NCAA College Basketball 2K3

The fact that NBA 2K3 lords over its competition in terms of pure simulation quality is clear, and it’s been well documented in past issues of GamePro. NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is a complete school-ball experience that’s both fun and feature-rich. The freshman debut of this series has quickly moved to the head of the class, but it has to share the seat of honor with March Madness.

NCAA 2k3's gameplay is extremely smooth. The passing is much smoother and easier than NBA 2k3, as you can either have the game choose who you pass to, or you can use the C stick to manually pass. Players used to playing pro-ball games will quickly notice the differences between pro-ball and college ball. In pro-ball, you can run a high-scoring game with one player scoring most of the baskets. However, in NCAA 2k3, the defense is much more astute, making it harder to score loads of dunks and buckets as you would in a professional basketball game like NBA Live 2003 or NBA 2k3. NCAA 2k3 requires much more of a team effort than most basketball games, so you won't get very far unless you know how to pass.

The GameCube gets in on Sega’s NCAA College Basketball 2K3 but not on the online features. Sega is leveraging its dominance in the NBA basketball category into a successful college offshoot. NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is an entry worthy of its big brother, complete with its own set of smooth controls, elaborate play modes, and sharp A.I.

The fact that NBA 2K3 lords over its competition in terms of pure simulation quality is clear, and it’s been well documented in past issues of GamePro. NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is a complete school-ball experience that’s both fun and feature-rich. The freshman debut of this series has quickly moved to the head of the class, but it has to share the seat of honor with March Madness.

With NCAA 2K3, Sega Sports has yet another brilliant and enjoyable basketball game that’s truly a class of its own. While the graphics are not as superior as it was with NBA 2K3 or the controls as super smooth as NBA Live 2003, the game is still a shining example of how a college basketball game should be made. See you out in the courts.

One of the best college basketballs to come out this year, NCAA 2K3 is at the head of its class and will surely be enjoyed by true basketball gamers. As far as basketball games are concerned, this is, by far, the finest college basketball game ever to grace the console so don’t miss out on this one.

If you're not a big college fan but love hoops, you may still want to check NCAA out. This is a unique experience, different and more enjoyable than NBA 2K3. On a technical level, sure, NBA 2K3 excels, but NCAA will be in my PS2 far more over the coming year. It's the fact that NCAA could have been so much better with just a little more attention to detail that upsets me so much. It's so close, but just isn't quite there. Next year, though, I have high expectations. We'll see if Sega is up to the challenge.

NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is my favorite basketball game this year. Though the final score isn't higher than NBA 2K3, it's only because there are so many nagging little problems. However, those problems don't cancel out a great experience. If Kush and Visual Concepts can iron out these troubles and focus more on the Legacy Mode next year, this could be among the elite sports games of 2003.

The college game has never been a focus of attention in the game industry. But things are slowly changing. First EA's NCAA Football 2003 arrived offering a better experience than the latest Madden. Now, NCAA College Basketball 2K3 has hit GameCube, providing more fun and a stronger atmosphere than NBA 2K3. The collegiate game is for real and while perhaps not gaining financial dominance in the market, both these college games make a strong statement with superior gameplay and presentation styles over their pro counterparts. NCAA College Basketball 2K3 has its flaws, but is also one of the best sports titles this year.

Now, the college hoops war is over and Sega has once again come out on top. NCAA College Basketball 2K3, with its depth of play and online action triumphs over March Madness 2003. Now, it's up to the folks at the House of Madden to collect themselves, lick their wounds, and come back strong with Triple Play 2003.

College basketball, particularly the NCAA tournament, is permeated with excitement, nostalgia, and a fair bit of flashy entertainment. Not surprisingly, Sega Sports delivers a reasonable facsimile of the college game complete with real arenas, school-specific chants, and (dare I say it) an excellent use of the ESPN license. The game features the standard array of options ranging from quick exhibitions to lengthier seasonal and tournament play. The depth of the legacy option is particularly noteworthy. Here players coach through the ranks starting with little-known programs, like the LIU Blackbirds, and work their way up to powerhouse, tradition-rich schools like Duke University.

NCAA College Basketball 2K3 comes with all the usual modes of play, including basic exhibition and season modes. The 2 biggest parts of the game, naturally, come in the form of a highly polished Legacy mode, and full online support through Xbox Live. NCAA also contains the Sega Sports Challenge, which lets you input codes to track your skills against others online, without the need for XBL.

Overall, Sega's NCAA Basketball 2K3 is one of the best college hoops games around, but it doesn't really have enough competition for that to mean much. The gameplay, which is based on last year's NBA 2K2 engine, is easily the game's biggest asset. Plenty of options and a deep legacy mode will also please hoops fans. The lack of freedom in editing players is a serious flaw with the game and means truly accurate rosters cannot be reproduced. This and the sub-par commentary are the game's biggest issues, but hopefully they will be addressed in NCAA Basketball 2K4. College b-ball fanatics will certainly find much to enjoy with this game, but mainstream sports fans (or even mainstream basketball fans) may be better off purchasing NBA 2K3.

NCAA Basketball 2K3 is currently available for all three consoles. The PlayStation 2 version does have online play, but the GameCube version, almost inexcusably, doesn't have network capabilities. If I had to choose between the three, I'd go with the Xbox version, purely because of the broadband Xbox Live technology. This game is pretty much wonderful on any of the systems and highly recommended for any and all fans of great college basketball.

NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is a solid basketball game with plenty of modes to choose from, but it ultimately falls short of being an accurate simulation of college basketball. The passing system is far too slow and imprecise to break down the zone defenses effectively, even when running plays. This also affects the post-up game, which is almost rendered useless for anything but a pull-up jumper. Casual fans probably won't notice such problems, but the hard-core college basketball fan will more than likely be frustrated with them.

NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is a solid game with plenty of modes to choose from, but it ultimately falls short of being an accurate simulation of college basketball. The passing system is far too slow and imprecise to break down the zone defenses effectively, even when running plays. This also affects the post-up game, which is almost rendered useless for anything but a pull-up jumper. Casual fans probably won't notice such problems, but the hard-core college basketball fan will more than likely be frustrated with them.

NCAA College Basketball 2K3 is a solid game with plenty of modes to choose from, but it ultimately falls short of being an accurate simulation of college basketball. The passing system is far too slow and imprecise to break down the zone defenses effectively, even when running plays. This also affects the post-up game, which is almost rendered useless for anything but a pull-up jumper. Casual fans probably won't notice such problems, but the hard-core college basketball fan will more than likely be frustrated with them.