NCAA College Hoops 2K6 - Entry #1

It's been a while since I've been into a basketball video game. The last one I gave any significant time to was Inside Drive 2004, which happens to be the best hoops video game I've ever played. I toyed with some other titles the last couple of years, but none grabbed my attention quite like ID 2004.

I've been hearing a bit of a buzz about NCAA College Hoops 2K6. There were some things I really liked about last year's title, in my brief time with it. Since I'm getting that old writing bug again, I thought it would be fun to kick off my reviewing rebirth with this title. I also thought it would be kind of fun to keep a running diary of my experiences with it, until I pen the review.

After coming home around 6:00, eating dinner, doing some housework, watching the basketball Zips in one of their rare TV appearances in my area, and watching Lost, I finally squeezed in an hour or so with NCAA 2K6. I did read the manual last night, however. I am one of those dinosaurs that actually likes to learn as much as I can about the game before picking up the controller, as opposed to others that disdain the manual and prefer the kinesthetic learning method. Given the state of today's manuals, I completely understand that approach, but I digress.

The first thing I attempted to do was learn a little bit more about the game before stepping out on to the virtual hardwood. In the Extras section, I found the training video to be very helpful, as it gave a pictorial representation of what I gleaned from the manual. Being a manual guy, I also appreciated the expanded in-game manual, which gave a more in-depth set of instructions for gameplay and features.

One other helpful section was the Drills in the Practice game mode. EA did a great job with this in NCAA Football 2006, and a feature like this is long overdue for basketball games. I only did a couple, but they quickly helped me get my bearings before taking my Zips up to Bloomington for a few minutes against IU. I'm looking forward to delving into this mode much more deeply in the near future, before any kind of "dynasty" or "season" play.

Once I felt somewhat comfortable, I felt it was time to check out the gameplay. What happened to the "juke stick" or the spin move button? Although you can do some crossover moves with the left-trigger and the left stick, I really missed the precision control of the ball-handler that a game like ID 2004 offers. However, that ball control was replaced with the "shot stick," which does appear to be implemented very well. I love the ability to control how I shoot - whether I go up with the left hand, or attempt to power dunk over my opponent! The use of the stick, combined with the apparent elimination of the "force field" effect that has plagued many a basketball game, really gives you a feeling of control in the paint, as opposed to just queuing up a move and watching the action. At this point, it seems like a pretty fair trade off to me.

I also love the addition of the lead pass button. No more do I have to watch my 3 man stop on the break to catch the pass, and then decide to resume his run to the basket. In addition, when combining the lead pass button with the left trigger, your players attempt to execute an alley oop. When timed correctly, this is one of the more exciting plays in the game. Color me impressed! (By the way, I got pretty good at this in the Fastbreak drill - yet another reason to spend some time practicing).

One other thing I investigated a bit was Coach mode. Part of me really enjoys the tactical aspect of sports, and I've spent some time as a high school basketball coach, so this mode intrigues me. With the ability to call plays, make substitutions, assign match-ups, set double-team criteria, change up the press, etc., it appears that you really can do what a "real" coach does during the game. I'm intrigued by this. If it's implemented well, I may run concurrent dynasties as a player and a coach!

Well, that's enough for tonight, but I can tell you that I've barely scratched the surface of NCAA College Hoops 2K6. My football Zips play for the MAC championship and a bowl bid tomorrow night on ESPN, so I may not spend much time gaming tomorrow. However, this title has my attention, and I plan on giving it several more hours over the weekend. Stay tuned for the continuation of my journal!

Historical Perspective

I am a history buff. I've whittled away many late-night hours watching The History Channel, The Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, Nat Geo, or any of their variants. I love learning about ancient cultures (particularly their structures and technology), archeology, crypto zoology, historic battles, historic personas, and so forth. It's this passion for history that has driven me to spend some of my Christmas money on two Xbox titles: the Atari Anthology and Intellivision Lives.

I don't want my kids to grow up without an appreciation for their ancestry and roots, or for the struggles that early mankind had to deal with for entertainment. Thankfully, E.T. didn't make the cut. If we don't learn from history, we're doomed to repeat it, or so I've heard.

Honestly, it's the warm, fuzzy feeling of nostalgia that triggered my desire for these titles. As blocky, unsophisticated, unrealistic, shallow, and brain dead as these titles were, I really did enjoy many hours of my youth with a controller in my hand, and part of me enjoys reliving that experience, no matter how it compares to today's entertainment. As we get older, we still reach out for the relative innocence and bliss of our childhood, no matter how it manifests itself, don't we?

Enough philosophy. Now I have to figure out how to get my Controller S to mimic the Atari paddle, or I'll never win a game of Pong!

Back in the Saddle...

Well, soccer season has passed, hence my desire to dabble back into doing a little writing. I'm posting at the "gut" again, because I just don't feel good about joining up at Calvert Games, and then disappearing, only to reappear again. I'll save everyone the fanfare and just blog here for the time being. I'm sure you don't want to hear about it, but hey, this is for me, not for you!

Also, once again, I'm toying with the idea of operating a full-fledged website. I enjoy the prospect of creating a more complete presence on the web, but I worry about not contributing anything positive to the internet community - at least on a consistent basis. That might change early next year, though, as I'm about 99% sure I'll give up the soccer gig after this Spring. My wife is pretty much gainfully employed as a school teacher (she's substituting now, but the prospects for full timer for her look very good - yeah!), so the need for me to work two jobs is waning, after EIGHT LONG YEARS OF THIS CRAP!

I'm currently researching potential URL's for my website. I want to cover primarily sports, video games, and parenthood, with a little current events and opinion thrown in. If you have any suggestions, I'd like to hear them. I've also been reviewing some of the old Calvert Games material we put together, and I really miss the thesis-like reviews we used to do. No doubt that was our calling card in the gaming community. I might broach that again, especially if I get an Xbox 360 early next year, depending on how generous my tax return is!

We just celebrated my son's 9th birthday this weekend. I'll spare you the details, but we did catch a couple of "family" movies. Chicken Little was very good, and appropriate for all ages. It has a cute story, it's well-paced, and it will keep your interest throughout. If I were a critic, I'd say 3.25 stars out of 4. We also saw Zathura, and I didn't like it nearly as much. The language is pretty rough for the younger kids (under 10 or so), and the movie trudges along throughout. For me, maybe 2.25 stars out of 4. Not bad, but not in the class of Chicken Little. The boardgame is pretty good for the family, though!

Well, that's enough miscellaneous thoughts for now. Hopefully, I'll post more often than every six months!