NBA Live 09

$60, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

Teaches: sports, basketball

CTR Rating: 92%

CTR Review

Looking for a hard core basketball sim? This year's NBA Live title features "Dynamic DNA," designed to more accurately emulate NBA players. Other features include NBA Live 365, which updates the Dynamic DNA data, so your players might change from week to week. You can use the NBA Rewind feature to replay last night's game with the updated statistical data that captures injuries, hot/cold streaks and player tendencies. Another new feature is the Pick and Roll Control, where two players can control both the ball handler and the screener as on-court instructions pop-up to guide you through each play. According to Nick (age 13), this is a "great game, with terrific graphics and controls that are easy to use and learn. The best feature is the 'create a player' option." Last year's NBA Live was good, and this year's continues the tradition.