There isn't much competition when it comes to basketball video games, as 2K virtually has the monopoly on this type of game. NBA 2K17 was a huge success and gamers didn't even get a chance to play NBA Live 17, as it was delayed, and later postponed. However, Ea Sports intends to make a comeback with their NBA Live 18 and fans of this franchise already have the opportunity to take an early look at the game.
While it's too early to speculate whether the game will be good or bad, the first look at the game isn't exactly breath-taking. It seems that EA Sports decided to keep the same engine they used before and gamers did not like it at all, which resulted in low sales of the game and horrible reviews of it.
'NBA Live 18' most likely won't be successful
Its been nearly a decade since EA Sports made a good basketball video game, as their last big success was 'NBA Live 08.' After that, they decided to abandon the PC version of the game and they focused only on consoles, which turned out to be a bad move. "NBA Live" had been gradually losing quality, along with their fanbase. It is very unlikely that they'll bounce back with their next game, as it will take years of development for EA Sports to get back to the level they were at before.
First Off-Screen NBA Live 18 Screenshot - via @thechrisdenker https://t.co/7gsgGN772c pic.twitter.com/EREgz1b3IM
— Steve Noah (@Steve_OS) May 21, 2017
"NBA Live 18" will have strong competition in "NBA 2K18," as 2K will undoubtedly put even more effort in to beat their competition.
They have already raised the bar, and although "2K17," as well as previous 2K games had their flaws, they were still light years ahead of EA.
Is it too late for 'NBA Live'?
The one-year break EA Sports took might turn out to be a disaster for their basketball video game. Not only did they lose their fanbase, but they also have a lot to catch up with in terms of gameplay and visual presentation of the game.
Their previous games were nothing but awful and the company may have lost a step behind their main competitor.
The game might be much better, however, as EA's development team spent quite a lot of time creating the game. They decided not to release "NBA Live 17" in order to make their next game better and put it on par with the competition.
The first screenshot of the game doesn't look good, and it seems that player models will still look bad, but it is too early to say for sure. The game will most likely be released in September this year and EA will reveal a lot more as the release draws near.
In the meantime, gamers can only hope that the franchise will reclaim its former glory.
