NBA Live 365

The ground-breaking feature of NBA Live 09 is no longer under wraps. The new feature, known as NBA Live 365, is intended to give players an ever-changing experience that is constant with the 2008/2009 NBA season. Out of the box, player ratings and attributes will be based upon last season's performance (and in the case of rookies, projected performance) as usual but NBA Live 365 will also give us the opportunity to download daily updates that adjust player ratings, attributes and Hot Spots according to their current performance.

To do this, EA Sports are teaming up with Synergy Sports. The inclusion of possession-by-possession data in different categories comprising of post up, isolation, pick and roll (both as the ballhandler and the pick), spot up, off-ball screen and cuts has led to the concept of Player DNA.

Player DNA represents what a player does for his team in the offense. If a player posts up most of the time, that's what you'll see him doing in NBA Live 09. If he's mostly involved in isolation or pick and roll plays, those are the plays he'll be trying to score on. Because each player's DNA is divided up into the aforementioned categories this isn't as restrictive as it may sound. For example, cover player Tony Parker will be looking to score off the pick and roll but will also spot up and score off isolations, albeit less frequently.

DNA also takes into account player tendencies. This means that when a player receives the pass in a certain spot on the floor, what he does next will be based on the decisions he makes in real life. If a player's tendency is to go left when he catches the ball on the left wing or spin into the high post when posting up, that's what you'll see him doing in NBA Live. However, players will still take what they are given by the defense and will not be successful every time they try to score in this manner so tendencies should not be mistaken for Freestyle Superstars or Go To Moves. It is a representation of what each player does when they have the ball in specific situations, based on data compiled by Synergy.

Both of these elements will be updated through NBA Live 365. When a new update is downloaded, you will have the opportunity to view the difference between the new data and the data that originally shipped with the game. You're also able to edit Player DNA yourself and save the changes when you save your rosters so if there's a particular edit that works for you, you don't have to use the latest update. You can also edit this data for created players.

Unlike previous years, the official roster updates will also include updated player ratings. Generic, placeholder players will be added (presumably to avoid situations like last year where Jamario Moon did not make the cut) and the user will have the opportunity to edit their DNA as usual. Over the next few updates, the player's proper appearance will be added to the updates as well as updated DNA data.

Team DNA gives us an overall view of how a team plays, calculated on the Player DNA for the entire roster. This information is handy no matter what side of the ball you're on. If you prefer to post up, you'll probably want to choose a team that does so most of the time in real life. At the other end of the court, you'll be given a good idea of what to expect and try to counter it accordingly.

So, that's NBA Live 365 in a nutshell. But what does it mean for the game itself?

A lot of people might dismiss it as merely being more regular updates or just another gimmick but if it pans out, I think it could really improve the gameplay experience. In theory, this new data should have players and teams playing like their real life counterparts, scoring in ways they should and reacting appropriately to certain situations.

Needless to say, some of it is going to come down to how we play the game. If we defend poorly and leave the lane wide open, the offense is going to take advantage but otherwise we shouldn't see someone like Bruce Bowen posting up or constantly slicing into the lane like Tony Parker.

This of course raises the concern of position domination and the wrong players scoring the points but I'm told that there is a "featured scorer" logic that determines the top scorers on each team (similar to Primacy and the Go To Player ratings in previous games but supposedly more effective) as well as a "possession goal". In the case of the Celtics, that goal will usually be to get the ball to one of the Big Three, meaning less opportunities for Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo. If everything goes to plan, it should mean we won't get burned by the wrong players unless we do a terrible job defensively.

As I mentioned in my other reports I didn't get a lot of time to play against the CPU so I'm not sure just how well Player DNA and DNA Tendencies will work out just yet but I do like the idea and if it does work out I see it being a step forward in giving each player on the court a "brain" and playing the way they should.

Unfortunately, updates won't affect a Dynasty game that's already been started but custom rosters with updated DNA can be used in all gameplay modes so if you have a saved file you feel plays pretty well, you can go ahead and start your Dynasty with it. It's unfortunate that we won't be able to take advantage of the updates once we've started the Dynasty but it would cause complications with custom rosters and player development so it's understandable.

For those who aren't necessarily concerned about realism, I expect DNA will be useful in developing strategies to defend against a particular team or player. Knowing that a player likes to post up and then spin baseline will allow you to plan a countermeasure to try and force them into a weak spot or out of their comfort zone.

To take advantage of NBA Live 365, you will need to input a code that is shipped with the game. We were told that an Xbox Live Silver account is sufficient for Xbox 360 users who wish to use the service. 365 is available free of charge in NBA Live 09 though it was hinted during the discussion of the feature that it may carry a charge in the future.

While it remains to be seen just how well NBA Live 365 caters to hardcore and casual gamers alike, I do think the entire package is worthy of the "ground-breaking" hype. More than just a daily roster update, it's also adding new dynamic player logic that if effective should have players performing as they should, intelligently and realistically. The concept of a sports game that will update, evolve and change over the course of a season is certainly a new approach which I hope will pay off as we'd all like.

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