KRA
05-15-2007, 10:38 AM
NBA '08: The Interview
Sony unveils its latest trip to the paint and tells us all about it.
by Jeff Haynes
May 14, 2007 - With more than a year of development time under its belt, the team at Sony San Diego plans on adding quite a bit more to this its basketball franchise in NBA '08. To tell us all about it, senior producer Erich Waas sat down for a quick Q&A to answer some of our most pressing questions. Here's how it went down:
IGN: Can you tell us about how the new progression system works in NBA '08? Is this any different than the NBA Replay Mode that would unlock jerseys and player cards in last year's game?
Erich Waas: The new progression system is much more than the unlockables we included in NBA 07. For starters, game players can create their own characters using our character editor. Throughout every mode of play in NBA 08, points can be earned to purchase unlockables as well as raise character attributes that improve performance. Unlockables will include a number of items such as shoes, accessories, unlockable courts and intro sequences for games.
IGN: Speaking of the unlockable content, is this any deeper than it was in last year's game, which was pretty sparse? Is the virtual trophy room tied into the Home service?
Waas: The trophy room is more heavily tied to progression. We've included milestone goals that game players can strive for to earn trophies and unlock rewards through the points earned. We are working on integrating NBA 08 with Home but it's a little early to be able to talk accurately about what our final product will have.
IGN: How are you expanding the online options of NBA '08? Will you be able to talk to PS2 and PSP owners via messages? Will it tie into the Home service? Can you discuss some of the video and player pages?
Waas: Our online offering will be richer in content. We have adapted the online technology used in MLB 07: The Show and this allows us to improve the online experience. Things that were in NBA 07 have been improved like auto matching and leader boards. We're also going to have streaming video content that will push current NBA events to our online community.
IGN: One of the best features in NBA '07 was the NBA Replay mode. How will Replay return in NBA 08? Will owners of '08 be able to access and download the Season and Games of the Week from NBA '07 if they want?
Waas: We are evolving NBA Replay for both the current NBA season that will reside on BluRay as well as the popular Games of the Week feature. In addition to the NBA 07 scenarios that players received, there will be "zoned" events in which game players must mimic the feat as well as the location on the court that the feat took place. And as with all of our modes, performance is tied into progression as well as improved leader boards.
IGN: By contrast, one thing that was seriously lacking from last year's game was play-by-play and color commentary. Have you managed to address this in NBA '08? If so, who will be doing the color commentary?
Waas: When NBA 06: The Life, Vol. 1 came out on the PlayStation 2, the team focused all efforts, including audio, on the "on the court" experience. While this is still an interesting way to play a game, we realize that a lot of our audience prefers the commentary that you hear when you watch an actual NBA game. In response to this feedback, NBA 08 will have commentary. Kevin Calabro, voice of the Sonics, will do the play-by-play and Mark Jackson will do the color commentary. We're very excited about this commentary team as well as how we plan to implement our commentary. Our focus on NBA 08 commentary is intelligence. We're not striving to fill every second of "dead" time with commentary. We want our commentary to be intelligent and impress upon our game players the type of things that we're tracking behind the scenes.
IGN: There were a couple of new additions to last year's gameplay, like the Rebound Hot Spot and Smart Shot Indicator. What changes have been made to this year's game?
Waas: We are always looking to develop features that help casual fans play our game better while not hindering our hard-core fan base. We are looking to fine tune existing features and are focusing new gameplay elements around the Sixaxis functionality.
IGN: One thing that was interesting about NBA '07 was the inclusion of Sixaxis functionality for crossovers, jukes and spins. However, pulling off these moves could be hit or miss depending on what you were trying to do. Will these moves return, and if so, has the timing been adjusted on them to make them easier to perform? Are there new controls for this year's game?
Waas: We have been developing Sixaxis functionality that is much more intuitive and sophisticated. We're tying Sixaxis functionality to animation this year and to gameplay functionality beyond the jukes, cross-overs and spins of last year. Show boating is something we're bringing to dribbles this year. Not just the moves we're used to seeing but new moves that are more geared towards the full run and not the standing dribble. Something else that hasn't been seen in a basketball game is the ability to move the ball around for better accuracy in the pre and post-dribble situations. As the ball handler, I can move the Sixaxis controller and the player I control will move the ball around accordingly. This helps me pass around my defender with better success. We tied this to new functionality we've added in passing. Game players can now control when they want to bounce pass, lob pass or execute a normal pass. This, tied with the pre and post-dribble situation brings a new fidelity to game playing that hasn't been seen.
We didn't focus solely on the offensive side of the ball in regards to Sixaxis control. On defense, game players can now "Get High or Get Wide". By tilting back on the Sixaxis controller, I can "Get High" which makes lob passes and shots more difficult for the offense. By tilting forward, game players can "Get Wide" which makes bounce passes and juke moves more difficult for the offense. I'm also able to box out for rebounds much more effectively by "Getting Wide". Boxing out is also tied to player attributes so it still is helpful to have a strong rebounder in the paint as Sixaxis functionality won't allow for a little guy to box out Shaq.
IGN: We noticed that NBA '08 is placing more emphasis on player momentum as they make contact with each other during play. Can you tell us more about this mechanic? Will this wind up affecting the timing or success of a shot?
Waas: We have spent a lot of time this development cycle working on what we internally call our "Skitching System". This system allows for accurate and realistic looking animations between two or more players. After playing NBA 07 and getting feedback in focus groups as well as reading reviews, we wanted to develop a system that was more accurate to the real NBA and didn't allow players to keep attempting juke moves until they succeeded. The skitching is based on the ball handler and the defender's attributes and helps determine whether or not a juke is successful. There is a delay to the skitch and a good ball handler can eventually get around a defender but if the defender is solid, the delay won't occur fast enough—the ball handler will run out of real estate and will have to change direction or pass the ball. This system, along with the "Get High and Get Wide" functionality will have an impact on shooter's success rate.
IGN: Another thing that the NBA '07 series brought to the table were its diversionary mini-games. Will these return, and will there be more of them in NBA '08? Will the Conquest mode that was included in last year's PSP version of the game make an appearance in the PS3 title?
Waas: We are taking the mini-games that were in NBA 07 online in NBA 08. So game players can now challenge others in a game of Own-the-Court, PlayStation Skills Challenge and the 3-point contest.
IGN: Will there be a version of The Life in NBA '08? If not, why not? If so, what can we expect from the Juco Kid and Big W?
Waas: The Life, Vol. 3 will exist only on the NBA 08 on the PS2. We have been working on what it will take to bring The Life over to the PS3. We want to bring this feature over but will only do so when we can get the quality of cinematics that we feel the PS3 audience expects. More complex shaders, hair and cloth solutions, better lip-synching and smoother animation are all things that we must improve upon before taking The Life to the PS3.
IGN: Last year, a lot of attention was focused on the cloth animations of uniforms, the facial textures and the sweat system. What new animations or visual enhancements have been made for this year's game? Can we expect the sweat to be toned down somewhat in NBA '08?
Waas: A lot of work is going in to making the animation transitions smoother. We're also adding a lot of urgency to the animations so that the speed in which a player moves from "A" to "B" is appropriate. In other words, you'll see more jogging and walking for non-essential players in a half-court offense. You'll also see a lot more animation variety in NBA 08. Between the on-court and off-court animations, we have roughly 2,000 unique animations this year.
We've made shader improvements this year as well. The skin will look more realistic and as the player becomes sweatier, they'll look it without the skin becoming plastic-looking. Cloth shaders have been improved so that we can put a different shader on more reflective jersey parts, such as the stripes on the side of a jersey and a "flatter" looking shader if warranted on the main jersey cloth itself.
IGN: Will the arenas receive any new attention? Will a team's various introductions be featured in NBA '08? Any unique features of an arena that will stand out in this year's game?
Waas: Almost all of the arenas are getting an overhaul this year. The arenas will be more realistic and the crowd will be denser than last year. The lighting looks more natural and the addition of an atmospheric haze that's volumetric helps as well. Introductions won't be specific to each team but there will be more introductions as well as unlockable introductions that players can earn through progression.
IGN: Finally, what would you like to tell fans of last year's game about NBA '08?
Waas: NBA 08 has a lot of unique improvements that add a lot to this year's game. From Sixaxis functionality to our progression feature to more online functionality. We also listened to feedback from our game players and added a lot of improvements. Our AI this year has multiple formations and about 3-times as much AI for specific scenarios as last year's game had. This not only improves AI intelligence with situational awareness but offers different formations for the game player. Our characters are more realistic this year as are our environments. Sixaxis functionality makes much better use of the unique PS3 controller. Commentary has been added to this year's game which adds to efforts for a better presentation all the way around. You'll see more natural looking animations and the game is deeper with the addition of our progression feature. Finally, one of our best and most unique features, NBA Replay -- Games of the Week is getting some love and new play mechanics to make this feature even richer.
source (http://ps3.ign.com/articles/788/788260p1.html)
video (http://media.ps3.ign.com/media/905/905978/vids_1.html)
Sony unveils its latest trip to the paint and tells us all about it.
by Jeff Haynes
May 14, 2007 - With more than a year of development time under its belt, the team at Sony San Diego plans on adding quite a bit more to this its basketball franchise in NBA '08. To tell us all about it, senior producer Erich Waas sat down for a quick Q&A to answer some of our most pressing questions. Here's how it went down:
IGN: Can you tell us about how the new progression system works in NBA '08? Is this any different than the NBA Replay Mode that would unlock jerseys and player cards in last year's game?
Erich Waas: The new progression system is much more than the unlockables we included in NBA 07. For starters, game players can create their own characters using our character editor. Throughout every mode of play in NBA 08, points can be earned to purchase unlockables as well as raise character attributes that improve performance. Unlockables will include a number of items such as shoes, accessories, unlockable courts and intro sequences for games.
IGN: Speaking of the unlockable content, is this any deeper than it was in last year's game, which was pretty sparse? Is the virtual trophy room tied into the Home service?
Waas: The trophy room is more heavily tied to progression. We've included milestone goals that game players can strive for to earn trophies and unlock rewards through the points earned. We are working on integrating NBA 08 with Home but it's a little early to be able to talk accurately about what our final product will have.
IGN: How are you expanding the online options of NBA '08? Will you be able to talk to PS2 and PSP owners via messages? Will it tie into the Home service? Can you discuss some of the video and player pages?
Waas: Our online offering will be richer in content. We have adapted the online technology used in MLB 07: The Show and this allows us to improve the online experience. Things that were in NBA 07 have been improved like auto matching and leader boards. We're also going to have streaming video content that will push current NBA events to our online community.
IGN: One of the best features in NBA '07 was the NBA Replay mode. How will Replay return in NBA 08? Will owners of '08 be able to access and download the Season and Games of the Week from NBA '07 if they want?
Waas: We are evolving NBA Replay for both the current NBA season that will reside on BluRay as well as the popular Games of the Week feature. In addition to the NBA 07 scenarios that players received, there will be "zoned" events in which game players must mimic the feat as well as the location on the court that the feat took place. And as with all of our modes, performance is tied into progression as well as improved leader boards.
IGN: By contrast, one thing that was seriously lacking from last year's game was play-by-play and color commentary. Have you managed to address this in NBA '08? If so, who will be doing the color commentary?
Waas: When NBA 06: The Life, Vol. 1 came out on the PlayStation 2, the team focused all efforts, including audio, on the "on the court" experience. While this is still an interesting way to play a game, we realize that a lot of our audience prefers the commentary that you hear when you watch an actual NBA game. In response to this feedback, NBA 08 will have commentary. Kevin Calabro, voice of the Sonics, will do the play-by-play and Mark Jackson will do the color commentary. We're very excited about this commentary team as well as how we plan to implement our commentary. Our focus on NBA 08 commentary is intelligence. We're not striving to fill every second of "dead" time with commentary. We want our commentary to be intelligent and impress upon our game players the type of things that we're tracking behind the scenes.
IGN: There were a couple of new additions to last year's gameplay, like the Rebound Hot Spot and Smart Shot Indicator. What changes have been made to this year's game?
Waas: We are always looking to develop features that help casual fans play our game better while not hindering our hard-core fan base. We are looking to fine tune existing features and are focusing new gameplay elements around the Sixaxis functionality.
IGN: One thing that was interesting about NBA '07 was the inclusion of Sixaxis functionality for crossovers, jukes and spins. However, pulling off these moves could be hit or miss depending on what you were trying to do. Will these moves return, and if so, has the timing been adjusted on them to make them easier to perform? Are there new controls for this year's game?
Waas: We have been developing Sixaxis functionality that is much more intuitive and sophisticated. We're tying Sixaxis functionality to animation this year and to gameplay functionality beyond the jukes, cross-overs and spins of last year. Show boating is something we're bringing to dribbles this year. Not just the moves we're used to seeing but new moves that are more geared towards the full run and not the standing dribble. Something else that hasn't been seen in a basketball game is the ability to move the ball around for better accuracy in the pre and post-dribble situations. As the ball handler, I can move the Sixaxis controller and the player I control will move the ball around accordingly. This helps me pass around my defender with better success. We tied this to new functionality we've added in passing. Game players can now control when they want to bounce pass, lob pass or execute a normal pass. This, tied with the pre and post-dribble situation brings a new fidelity to game playing that hasn't been seen.
We didn't focus solely on the offensive side of the ball in regards to Sixaxis control. On defense, game players can now "Get High or Get Wide". By tilting back on the Sixaxis controller, I can "Get High" which makes lob passes and shots more difficult for the offense. By tilting forward, game players can "Get Wide" which makes bounce passes and juke moves more difficult for the offense. I'm also able to box out for rebounds much more effectively by "Getting Wide". Boxing out is also tied to player attributes so it still is helpful to have a strong rebounder in the paint as Sixaxis functionality won't allow for a little guy to box out Shaq.
IGN: We noticed that NBA '08 is placing more emphasis on player momentum as they make contact with each other during play. Can you tell us more about this mechanic? Will this wind up affecting the timing or success of a shot?
Waas: We have spent a lot of time this development cycle working on what we internally call our "Skitching System". This system allows for accurate and realistic looking animations between two or more players. After playing NBA 07 and getting feedback in focus groups as well as reading reviews, we wanted to develop a system that was more accurate to the real NBA and didn't allow players to keep attempting juke moves until they succeeded. The skitching is based on the ball handler and the defender's attributes and helps determine whether or not a juke is successful. There is a delay to the skitch and a good ball handler can eventually get around a defender but if the defender is solid, the delay won't occur fast enough—the ball handler will run out of real estate and will have to change direction or pass the ball. This system, along with the "Get High and Get Wide" functionality will have an impact on shooter's success rate.
IGN: Another thing that the NBA '07 series brought to the table were its diversionary mini-games. Will these return, and will there be more of them in NBA '08? Will the Conquest mode that was included in last year's PSP version of the game make an appearance in the PS3 title?
Waas: We are taking the mini-games that were in NBA 07 online in NBA 08. So game players can now challenge others in a game of Own-the-Court, PlayStation Skills Challenge and the 3-point contest.
IGN: Will there be a version of The Life in NBA '08? If not, why not? If so, what can we expect from the Juco Kid and Big W?
Waas: The Life, Vol. 3 will exist only on the NBA 08 on the PS2. We have been working on what it will take to bring The Life over to the PS3. We want to bring this feature over but will only do so when we can get the quality of cinematics that we feel the PS3 audience expects. More complex shaders, hair and cloth solutions, better lip-synching and smoother animation are all things that we must improve upon before taking The Life to the PS3.
IGN: Last year, a lot of attention was focused on the cloth animations of uniforms, the facial textures and the sweat system. What new animations or visual enhancements have been made for this year's game? Can we expect the sweat to be toned down somewhat in NBA '08?
Waas: A lot of work is going in to making the animation transitions smoother. We're also adding a lot of urgency to the animations so that the speed in which a player moves from "A" to "B" is appropriate. In other words, you'll see more jogging and walking for non-essential players in a half-court offense. You'll also see a lot more animation variety in NBA 08. Between the on-court and off-court animations, we have roughly 2,000 unique animations this year.
We've made shader improvements this year as well. The skin will look more realistic and as the player becomes sweatier, they'll look it without the skin becoming plastic-looking. Cloth shaders have been improved so that we can put a different shader on more reflective jersey parts, such as the stripes on the side of a jersey and a "flatter" looking shader if warranted on the main jersey cloth itself.
IGN: Will the arenas receive any new attention? Will a team's various introductions be featured in NBA '08? Any unique features of an arena that will stand out in this year's game?
Waas: Almost all of the arenas are getting an overhaul this year. The arenas will be more realistic and the crowd will be denser than last year. The lighting looks more natural and the addition of an atmospheric haze that's volumetric helps as well. Introductions won't be specific to each team but there will be more introductions as well as unlockable introductions that players can earn through progression.
IGN: Finally, what would you like to tell fans of last year's game about NBA '08?
Waas: NBA 08 has a lot of unique improvements that add a lot to this year's game. From Sixaxis functionality to our progression feature to more online functionality. We also listened to feedback from our game players and added a lot of improvements. Our AI this year has multiple formations and about 3-times as much AI for specific scenarios as last year's game had. This not only improves AI intelligence with situational awareness but offers different formations for the game player. Our characters are more realistic this year as are our environments. Sixaxis functionality makes much better use of the unique PS3 controller. Commentary has been added to this year's game which adds to efforts for a better presentation all the way around. You'll see more natural looking animations and the game is deeper with the addition of our progression feature. Finally, one of our best and most unique features, NBA Replay -- Games of the Week is getting some love and new play mechanics to make this feature even richer.
source (http://ps3.ign.com/articles/788/788260p1.html)
video (http://media.ps3.ign.com/media/905/905978/vids_1.html)