While the patch status for NBA Live 09 remains in question, we do finally have the details of what is being included. As expected many of the well discussed gripes such as shot percentages, delay in attempting shot blocks, and improvements to Online Team Play are included.

It sounds as though there are numerous fixes/improvements that aren’t specifically mentioned so we’ll be looking for or coming across them on our own. Hopefully they’ll wipe out the current record and stats in OTP given the changes. I’ll also be checking to see if they fixed the auto-inbounding that was plaguing the mode.

Continue on for the full details explained through a message from the dev team.

The patch for the PS3 was prematurely pushed live from Sony. They quickly pulled it, but we’re working on getting them to put it back up now that it’s out there (stay tuned on that one). The XBOX 360 patch should follow shortly, and we appreciate your patience!

We wanted to give you some details on what’s included in the patch. We listened to the community feedback very closely, and although we couldn’t get everything we wanted to in the patch due to size limitations (like beluba said earlier), we do think we’ve addressed some key issues.

• The reception of NCAA Basketball 09, from a gameplay perspective, has been really good. Part of the luxury of being on the same engine for our basketball franchises is that we can differentiate between the two, but through the patch process, we’re able to get some of the really good things that the NCAA Basketball 09 team did. We addressed a lot of the gameplay complaints that you guys had including tuning shooting percentages, both overall and in contact situations, so that you’ll have a more realistic shooting percentage outcome. We also made some quick strike ballhandling, analog passing (logic and receptions) and jostle improvements.

• The number one thing we were able to address was the responsiveness with block animations.

• We adjusted the skill level of OTP to All-Star, so with lowered shooting percentages and a higher skill level, you should have a much improved OTP experience. Speaking of OTP, you’re now able to see the “Scouting” tab to look at position leaders (not just the GMs). We bumped up the club search window to 60 seconds so that you’ll have a better opportunity to find a club to play against.

• You’re now also able to put headbands on NBA players, and the team color accessory bug has been fixed.

• Teams with alternate home jerseys are now wearing their HOME shoes instead of their away.

• There are other under the hood things included in the patch (like the autosave in FIBA mode now working) that we won’t go into, but we’re pretty confident that you’ll notice a difference in NBA LIVE 09.

Thanks for your support!

The NBA LIVE Dev Team

A patch for NBA Live 09 was released this morning for the PS3 and 360. Or was it? According to EA no patch was released, however users of both consoles (including myself) were prompted to download an update. Given the timing it was reasonable to expect that this was the patch that everyone has been waiting on as it was submitted to Microsoft and Sony a couple weeks ago.

I spent a few minutes trying to get a feel for any differences between then and now. As far as I can tell nothing has was changed by this patch. The delay in jumping to block shots as well putting your arms up with the right stick is the same, the high shot percentages seem to be the same, and the menu lag remains. Those are just some of the more noticeable things that I expect will be addressed in the patch…though EA still hasn’t provided any official details on what will be included.

While it has happened before where MS or Sony has released an empty patch by error, it would seem to be quite the coincidence that both did so for the same game at the same time. Also, generally the companies receive at least some advance notice from them as to when patches are going live. In this case no one seems to know what is going on. If there is any more news regarding what this was all about today add an update to this posting.

While roster update #11 only lasted something like a day before disappearing, it was at least out there which makes this week’s update #12 of season. It is expected to be available for download sometime tomorrow. From browsing through it not much jumped out at me other than a couple good players heading to the IR.

Continue on for all the transactions, ratings up/down, contract extensions, and injuries.

Transactions
WR Antonio Chatman – Released to FA (IR)
LB Abdul Hodge – Released to FA (IR)
LB John DiGiorgio – Released to FA (IR)
LB Marcus Buggs – Added to Bills
FB/LB Spencer Larsen – Added to Broncos
LB Geno Hayes – Released to FA (IR)
LB Matt McCoy – Signs with Bucs
LB Derek Smith – Released by Chargers
HB Michael Bennett – Signs with Chargers
LB Erik Walden – Released by Chiefs
HB Dantrell Savage – Released by Chiefs
CB Nick Graham - Released to FA (IR)
LB Rob Ninkovich – Signs with Dolphins
T Jacob Bender – Signs with 49ers
C/G Drew Miller – Signs with Jaguars
LB Jason Trusnik – Added to Jets
G Stanley Daniels – Added to Jets (Practice Squad)
S LaMarcus Hicks – Released by Lions
WR Adam Jennings – Signs with Lions
LB Gilbert Gardner – Released by Lions
LB Anthony Cannon – Added to Lions
C Brennen Carvalho – Added to Packers (Practice Squad)
DE KGB – Released by Packers
DE Kenny Pettway – Added to Packers
CB Mike Richardson – Added to Patriots
TE John Madsen – Released by Raiders
FB Jason Davis – Released by Raiders
G Junius Coston – Signs with Raiders
CB Justin Miller – Signs with Raiders
LT Anthony Davis – Signs with Rams
DT Brandon McKinney – Added to Ravens
TE Mark Campbell – Released to FA (IR)
HB Aaron Stecker – Released to FA (IR)
DT Brian Young – Released to FA (IR)
CB Leigh Torrence – Signs with Saints
HB Mike Bell – Signs with Saints
FB Darian Barnes – Signs with Saints
G Jeremy Parquet – Added to Steelers

Ratings Up
S Mike Brown – Bears – 87 to 88 – Was flashing big time hit power in Sunday’s debacle to the Packers.
T John St. Clair – Bears – 73 to 76 – Has played better than expected or past performance would indicate. Chris Williams is back now so he might be moving to the bench at some point.
FB Peyton Hillis – Broncos – 78 to 79 – Got a trucking increase by showing he can move the pile at the NFL level vs. the Falcons.
HB Jerome Harrison – Browns – 77 to 78 – Got a speed increase after he turned on the jets Monday night.
CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie – 80 to 81 – Flashed big ability in grapping a couple picks vs. the Seahawks.
DT Glenn Dorsey – Chiefs – 80 to 82 – Has made more plays recently, especially in last week’s game vs. the Saints.
LB Joey Porter – Dolphins – 92 to 94 – Continues to be a monster off the edge.
LB Stewart Bradley – Eagles – 80 to 81 –
DE Darren Howard – Eagles – 82 to 84 – Is thriving in the ‘Justin Tuck’ role. Playing inside on passing downs has revived his career.
DT Jonathan Babineaux – Falcons – 82 to 84 – Is having a big year with 7 tackles for loss thus far.
DE Jamaal Anderson – Falcons – 81 to 82 – Is starting to pressure the QB more frequently after not having a sack his rookie year.
C Shaun O’Hara – Giants – 92 to 94 – Dominated Justin Bannan one on one in the Giants big day over the Ravens.
FB Madison Hedgecock – Giants - 88 to 89 – Has had quite the resurgence after being released by the Rams last season.
S Michael Johnson – 81 to 83 – Looks to have won the fight with Kenny Phillips. Has played very well in coverage this season. Phillips and Johnson now start together.
HB Derrick Ward – Giants – 82 to 84 – Signed a 1 year deal this year and looks to cash in this offseason in free agency after a big season with the best O-line going.
HB Ahmad Bradshaw – Giants – 82 to 83 – Looks to have his role expanded next season as the key backup.
G Rich Seubert – Giants – 91 to 92 – Starts at LG for the dominate offensive line in pro football.
G Chris Snee – Giants – 95 to 96 – One of or the dominate RG in the NFL.
LB Justin Durant – Jaguars – 83 to 85 – Speedy LB for the Jags who will be a big part of the defense for many years.
S Gerald Sensabaugh – Jaguars – 79 to 81 – Starting now at safety for the Jaguars after moving the former starter back to cornerback.
HB Leon Washington – Jets – 82 to 83 – Got some more speed after making some big plays against the Patriots that the Jets had to have.
S Abram Elam – Jets – 76 to 79 – Has been making big plays and is now starting again at safety after being a backup earlier in the year.
TE Dustin Keller – Jets – 80 to 82 – Looks to be developing chemistry with Brett Favre. He will need to be clicking against undefeated Tennessee.
HB Thomas Jones – Jets – 89 to 90 – Had to have heard Leon Washington’s footsteps and has returned in a big way after a down year last year. The upgrade to the OL surely helped.
QB Matt Cassell – Patriots – 78 to 79 – Got a boost in speed and acceleration as he showed scrambling ability vs. the Jets. Still someone is gonna pay this guy way too much.
LB Gary Guyton – Patriots – 73 to 78 – The Pats 3rd MLB gets plenty of time and valuable experience as he will no doubt be a starter.
DE Aaron Smith – Steelers – 96 to 97 – Continued to be dominate and cave in the right side of the offensive line.
LB LaMarr Woodley – Steelers – 87 to 88 – Made a play in coverage last week in addition to making plays rushing the passer.
LB James Harrison – Steelers – 95 to 96 -
LB Xavier Adibi – Texans – 73 to 76 – Had a big game filling in for injured starter Morlon Greenwood.
CB Chris Carr – Titans – 71 to 76 – The star of the Jags/Titans game. Showed he can play CB in the NFL.
QB Kerry Collins – Titans – 81 to 82 – Showed the cannon a couple times vs. the Jags.
WR Justin Gage – Titans – 80 to 81 – Got a speed increase after he proved he is healthy vs. the Jags with some big plays.
LB Chad Greenway – Vikings – 88 to 89 – Has been the one that stepped up after the loss of E.J. Henderson.

Ratings Down
QB Trent Edwards – Bills – 83 to 82 – Continued his string of poor performances on Monday night vs. the Browns.
S Calvin Lowry – Broncos – 77 to 75 – Made some very bad plays in pursuit vs. the Falcons.
CB Karl Paymah – Broncos – 77 to 73 – Did a lot of damage to his value by his poor play this season.
CB Brandon McDonald – Browns – 82 to 78 – Was demoted in the Browns secondary. Not a good thing for longevity.
WR Braylon Edwards – Browns – 95 to 92 – Catching was lowered due to his ability not to be able to hang onto the ball.
WR Patrick Crayton – Cowboys – 82 to 80 – Might have his role expanded after the injury to Miles Austin. Was not involved with the addition of Roy Williams and the emergence of Austin.
CB Drayton Florence – Jaguars – 85 to 81 – Was demoted to nickel back causing a shift in the secondary. Was burned last week vs. the Titans.
DT Rob Meier – Jaguars – 86 to 82 – Has not played as well as he did last season.
DE Paul Spicer – Jaguars – 86 to 83 – Another guy on the Jags defensive line not playing to expectations.
LB Ernie Sims – Lions – 93 to 91 – Has not been a difference maker on defense.
S Michael Huff – Raiders – 85 to 78 – Facts are facts. This guy is a bust.
LT Kwame Harris – Raiders – 78 to 74 – On the short list for worst starting LT in the league. Leads the league in false starts.
QB JaMarcus Russell – Raiders – 79 to 75 – Continues to display very bad downfield accuracy. Anytime he is off the Raiders play calling leash he shows how long he still has to go.
CB Tye Hill – Rams – 81 to 75 – This year has been a disaster after he expected big things at the start of the season.
DT La’Roi Glover – Rams – 82 to 78 – Has now been relegated to being blown off the ball as a backup.
LB Will Witherspoon – Rams – 90 to 89 – Looked completely horrendous and hobbled in last week’s game against the 49ers.
QB Marc Bulger – Rams – 87 to 85 – Had another horrendous start vs. the Jets. Was able to rack up passing attempts and yards after they were down by 30 points.
WR Torry Holt – Rams – 94 to 93 – Not able to separate like the old Torry Holt. Now he might be old Torry Holt.
G Anthony Herrera – Vikings – 87 to 83 – Has been beaten too often this year in pass protection.
T Ryan Cook – Vikings – 84 to 81 – Has been benched in Minnesota at RT.

Injuries
HB Earnest Graham – Bucs – IR
DE Turk McBride – Chiefs – IR
TE Tom Santi – Colts – IR
T Jonas Jennings – 49ers – IR
CB Terrence Wheatley – Patriots – IR
DE Patrick Kerney – Seahawks - IR

One of the anticipated elements to the New Xbox Experience (NXE) is the ability to install the games to the hard drive. While the disc is still required to be in the 360 while playing, drawing from the hard drive is supposed to put less strain on the hardware as well as decrease loading times as the disc isn’t spinning or being read.

So I thought I would go through and experiment with some of the more recent sports titles to see what if any effect is had by installing the game to the hard drive. The actual installs took about 10 minutes each. I went through a few scenarios with NCAA Football 09, Madden 09, NBA 2K9, and NHL 09. Continue on to see the results.

Size of Install: 6.3 GB
Start-up of game into the menu screen: 1:12 (disc) vs 1:01 (hard drive)
Loading into a play now game: 24 seconds (disc) vs 16 seconds (hard drive)
Loading out of a game into the menu screen: 35 seconds (disc) vs 34 seconds (hard drive)
Total time saved: 20 seconds

Size of Install: 6.7 GB
Start-up of game into the menu screen:  54 seconds (disc) vs 38 seconds (hard drive)
Loading into a play now game: 41 seconds (disc) vs 37 seconds (hard drive)
Loading out of a game into the menu screen:  15 seconds (disc) vs 9 seconds (hard drive)
Total time saved: 26 seconds

Size of Install: 6.7 GB
Start-up of game into the menu screen:  57 seconds (disc) vs 42 seconds (hard drive)
Loading into a play now game:  29 seconds (disc) vs 22 seconds (hard drive)
Loading out of a game into the menu screen:  6 seconds (disc) vs 3 seconds (hard drive)
Total time saved: 25 seconds

Size of Install: 5.7 GB
Start-up of game into the menu screen:  43 seconds (disc) vs 38 seconds (hard drive)
Loading into a play now game:  27 seconds seconds (disc) vs 24 seconds (hard drive)
Loading out of a game into the menu screen:  2 seconds (disc) vs 1 second (hard drive)
Total time saved: 9 seconds

While the times were not reduced drastically there is some improvement seen from loading off the hard drive as opposed to the disc. Just saving a few seconds here and there is a good thing and can really add up.

Browsing through menus I found some cases where moving through them seemed a little more fluid, while other times it seemed the same as before with some occasional lag/stuttering. There have been reports of people believing that the games actually play better when running off the hard drive, though I did not attempt to evaluate that for this article.

The thing I noticed most while doing the comparisons is the noise that the 360 generated. When reading off the hard drive it was very quiet. Basically the same amount of sound the 360 produces when just sitting on the dashboard is what you get when playing the games that are installed to the hard drive.

So this has taken me to the conclusion that I need to upgrade my hard drive to at least the 60GB. There is the immediate benefits being seen of slightly quicker load times, potentially smoother menus and gameplay, and a quieter running 360. It seems well worth the investment now.

While we knew that the authentic schedules were going to be patched in for NCAA Basketball 09 following release of the game there will be more included in the patch. NCAA Strategies has received information on what the patch entails and when it is expected to be out.

The targeted date for the patch to arrive is Thursday December 4th. Incidentally that is the week that the game was originally scheduled to be released before they moved it up by two weeks. Along with the authentic schedules the patch will provide named rosters for online play as well as the ability to edit classic teams.

While those are welcome additions they are basically things that should’ve been included in the first place. At least getting the names back online shows they listened to the community. Whether there will be another patch that attempts to improve the gameplay or address issues that have been discovered (as we’ve seen from the second patches with other titles) remains very much in question.

For a second time I joined Chase from Operation Sports for the Waiver Wire podcast. Amongst the wide array of topics discussed is the emergence of the NBA 2K series as a dominant sales force and what that means, the MLB 2K9 cover announcement, the possible move towards subscription and advertising based gaming, and the good and bad of downloadable content.

Click here to download the show. You can also subscribe to the podcast via iTunes here. Be sure to leave your thoughts on the podcast in the comments.

A couple weeks ago I listed out who I believed to be at the time the top five candidates for the Madden 2010 cover. The voting slanted heavily towards Redskins RB Clinton Portis with Saints QB Drew Brees as the runner-up.

One name that has vaulted himself into contention over the past few weeks that I did not have in that group is Cardinals WR Anquan Boldin. Having seen him in person on Sunday only impressed me more. What makes his recent performances even more remarkable is that they come after showing the incredible toughness of returning only three weeks after the injury that resulted in him having to get eight plates inserted into his face and wiring in his jaw.

The Cardinals are using him all over the field including in the Wildcat formation made popular by the Dolphins this year. He is averaging nearly eight receptions 100 yards and a TD a game. The Cardinals have all but clinched the NFC West.

The only concern over Boldin is that he still desires a trade in the off-season and EA would generally hesitate to put someone on the cover who may end up in a different uniform.

The Madden series has never had a wide receiver on the cover. This may be the year if Boldin continues to perform on this level. In the poll below I’d like to hear which WR, that could arguably be considered as the most likely possibilities for the cover, would you choose to receive the honor if the decision was made today?

Making the rounds today is a graphic that details an EA Sports Season Pass that would be available only at Gamestop. According to the details it would cost $20 and then provide 33% off the purchase of all EA Sports titles throughout the year.

There are a couple things that seem off about this to me. The first is that the cost of the Season Pass would be equal to the savings on the first game purchased. Generally something like this would be used as an incentive to get consumers to buy more games than they would have otherwise over the course of the year and not provide savings already by the time they reach their second purchase. Also the image lists out games such as NFL Head Coach 2010, Facebreaker 2, NFL Tour, and FIFA Street 4…all of which I don’t believe to be in development. Skate isn’t an EA Sports franchise and NCAA Basketball 2010 is not listed.

If the Season Pass does materialize as suggested by the graphic it would offer great value and surely result in consumers heading to Gamestop to make their EA Sports purchases. Getting those people in the door would benefit Gamestop, and having a value program that encourages new game sales would benefit EA. At this point though I’m hesitant to put much stock into this news. There has been no official response from EA on this matter as of yet.

According to the Sports Business Journal, EA Sports has decided against renewing the license with the Arena Football League. That leaves the AFL without any gaming company to produce a licensed product on its behalf.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that EA would pass on continuing their partnership with the AFL. They produced two sub-par offerings on the PS2 and Xbox and never showed any indications that they would be making a game for any of the current generation of systems. The Arena games didn’t sell well and the sequel (Road to Glory) had very little effort put into it. The AFL games pretty much mirrored the path taken by the MVP College Baseball games.

With the license now open the opportunity is there for another company to grab it. I’m not sure if it is appealing enough for anyone to jump on right away, though one would imagine that the AFL is looking more for exposure than money out of a deal and it wouldn’t necessarily need to be a huge investment to secure the license. The question is whether the cost of development can justify the sales that an Arena game can produce.

What I previously labeled as the first test for NBA Live 09’s 365 feature and NBA 2K9’s Insider was the Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups trade. 2K9 got the trade completed first and should get credit for doing so. With the 365 feature updating only after a player has appeared with their new team that means 2K will be able to implement player movement faster than Live if they choose to do so.

The biggest story in the NBA this weekend was the emergence of an undrafted rookie for the Golden State Warriors. Anthony Morrow had 37 points and 11 rebounds in his first start. That point total broke the record for any undrafted player in their rookie season. Prior to playing the Clippers on Saturday, Morrow had averaged 7.7 points in the three other games he had appeared in.

NBA Live 09 currently has Morrow in and his DNA is reflective of his performance through his first three games, however 365 is still running a few days behind schedule so it doesn’t have Saturday’s performance factored in yet. He is listed as the starting PG for the team in the latest update. Obviously ratings changes will need to be considered (he is currently in as a 63 overall). As Morrow did not ship on the game the 365 feature added him in after appearing for the first time. That means his appearance and accessories can still use some tweaking such as receiving the orange headband.

As for NBA 2K9? Morrow isn’t even in the game. So that is something to monitor as far as how long it takes for Morrow to appear and how well he is represented. It seems that so far players being added in roster updates just take on all the characteristics of some other NBA player that was already in 2K9.

So while 2K Insider had the edge in implementing the trade faster it is clear that Live 365 is much more effective with adding new players in.