AND 1 Streetball
The popular AND 1 Mixtape Tour finally gets its own game.
Tags: AND 1 Streetball Categories: PS2 Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Michael Hanning on Jul 8th, 2006
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| AND 1 Streetball (title page) | 1 - 2 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Sports | Yes | ||
And1 Street Ball is one of the latest titles to bring an urban sensibility to the sports game. Rather than going with sterile stadiums and NBA professionals it gives you street courts, flashy moves and over-the-top teammates as you earn your way to play on the AND1 Mixtape Tour. They’re something like a flashier, more accessible version of the Harlem Globetrotters.
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The control scheme a selling point and an Achilles heel. The flashy moves of the AND1 team are there, controlled by the right analog stick. In theory you set up three tiers of moves, a set-up dribble controlled by holding the right analog stick, a second level where you move the left analog stick in the same direction, and then keep holding both with the R1 button to perform an ankle-breaker (you don’t actually break ankles). The points you get from these moves are essential to winning the crowd over, the second goal of every game in the AND1 tour.
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This is a good idea, but unfortunately it just isn’t responsive enough. There isn’t much point to using any individual move over another, the timing system for moving from move to move is uneven, and the way that animations never seem to flow smoothly into one another means that you’re almost never going to be able to gauge the timing anyway. This potentially innovative system turns into a lot of mashing the joysticks in a direction and hoping it works. It doesn’t help that style points are so integral to the game that you’re almost forced to focus on them instead of playing a passing game or just barreling up the court.
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The Mixtape Tour is an interesting spin on the usual season mode. You create your own player (you can use your own face if you have an EyeToy) and send him out to try earning a spot on the AND1 tour along with street ball legends. A big complaint are the Side Missions which you are required to do (not making them really side missions at all, if you think about it.) In addition to winning the game you’re given an additional task like performing three alley-oops, three ankle-breakers, something along those lines. This must have seemed like a good idea but becomes absolutely infuriating when you have to replay a game you just won because you didn’t hold down an analog stick long enough.
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Playing defense isn’t much easier, if anything it only becomes a more frustrating affair. The right analog stick is used to try to get the ball away from your opponent, but there’s no real strategy for control that will keep it working. Your defense is going to be running in and out of your opponent’s zone to keep them from performing an ankle breaker while waiting for the ball to slip and fumble somehow. When so much skill is taken away from playing defense there just isn’t any fun to be had doing it.
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There are some neat extras here, including videos of the real AND1 Mixtape Tour. Watching these guys in motion is absolutely amazing, but only reinforces how nice it would have been if the game had captured their slick moves and sheer athleticism. You get to create your own character, which is fun, and your own moves, which is slightly pointless. The money you earn winning games unlocks new moves to create, new accessories and points for your player, and the videos, meaning that if you want to you have plenty to earn here.
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The look of the game isn’t much to write home about. The visuals are all-around acceptable, but there are better-looking basketball games out there. There also tend to be a few glitches in there where the ball will pass through arms, or players through another player’s leg. Nothing game-breaking, but still a little disappointing. Mention must be made of the load screens – they seem to alternate between pictures of the real-life And1 team and product placements. It’s more than a little jarring that the game you just paid for is trying to sell you more stuff.
The voice acting on the game is sub-par, unfortunately. The announcer’s comments get repetitive pretty quickly, the players are limited to a few generic put-downs and boasts that grow old fast. The music makes up for it, though, being a good mix of hip-hop genres. No major stars appear, but it makes for good listening.
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Long load times and the intense learning curve will put off a few casual gamers. People looking for a solid basketball game won’t like the loose controls and problematic gameplay. In the end the only people likely to get excited about this game are hardcore AND1 fans who probably decided to buy the game when they first heard about it. You might be better off buying another basketball game and renting one of AND1’s DVDs.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Good music. + Flashy moves. + Lots of customization. |
5.0 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
- Doesn't control well. - Glitchy graphics. - Game forces you to focus on one-on-one play rather than team. |
|
| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| It just doesn't manage to appeal to either the hardcore sports gamer, but fans of And 1 will get a kick out of playing with their favorite stars. Anyone else might be better off holding out for a better game. | |
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Tags: AND 1 Streetball
Posted by Michael Hanning on Jul 8th, 2006 and is filed under PS2 Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
