EA Sports seems to be improving the competition for the basketball genre of video games with the release of "NBA Live 16" as it received some better reviews than its predecessors, but not close enough to overtake "NBA 2K."

Gameplay

"NBA Live 16" improved its gameplay with the post game being more fluid and player movements when helping look realistic. The shot meter is a welcome sight for gamers as there is no more confusion why some shots miss and fall, per Bleacher Report.

Another positive for EA Sports is the play calling. Prompts and play art will appear on the court, guiding players where to move, what to do next, who to pass to and more. The pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop systems are also fluid, according to Game Zone.

As for the negatives, Game Zone pointed out that the defense lacks fluidity on both ends and the controls are too stiff, which need improvement. Bleacher Report adds that rebounding needs development as the delay on the motion of the players is noticeable.

NBA Live Pro-Am

Bleacher Report and Game Zone were both impressed on the Live Pro-Am mode as it could be what the fans can be excited about. It has a great online play with street ball courts like Rucker Park, Terminal 23 and Venice Beach that are available in the game.

There are two game modes under NBA Live Pro-Am: Live Run, a classic five-on-five pickup game of 21, and Summer Circuit, where gamers and their friends play against the AI.

Rising Star and Dynasty Mode

Rising Star and Dynasty Mode are nowhere close to "NBA 2K's" MyCareer and MyGM. A storyline by Spike Lee is enough to make 2K16, and EA Sports did not make any real change on these modes, per Game Zone. Also, player creation was praised as it was very in-depth with a lot of details.

There is also the Gameface HD app for Android and iOS that lets gamers import their faces into "NBA Live 16." Phillip Martinez of iDigital Times, on the other hand, liked the Rising Star Mode as well as the Gameface HD, saying, "Rising Star is the creme of the crop in 'NBA Live 16.' GameFaceHD allows for players to scan their face and I was definitely impressed with how it worked. While getting your head in the right position to get a facial scan can be a pain, I had no problem getting my desired likeness on the first try."

Overall

Bleacher Report gave the "NBA Live 16" a score of 7.4 out of 10 while Game Zone won't recommend the game as "NBA 2K" is just much better. Sporting News gave it three stars out five while We Got This Covered is, by far, gave the lowest rating of 2.5 out of 5.