College Hoops 2K7

Now that we're in the next-gen era, iterative sports titles are slowing to a creative crawl on PS2 and Xbox. The latest to dribble down the path is the mistitled College Hoops 2K7, which should be referred to as College Hoops 2K6¼. As meager as the updates are, the game is smart to lure fans with its great price ($19.99, which is $10 less than last year). Even without significant updates, the game continues on its dominant path. But then again, there's not much in the way of competition. The game's main challenger, EA's NCAA March Madness 07, is looking to make a late-season run to compete as it'll hit the shelves when the real March Madness starts. The game's greatest asset is the same as any college game's greatest asset (if it's done right, and it is here): fans tear at their skin to cheer on their team. Rivalry games, tournament games, close games, they're all met with howling fans who stomp, clap, serenade, and chant on the home team's behalf. The energy is awesome, enough to keep you struggling for buckets when you're down by 10 at home, or enough to motivate you to hush the crowd by launching up another nothing-but-net 3-ball. And it's all aided by amped-up commentary to replace last year's lackluster effort.

"College Hoops 2K7 is a good college basketball game, but it's nearly identical to College Hoops 2K6."

"2K Sport created a very impressive game... on the Xbox 360. College Hoops 2K7 on the Xbox is more of a cut-and-paste job of 2K6, with virtually identical graphics and sound. A few nice control tweaks like the jump stop, doesn't add anything fresh however. While the presentation, Legacy and online play are all great, 2K7 feels more like a roster update. It's a great value if you don't have 2K6 and love college hoops. If you do own college hoops, you may just want to update your rosters."