NBA Live 16: Release Date and Live Pro Am Gameplay Videos

The demo for NBA Live 16 has been out since September 15, but Tuesday is the day the retail version of the game releases in stores for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Subscribers to the EA Access program on XB1 have already been treated to an update that provided new face scans for previously missing or inaccurately rendered rookies.

Here's a look at the updated version of the Miami Heat's Justise Winslow, the Washington Wizards' Kelly Oubre and Sacramento Kings' Willie Cauley-Stein. Each were one of the rookies that seemed to have a randomly generated face before:

Truth be told, the actual NBA teams and modes like Ultimate Team and franchise are secondary in this version of NBA Live. None of those modes have received major upgrades from NBA Live 15. The biggest new addition is the Live Pro-Am mode that allows gamers to create themselves and compete online in street ball and summer-league style hoops contests.

The player-creation process features a face-scanning element much like the one used in NBA 2K15. The only difference is the one in NBA Live 16 works really well. The process is quicker and more accurate. The only issue I've seen is that it doesn't always capture the right skin tone and doesn't allow you to adjust complexion after the scan.

Once your Pro-Am player is created, you can take him into the Rising Stars mode, but quite frankly, that aspect of the game is completely untouched since last year. The best aspect of the game is the Pro-Am portion.

Live Pro Am is divided into two parts. You can play Summer Circuit, which allows you to play individually with a team of computer-controlled teammates against CPU-controlled NBA players. This is challenge-based, and the level of difficulty is dictated by skill ratings of the NBA opponents.

Here's a video showing Summer Circuit play:

Secondly—and perhaps best of all—there's the Live Run. Here's where you can take your player to one of several historic courts—such as Terminal 23 in New York—and team with other human-controlled players against a squad of human users.

When it's full five-on-five, it's fun to play. Here's a look at my first Pro-Am game:

The mode has some slight issues when it comes to play in the paint and the amount of three-point shots that fall through the net, but when you have the right group of players taking part, it's one of the more enjoyable online co-op/head-to-head experiences you'll find in sports gaming.

---

Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter.