Considering how EA’s recent NBA games have turned out, and the fact that this year’s was delayed by three weeks, there is understandably some concern over whether NBA Live 15 will turn out any good. Fortunately, EA isn’t shying away from allowing people to try the game without a purchase, as it today announced plans for an early access trial and a demo.
Prior to Live 15’s launch next week, EA Access members will get their usual early access to the game on October 23, providing them with six hours to play all aspects of the game. If you try out the game this way and then decide to buy the full game, you’ll be able to transfer all of your progress. This same trial will be available to non-members on Xbox One on October 28, the same day the game launches.
PS4 owners will get a more traditional demo on October 28. You’ll be limited to a head-to-head matchup between Oklahoma City and Cleveland with five-minute quarters and an NBA Finals-style atmosphere, which is pretty standard fare for a sports game demo. There will also be a tutorial (the “Adidas Learn Live Tutorial,” specifically) featuring cover star Damian Lillard.
We learned this week that, even before EA is able to see how well Live 15 sells, the series is “guaranteed” to continue. That’s good news for Live fans, as a strong sales performance may be tough, given that the latest NBA 2K game (which typically outsells Live anyway) has already been available for several weeks.