champ. There are still way too many issues which make Live simply less fun to play. Some I can’t really put my finger on – e.g. Dynasty mode in Live is way less fun and a lot more awkward than the Ascociation in 2k8. I can’t quite explain why, just the whole dynasty mode is tedious for some strange reason…
Oh, and I’ve tried NBA 08 on the PS3, pass that one up – it’s way not worth it, sluggish, ugly, unrealistic.
I really think that most people who claim Live is the best game probably haven’t played 2k. Honestly, there’s not a massive difference between how I felt about the two, but 2k definitely got the edge.
Hey i havn’t played nba live 08 and 2k8 but i have palyed all the others
i started liking the live games first but then i found the nba 2k games
are better. it looks more realistic its harder to do flashy stuff whiuch makes it mor realistic! and yeah……I am getting 2K8
I have bought both live, and 2k since 05. Live is much more realistic and the players look more real, except for Jose Calderon he looks like a tard. 2K8 is way more fluid and live is a dunkfest, but if you adjust the gameplay settings the call more charges so it’s more realistic. The 1 downfall for each game is- NBA LIVE 08 the stats on the year are terrible nobody averages more than 8 boards and no more than 8 assists and shaq usually leads in that department, also no more than 0.7 steals and blocks. (and like 15 players average 35ppg plus). 2K8 – The created players only average 111 ppg tops even if 99 0vr. ( for ps2) If anyone has a way for the 2K8 created players to average more points or live averages to be more real. (E-mail me Boston_Red_Sox_69@hotmail.com
EA is not putting any effort into there games especially on PC. NBA Live 95 got me started on EA Sports games and I played Live hardcore until about 2002. Then I played MVP baseball and it got dumped in 2005 but I still play thanks to an awesome modders website. But the NBA Live versions suck now, and Madden changes only microscopically from year to year. EA Sports is blowing it due to laziness. If it wasnt for patchers they would be gone already. Please something happen and dont dump all the PC games!!!
@Chuck: It’s almost pointless to purchase Madden annually anyway. I only pick it up every other year.
I cant stand 2k sports games. Their menus are horrible, the announcers are horrible, the players look unrealistic, the gameplay is BORING and way too freakin hard. If 2k would just bite the bullet and incorporate the left stick as the freestyle move stick like NBA live does then I would like it a hundred times better, but it still wouldn’t be as good as Live. The shot stick 2k uses is the most retarded idea ever. In NBA live with the right stick it is easier to cross people over, do spin moves, etc. On 2k8 you never know whats going to happen trying to cross someone over with the same stick you use to move your player and hoping you press the turbo button at the right time. I don’t want to re-invent the wheel, i just want to enjoy myself playing a video game. NBA live is better as far as realism, graphics, sound, overall presentation, and user interface. Also 2K sports music always blows. Where the hell do they find these songs?
NBA Live > NBA 2k
I have nba live 08, and i find it horrible to play, and i mean horrible. I don’t see how EA didn’t realise they were realising such a horrible game. There are soo many flaws, that just make it such a bad game. The alley-oop button never works, their idea of increasing the difficulty is making the opposing team hit every shot, and for you not to be able to hit any jumpshots meaning that you have to drive on every possesion. Players attempt shots from behing the backboard, even though they caught the ball underneath the basket. The opposing team can hit jumpers from over the backboard. Alot of the time, the point guard does most of the scoring, no matter how crap they are, and the offensive fouls are absolute bs. I could go on all day about how bad the gameplay is.
I gotta go with Fraser on the point guard scoring thing. Have you noticed that ever since Live 2004 that has been a huge problem with Live? It don’t matter if you play against Steve Nash or Steve Blake, both will attempt to pull off a minimal number of dimes, and both will more likely try a dash to the hoop or simply take a shot. Back with Live 2005 with a friend of mine we started collecting stats from the Live games we played against the CPU and got the following result (after an 82 game season in dynasty mode): The CPU controlled PG took 21 FG attempts per game, the closest was the shooting guard position with 12, and Center with 11… We’re trying to run the same stats with Live 08 right now, I’ll check back with the results later.
I own nbz 2k8 and whoever says this is the way better than live is an idiot. I recently played a game in the association where it said i lost but the box score showed otherwise. The gameplay is alirght other than the fact you can’t stop the random back door pases. Which happen to me almost every other time down the court. Not to mention that the intelligence of the players on your team sucks. Also, at times there is nothing you can do to score a bucket. Call plays do whatever but for some reason it doesn’t seem to work. Take these things out and you have a good game.
I use to play all the live games untill i play 2k 7.So i got 2k8 and is crazy amazing.The dunks are hot and i can shot alot of threes.There is also lock down defence.I got a xbox live on 36o so hook up so yall can get ur ass bust. This is my gamer tag married 2 bball.i didnt pick my tag so dont be a jack ass.
im gay so i like nba live, i also use live 2 meet new guys
i agree wit waquas
NBA Live is a big SHIT.It looks so bad that makes me sick and the gameplay is even worse.Even a baby could make nba game better (PC).I just hope NBA 2K9 will go out for PC because this game rock….(guys from 2K Sports,i hope you’re gonnaa read this)!!!
nba 2k8 has horrible graphics and its impossible to drive in and it takes and hour to fuckin move i think nba live has amazing graphics but you can spin move past every one but nba live is much better than 2k8 hands down
I’VE BEEN PLAYING ALL THE NBA LIVE SERIES SINCE 2000 AND LOVED THEM ALL EVEN BETTER THAN THE 2K SERIES.. YOU DON’T KNOW HOW LOYAL I WAS FOR MY BOYS OVER AT EA..I NEVER BOUGHT A 2K GAME…..UNTIL NBA 2K7 DROPPED AND SLAPPED THE HELL OUT OF NBA LIVE 07…FROM THAT DAY ON I NEVER PLAYED LIVE 07 EVER AGAIN… COINCIDENTALLY EVERYONE(LITTERALLY) ELSE I KNEW WAS SCRAPPING LIVE AND BIGGING UP 2K7…IT WAS JUST THAT MUCH BETTER…THAN FINNALY 2K8 AND LIVE 08 DROPPED AND GUESS WHAT.. 2K8 FOLLOWED UP AND SLAPPPPPED THE HELLLLLLLLLLLL OUT OF IT AGAIN!… HONESTLY NBA 2K8 IS JUST THE BETTER GAME… I’M SOMEONE WHO LIVES EATS AND BREATHES BASKETBALL BUT I ALSO LOVE VIDEO GAMES TO DEATH.. SO COMING FROM A BALLER-THAT-LOVES-VIDEO-GAMES PERSPECTIVE NBA 2K8 IS THE FAR MORE BETTER GAME AND THE GAME TO BUY… TO ALL MY EA PLAYIN-2K HATIN GAMERS… JUST DO WHAT I DID AND ACCEPT THE FACT THAT EA NO LONGER MAKES THE BEST BASKETBALL GAMES ANY LONGER
OMG WIT GAME IS BETTA POINT BLANK LIKE ALL UR DO IS BITCH BOUT THE GAMES I HOPE EA N 2K IS READING DIS MAKE THE 09 VERSION A REAL FUKING GAME PLZ YA WASTING YA TIME DOING SHIT DAMN IT DO SOMETHING WIT ALL YA GAMES IM A DIE HARD MADDEN FAN BUT IT SUCKS ALSO SO LETS STEP IT UP 2K N EA ASAP WRD UP
nba 2k8 is good and all but 2k7 was better last year it seamed like the game turned into a fukin arcade
i have nba live 08 its boring than ever
i been playing live since 95
Fuck all basketball games!!!!! NONE OF THEM ARE ANY GOOD NOWADAYS! I’VE PLAYED LIVE SINCE 95 AND NUTTED ON MYSELF WHEN LIVE 04 DROPPED. THE FREESYLE CONTROL WAS INGENIOUS!! AND THEN THE DISAPPOINTMENT THAT WAS NBA LIVE 06 DROPPED!!! I THOUGHT I WAS PLAYIN’ A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT FRANCHISE AND LIVE 07 SUCKED MANATEE ASS!! THEN I COPPED A 360 AN SAW 2K8 AND MY JAW DROPPED…UNTIL I TRIED TO BLOCK A SHOT IN THE POST…THEN THE CONTROLLER DROPPED…HARD! THIS GAME PLAYS LIKE A FUCKED UP JOHNNY 5(SHORT CIRCUIT) ON CRACK COCAINE!
WHOEVER THOUGHT OF THE CONTROL STYLE IN 2K8 AND WHATEVER FUCKED UP 2K GAMES THAT IMPLEMENTED THAT BROKEN PIECE OF SHIT NEEDS A 12 GAUGE BUCKSHOT TO THE BRAIN, AFTER THEY GET ASS RAPED! THE GAME LOOKS GREAT, BUT UNFORTUNATELY JUST LIKE THE XBOX 360 AND ALL OF ITS FUCKED UP ACCESSORIES AND SHITTY CONTROLLERS, 2K8 IS NOTHING MORE THAN THE GREATEST PIECE OF SHIT I’VE EVER SPENT MONEY ON. TWO THINGS THAT ARE ONLY GOOD IN THEORY!
AND JUST FOR THE RECORD I WAS A DIE HARD SONY FAN UNTIL THE PS3 DROPPED. NOW IT’S LIKE FUCK SONY…AND MICROSOFT. HOWEVER WHEN EVER MY XBOX BREAKS, I’LL JUST KEEP SENDING THE SHITTY THING TO MICROSOFT AND HOPE TO GET IT FIXED.
FUCK BOTH SYSTEMS AND BOTH GAMES! LONG LIVE PS2!!!!!