SCEA's NBA franchise got off to a bad start on the PS3. Although it was impressive visually, it came up extremely short or average in nearly every other category. The series' follow-up, NBA 08, is an improved version of last year's game, but still doesn't quite go where it needs to.

Visuals once again shine. The game runs at a smooth framerate and everything is packed with details. Arenas are alive with active crowds and all of the little visual touches you would find at a real game. As small as it may seem, one of the real standout visual elements was the court floor, which has just enough shine to look impressive. Even the player animations are smooth and look great. The only noticeable visual problems are the massive clipping issues. Players will routinely reach through other players or even pass through them.

If you played last year's game, you'll remember that play-by-play wasn't anywhere to be found. This year, play-by-play makes a return with mixed results. The voicework is done, though at the same time some of the calls are outright goofy. Sometimes the announcer will randomly call out "insights" about how the game is going that have nothing to do with what is actually happening in the game. For example, a team can be leading by twenty with under a minute left and he'll call it like it was a two point game.

One of the biggest issues facing NBA 08 is a lack of play modes. While other franchises add new play modes each year, NBA 08 is still stuck in the late 90's. This wouldn't be that big of an issue if the available modes were worth playing, but there really isn't much here to get overly excited about. Instead of a Franchise Mode, NBA 08 is limited to a single season. Other than playing through a full NBA season and trading players, there isn't much else that you can do; no contracts to negotiate, no salary cap to manage, no draft - really nothing that other NBA games (including the PS2 iteration of the same game) have been doing for years. Even the one thing you are allowed to do - trading players - isn't handled well since you can more or less trade for whoever you want without much hassle. It isn't very hard to build a super team by trading players who would otherwise watch the season unfold from the sidelines.

Outside Season Mode, NBA 08 offers little else to do. The only interesting addition is NBA Replay, which allows you to try and recreate standout moments from last season. While you don't have to perfectly recreate past moments, it does offer a unique puzzle-like challenge - at least while they last. Fortunately Sony plans on updating the available challenges as the upcoming season progresses. The mini-games found in last's year's game also return and offer another distraction, even if it is short lived.

Online is present, though limited to exhibition games. You can also upload your game stats to an online leaderboard.

Last year's aggressive A.I. has been refined, though it still makes for a challenging experience. Players are extremely aggressive during games and will swarm the ball whenever possible. It will even adapt to your tactics quickly, which forces you to mix up what you do on the court. Although the colored shot bar makes taking shots easy, you still have to be aware of where defenders are since they'll actively try and swat the ball down or go for rebounds. There are also a few moments where the A.I. will blatantly cheat, which sucks the fun out of a game. Losing because I was outplayed is one thing; but losing because of cheap calls is another. On the plus side, these moments are rare, but noticeable when they do happen.

When you first start up NBA 08, you are given an opportunity to create a player. In addition to customizing his looks, you can also choose a position and initial stats. When you first start, your stats are low - making it your job to level him up to being a superstar. As you play through mini-games and complete in-game challenges, you'll earn credits. These can later be spent on unlocking stat boosts for your created character. The downside to player creation is that the mode is about as robust as the play modes, so there isn't much that you can do.

The absolute best mechanic available in NBA 08 is the colored shot indicator. Whenever you take a shot, a meter appears around the ball, giving you a visual representation of how difficult the shot is to make. Green is good, while red is a hard shot. It works really well - perhaps too well. Once you get the timing down, it becomes pretty easy to know exactly when to shoot, regardless of player. Rebounding is also pretty easy thanks to icons that appear on the floor indicating exactly where the ball will land.

The controls are generally responsive and pretty easy to learn. Of the basketball games I've reviewed this year, I had the easiest time getting into NBA 08's scheme. The only downside is the motion-based controls, which don't feel like they belong. Motions aren't that hard to pull off, though they do feel unintuitive, so you're better off using the right stick.

Despite the tone of the review, NBA 08 isn't a terrible game. When it comes to graphics and playability, it does some really good things. However, when compared to other games on the market, it simply can't compete and feels stuck in the past. Even though there are some noticeable improvements made since last year's game, they aren't enough to really elevate the game beyond what it was last year.