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NBA Infinite is a solid basketball option in a crowded mobile field

4K View2024-02-15

NBA Infinite

8.2

Fast-pacedSportsMultiplayerBasketball

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SHOULD I PLAY NBA INFINITE?

If you’ve played all the other mobile basketball offerings—games including NBA 2K24 MyTeam, NBA Live Mobile, and NBA 2K Mobile—then NBA Infinite is definitely worth giving a try despite the very competitive mobile basketball market. Like with MyTeam, I had a blast building up my fantasy lineup, upgrading player skills, and enjoying NBA Infinite’s fast-paced gameplay loop. And though I wouldn’t say that this game breaks the mold, it was still fun and easy to pick up on the go.

TIME PLAYED

I spent around three hours with NBA Infinite, which allowed me to try out the quick 11-point games, 3v3 ranked matches, the 3-point contest, and training modes. I also spent some time upgrading my fantasy roster.

WHAT’S AWESOME ABOUT NBA INFINITE?

• Quick matches. I never had to spend more than fifteen minutes on a game of NBA Infinite, no matter my chosen mode. Some modes were judged by which team could score a mere eleven points first, and one-on-one matchups ended in under five minutes. This is the exact pace I’m looking for in a mobile basketball game, and it made it very easy to play on the go.

• Upgrading and building my roster. One of the cooler aspects of NBA Infinite is that I could build up my fantasy roster, and each player had unique special abilities. For example, I unlocked an ability where every time Lebron James dunked, he got a dominance bonus to perform higher-level moves on the court. I also unlocked simpler abilities like the “nimble crossover,” increasing my ball handling. Extras like these added a new layer of complexity to the game, which was welcome and added incentive to build up my roster.

• Plenty to do. NBA Infinite is packed with enjoyable and interesting content. I was able to jump between multiple player-versus-player match types, take a break for three-point contests, and try to add to my roster with the hoop draft system. I also had fun with the shoot-out mode, where the goal was to score as many baskets as I could within the time limit. And no matter which mode I decided to play, they all contributed to my experience pool, which unlocked new items I could use for my fantasy team.

• Great-looking character models and smooth gameplay. As the name suggests, NBA Infinite has the official NBA license, so each team from the real league is represented, and it’s filled with league icons from Steph Curry to Kevin Durant. The game ran smoothly and looked great on my older Android phone, and although I experienced occasional lag when a player went for a tomahawk dunk or fancy crossover, it didn’t affect my overall playthrough experience.

WHAT SUCKS ABOUT NBA INFINITE?

• Internet required. NBA Infinite requires logging onto a server to play the game, which means a good internet connection or fast data is necessary. I would have loved to see an offline mode or some mode that can be played without always having to log on to the net, especially as my preferred way to play this is on the go while waiting for a train or bus and not in places that necessarily have a strong internet connection.

• Difficulty entering games. I had a few instances where I started connecting to a game but for some reason couldn’t actually get in. This may have been a glitch, or it may have been due to playing on pre-launch servers with a limited number of other players, but hopefully it’s not a persistent problem.

• Terrible voiced commentary. NBA Infinite’s color commentators were pretty hilarious, and I don’t mean that in a good way. These announcers had a parade of generic phrases throughout the game: “Good ball movement makes scoring easier”; “Mid-range jumper goes in”; and “This game went down to the wire.” These calls rarely added anything to what was actually happening in my game. It felt like they were picked out at random to make the game feel more authentic, but it just came across as awkward.