Yesterday brought the release of the NCAA Basketball 10 demo (at least for those with a 360) and I posted up my initial impressions of the after spending some time with it. You can check out that article here. In addition to the impressions I wanted to get a few HD videos of the demo up. These are played on All-Conference difficulty controlling Duke and using the default broadcast camera. Continue on to watch the videos and leave your thoughts in the comments.

Generally it takes a few times through to get a good feel for a sports game from a demo. However because of the similarities to NBA Live 10 the demo for NCAA Basketball 10 comes across as ultra accessible and familiar. Naturally much of what my impressions entail will be comparisons and contrasts between the two EA basketball games. Featured in the demo is a five minute half with North Carolina @ Duke with the CBS presentation package.

The demo is structured well enough to get a good feel for the game. Five consecutive minutes allows for getting in the flow of the action and a handle on any new features. Options wise EA has included the ability to change difficulty levels and camera angles. You can also set the tempo and motion offenses for the team before starting the game.

The first thing I noticed is that there is much more spacing in NCAA vs Live. The court feels bigger and the players are smaller. That makes the motion offense and passing in general less frustrating than has been found in Live. The game doesn’t feel as sloppy because turnovers are a little less prevalent, though forcing the CPU into them happens with relative ease.

I’ve never been much into running set plays in basketball games however the motion offense makes it much more natural to actually run an offense. Just tapping the LB gets the motion going and the Y button pops up over the players to pass to. Multiple passing options will eventually show up. I didn’t even need to practice the motion offense. In my first game I was running it and finding it beneficial. That in itself makes motion offense a big success as any new core feature really needs to be accessible to catch on.

Having spent 60% of the development time on the network presentation packages it is immediately evident that it adds to the enjoyment of the games. The presentation provides the feel and the emotion that people associate with the games they’ve watched on CBS. The commentary is much better in the demo than has come across in the few videos that have been released to date. There is less dead air and the emotion of Gus Johnson translates well when playing the game.

The overlays such as the Top 25 or Conference Records disappear way too quickly though. With how fast they go through them its almost like they were added just to contribute to the feel of the presentation instead of being up for the user to actually take note of.

Surprisingly one aspect of the demo I have come away disappointed with is the crowd noise. Much has been made of the home court advantage but the crowd does not react strongly. While certainly active they don’t come across exceedingly loud and reactions to events on the court don’t differentiate enough. A big three or a steal doesn’t get the roar you would expect compared to the consistent noise they are making. I don’t feel intimidated by the crowd in the way same way I do when playing Live even with the screen shake in NCAA. Compared to NBA Live 10 where the atmosphere is arguably the best ever for a sports game it just doesn’t match up.

I’m finding there to be more fouls on contact than in Live 10 and the players seem to be able to maneuver better to avoid it. However as I got more settled into the game I’ve been able to force the CPU into many contact influenced shots which severely reduces the likelihood they will go in. While there are some fouls being called and more ‘and ones’ on those it still seems to be the best strategy to contest shots by forcing contact.

Fast breaks seem better represented in NCAA. That may be due to the tempo or the ability to create more backcourt turnovers but whatever the reason it feels like you can force the issue and take advantage of mistakes better. In that regard the game feels slightly more balanced than Live.

While the game does come across less sloppy than Live I did find there to be flurries of turnovers. I was able to nudge the CPU pretty often while near the sidelines to force the animation where they lose the ball. The CPU also on a few occasions committed back court violations on accident and passed to players who were standing out of bounds. I also had trouble distinguishing the difference between a reaction scene to a turnover and anything else such as a timeout. The emotion being displayed doesn’t always tell the story.

I prefer the outside court in NCAA to the “Hangar” in Live for a couple reasons. The first is the loading time which I suspect will be much less in NCAA. The “Hangar” caused long load times in Live and it was accessed too often between modes. The outdoor court lacks the video screens which have proven to be more of an annoyance than anything in Live and you only need one player to shoot around with as opposed to the eight that Live includes in the gym.

Because of the familiarity with the controls and mechanics I’ve found NCAA Basketball 10 to have provided one of the better sports demo experienes I’ve played. The game really comes across well because of the fresh presentation and accessibility of the motion offenses. It is a shame that the PS3 won’t see the demo until after release because it is actually good enough to sell the game. While I still have doubts as to long term interest with the absence of an Online Dynasty it looks like NCAA will offer an enjoyable gameplay experience.

EA Sports has sent out a press release announcing the availability of the NCAA Basketball 10 demo. It is now available for the 360. While it has not shown up in the “New Arrivals” section it can be found by going to “All Game Demos” and searching by the letter ‘N’.

What is most stunning out of the press release is a change to when the PS3 will be receiving the demo. The NCAA Basketball 10 website has been clearly advertising the release of the demo as November 6th for several weeks. However now it has been revealed that the demo will not make its way to PSN until November 19th. That is two days AFTER the release of the game.

If the demo dates are going to be console specific they need to be advertised that way. Not only is this disappointing news for PS3 owners who are interested in the game but as was seen with NBA Live 10 the demo can result in early community feedback that makes its way into a patch.

With the demo for NCAA Basketball 10 slated to release tomorrow EA Sports has revealed some details on what to expect out of it. The demo will be a single five minute half and will feature North Carolina @ Duke. The CBS presentation package will be featured.

While five minutes still isn’t an ideal length for a demo at least they didn’t break it into multiple even shorter segments. With this setup there should be enough consecutive gametime to get into a flow and begin to evaluate it. The demo should arrive tomorrow at about 2am PT for the 360 and 3pm PT for the PS3.

EA Sports has released the full fact sheet for NCAA Basketball 10. The fact sheet contains the information provided to retailers and reviewers. While there is nothing new compared to the features list it does go into a little more detail for each area. The most disappointing thing about the fact sheet is the complete absence of the “dynamic updates” which is the only thing that hasn’t been detailed to this point.

According to the website the demo for the game will be out on Friday but as ncaaStrategies speculates it may actually show up on Thursday. Continue on to check out the fact sheet and leave your thoughts in the comments.

NCAA® Basketball 10 brings you the best of EA SPORTS™ basketball, refined and polished for the NCAA fan. NCAA Basketball 10 unearths the core of college basketball – excitement, emotion, intensity, and tradition. A laser focus on improving and refining core gameplay has resulted in the most fluid college basketball game to date with all the energy, excitement and pageantry of the college game.

College basketball is known for its strategic and calculated nature. NCAA Basketball 10 lets you use the unique styles and strategic motion offenses of every NCAA team to reach your full potential on the court. Force your opponent to play on your terms and let your team’s strengths shine.

For the first time, watch your Maui Invitational or March Madness final broadcast with full CBS or ESPN integration; hear the shots being called by real CBS SPORTS and ESPN NCAA Basketball announcers; and witness the spirited crowds roar and mascots dance as you take home the win.

Key Features

Gameplay Enhancements: This year’s game engine has been tuned and refined to bring you the most fluid college basketball experience to date. A new shot control system simplifies shooting to the touch of a button, and new locomotion allows players to move intelligently based on their position. You’ll see all the action in the game that you see on the court – from hustle plays and diving for loose balls to players cutting hard to the hoop on the backdoor pass.

Authentic Broadcast Integration: Experience complete and authentic broadcast integration for the first time in sports video game history. From the classic CBS presentation of March Madness and animated personalities of Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery, to Dick Vitale’s one liners and ESPN graphics, NCAA Basketball 10 brings you all the excitement and tradition of every NCAA game no matter what time of year.

Signature Motion Offenses: Each school brings a different flavor to the court in NCAA Basketball 10 with signature motion offences, including the Dribble Drive, Princeton and Zone Motion. Play to your school’s strengths and use ‘motion movement control’ to open up scoring opportunities with the touch of a button.

Toughest Places to Play: Some arenas are notorious for electric and oppressive crowds, making them the toughest placer to play in the NCAA®. Fans from around the country have chosen the top 20 toughest stadiums, and NCAA Basketball 10 has made scoring on their courts as daunting as it is in real life. Take your team to North Carolina, Clemson, and Xavier, and feel the pressure with camera shaking crowd intensity, tougher free throws, and hostile crowds.

Way back in April the Top 15 toughest places to play in NCAA Basketball 10 were determined via fan voting. EA Sports has now released a video that features a countdown of the top 10. IGN also has a quick Q&A regarding the home court advantage that will be included in the game which you can check out in its entirety here.

IGN: If I select a school that’s not on the top ten toughest places to play list for my dynasty, can I build them into such a powerhouse that they’ll eventually make it on the list?

Connor Dougan: You sure can – It’s all about taking your school and building up that powerhouse program and a big part of that is having a great home court advantage and great home record. Do that and you’ll find yourself among the top 20 Toughest Places to Play.

Atmosphere is a critical part of college basketball and having played NBA Live 10 and experienced the playoff atmosphere it is easy to recognize how much it can add to the enjoyment of the game. The video however doesn’t offer much other than a chance to hear some of the audio which does seem as though it will be impressive. Continue on to watch and leave your thoughts in the comments.

The NCAA Basketball 10 features list is now out thanks to Gamestop. With only three weeks until the game is released and a little over a week until the demo there has been reason to wonder why no other features or improvements have been discussed. Now having the list it becomes seems that there is just little else to go on except for one new addition that will probably be talked more about in the coming weeks.

NCAA Basketball 10 appears to best described as college-hybrid of NBA Live 10 gameplay with the addition of the CBS and ESPN presentation. Most disappointing is a lack of Online Dynasty, Online Team Play, Teambuilder, or individual career mode in the mold of Road to Glory. I was hoping especially for the Online Dynasty or a career mode. They have the ability to extend the value of the game and reach those who aren’t completely invested in the sport. As is there just isn’t much pull to the game except for those who are huge college basketball fans.

The most intriguing thing found on the list that hasn’t come up is the dynamic updating. This sounds as though it is along the lines of the Synergy provided updates found in NBA Live though less concentrated on individuals and more on team styles and performance. It could be one way around being unable to do roster updates because technically they aren’t supposed to be real players. By presenting it as “team” updates they may be able to change the individuals in the process.

Continue on for the full list of features and leave your thoughts in the comments.

• Play in the Spotlight—Authentic broadcasting presentations from the all-star announcing crews of Dick Vitale, Brad Nessler, and Erin Andrews of ESPN, and Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery of CBS Sports bring every moment to life like never before.

• All-New Motion Offenses—Choosing from multiple sets that include the Dribble Drive, Princeton, Flex and more, run an offensive system that best fits your school’s strategy and personnel.

• True Home Court Advantage—NCAA Basketball 10 features the 20 Toughest Places to Play voted by you, the fans, as the most hostile and intimidating environments in college basketball.

• All-New Dynamic Updates*—Enjoy a true-to-life college basketball experience as real-life RPI ratings and stats from every Division I school are imported in-game weekly—absolutely free!

• Gameplay and Visual Enhancements—Make a run for the Final Four with more than 100 improvements, including player movement, rebounding, off-ball collisions, alley-oops, size-ups, and more.

• Deeper In-Game Strategy— Improved Coach Feedback System and Team Tempo Control enables you to execute your gameplan to perfection.

It is hard to believe but the release of NCAA Basketball 10 is just over three weeks away as it will arrive on November 17th. The demo will be out two weeks from today. EA has been releasing a barrage of trailers and short gameplay clips, however the actual features for the game remain unknown. No features list has been made available and no news on the game other than relating to presentation and motion offenses has come from previews.

Because of this I’m concerned because the addition of an Online Dynasty was really the only way I could picture myself getting caught up in this game. I know I’m not alone in that sentiment either and not having heard anything about it by now means it is unlikely to happen. College basketball games have never been big sellers which is why there is now only one game on the market. Some advances could be made by tapping into the community and competitive aspect by taking part in a dynasty with friends. Maybe research shows otherwise when it comes to this game (such as gaming habits on campuses) or it could be they just don’t have the resources to do that much in one year.

Based on the media that has been released it appears that the complete focus was put into the presentation and tweaking the NBA Live 10 gameplay engine to fit the collegiate style. Certainly those things are welcome and there is good reason for excitement over the CBS and ESPN integration. Whether that will be enough to get people to buy the game who wouldn’t have otherwise remains to be seen.

Yet another new NCAA Basketball 10 video has been released. This one features some presentation examples from the CBS and ESPN broadcasts along with some gameplay featuring North Carolina @ Duke and Villanova @ Georgetown.

While the video displays a Top 25 this is just the default Top 25 in the game and not a result of a dynasty mode simulation. Also for some reason the commentary barely audible which is a shame as that is an integral part of the presentation experience. Continue on to watch the video and leave your thoughts in the comments.

Two new videos have been released for NCAA Basketball 10 that focus on the motion offenses. One features the numerous different types of motion offenses with an example of a team that runs each. The other is a tutorial of sorts that explains how the motion offenses are run with the new play calling controls.

I really had no idea what was going on in the first video but the second one helps bring it all together. The movement and variation in the different offenses appears to be the main differentiation between NCAA and NBA Live. Continue on to view the videos and leave your thoughts in the comments.