Introduction:Extreme Gamers new man on the campus, Viper Tech takes a look at the intensity of EA Sports NBA Live 06. NBA Live continues the franchise with some new features that capture the feeling of the NBA with a great attention to defense and the physicality of the NBA game.

The Game: NBA Live 06 has some great modes and rather then beat around the bush, so to speak, here are some of the main features in the game. First "Season Mode" is the bread and butter of any sports game and you can play through the season with any of the current NBA teams and rosters. If you don't like the roster that they have you can make your own rosters, using the biggest the best names in the NBA. You can also randomize your schedule or customize your league by switching up the teams. The season mode really works and I enjoyed the level of customization freedom in you can get away with.

For the other modes, the playoff mode wasn't bad. I really like that you can play the traditionally or customize tournament using or not using a fantasy draft. "Slam Dunk School" really impressed me, not bad EA. I really loved almost everything about this feature. The one complaint I have is that the text box was blocking the basket, but for the freestyle dunking, it was great. It took some time to find out how to do the different slam, but once I got the controls down, I found my self fly in the air.

Carrying on we have "Freestyle Superstars" which lets you control the top NBA stars, performing like their real-life counterparts based on distinct character types, including Power, Playmaker, Stopper and more. "Authentic 5 on 5" gameplay has changed up mainly by the new animation system which pushes the tempo up more like the speed of the NBA. Also featured, is an improved transition game and a more physical brand of play with collisions and dunked-on scenarios.

Online was alright, but considering I'm not an avid Basketball fan I was a little out of the loop. It's great to meet other players and so many options are opened with online tournaments, or downloading updated rosters. Maybe with a little more practice I can start to get my groove on.

Finally I want to touch base on the "Create a Superstar" mode which is always fun. In NBA Live, they let you make your own super star, letting you be in the roster and play again the big names in NBA. the better you do in the game with your new superstar the more thing's you will be able to unlock and add to your super star. the only thing I would have to say I didn't like about it, was that you didn't get to put to much on your superstar at first, and the load time was a bit long, just to see if you like the shirt he was wearing or not. but I am sure that will change down the road with other NBA games to come.

The only down fall I found with the game was it took a while to learn the controls for new players to the game. Although the controls had me fussing for a bit, I really liked other in game options like changing the view and the game making so that you were play in 3D or far away so that you can see the whole court. I really don't watch NBA to much, but after playing this game I found that when I see a game on I had a better idea who was who and what the rules were in the game.

Graphics & Sound :I would have to say the graphics and the sound of the game was great, it gave you a full 3D graphic with made the game seem real, and the sound was good. I really like how they used the R&B music while you were playing the game. I found that the song got me going when I was playing 1-on-1 or when I was jamming the slam in the dunk school. you can really tell that EA took there time with the graphics making the superstar real life, and the movement fast and smooth. I would have to say that the view's of the game were great, if you didn't like looking up and down the court, you can easily change the view the way you want it.

The voice over work of Marv Albert and new commentator Steve Kerr from the Spurs was great. It really made it feel like you were watch a live NBA game on t.v. But with no surprise EA did a great job on catching the play by play with the voices, and were very good with the half time.

Lowdown:In NBA Live 06, there are so many modes to play. and I found that if you got tired of playing the season, you can always go to one of the other game mode to change things up a bit. I really think EA did a great job on this game, and I found it was like watch a really NBA game on TV. Recommended.

Gameplay: 6, Graphics/Sound: 8, Innovation: 6, Mojo: 7. Final: 7.5/10