NBA Live 95

NBA Live 95 continued building EA Sports' basketball simulation series, which unlike the arcade-style NBA Jam relied on a more realistic take on the game - proper rules, fouls, tactics, and managing an entire season including playoffs and an elimination bracket. Players could choose a favorite team from the NBA of the time, play through the regular season, manage the roster, and track individual player statistics, which made the game a much deeper experience than competing arcade titles focused only on quick fun regardless of real numbers and player form.

Compared to the previous installment, the game brought improved player movement animation, smoother transitions between offense and defense, and an updated presentation with team colors and arenas that tried to evoke NBA television broadcasts, including starting lineups. On Mega Drive hardware this was another step toward making the simulation feel more alive and more clearly distinguish individual players by their real on-court abilities, which was appreciated especially by players who also followed the real NBA season and its stars. The audio side was limited by the possibilities of the cartridge, yet the developers still tried to provide at least a basic atmosphere of the arena and the crowd of fans during the game and important moments, such as free throws at the end.

At the time of release the game was among the best basketball simulations available on a console and cemented the NBA Live brand's position as the main simulation counterpart to the more entertaining NBA Jam, which meanwhile headed in the completely opposite direction toward arcade showmanship regardless of real rules. Today it feels like an interesting time capsule of the NBA of the mid-nineties, with the rosters and teams of that era, and it's interesting mainly for fans who want to experience basketball the way home consoles simulated it back then, with the limited power of 16-bit hardware and without today's option of playing online against remote opponents.

Why play it: For basketball fans who want to experience the NBA of the mid-nineties with period rosters and teams, NBA Live 95 offers an interesting time capsule of the simulation efforts of that era on 16-bit hardware.