EA Sports: Peter Moore's got 'em, and he shared them with us at Monday afternoon's EA Press Conference at E3 2008. The upcoming EA Sports lineup was no stranger to the prevailing theme this year, namely, "something for everyone," rolling out titles with hooks for the hardcore armchair quarterback, as well as the casual foam-finger wearer. Peter Moore unveiled his game plan for two of EA Sports' new games, accompanied by genuine sportsmen/sportswomen, demonstrating their ability to emulate skills they actually already have.
First on the agenda was NBA Live '09, which Moore presented alongside Bill Walton. Moore had his hands full with the superstar athlete, who repeatedly broke in during the presentation to take potshots at the Lakers -- each time to a mix of cheers and jeers from the geographically disparate audience. Still, the pair managed to get through a thorough preview of NBA Live '09's primary new feature: "Dynamic DNA," a daily update system which promises to keep the rosters and players, and their individual play habits, a true, up-to-the-minute reflection of their real-world counterparts. Moore and Walton promised that the gameplay would be "made fresh daily." No word was given on whether one's console would flash "HOT NOW" when updates were ready.
The DNA features were demonstrated through a number of gameplay examples. If an athlete has been demonstrating a tendency to drive along one side of the court, or pass to a particular teammate, or hog the ball, so will his AI counterpart. If a player has been especially successful in scoring from a particular area, his odds of hitting shots from the corresponding court section will rise in-game, as visualized by colored "hot zones."
These features looked astonishingly thorough and elaborate, without question, but the actual gameplay looked like a significant departure from an average sports title. We can't confirm whether or not this was simply for purposes of demonstration, but when the game was being shown, the players repeatedly stopped whenever a statistical analysis or a tactical choice was displayed on-screen -- which was very frequently. The game being shown looked a lot more like an NBA RTS than a straight-across basketball game, which may put off some players. Then again, the statistical modes may prove to be completely optional, so don't hold us to that. Mind you, if the players start having to leave the court to gather gold, then there is no hope for any of us. NBA Live '09 is due out in the Fall.
Bill Walton relinquished the spotlight in order to make room for Natalie Gulbis, who brought her LPGA skills to the Wiimote as she joined Moore for a quick demo of Tiger Woods PGA Tour '09. This title enabled Moore to show off the full extent of EA's "something for everyone" philosophy, adding a broad range of simplified gameplay options, known collectively as "All Play."
Gulbis and Moore demonstrated the difference between "All Play" and "Advanced," with each player selecting one of the two modes. Gulbis, relying on her professional golfing know-how, opted for the fully-featured latter mode, in which all of the typical golf acoutrements were in play -- precision aim, less-forgiving swing mechanics, wind speed, and so forth. Moore, using the casual-friendly "All Play" set-up, had his club chosen for him, no wind to worry about, and a much more detailed line of where his ball was expected to go, post-landing. Aiming and swinging was still up to him, but with far fewer details. By offering both modes in one game, EA is hoping to allow the duffers to compete with the pros -- and also to compete in a collection of zany mini-games, one of which looked like it involved tooling around in golf carts. A game of golf simply isn't complete until you've abused the country club's equipment and gotten yourself blackballed, after all. Tiger Woods PGA Tour '09 is scheduled for August.
It's also the 20th anniversary of John Madden Football. Happy 20th, John! I got you a gift card for Rent-A-Center and some tough-actin' Tinactin. You like those, right?
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