The gameplay graphics were pretty impressive. I must admit, they looked good. The court even appeared to be accurately portrayed. I wish I could say the same about the crowd, but that's just asking too much out of the PlayStation. I did like the fact that EA decided to go with the larger images this year. The larger player graphics help to bring out the detail in the models. I was also impressed with the likeness of the players. All in all, everything looked good. There was a little pixalation involved, but over all, it wasn't bad. The game announcers were accurate, and the play-by-play was in real time. I like it when the commentary doesn't lag the play by five seconds. Thumbs up on the graphics and sound.

Jordan is back! Or is he? Well, in 'practice' mode, you can play against him. He is also on the 90's legends team. Oh well, at least he's there. Well, it's Live, so you know how great the gameplay is. Exhibition, Season, Championship, and Practice mode are all there. All the customizable options are available. You can change difficulties and modify the rules.
As usual, the great season structure is included. That's one good thing about Live; it always has the best season play structure. Same old Live, just better graphics and updated rosters and schedules. Oh yeah, did I mention that Jordan is back?

Come on, has Live ever been too hard? This ain't Fox Sports either, so you know it's not too easy. It's just a good game. If the game is too hard, put it on Rookie mode. Still to hard - turn fouls off. What if it's too easy? No problem, up it to All-Star level and make sure all the rules are on. That's the beauty of sports games; they're only as difficult as you make them.

So if the game is so good, why not give it a 100%? One reason - SLOW. I think maybe the graphics are too good. The game runs in slow motion. I hate it when a fast-paced sports game run slowly. And this one is slow. The play is not smooth and the responsiveness suffers as a result. The game does support up to eight players, but I would hate to see how slowly that runs! The graphics are great, the gameplay is as solid as ever, but it's just too slow. Not only are the players in slow motion, but also they all move at the same speed. Penny runs just as slow as Diesel. That's just wrong! The default controls are a bit funny too. The mechanics really bring this one down from greatness. Nonetheless, it is still a good basketball simulation, probably the best you'll find on the PlayStation. And in case you didn't know, Jordan is back.