Visually you can say all the player’s likeness are correct and the game’s presentation feels like a TV Show with Chuck D introducing you to the match-ups, but that is about where it ends in the realm of good. You would figure that Midway would take their first next-gen Ballers title to new levels, but honestly it looks like most of the game is carried over from the regular Xbox console. From the low quality textures on backdrops and skin, to the stiff and unresponsive animations, Ballers just doesn’t feel like it’s ready for prime time. Let’s not forget the unforgiving load times. At least the special moves are done well with dunks that make you say “Boomshakalaka!”

Audio is about par for the course with a variation of hip hop licensed songs, squeaky shoes, and Chuck D is actually entertaining and funny. Of course like all sports titles, you will hear the “big catch phrases” more times that you would like which allows for the commentary to feel repetitive.

Gameplay is where Ballers takes a turn for the worse. While the core game play remains intact with one on one or two on two match ups trying to take that last critical shot to win the game, it is all jumbled up and broken due to the new combo system that just doesn’t work. You perform certain button presses to perform a move, string multiple moves like this together and it adds a multiplier to your score, and for better or worse, string enough of these moves together and you can come back from a 20 point beatdown with one basket. The super moves don’t make matters better as they totally kill any momentum or pacing of the game as when you activate a super move, it prompts you to an unskippable cut scene that last from 5-7 seconds in length. Talking about killing your flow!

Now if you are not like me and enjoy what Midway had to offer this go around, there are plenty of things to do in Ballers that will give you plenty of replay value. You have multiple game play modes including a solid career mode, you can create a baller, and you can even play online as a NBA Superstar, or your created baller. There’s promise of plenty of DLC for the game including gear, players, and more to keep the game fresh.

All in while, while not my cup of Gatorade, there are some things that die-hard arcade ballers will find interesting. I, in all honesty, was a big fan of this genre 5 years ago, but now it all just feels dated. In the case of NBA Ballers: The Chosen One, not only is concept stale, but some of the new features hurt the game more than help push it to the next level. Rent this one before you buy.