NBA Street Homecourt (Xbox 360, 2007)

If flashy moves and graphics are what you want with a mix of the old NBA Jam game play style then this game is for you. HomeCourt doesn't really have a story mode, but one main feature called Homecourt challenge. In this mode you take your created baller, start a local team, and go against other teams. After awhile tournaments will become available. The game isn't overly long but the achievements will bring some extra life to the game since you'll need to do the 'create a player' thing twice. The on-line mode seems pretty lively but the games I played were a bit laggy at times which did cause some problems.

The graphics in NBA Street are rather good. A little too shiny but the character models look good as do all of the moves. Everything moves as realistically as they could since some of the moves can't really be done. The courts also look good but feel a bit bland in the details areas.The sound in the game really isn't too bad. You can hear the "SWOOSH" when the ball flys through the net, or when it bangs off the backboard or rim. I never heard of any of the artists on the soundtrack but I never noticed any lyrics either so I didn't have to suffer through bad rap music. On the other hand I don't remember much of the music because I was really into the game. Voice work is amusing but nothing special. Sound effects aren't that bad either but nothing special.

The control in the game is rather smooth and once you get the hang of the controls you can really pull off some cool moves. That's a plus when the moves look so complex but I do wish there was a tutorial for the game play because for someone who hasn't played a game in the series in a number of years might have some problems with just jumping into the game. The trick system in the game is very simple to get the hang of and looks cool. The AI is pretty much brain dead on the lower settings so you might want to up the difficulty. I'd recommend NBA Street home court as the perfect weekend rental with friends.

Maybe if it was under $30 I could see it worth buying.

Review care of http://gnadegames.blogspot.com

Don’t get me wrong, NBA Street is by no means a bad game. In fact, it is chock full of high production values and is a vast improvement over Volume 3. Despite all of this, Vol. 2 is still the best in the series in my eyes.

Gameplay: 8/10
Pros: The new gamebreaker system is great and offers a good system of risk and reward (opposing players can ‘steal’ gamebreakers). The fluidity of animations and the countermoves (a button appears over a ball handler or defender and if you press it you will bounce the ball through a defender’s legs, or steal the ball.) are also great additions.
Cons: The intuition of the kick pass (press down on the right stick) is gone! Blocking long range shots is way too easy and makes games dunkfests. Trick Remixer brings with it a lack of differing dunks, trick moves.

Graphics: 9/10
Pros: The graphics are good, the player animations are absolutely superb and the game has an organic overall feel because of the look and especially the animations of all the players. The filters put on the gameplay and ‘biography’ videos are sweet.
Cons: The courts are not that spectacular and don’t offer the variety of looks and tones (rooftops, dark alleyways) of previous street titles.

Sound/Music: 9/10
Pros: As always EA has spent a fortune on licensed tracks which are excellent. Voice work for the player biographies is excellent.
Cons: Voice work is a mixed bag during gameplay. It bothers me that we get great Carmelo voice work for in between game segments but then have generic player voices for nearly all the NBA stars. Players just all sound the same in game- generic. This may be nitpicking, but why not get voice work from all the players or just rip it from game footage? I want Iverson to sound like Iverson.

Lasting Appeal: 7/10
Pros: Online play is great (something Vol. 2 lacked) and there area several different game modes, and street games to be played. There’s achievements and all that too.
Cons: Achievements are incredibly easy. There are only 16 and they are each worth an absurd amount (like 50 points). They are also incredibly easy to get and I had over 200 within the first hour. The flash of NBA street and it’s appeal has worn off over the years.

Average: 82.50%
Tilt: -0.50%

EA is a massive studio (which I must admit I distaste ever since they monopolized the NFL license) and they crank out sequels nearly every year. As a result, their games always have the polish in the graphics and sound department, but the gameplay can drastically fluctuate from sequel to sequel. The Street series is lucky because it doesn’t suffer from the strict annual release schedule of Madden. Nonetheless, while Homecourt is much much better than Vol 3, it’s no Vol 2.

Verdict: 82%

This game could be a lot better if ea sports big had put more time into it. It looks like they rushed this game to release it for the next generation consoles. Its the best looking nba street game from all past version (nba street, nba street v2, and nba street v3) in graphic area of the game. It has many bugs, the AI sucks big time. When the ball is on the floor the CPU players look like do not know that and they wonder round, sometimes they run after it and sometimes they make you say WTF. The dunks/moves are sick in this game.. The tricks system sucks, nba street v2 was much much better. There are many bugs they could of fixed and released an better product then this but in the end if you are die hard streets fan you don't want to pass this up , because it looks like this will be the last series from ea sports big, since ea sports big no longer exists.

With my diamond card in one hand, and my rent one get one free game at Hollywood video in the other, I set out to rent the perfect game for the Xbox 360. Unfortunately, my choices consisted of a bunch of uninterested games and this one, NBA Street Homecourt. I gotta tell ya, I was pleasantly surprised. This game was a lot of fun. If you were a fan of the NBA Jam series back in the day, then you'll probably love this one. It's a lot similar with a touch of technological update for the next gen systems. It's a tad less ridiculous and also introduces a more personal view to the NBA players in the game. It's also 3 on 3 and includes a pretty slick online mode. I found the game to be pretty easy, even on the more difficult modes. Unless you're just a die hard NBA Jam-type game lover, this is a true rental. You can get through pretty much every aspect and score every achievement in the game in a matter of days. The upside to purchasing it is that the resale value seems pretty good right now. In theory, I suppose you could buy it, finish it, get tired of it, and flip it right here on eBay and loose about as much money as it would cost to rent it. If you're looking for a truly great basketball game purchase, you're better off going with NBA 2K7. For its awesome rental value, I'll give NBA Street Homecourt and 4 out of 5.

This game bursts with one brilliant design decision after another - including a Gamebreaker power-up system that is, finally, perfect.

Highly honed, it beautifully perfects the elements that the first three games almost nailed without reaching for the next great thing the way a truly classic game does.

Awesome :)