It's not all bad of course, and NBA Live 2001 does have many redeeming features. Firstly however it'll be disappointing to many NBA fans that EA have seen fit to remove the franchise mode completely. It'll be doubtful many gamers will remotely fathom the idea of removing this mode as it has become the hallmark of good sporting titles everywhere, and its absence will greatly hinder the game's longevity. Not willing to leave it at that EA have also dropped the challenge modes that were so popular in NBA Live 2000. One can only assume that the development team for this title was made up of entirely new people as it is hard to believe EA would ditch some of the best features of one of their sports titles.

No we're not up to the good stuff yet, it still has to be mentioned that NBA Live 2001 also adds some fairly dodgy playability into the mix. It may remind older players of the kind of gameplay experienced in EA's soccer game World Cup 98 in which player animations get in the way of pinpoint positioning. Quite often you'll find yourself moving the analog stick in one direction and having to watch the player finish his animation before being allowed to perform another move. Shooting for the basket can also be an exercise in frustration with AI that allows for the simplest shots to be missed miserably (this can be ironed out with some fancy footwork or fast breaks).

A further annoying aspect of the game is one that has been consistent throughout the NBA Live series. No matter how well-positioned your players are, you always tend to find the opposition picking up a good 70% of all rebounds. Unless you dedicate yourself to try and grab all the rebounds for your team you will constantly find your players out of position allowing the best players in the NBA to have up to 2 or 3 shots at the basket at a time. This flaw really brings in a feeling of playing alone, unlike the superb team atmosphere experienced in Madden NFL 2001 (in which you can actually depend upon your team-mates). The collision detection in the game is also slightly dodgy, as it was easily noticeable that some shots could be blocked by merely getting a hand nearby the ball rather than directly in front of it.

As mentioned before though it's not all bad. Graphically the game is excellent, with the players boasting superb detail and smooth animation. The size and shapes of the players look accurate to their real-life counterparts, and it is often easy to identify your favourite player without even seeing his number. Sadly even the graphics are not flawless, as the game's frame rate can stagger at times in order to shift around all the details, animations and court reflections. Most of the camera angles are almost useless too with only a couple allowing the player to constantly see the action.