NBA Inside Drive 2003

Published by Microsoft Game Studios
Developed by High Voltage
Platform: Xbox
Released - Out Now
Price : £39.99

A few months ago now we reviewed NBA Inside Drive 2002 and were impressed with it. It offered very good gameplay, simple controls and a good dynasty mode. In fact it was the best basketball game I had played for years. So on finding out that there was going to be a 2003 version, I was rather excited and looked forward to finding out what improvements would be made and what new features would be added. Let's take a look at what differences there are.

One of the biggest complaints with NBA Inside Drive 2002 was that it didn't contain a dynasty mode where you could take your team through 20+ years with the goal of making them the best team in the NBA. Thankfully the 2003 version rectifies this and you can now play a dynasty game for upto 25 seasons. This is the perhaps the one big improvement to the game that is really noticeable and makes a difference. A practice mode has also been included and allows for shooting practice and two on two play, but little else seems to have changed with the exception of the mandatory player roster updates.

The game is the same in the visual department too. There haven't been any improvements, which is a shame considering you're paying about £40 for the game. The game now features some extra animation's and player moves but these are only evident with extended play and to be honest don't really add much to the game apart for some extra visual variation. Indeed only if you played the 2002 version quite a bit will you appreciate these extra little touches.

Just like the 2002 version, and most other sports titles for that matter, the commentary is not subtitled. Of course we said then that this is not too important and this is still the case here. Events such as injuries and players being on a hot and cold streak are still shown in text onscreen so there are no problems there.

Don't get me wrong I don't wish to sound negative because after al,l the 2002 version was a very good game and NBA Inside Drive 2003 is also a very good game but if you own the 2002 version and can live without the dynasty mode then it isn't worth it. Those of you who intend to get connected to Xbox Live will also be disappointed to find that NBA Inside Drive 2003 is not Live enabled which is probably a mistake. If you didn't purchase the 2002 version however then this version comes highly recommended as a very good basketball simulation with no arcade touches to spoil the realism.

Overall Game Rating: 8.0/10
A very good basketball game but it doesn't offer much of an improvement over NBA Inside Drive 2002, unless you really want the dynasty mode.

Deaf Gamers comment:
As with most sports games there are no subtitles for the commentary. Otherwise though the game is fine for deaf gamers.