The major single-player experience is found in ‘Association Mode’, where the player takes control of a team as the general manager, signing players, hiring coaches and such over a number of years to build the franchise and hopefully appease the team owner. Alongside this are the fairly self-explanatory ‘Season Mode’, the obligatory ‘Practice Mode’ and all varieties of multiplayer modes on both regular and street courts. Online play is also supported and despite a few small quirks is overall an enjoyable experience. The other much-hyped feature is 24/7 mode, which involves taking control of a user-created player trying to make their way to the famous Rucker Park street ball tournament. This section is poorly executed and is better-off avoided.

Those familiar with previous iterations in the series will need a good few games to become used to the way this new one plays. One of the main factors that contributes to this is the great feeling of weight in the game. Match-ups down low are decided based on weight and strength, and when players are jostling for space it really feels like they are in a battle. Most impressively, when going up to block dunks or lay-ups it is easier to see the profound effect that the contact between the players has on their motion. These physics have always been an integral part of the series, but this time out they feel so much more realistic.

The adjustments made to the gameplay template are also enhanced by the greater number of animations that have been put into the game. Visual Concepts have animated the specific shot types of more players than ever before (as a trawl through the Create Player option will attest), which once again just enhances the realism and draws the player into thinking they are playing a proper game of basketball. There are a greater number of signature dunks available through use of the “shot stick” and the player-specific animations whilst preparing to shoot free throws are all spot on. Speaking of free throws, the Six Axis controller comes into play, allowing players to tilt the pad back and then forward in a sort of throwing motion in order to shoot. The system takes some getting used to, especially as each player shoots their free throws differently, but after playing with the same team for a while it becomes second nature and isn’t the game breaker that it initially threatens to be.

Whilst the game has in general moved forward there are still a few things that are holding it back from being the perfect basketball experience. First off is the passing physics. Those who have played any previous game in the series will know that passes going astray have always been a big problem. Unfortunately this trait continues here. There are times when a pass clearly aimed in the direction of the nearest player will instead be thrown across the court to a player on the far side, almost always resulting in an interception by an opponent. This can get very frustrating, especially near the end of games where the stakes are at their highest. Although icon passing does exist for picking out a specific teammate, in rushed situations such as a player being double-teamed there is not normally time to use it, resulting in the ball being tied up or intercepted.

One thing that the series has always suffered from is strange gameplay and AI glitches. Although the developers seem to have eliminated most of these this time around, some old favourites still make a return. The most frustrating is where the referee throws the ball repeatably into one of the players whilst the opposition are waiting for the ball to resume play, requiring the player in question to be manually moved out the way before the game can continue. There is also the classic of a player diving for the ball, taking them over the halfway line, but leaving them unable to make a pass because all their teammates just stand in their own half waiting for the ball. These quirks tend to be forgotten because the game plays so well, but it’s really something that Visual Concepts should look into for future releases.

The game does for the most part look stunning. All the major players are perfectly modelled and have been animated incredibly well. The courts also look great. Some of the lesser-known players, especially those of caucasian origin do tend to look somewhat like extras from Resident Evil, but overall the models are impressive. The only real problem that arises is the slowdown that occurs on certain courts, the San Antonio Spurs’ home court being the worst offender by far. Thankfully, this is usually limited to the free throw animations and doesn’t impact on the gameplay in general.

NBA2K7 is generally a success at moving the franchise into the next generation. Although a few niggles still remain it’s by far the best serious basketball game currently available and with a decent online community that harks back to the series’ Dreamcast roots it is definitely a recommended purchase if you are a fan of the sport.