NBA Live comes back to try to reclaim its crown from NBA 2k. But can it...?

If I asked a basketball fan which b-ball game they played on their PC, they'd most likely reply, 2k Sports's NBA 2k12.

Why? Because there arent any other basketball sims available at the moment. EA, arguably the biggest name in sports sims, cancelled their basketball game in 2010 when their NBA Elite 11's Demo was panned by gamers and critics alike. So what changed? Let me tell you..

E3, EA's Conference and word of NBA Live 13 surprised many and raised quite a few eyebrows. But wait, it wasnt the 'usual' reveal. They only mentioned NBA Live 13 was in the making, scheduled for an October release this year. EA Sports executive vice president Andrew Wilson took the stage,"We have some really cool and aggressive stuff we have planned for NBA Live, and we felt it deserved its own time." Thats it! Still, journalists know their way around anything and they cornered him. It was only a metter of time before he said," We're going to come back in the next little while and talk specifically about our plans forNBA Live and how we come back to market this year, because we're going to do things differently." Strong words.. Since they left, 2k Sports stepped in and ascended far from where EA had left off. Both NBA 2k11 and 12 were critical and commercial success. Not only that but they were also regarded as the best sports games of 2011 and 12 respectively, pipping FIFA and Madden. That says something...

Apparently the jounrnalists weren't satisfied and upon further questioning, he said,"When you think about our three strategies as a sports label – innovation that changes the way you play, moving from a product to a product-plus service that changes the game as you play, and connecting gamers to their sport and each other and across platform in an online live manner that is dynamic – NBA Live as a name just made sense. We are moving from a world that was static, dead media on a disc to a world where the purchase of the game on disc is just the beginning of the experience you're going to enjoy throughout the entire season."

Also, he mentioned that the name Live was better than Elite as it suited better with what they want to give us, gamers. But is it too late knowing 2k has a firm grip on this sim? Either way, Its going to be a daunting task for EA when Live 13 launches this October. Be assured though, Wilson hinted that we might get that demo after all. Wilson also spilt details on what drives its new game. It seems EA is using its ANT-technology(which also gave the soldiers fluid animations in Battlefield 3) in NBA Live 13 too. A program called Synergy, that compiles data that will help gamers overtime, agile and calculative AI, an even more robust mutilplayer and most importantly, the game will adjust to the player’s style as it evolves; creating a major aspect of difficulty that was not in the game a decade ago. If your a basketball fan and if that doesnt excite you, I dont know what will.

Knowing EA, they market this relentlessly and may succeed in giving it that so important start; it will require to sustain NBA 2k13's assault. So in the end, are you looking forward to this resurgence called NBA Live 13? Will you atleast give it a Demo-chance? Or is NBA 2k13 your pre-determined destination? Let us know in your comments below. Both NBA titles dribble their way into store shelves come October.