Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman will be making their basketball video game debuts on NBA Live 18. Revealed in the demo that came out today, ESPN’s “First Take” will have a whole segment on the game’s “The One” career mode which involves you jumping into the life of a player that got injured his sophomore year of college after deciding to go back to school instead of going straight to the NBA.
NBA Live holds a contract with ESPN which allows them to use ESPN’s broadcasts in game which gives the game a truly authentic feel. Couple that with the authentic street courts like Rucker Park, the Drew League, the Goodman League, and many more and you’re looking at a video game that is beating NBA 2K in the only category they seem to lack in. Yep you guessed it, authenticity. Live also includes more accessories and authentic hair styles than any 2K game before. Even rapper “Lil Yachty” has his signature red braids and beads in the game.
At the end of the day, gameplay is what matters most, so no matter how much authenticity and endorsements NBA Live has, it won’t sell anything close to NBA 2K. One thing is for sure though, the gap between the two games is no where near as big as it used to be. Check out the First Take segment here: