By Rangebar Merani

Platform: Xbox 360
Publisher: 2K Games
Developer: 2K Sports
ESRB Rating: E
Genre: Sports

Basketball season is approaching and the new b-ball games are arriving on store shelves.

I’m going to go ahead and say it, NBA 2K7 dunks all over the competition. I’m not talking about just any old dunk. I’m talking about Shaq breaking the rim off, kind of dunk. NBA 2K7 makes all the right moves to make this game the clear winner this basketball season.

Right from the start the game feels right. The game runs very smoothly and actually feels like a next-gen game. Players move great, passes are on cue and the dunks are just beautiful. Did I mention the swish of the net when you’re hitting those threes?
Man, it’s a beauty. The game looks beautiful and the arenas shine like the real thing. The players play and shoot just like their real-life counterparts.

Unlike other basketball games where you just run up and down the court to make a shot, NBA 2K7 gives you the feeling of making every possession count. You’ll have to really look for an open shot because the A.I. in the game doesn’t play around. When you try to run up the lane, defenders will block you off and your teammates will look for picks or try to get open. I’m glad I can actually depend on my teammates instead of trying to do everything myself.

Speaking of the A.I., when a player is scoring and getting hot, the game will start to notice and defenders will start to double team him. The game wants you to earn an open shot.

Those little things make the difference between a great game and a good game.

With a great game like this, there are only a few minor miscues. It’s really difficult to defend one-on-one. Players can easily slide right past you, which encourages you to allow the A.I. to defend them. Steals occur more often than they should and some of the foul calls don’t make sense to me.

Another thing is the look of the player models. While most of the players look pretty good, there are a few that make me question what the guys at 2K Sports were thinking. But all the greatness of this game will make you overlook these minor issues.

NBA 2K7 is the best basketball game by far this season. The game slaughters NBA Live ’07 in every way you can think of.
Honestly, it has me hooked and it’s got me dunking on these fools.

Who wants next?