Live 09 OTP Vs Devs Recap

The battle in NBA Live 09  Online Team Play between Team Pastapadre and Team NBA Live Developers took place on Friday. PP took the Trailblazers while the Devs took the Magic.

I was joined by bdiddy51791 (Rudy Fernandez), SECRT AG3NT Man (Greg Oden), and Hawkfan23114 (Lamarcus Aldridge). I controlled Brandon Roy. We also had Cabrillo24 in but lost him before tip-off. Thanks for everyone who got to participate as well as those of you who intended to but didn’t make it in time.

It was a close game early but after settling in we were able to dominate. The final score was 73-55. Continue on for some post-game screenshots and video of the game as broken down by quarter.

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Live 09 OTP Against The Devs

This Friday we have an opportunity to put together an online team play club outing against a group of NBA Live developers (on the 360). I’ll be recording the game which will be posted up over the weekend along with a recap and stats. The game will likely begin at 630ET/330PT on Friday and I will update the start time if any changes are made.

If you would like to take part leave your gamertag in the comments. If you are already a member of the Pastapadre Club then your spot will be held by leaving the comment. If you are not a member of the club then I’ll send you an invite. Everyone must have the latest patch update for the game. The first four to be in the locker room with me right prior to or at start time will get to play.

FIFA 09: Online Team Play

Last night I had my first opportunity to get some time with Be a Pro: Online Team Play in FIFA 09. This year FIFA has expanded up to 10 vs 10 with only the goalie being CPU controlled. Also implemented is the Club system seen in NHL 09 and NBA Live 09.

In my first game I took on the LB position for Milan going up against Barcelona. The game ended in a 1-1 tie when Barcelona scored with just a few minutes remaining. It seems there is no OT in OTP. The game was completely full…20 different people connected and each player user controlled. Stunningly there was absolutely no evidence of lag. The online performance was about as perfect as can be. EA Canada continues to excel in this area and they deserve a lot credit for doing so. They’re delivering great online features and the performance to back them up.

Because of the slower pace that comes with soccer it felt as though there could be more strategy involved. I’m not sure if I would say it is as fun as the EASHL but it definitely gave a satisfying feeling that I haven’t had from playing a soccer game in the past. I’m much more comfortable focusing as an individual than taking over the whole team in FIFA. With so many people involved it gave me the vibe of an MMO. Even from just seeing all the gamertags above the players was a cool sight and made me feel a part of something bigger. As with NHL and Live they need to find a way to allow you to save replays from online games in the future.

I recorded a good portion of the game to show how the mode functions and how the game flows. I was pleased that both sides played true (no one attempting to ruin the experience) and had mutliple scoring opportunities. Continue on to view the video.

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NBA Live 09 OTP Night Recap

Last night I was finally a member of a victorious group in the NBA Live 09 Pasta Padre club. I had felt doomed after having lost most of the games with the EASHL club and starting up with Live and having lost every game previously. It was a really good feeling to get the win, especially since we played well as a team from start to finish and despite the continued overly fast pace it was probably the most controlled matchup thus far.

After a rough start the club seems to have settled down and has won five of the last nine games. Once the improvements are made to the mode I’m confident the level of success will increase even more. Continue on for recaps from both the 360 and PS3 clubs and the full game video of the victory.

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A Few More Thoughts on Club OTP

After playing some more Online Team Play tonight in NBA Live 09 I realized I forgot a few things in my initial write-up. There were also some thoughts that came to mind since then. I included a few screens of the club area and the grading that is done after a game is completed. I’ve also added a poll to vote on the current team assigned to the club. So far club Pasta Padre is struggling but enjoying it despite that.

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NBA Live 09: OTP Clubs

With the first opportunity to try out NBA Live 09’s Online Team Play Clubs last night we were able to get a feel for how things are shaping up. The games were fun, just as they were last year. There were some issues though that will hopefully be fixed in the near future. These impressions and suggestions have been passed on to EA for that purpose.

I’ve included videos of the first two games that I was involved in broken down by half. Both times club Pasta Padre was the Blazers and took on a club using the Rockets. The first game was a full five on five (I controlled Brandon Roy) while the second was three on four (controlling Rudy Fernandez). After the two games I am averaging 17 points, 9 assists, and 1.5 rebounds.

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NBA Live 09 OTP Club Attempt #2

With the server issues yesterday we were unable to begin for the Pasta Padre OTP Club. Having reached the club lobby the game was unable to match us up against an opponent. So we will take a second attempt at it tonight at the same time (5PT/8ET). Meet up in the lobby by hitting X once entering the club area.

For those of you on the PS3 a joint Pastapadre & NCAA Strategies Club is up and running. Make sure to leave your PSN name if you would like to be included. Specify whether you are PS3 or 360 when requesting an invite.

The following Xbox 360 gamertags have been sent invites. Some have already accepted while others are lingering waiting to be. If you are not on this list than make sure to post your gamertag in the comments. There were several people that were not able to receive invites previously due to the gamertag being invalid or not having played the game at that time.

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Pasta Padre Live 09 OTP Club

*Update: While we were able to get in our club lobby the game couldn’t find an opponent to connect to. This is likely due to the server issues being experienced right now. We’ll try again tomorrow at the same time.

With NBA Live 09 now available we can begin to fill up the Pasta Padre Online Team Play Club (Xbox 360). After how successful OTP was last year it has gotten even better in 09 with the addition of clubs and ranked games, tracking of individual stats, and being graded on individual performance by position.

If you are interested in being a part of the club leave your gamertag in the comments and I will send out invites. In order for me to send an invite you must have played Live 09 otherwise the invite attempt will fail. So please only post your gamertag once you have played. Invites are accepted through the Player HUB.

*For those of you on the PS3 a PP club is being set up in partnership with NCAA Strategies. Leave your PSN name in the comments to be invited*

I was forced to pick a team for the club though it appears I can change this at any time. We’ll find out if we are locked into that team (currently Portland) or if we can select the team at the start of each club game. Otherwise I’ll have to change the team on a regular basis since it would be boring to play with the same one all the time.

Tonight will be the first get together but club games can be played at any time. As long as at least three club members are involved the games will count into the rankings. Meet in the club lobby beginning at 5PT/8ET. I’m looking forward to playing at least a handful of games and I will be recording at least one of them to post up on the site later in the evening or Wednesday morning.

NBA Live 09 OTP Screenshots

EA Sports has sent over a batch of new screenshots featuring the Online Team Play in NBA Live 09. Last week I was able to detail the improvements made to the mode. These screens show some gameplay with the new meter displaying how well your player is performing, club joining and inviting, the trophy room, blog area, user scouting, and the recap screens following the game.

You can find all of the screenshots in the gallery. If you have any questions about the mode or what is seen in the screenshots feel free to ask in the comments.

NBA Live 09 Online Team Play Improvements

Online Team Play is easily the aspect of the NBA Live 09 that I am most excited about. EA knew it was a big hit not only by the overwhelmingly positive response from gamers last year but also by seeing how online usage quadrupled after being released. Producer Julien Carron even talked with me about the list I published of how the mode could be improved and how a good deal of those suggestions were met.

This year you’ll be able to form “Clubs” which will have their own ranking system. A large group will be able to form a club of up to 50 people. As long as an OTP game is played with at least three club members on the same team it will count into the rankings and record/statistics. In theory there could be multiple games taking place at the same time for a club.

Positional success is tracked and is a way of the Club’s GM to scout potential members and put together good balance. A player gets credit on their performance bar for making good plays related to their position, while making bad plays or allowing their assignment while on defense to score will hurt your rating. At any time the GM can remove a player from club, so performance along with desire to stay in a club will provide incentive for people to play the right way.

Some other details: The camera in OTP is similar to the broadcast camera except that it pulls out to provide a wider view when away from the action. The mode includes menu areas for blogs and trophies. You can set screens this year. There are areas for “Club Tryouts” which are ranked games that can help build up history and stats as well as regular unranked OTP. There are no additional tie-ins to EA Sports World unfortunately.

I’m really excited about the forming of the Pastapadre Club! This will be a better way to really involve the community and I think we could have a club that competes at the highest level.

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