Total Player Control
- NA release: 8th October 2002
- EU release: 6th December 2002
- JP release: N/A
- Developer: EA Canada
- Publisher: EA Sports
- NGC Magazine Score: 70%
- Mods Used: Widescreen Hack
With EA’s 2003 sports titles opening with random people saying the EA sports slogan, it was nice to see NBA Live 2003 opening up with its own rap song, much like Madden 2002. It really is quite amazing how something as simple as intro and menu music can affect the atmosphere of the game, but it really does help NBA Live 2003 a lot.
The actual game also feels really nice to play. Movement and passing is fluid and fun, but the thing I was most impressed by was the camera: it’s much more dynamic, panning and zooming with the action. While it doesn’t sound like much, it moves with the flow of the game keeps you in the action at all times.
It is lacking in some areas that other EA Sports games do well, such as player and team creation. And as their street basketball is a separate game (which allows it to be very different), it instead has a 1v1 mode to be similar to NBA 2K3’s street mode.
Fun
You’ll already know whether you want to buy it or not – if you’re a fan of the sport in question, there’ll be plenty to keep you occupied. The action itself is perfectly enjoyable (although not quite as good as Courtside), the players are well animated and dynamic enough for you to uncover new moves and tactics over the months that you’ll be playing.
NGC Magazine #75
Remake or remaster?
There are other basketball games.
Official Ways to get the game
There is no official way to get NBA Live 2003.
GameCube Games by Date
2002: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2003: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2004: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2005: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2006: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
