NBA 2K13 Has Everything and the Kitchen Sink

Has the NBA 2K series become too successful?

Two years ago, the stars all aligned for the long-running basketball sim. Michael Jordan signed on. Their competition crashed and burned spectacularly. And most importantly, independent of all that, the gameplay itself was the best we'd ever seen in a pro basketball game up to that point. 2K's party continued last year, with Jordan returning, EA keeping NBA Live on the bench again, and 2K12 offering up more hoops goodness.

So what of this year -- 2K13? His Airness is back -- and this time he's bringing a certain Round Mound of Rebound who'd long since stayed out of the video game world -- and the game will once more be the only basketball sim you can buy on a disc. As for the game itself? It's packed to the rafters with goodness, from a playable fantasy match-up of the 1992 and 2012 Dream Teams to an all-new, NBA Live Freestyle stick-esque control scheme. But it's also got a whole slew of features that you're probably not expecting. So that takes us back to a version of the original question: has Visual Concepts gone nuts?

The answer for gamers is a resounding yes, but in the best of ways.

First, there's the whole Jay-Z thing. Visual Concepts proudly puts him forward as an "executive producer" on the game, but until now they've never explained what the hell that means. Besides giving him credit for getting Scottie Pippen and Charles Barkley to sign on and be playable in the game (no, really; they claim Jay picked up the phone, said, "Get me Barkley and Pippen," and they called him back ASAP and reached an agreement to be included), Hova curated the entire soundtrack, which includes himself (duh), Kanye West, and U2, among many others. Better, before each game tips off, a music video by Jay-Z or one of the other featured artists plays to get you fired up for the game, mixed together with gameplay footage. A number of these are included, and they definitely spice up the presentation. Finally, he also requested that the background menus pulse in rhythm to whatever song is playing at a given time. I've seen this and...yep, it does that. Thanks Jay!

"Please, Mr. GM, will you fire Stan Van Gundy for me? PLEEEEEEEEASE?"

Second is the new Virtual Currency (VC...get it?) system. Like many other modern games, you'll get what amount to experience points for everything you do -- even quick-play games. Your VC is spent on upgrading your MyPlayer, which returns from last year but has now been blown-out. Buy suits for your created baller that you'll see during post-game press conferences. Pick up official, real-life team gear by adidas to don in blacktop pickup games. And in the Accessory Shop, grab gear like the adiZero Speedwrap ankle brace that has stat-modifying bonuses; in this case, a +2 boost to your on-ball defense.

In MyCareer mode, you'll be able to simulate Dwight Howard's life, from meeting with the GM to demand your coach be fired to taking your teammates out to dinner in order to receive a team chemistry/popularity boost. You can even do NBA Cares charity functions in order to win over more fans.

"Damn, I make this look good."

Visual Concepts spent perhaps the most amount of time during my demo showing me their craziest feature yet: the Shoe Creator. Yes, they've had a basic version of this before, but the ends of the earth they've gone to on this smack of a studio that clearly has no competition to worry about and is free to pursue flights of fancy like this (again, I mean that in a nice way!). 2K13's Shoe Creator is, essentially, the virtual shoe equivalent of Forza Motorsport 4's livery system. Except in that game, you can't click a button when you're done and order the car you just designed, complete with that custom paint job.

Yes, you can build your own kicks using different materials, colors, patterns, and more. Dozens of layers (45 of them, to be exact) let you highlight every detail you like. You can then upload those to the web, where other users can rate them. Want to go a step farther? Get this: the game syncs with the NikeID website and you can actually have your virtual shoe made real and shipped to your door. Perhaps Visual Concepts will let us try out that particular feature next time...

In case you were wondering: yes, there is a basketball game in here too.

What you should and probably do care most about, however, is the new Control Stick. Simply wiggle the right thumbstick and use the momentum of your body to fake guys out of their shoes (don't worry, it's far easier said than done; I don't expect it to be exploitable), and then pull LT/R2 in order to flip the Control Stick into the Shot Stick and put up your look. I only got to play a couple quarters as the '92 Dream Team against this summer's Team USA -- hardly enough time to really get comfortable with the controls -- but it feels like a natural, simulation-friendly evolution of its implementation back in the last-gen NBA Live days. It should prove to be NBA 2K13's most important new feature, along with the return of Michael Jordan and the Legends teams (including a new crew: Allen Iverson's '01 76ers)...

...What, you thought I was going to say it'd be the Shoe Creator?

Ryan McCaffrey is the Executive Editor at IGN Xbox. He used to own a DeLorean, which is weird. Follow him on Twitter, on IGN, catch him on Podcast Unlocked, and drop-ship him Taylor Ham sandwiches from New Jersey whenever possible.

Source : ign[dot]com

Win A 46" 3DTV And PlayStation 3 With Medal Of Honor: Warfighter

Ahead of Medal Of Honor: Warfighter's October 26th release, we're launching a new competition to give you the chance to win some incredible hardware. For the last few weeks IGN readers were given the opportunity to choose your ultimate gaming prize and the voting has now closed.

We're happy to announce that we're giving away a 46-inch 3DTV and a PlayStation 3 so that you can play EA's upcoming shooter as it was intended to be played - on a massive screen with the volume turned up to the max!

HOW TO ENTER

If you want to get involved all you need to do is head to...

http://uk-microsites.ign.com/medalofhonor/ 

...and click on the competition link at the very top of the page then click on the button marked Enter.

You've got until 10am on September 18 2012 to submit your details, so what are you waiting for soldier?

This competition is open to UK residents over the age of 18 only, with full terms and conditions on the competition page.

Source : ign[dot]com

Premium Rush Review

Riding a bicycle can be fun and it’s good, healthy exercise. And in real life, some great competition can be had from a bike race. But it’s pretty difficult to sell riding a bicycle as the basis of a would-be cool action-thriller and there’s a reason there’s not a ton of truly bike-centric movies, after a couple of attempts in the '80s like Quicksilver and Rad. (Arguably the greatest bicycle movie ever made? Pee-wee’s Big Adventure).

That’s the tough road Premium Rush has to face going in, but it’s not an insurmountable one. With the right characters and a clever story, sure, why not? We suspend a lot of disbelief at the movies, so why not go with the flow on the story of a bike messenger who finds himself carrying a valuable package that has him in mortal danger from some unsavory types? There’s room for some cool chase scenes and bike stunts, and it doesn’t hurt to have a terrific actor like Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the lead. Unfortunately though, Premium Rush never really comes together and plays as a profoundly silly film for much of its running time.

Gordon-Levitt stars as Wilee (as in Coyote), a Manhattan bike messenger who lives his life at full speed – literally, because he has fixed gears and no breaks on his bicycle. Which may be pretty stupid and dangerous to some, but Wilee has his own POV on it and about how you should never slow down in life and such and such. Subtle, Premium Rush is not. Picking up a package from a friend, Nima (Jamie Chung), Wilee is approached by Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon), all smiles and grins as he claims the package was given out as a mistake. But when Wilee refuses to give it back, intent on delivering it to its proper destination, Monday turns out to be a rather unhinged, violent type who will do just about anything to get the envelope and its mystery contents back.

Premium Rush takes place over the course of a few hours (several flashbacks give us some info on what occurred for Monday and Nima earlier in the day to set up the events that will plague Wilee later), as Wilee -- aided by his semi-estranged girlfriend and fellow bike messenger, Vanessa (Dania Ramirez) -- races through town with Monday in pursuit. And yes, Wilee does think to go to the cops, only to hit a big obstacle when he does. One you’d think he might think of ways around, but if he did, then the movie would be over.

Premium Rush comes from David Koepp, who directed the film and co-wrote the screenplay with John Kamps. As a screenwriter, Koepp has had his hand in an incredible amount of blockbusters, including Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible, Spider-Man, War of the Worlds and many, many more. But in-between writing mega-budget films for the likes of Spielberg, he’s also directed smaller films, with mixed results. I’m a big fan of Stir of Echoes (starring Quicksilver’s own Kevin Bacon!), though Secret Window was pretty bad, while Ghost Town was pleasant, if forgettable.

Premium Rush is a lesser offering from Koepp. It never gels and one of the biggest problems is the lack of a consistent tone. This is all pretty ridiculous stuff, but ridiculous can be fun or exciting. And there are moments in Premium Rush that work and wink at the audience – Wilee is able to quickly glance at a packed intersection and think through what would happen if he chose one of several possible routes, which we see play out a few times. The carnage some of these “What if” scenarios lead to is overtly cartoonish and funny, hinting at an offbeat, self-aware version of this story that sadly is never embellished upon.

Instead of embracing that feel, we get some huge tonal shifts throughout the film. The backstory on how sweet immigrant Nima (Chung is asked to pull off a Chinese accent she can’t sell) got involved with these shady characters is incredibly schmaltzy and earnest, and includes some scenes seemingly meant to pull at the audiences’ heartstrings, with eye-rolling results. And Wilee’s life lessons through the day feel very awkwardly designed to give his character that “he learned something about himself” arc studio execs love, whether earned or not.

I’m a big fan of Shannon and his eccentric performances in projects such as Boardwalk Empire and The Runaways have been excellent. But he’s actually pretty bad in much of Premium Rush, seemingly deciding the only way he could feel at home in the midst of this ho-hum story was to go way over the top, as a bellowing, New Yawk thug. At one point, he has to exclaim, to himself, something akin to, “I can’t believe I’m chasing a kid on a bike!” while trying to run down Wilee in his car, and he follows it up with an incredibly goofy laugh that sounds like he’s about as dangerous an antagonist as Captain Harris in the Police Academy movies. All he lacks are some wacky sound effects to accompany him.

Ramirez is believably tough and capable in an underwritten role (she is mad about Wilee’s lack of dependability, yadda yadda), while Gordon-Levitt’s usual charisma and innate likability help sell more of what happens in Premium Rush than might otherwise have occurred with a weaker actor at the center. And the fact that the film was actually shot in Manhattan adds some excitement, giving a “you are there” feel as Wilee and his friends zoom through the busy, bustling streets.

But despite Gordon-Levitt’s valiant efforts, Premium Rush rarely comes to life and overstays its welcome. Ultimately, you’ll feel more satisfied by an actual 90 minute bicycle ride.

Source : ign[dot]com