Niantic Over the years it has become one of the main companies in the augmented reality sector. The success of Ingress, but especially that of Pokémon GO, a game that not only managed to survive the pandemic, but even prospered, are exceptional references that place the studio created by John Hanke, former head of Google Earth, among the excellences of the sector.
It is a shame that, despite the references and solid licenses available, not all products launched on the market by Niantic have managed to make their way onto the market. Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, Catan: World Explorers and Transformers: Heavy Metal were either closed a few months after their release or never saw the light of day, while Pikmin Bloom, despite support from Nintendo and Miyamoto himself, certainly didn't get the same. success than Pokémon. GO.
With NBA All-World the San Francisco studio tries again, trying to enchant not the fans of the pocket monsters, but those of the NBA, one of the most famous, followed, loved and glamorous sports championships in the entire world. planet. It's true that few things in the world have the appeal of Pokémon, but the ability to capture LeBron James, Luka Doncic or Ja Morant and put them on your team has a certain appeal.
But, as we will see in NBA All-World Review, not everything went as planned.
Lay the groundwork
The premise that must be made before approaching this type of games is always the same: these are products in constant evolution that, if the public supports them, will progressively add new features, modes and activities. Just look at the evolution of Pokémon GO (whose comparison will be a constant in this review) to get an idea of what could await us. Over the years, hundreds of pocket monsters, online games, daily activities, etc. have been added: we can imagine that something like this will also happen with NBA All-World.
What is surprising, however, is its arrival on the market. without many of the features seen in the Niantic blockbuster, something that makes these first weeks less exciting than expected. It's still a free game, with optional purchases, but we wouldn't have minded a little more excitement and options.
But first things first.
NBA All-World is a augmented reality game for mobile devices in which you have to walk the streets (or the forest, the field...) to accumulate steps, but above all to meet the NBA players who have invaded the planet. Challenging them will help you both to recruit them into your team and to gain experience and strengthen the stars you already have.
They will be scattered throughout the city. virtual places quite special, generally located near real monuments or particular points in the cities (they are the same ones used for Pokémon GO gyms) that, if visited, will allow you to obtain new accessories with which to dress your athletes, objects to strengthen them. etc . In addition, some of these places will host a type of weekly tournament thanks to which it will be possible to win additional content based on the time spent at the top of the ranking.
Yours team level It will determine which basketball players you can recruit and which events you can participate in: in other words, it will not be possible to get Stephen Curry or participate in the richest tournaments from day one, but first you will have to "build" a team. worthy of that name. To do this, it is necessary to meet certain requirements, such as having a certain number of high-level players or having recruited a sufficient number of them.
Go down to the field
The defining feature of NBA All-World is the way in which different NBA players are challenged and recruited. In fact, it is not enough to find them, but first you have to defeat the different basketball players. HE Minigames There are mainly two available: a shooting challenge and a one-on-one challenge. The first is easy to understand: although there are four different variations, in the end all you have to do is stop the cursor near the indicator to make a basket. Whoever makes the most baskets wins.
Le 1 challenge against 1 They are a little more complex to handle, since you have to do everything with just one finger. A single touch for a feint or a hit for a movement: with these simple movements you will have to try to unbalance your opponents and find the opening to go to the basket or shoot. On defense, all you have to do is wait for the right moment to try to steal or block. Everything, especially after the February 21, 2023 update, works quite well, despite some slightly stiff animations and less obvious differences between different players.
Problems
If the basic structure seems like a variation of what was seen in Pokémon GO, designed to attract Stars and Stripes basketball fans, the way in which NBA All-World was created does not seem, at the moment, to be up to par. . Niantic, both NBA license. In fact, the feeling is that the game hit the market in a still preliminary version, with many functions not yet activated (trading, multiplayer) and others not fully exploited. For example, why not make each player's unique characteristics more evident? Using a big, thick center like Drummond shouldn't be the same as controlling a speedy shooter like Jordan Poole. Why is everything based on one-on-one and there is no mode based on team building like Fantasy Basketball or Ultimate Team? Does it make sense to challenge a center with callous hands in a three-man game? And why do some players, certainly not famous for their athletic abilities, do NBA Jam-style dunks? Furthermore, all basketball players have the same animations and movements, something that greatly dampens the joy of having a Curry or a Jokic, since they are practically identical.
Also, after a few hours of playing, the different challenges can get a little boring. boredom, because throwing 200 Pokéballs is a quick gesture that takes a few seconds, while challenging an NBA player takes several minutes and requires precision, two things that don't go well with walking around with your nose in your phone.
Furthermore, the style chosen for the game, composed of blacks, geometries and electric colors, seems more suitable for a Tron than for an NBA game, not to mention the fact that currently NBA All-World is quite heavy and consumes a lot of battery. In short, there is still a lot of work ahead of Ninantic and the next few weeks will be decisive to see the pace at which the news will arrive. What is missing, for example, is a routine of daily activities that pushes the player to return, also due to a player base currently limited not only in number, but also in the first weeks by the possibility of being able to recruit only a few athletes. .
Conclusions
Tested version Android digital delivery Google Play Holygamerz.com 6.0 audience ND your voteAfter the first weeks in the company of NBA All-World, we can only thank them for the effort to adapt the world of basketball to Niantic's augmented reality experiences. It is a shame that the approach, in our opinion, is quite superficial, with little content and little variety, accentuated by having NBA players practically identical in their movements and skills, something that makes the recruitment and game phases quite flat . By improving these aspects, enriching the animation pool of basketball players and perhaps giving meaning to the fact of having all these players, perhaps with a team mode in the style of fantasy basketball, NBA All-World could also aspire to become a fan hole. capable of growing and prospering. The potential and strength of the license are there, it would be enough to exploit them. As it is, after a few games you feel like you've seen more or less everything and the fun could soon wear off.
PRO
- The three-person and one-on-one races at the beginning were fun
- Lots of content related to the NBA
AGAINST
- The challenges are always the same.
- Little difference between the different players.
- Few activities
