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= Copyright (c) 1999 CybrFreek0@aol.com =
= Version 1.0 =
= August 25, 1999 =
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Table of Contents
=================
I. Introduction
II. Basic Controls
III. Advanced Controls
IV. Game Tips
V. Cheats & Codes
VI. Credits
VII. Contact Info
I. Introduction
===============
Over the years, the NBA Live series has proved to be both an enjoyable and
thorough basketball simulation. NBA Live '98 was a superb game, leaving
little to be desired. However, the designers at EA have managed to doctor
it up a tiny bit to produce NBA Live '99. Also note that the load times in
Live '99 are significantly faster than in Live '98. I hope this FAQ helps
you play this great game. Enjoy :-)
II. Basic Controls
==================
Offense
-------
Square - Special Dribbling Moves (behind the back, crossover, etc.)
Triangle - Spin Move
Circle - Shoot (hold down, then release)
X - Pass
R1 - Turbo
R2 - Drive
Defense
-------
Square - Hand Check
Triangle - Draw offensive foul, block path
Circle - Shove (with turbo Hard Shove)
X - Switch Player
R1 - Turbo
On offense, when you pass, you can hold down the X button until the receiver
catches the ball. You will retain control of the passer. At this point
you can use the controls for:
Offense Without the Ball
------------------------
Square - Nothing
Triangle - Nothing
Circle - Force CPU to pass you the ball
X - Switch Player
R1 - Turbo
Advanced Controls
=================
The Direct Controls are made up of DirectPass, DirectShoot, and DirectSwitch.
The buttons used for the Direct Controls are L1 & L2.
DirectPass
----------
On offense when you have the ball, you can pass with more precision rather
than just pressing X and the direction of your intended receiver. Assuming
you know which position your intended receiver is playing, you can pass
directly to him using the L1 button. Each position is assigned a button:
Shooting Guard - Circle
Small Forward - X
Power Forward - Square
Center - Triangle
To pass to the shooting guard, for instance, hold L1 and press Circle.
" " " " small forward, hold L1 and press X.
" " " " power forward, hold L1 and press square.
" " " " center, hold L1 and press triangle.
What about the point guard, you may be wondering?
To pass to the point guard, hold down L1 and PRESS THE BUTTON OF THE PLAYER
THAT CURRENTLY HAS THE BALL. For example, if your power forward has the ball,
to pass directly to your point guard, hold down L1 and press square.
DirectSwitch
------------
Is the equivalent of DirectPass on defense. Use the L1 button in combination
with the button of the position of the player you want to switch to. To
switch to the point guard, hold L1 and press the button of the player who
is currently selected.
DirectShoot
-----------
DirectShoot makes for some pretty nice dunks. Using the L2 button in
combination with other buttons, you can control the type of dunk that you do.
The type of dunk is also affected by how long you hold down the button and
from what distance you jump. However, when you are running into the lane
you can press L2 and this button for this effect:
Press L2 and: for this dunk:
Square Double Pump
Triangle 360
Circle One Hand Tomahawk
Unlike Live 98 I found that the 360 dunk is harder to pull off than the rest.
You must be going a certain speed which is a bit slower than full turbo and
you must be at about the bottom of the circle that the foul line cuts across.
It has also been me experience that you can sometimes pull off dunks just
turboing down the middle and pressing shoot than you can using L2 and a
button.
Game Tips
=========
The level you set for your game (Rookie, Veteran, All-Star,
Superstar) makes shooting from the outside progressively harder. In Rookie,
Reggie Miller and the like can bomb away from the 3-point line at about
80 or 90 percent accuracy. In Superstar, he shoots about 40 or 50 percent
from the outside. Here are some tips when playing against the computer:
- Unless you dont have fouls on, dont try to steal the ball when they inbound
it, chances are you won't and you'll be late getting down court.
- Always make sure you go to the Team Strategy Menu and turn up the defensive
pressure and possibly even double team the other team's superstar(s).
- Don't try to dominate with one player, the CPU will double and triple team
that player, blocking all of his shots and intercepting all passes. Instead
pass the ball around. I suggest using DirectPass to throw the ball crosscourt
to an open shooter.
- As ugly a game as it is (I think so anyway) big men are surprisingly
effective if proper head fakes are utilized. Shaquille O'Neal is virtually
unstoppable down low.
- Even if you turn Fatigue off, your player will get noticeably slower if
you constantly use Turbo throughout the game.
- Head fakes are your friend. To head fake, tap the Shoot button.
Getting off a shot and then getting that shot in with a defender's hand in
your face is not your best option. Head fake first, wait for the defender to
jump, then elevate for your shot.
- Jump passes are highly effective. To execute a jump pass, hold down the
Shoot button (Circle) but before you release it, while in the air, press
Pass (X) and your player will pass. Note: If you have lightning quick hands
you can try to execute a DirectPass in the air. I've done it a couple times
but usually I don't get off the pass and end up taking an extremely poor shot
coming down.
- Alleyoops are pretty kewl and will be executed automatically if you pass
to someone down low in the right position. However, to force an alleyoop,
you can hold L2 and press X. Someone must be down low to receive the pass or
you won't throw it.
- When you pass the ball, before you start dribbling with the recevier, head
fake. If the defender goes for it you now have two scoring options: shoot
or drive. This is a very effective move.
- When the opposing team is shooting foul shots, switch to either your Small
Forward or Shooting Guard. As soon as the opponent takes his last foul shot
hold turbo and the direction of the opposite end of the court. It is likely
that either the foul shot will go in or your team will automatically rebound
the ball. Either way, as soon as you get possession DirectPass to either
your Small Forward (L1 + X) or your Shooting Guard (L1 + O), whoever you sent
sprinting down court. The player will catch the ball right under the opposite
basket for an easy two.
- Lean in shots sometimes have a better chance of going in that regular shots
To shoot a lean-in shot, hold shoot and the direction towards the basket, and
release to let the ball go.
- Fadeaway shots are effective from a close range against a defender who
refuses to go for head fakes. To execute a fadeaway, hold shoot and the
direction away from the hoop, and release to let the ball go.
- Good luck trying to block lay-ups.
V. Cheats & Codes
=================
Judging by the number of cheats in Live '98 I would be extremely surprised
if similar ones didn't appear in Live '99. However, at the moment these
codes are yet to be discovered. What I have posted here are some Gameshark
codes for the extreme cheater. Using these codes takes the fun out of the
game completely. These codes WERE copied from the Game Shark Code Creator's
Club website (http://www.cmgsccc.com/psx/nbalive99.shtml).
When you inbound the ball, wait for a defender to come up to you. While you
still have your dribble, hold down R2 and press the direction pad as if you
were dribbling up court. After you let go of R2, quickly press square, and
then dribble up court the opposite way that you did at first. The defender
will be faked out, and you will have an open path to the hoop!
submitted by Jeremy Yanos (NYYankeez1@aol.com)
VI. Credits
===========
Thanks to GSCCC for the Gameshark codes,
Thanks to Gamesages and Jeremy Yanos for the Fake out trick.
VII. Contact Info
=================
If you have any corrections, comments, questions, or additions to this FAQ
please e-mail me at CybrFreek0@aol.com with the title NBA Live 99 FAQ.
Hope you enjoyed this faq!