NBA Live 16: Live Pro-Am Announced, Developers Discuss New Mode and Demo

EA Sports should hire Sean "Diddy" Combs to appear in its next NBA Live commercial. The hip hop legend is famous for saying "I thought I told you that we won't stop" on various tracks during his heyday. 

That's precisely the approach the developers of NBA Live have been taken over the last three years, and the improvements to the game are easy to see.

On Thursday, EA Sports announced the series' new Live Pro-Am mode that was teased at the end of its trailer at the E3 convention.

The mode will be available on a free trial beginning September 15. That's huge news considering fans will be thirsty for a basketball game by that time, as NBA 2K16 won't be available to anyone before September 25, when customers who pre-order the game will get it four days early.

It's a great opportunity to get the game in the hands of fans who might not otherwise play NBA Live. Here's a look at the trailer for the mode that features several NBA players and famous pickup basketball venues:

I had an opportunity to speak with the game's executive producer, Sean O'Brien, and lead designer Ryan Santos last week about the mode and other new features in NBA Live 16.

Live Pro-Am will allow gamers to create a player in the game's Rising Stars mode and transport him into Live Pro-Am for new challenges. You'll be able to team up with other human-controlled Rising Star creations to play virtual pickup games.

There's also a co-op aspect that gives you and friends the chance to take on superstar-led, CPU-controlled teams in a summer-style tournament.

One of the coolest aspects of Live Pro-Am and Rising Stars is the inclusion of GameFace HD technology in the player-creation process. This was also debuted at E3, and it allows gamers to have their real faces scanned via a mobile device and placed on their Rising Stars players. You can see the process demonstrated at the E3 stage presentation.

We learned in the interview that this app will be available on September 8.

Does all of this sound somewhat similar to current virtual hoops market leader NBA 2K? 

Absolutely. Conceptually, Live Pro-Am is along the same lines as the recently announced NBA 2K Pro-Am, and 2K Sports introduced face scanning in last year's NBA 2K15.

O'Brien clearly understands NBA Live's current place in the market. He referred to his game as a "challenger" brand in the interview.

To be a legitimate challenger, Live has to have comparable modes and experiences. Live Pro-Am and GameFace HD are just two examples of the series' attempt to deliver an elite virtual basketball experience.

If you haven't already, take a listen to the interview and take a look at some of the screenshots available in the video. Look for more information on NBA Live 16 once GameFace HD and Live Pro-Am become available. That coverage will be followed by a full preview and review once the game has been released on September 29.

Game on.

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Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter.