NBA 2K7 with improved animations and polished gameplay. Basketball mechanics simulation is among the finest in the series on PS2. A particularly successful franchise entry offering the smoothest basketball PS2 experience in the series.
Your verdict
Category
Sports4 players3+
Description
A Visual Concepts and 2K Sports sequel released in 2006 (Europe, Australia, US), with Kobe Bryant on the cover. A new slam-dunk contest as a minigame, an even richer ESPN presentation and more credible defensive AI. A solid vintage, as the franchise begins to widen its lead over NBA Live.
NBA 2K7 review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
The art direction stages the new dunk contest. This entry introduces the event as a minigame and treats it as a spectacle apart: slow-motion on the leaps, low framing that exaggerates the elevation, spotlights trained on the lone acrobat suspended above the rim. Far from a match's flow, the screen stops on the aerial figure, broken down to exhibit its difficulty.
The audio bets on the home crowd's partisan fervor. More than the playlist, it is the crowd that sets the tone: a rumble swelling on a run of baskets, boos at the opponent's arrival, rhythmic chants demanding defense, held silence when the game tips. This arena murmur, captured in its variations, betrays to the ear the mood of a crowd committed to its team.
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
This edition polishes the simulation with refined shooting controls and an ever more immersive presentation, faithful to the spirit of televised basketball. Orchestrating a team attack and finishing with a precise move delivers an immediate, rewarding satisfaction. Rich, demanding and superb with several players, a console sport that rewards strategy as much as skill.
Addictiveness
"Obsessive"
Orchestrating every possession, reading the defense and then finishing with a buzzer dunk turns the match into a nervy spectacle where you chain games without stopping. The career mode, team management and a season's progression feed constant objectives. The yearly iterations resemble one another, but this deep, fluid simulation keeps a lasting pull for the enthusiast.
Difficulty
"Easy"
Lifespan
"Massive"
The Association mode, which puts you at the helm of a team for the long haul, makes this basketball far more than a single game. Recruiting, training and chasing the title season after season fills countless hours. That depth of management, inherent to the series, founds a longevity basketball fans savour.
A basketball simulation from Visual Concepts, NBA 2K7 refines the reference basketball series with its official teams and players, polishing the fluidity of play, the shot controls and a dense career mode, in an edition praised for its realism at release. The fluidity of the simulation, the fidelity to the sport and the richness of the modes appeal to basketball fans. The production has clearly aged against the modern editions. For a basketball enthusiast or a nostalgic of the series' golden age, the title keeps a preserved fluidity and fidelity, in a now dated edition.