NBA Elite 11 Demo Impressions

[jay_blacksmith]

Yeah, I'm downloading now.
2K11 has me sinked in, let's see if Elite can pull me away...

[[Q]]

damn you ps3 updates! i don't care about being able to play 3D Blu rays... i hate mandatory updates that dont matter. well i'm gonna check it out as soon as it updates.

[benji]

It's bombing on OS.

Also saw this on GAF:

Elite is mind-blowingly bad.

It's like they just added fight night controls and said yep this is fun. It's not. They seemingly forgot that videogames are ....GAMES! People have to play them and most of the mwant to have a good time. With this shit there very litte fun to be had. and despite them going to a new control style it's like they are missing some buttons still.

Stay very faaaaar away from this turd. WTF EA? Live 10 was a good start and then you just said psssssh fuck that lets add a unnecessary control scheme that doesn't work that great.

Sweet Jesus.

From comments at OS, EA guy:

About two weeks of active development off the retail version.

Should feel pretty much like the final game, enough to pass a fair judgment.

Shot difficulty tuning and the Boozer rocket dunk are probably two of the bigger changes that went into the final version.

But for the most part what you see in the demo is what you'll get in the day one retail version.

[wabenne]

LISTEN UP EVERYONE
Now I at no time desire that anybody just take my word on it but I have to give my honest opinion and before anyone calls be a 2kLover I tell you the truth when I say I have never ever bought a 2k game I have always went with Live. I agruged for years live was the best and never gave 2k a chance. I finally rented 2k this summer after hearing about Jordan and yes I did like 2k10 but I like LIve10 better. I came into both games this year with an open mind and was going to make a decision after I played both demo's listen to me when I say this

ELITE 11 has just confirmed for us why they changed the name from live to Elite because there is nothing and I mean nothing "live" like in that demo. I mean we can cry now and kiss goodbye to the live generation cause its over. That demo is horrible, wait not so much the demo the game is terrible, I mean the shooting is almost impossible, the dribbling is weak, slow, and laggy and so basic, the lace of turbo in exchange for the pass button, even the layups are tremendously slow and hard to do. I mean guys please understand my anger. This is totally not what I expected we thought live was just getting a name change no this is a whole new brand of basketball this can not be call a "live" product.

the 2k demo has hardly nothing but that game will be 10 times better, watch how many people get turned off with this demo, Elite should be ashamed of themselves for putting this out imo. I'm really sad how easily they have just made it for 2k to take over I mean there will be no doubt on Oct 5 what game is the king it will be the one with the King on it and I don't mean James I mean Jorndan. Wow I am in shock about how bad this game is. Download at your own risk

And again I said with a total promise some who have seem me here can vouch, even like Andrew I have not been on here support 2k, I have never bought a 2k game before this will be the first year that I don't by LIve or a product associated with it

[Carmo]

lol, download at your own risk? You're making it sound like a virus. Pretty sure I'll make up my own mind.

[benji]

What do you expect from a member of that 2K Cult? They've always thought EA's game is like the plague. Their religion requires it.

[planbzimp]

I hope this doesnt happen to my demo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJxyODxpbII

[SHAFT23]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLPGDyE5pEE

wow.............this makes no sense............i don't think i'll be spending anymore time to NBA Elite...........it look horrible and already has dumb stuff happening in the game. computer also does weird moves and stuff.

demo or not........i''ll only be getting nba jam. This game and franchise will stop existing soon.

[SHAFT23]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8io4pOLq3D0

well the commentary is decent at least in this video..........but still awkward and dumb animation and stupid decisions by cpu. passing animations and shooting and rebounding .........net animations......everything looks bad.

this is not next gen basketball.........in fact nba live 2004 as better than this.

[[Q]]

as someone who never really bought into 2k's shot stick and dribble modifier button, the new controls took a lot of getting used to. So I start up the demo, create myself, and go through the tutorial. the dribble moves are taking some getting used to. my favorite spin move (up on the right stick) was changed to a half circle which got in the way a lot. i found myself trying to spin and shooting the ball by accident. i'm definitely a fan of the shooting system they put into the game. seems to make more sense than 2k's shot stick... or at least it's explained better. not sure which one yet.

so i get right into the celts vs lakers. right away i get a 5 second inbound violation. had to check out the new buttons. they put the more important buttons on top to allow you to keep your thumbs on the sticks. it was very strange on turnovers/ def rebounds to try to push the ball with no turbo. i guess you have to hope that the ai will move your guys quickly up the court for you. after an overview of the controls, it seems like all they really did was switch a couple buttons around. shoot from square to up on right stick, pass from X to R2, direct pass from L2 to R1, pick & roll from circle to X, back down from L3 to L1, added a basket cut button (triangle), added a eurostep/drop step button (L2) and removed the turbo button.

directional passing seems slightly improved, but it was horrendous last year so thats not saying much. in-game menu (subs, coaching) is finally done right after miscues in thte last 2 games. it doesn't disappear while you are using it. a feature i found really useful last year was being able to control the guy you're passing to with direct pass. it was a little difficult to pull off in the demo. defense is a challenge. still haven't figured it out yet. not sure what to do since they took out the on ball button and the new physics don't allow my main basketball video game defensive goal of "getting the guy into an animation".


The legendary mode features a full game. after each quarter, they tell you what you did well and what you didn't. I thought that was a nice touch. they ripped me for allowing john wall to go 1/1 in a quarter
player lock kept the camera from switching on changes in possession which i like... i wish they kept it the same way when you're not player locked. I used to play on this camera angle in Live 2001 locking the camera in the direction i'm going.
after the game is over, they show you where you stand on the big board. I finished 19th. Jeremy Lin was 24th.

then i tried to play another game, but it was all messed up and showed Boston vs Boston and well, i didn't want to play as Boston so i quit. when they announced the demo, it sounded like there was more to it. There's a quick create a player, 1 quarter of Lakers & Celtics, and 4 quarters of rookies and created player.

Pros
improved directional passing (compared to Live 10)
improved in-game menu
faces are still top-notch (compared to NBA 2k11 demo)
controls seem very responsive
physics feature removes the traditional "2 man animation"
carried over the great environment noises from live 10... crowd, stadium and arena music. they use real sounds and chants from Staples Center (last year they had the "We want tacos" chant when the Lakers are winning at the end of the game!)
new annnounce team (although phrases are pretty generic) a refreshing move from the lifetime with Marv & Steve Kerr

Cons
jerseys seemed to have taken a step back (compared to Live 10)
a bit of a learning curve for non-2k players/seasoned Live veterans
couldn't find a way to play hard-nosed, 1 on 1 defense.
authentic plays run on offense no longer a feature unique to this game (compared to 2k11 demo)
no larry o'brien trophy on the court for finals game (seriously, how do you take out something you had the year before?)
no turbo button makes it awkward at times

[The X]

Just finished downloading the demo now. Will give my initial impressions shortly.

[Fozzrat]

can u get it in australia just got new 5.0update and there was no nba elite 11 demo in ps3 store only 2k11?

[Arcane]

can u get it in australia just got new 5.0update and there was no nba elite 11 demo in ps3 store only 2k11?

Got to create a US account.

[Patr1ck]

I had the Jesus thing happen to me by pressing LB when I ahd the ball at halfcourt.

[Fozzrat]

can u get it in australia just got new 5.0update and there was no nba elite 11 demo in ps3 store only 2k11?

Got to create a US account.

how u do that mate?

[JaoSming]

Cons
no larry o'brien trophy on the court for finals game (seriously, how do you take out something you had the year before?)

did you watch the finals last year? NBA doesn't put that on the courts anymore.

[Bodz]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLPGDyE5pEE

wow.............this makes no sense............i don't think i'll be spending anymore time to NBA Elite...........it look horrible and already has dumb stuff happening in the game. computer also does weird moves and stuff.

demo or not........i''ll only be getting nba jam. This game and franchise will stop existing soon.

I had a good laugh when I saw Bynum standing half-court with his hands outstretched and ready to be crucified.. lol

[lauriuks]

PC DEMO WILL BE?

[The X]

I will not mention the other game since it's not fair on Elite.

Okay, my impressions during the demo quickly went from positive to negative once I started playing the actual game It went from my interest being piqued to being a no chance of buying, regardless of NBA Jam or how good the Association mode is. Feels like a step backwards from Live '10 demo to me. I wasn't a huge fan of Live '10 demo, but thought he played a pretty solid game.

I won't really comment on Legendary Mode since I only played it for a couple of minutes. It didn't seem that bad & will probably be a pretty solid alternate mode for players who like player lock games.


CONTROLS

Anyways, I went through the new control tutorials & I was liking what I saw, especially in relation to the shooting mechanics, but then again I've always like shooting with shot stick rather than the circle button (I agree with Jao, it shouldn't be square button ). I wasn't a fan of the defensive controls, they seemed a bit simplistic. Once I got into the actual game, the controls didn't feel as intuitive as previously thought. I still like the shooting mechanic being skill-based, which led to a lot of misses. It felt a bit unusual having dribble controls & shot mechanics on the same stick though. I felt like layups should've just been performed by pushing up rather than to side then around to up. Let context decide if dunk or layup. I did like the breaking of animation for dunk to layup though. Either way, I think I could learn the controls, they are pretty responsive & all, but that's not my issue with them.

My issue is that I couldn't pass with the X button. It seems like the face buttons don't have a purpose anymore on offense or defense. I would much prefer to have a hybrid system whereby I could map whatever controls I want. I would keep the stick controls (with exception of defense) but want stuff like passing on the gamepad.


GRAPHICS

Not very good & a step down from previous next gen's Live IMHO. Although the graphics didn't really bother me as much as the body types, everybody looked really, really skinny.


PRESENTATION

They did use some ESPN music & presentation which is good. Commentary seems better. I didn't have any issues with this side of the game.


GAMEPLAY

Sorry guys, but IMHO it just didn't look or feel like basketball. I'm sure that was partly due to my lack of skills with the new controls, but I can't take all the blame for how the game played. I think it could possibly be a pretty fun 2 player game though once you both get hang of controls.


A few tidbits:

- You only get to play one 5 minute quarter.
- You can edit gameplay foul sliders.
- There are 3 camera options (baseline high - from behind; broadcast & another one).
- You can adjust difficulty level.
- You can change the controller option to either stick-based controls or old school controls. Unfortunately you can't have a hybrid of both

Positives:

- Shot mechanic controls skill-based
- Responsive controls
- Use of ESPN integration is a nice touch
- Commentary seems to be heading in the right direction
- In Legendary Mode, your player's silhouette shows up in starter screen

Negatives:

- Gameplay was very uninspiring & didn't capture the NBA brand of basketball (to me at least)
- Not a fan of the body types
- Not a fan of non-stick controls
- I wish they could have had hybrid controls so I could've had the best of both worlds
- Didn't like passing game
- Animations are lacking
- All the players feel pretty much the same (ala NCAA Basketball 2010) except for a few signature shots for stars

Overall, I feel bad for coming across as a bit negative, I just wasn't sold on this demo. Maybe I'm being a bit harsh but I wouldn't feel right not giving my true opinion. I'm sure others will get enjoyment out of this game & good luck to them.

can u get it in australia just got new 5.0update and there was no nba elite 11 demo in ps3 store only 2k11?

No, only North American PS3 users can get it. As Ben said, you need US PSN account, which obviously I have to get demos at a reasonable time. I would suggest Googling it if you need info to set one up. Either way, it is out on Thursday so might be worth just waiting for it.

[Patr1ck]

I had more fun in the fourth quarter than in the become legendary mode. Probably because my cap sucked. I got sucked on a couple times by Cousins, and missed a good layup. Even moving your player around is a little awkward. Probably have to be more delicate since a full press of the stick makes you run like you were holding turbo.

I keep forgetting to hold the right stick when I get to the top on layups and hooks because they keep ending up short.

Got a steal and went on a breakaway only to have the opposing pg catch up and get right in front of me as I started my gather. Got called for a charge.

Knocked down a 3 while gathering away from the basket. It was awesome.

These control will definitely take some getting used to. Anyone know how to set a pick? Boxout?

[qfrmcpt310]

yeah after paying the 4th quarter of the finals somehow i managed to get a steal and hit a 3 to send it into overtime, this sadly was the only thing that stood out to me from this demo

as others said before most players do feel the same...also you will find yourself yearning for the simple x/a pass button and other use of the face buttons
something else that bugged me was the stick to dribble and shoot not only did i shoot accidentally but the dribbling feels useless and doesn't realy show a difference from other players...one last thing idr what i did i believe it was l2 or one of the triggers and my player pretty much jumped with the ball and floated then got called for traveling

i dont want to sound completely negative about it because i felt this would be the year there would be 2 great bball games yet im still not seeing it with this. i've bought every nba live game since 2003 but this sadly is the end of the line for me.hopefully they can turn it around but right now i dont see it

[The X]

Almost forgot to add, alleyoops seem like they will be the game's cheese move. Seem very easy to pull off.

i've bought every nba live game since 2003 but this sadly is the end of the line for me.hopefully they can turn it around but right now i dont see it

Don't worry, you won't be breaking the trend. This isn't Live, this is Elite. Different game, different direction.

[JaoSming]

First the Pros

I applaud them going in a new direction, it is fresh, it is different, and not 100% bad.
Presentation and Atmosphere was damn good IMO...but last year didnt the crowd member's jerseys actually have numbers on them?
Collision results, rebounding results and other "results" (like who grabbed the ball) make sense.
The demo allowed me to play Overtime.

and....the fun part

OT length was 5 minutes....same as the normal quarter length. they dont play 12 minute OT's in real life...
NHL controls dont work with NBA games, How long have we been using RT/R1 for turbo? This is like the shot button thing, why are you messing with what works? (and tradition dammit) if it brought up icon passing that is one thing but I had a lot of accidental passing.
Rebounding just looks terrible. Feels very unnatural on the right stick as well.
Collisions just look terrible.
Auto replays are too fast, barely can see what is going on.
The players look really bad, Shaq is tiny and from the Broadcast camera it doesn't look like they sweat.
Shot stick works better than a dribble/shot hybrid.
Had issues with a receiving player automatically dribbling, preventing me from using a shot fake and then dribbling after.
Post play was terrible....that needs to be 2 player situational animations. Shot fakes, spin outs, shots looked terrible. Had 2 instances where Shaq did layups going towards the free throw line away from the hoop. They went in of course, cause I got stick skills.
The net animation looks terrible....NBA Live 2003 has a better net. NBA Street 1 has a better net.
I agree with X, layups shouldn't be a more complex gesture than dunks.

My biggest concern over all those cons is how the hell is the dev team going to improve on this? How can someone from this community or OS make logical criticisms against this game that can be logically improved next year? There are so many basic, fundemental things wrong with this game....and not in a basketball way, in a video game way. As I said, with rebounding and collisions, the outcome of who got the ball, who won the collision, where the ball went after a steal all made sense to me. But it just looks so bad that there is no satisfaction in playing it.

[atlwarrior]

These are videos of two guys playing the demo.

Check out 3:58. And youll see the Boozer Dunk.

phpBB [video]

Best Gameplay video Ive seen so far. Elite definitely needs to take a year off. Alot is missing. Rebounding reminds me of Nba Courtside 2002.

phpBB [video]

[ThaLiveKing]

Nothing wrong with the graphics in my book. . .players look good. I have to get used to the controls, and the playcalling. This game really needs a turbo button, I still don't know why they took it out. It really sucks that you can't sprint in this game

In honesty about the controls. .

I think the controls are better for modes like Become a Legend mode and online Team Play. Cause you only control one player. This complex control scheme for a 5v5 game is too much to grasp, maybe that's why they are so many conplaints. I see where they are going with the gameplay. . .and to be honest, the game next year could be a lot better than Live 10. If they add all the things Live 10 had, all the custom things.

I honestly had more fun in Become A Legend than the actual Finals game. But playing with the CPU is a drag,

I think even once you master the controls, the animation of the gameplay is so limited IMO that I don't think you can play a whole dynasty and enjoy it. Like I said, the controls are better for 1 player control. That's just my opinion

EDIT:

Also I got pinned off the backboard, which look pretty tight!!!