fred33
10-07-2008, 03:20 PM
Talk to Tony Parker about NBA Live 09, the game that features his mug on millions of covers throughout the world, and the hardcore gamer comes out of him. ""I used to stay up all night playing Live," he says. "It would take me three days to play all 82 games of my season, but I'd play all day every day if I could."
Talk to Tony Parker about the Spurs being labeled "boring", however, and the superstar's eyes really light up. "I think if we had Knicks on our jersey they would love us. If we had Knicks on our jersey and we were winning, nobody would complain. It's because we're in a small market out in San Antonio.
"I don't think I'm boring. I don't think Manu Ginobili is boring. It's just the fact that we play in a small market. If Tim Duncan had Knicks on his jersey, he'd be a god. He'd be more than Patrick Ewing. With four championships and two MVPs, I think people realize he's one of the best ever, but if he played in New York he'd be way more famous."
Parker sat down with ESPN while in Vancouver to perform motion-capture for his new game while at the same time getting his hands on the title for the first time as he battled other players like Brandon Roy, Rudy Gay, and Andre Iguodala, each playing as their cyber selves (and of course, each trying to score 50).
But that's when reality set in.
The game is going to be the first NBA title to feature online player rating updates from Synergy Sports Technology, an analytics provider that more than 25 NBA teams use for scouting. Using this information, gamers (and ballers playing as themselves) will no longer be able to simply jack up shots from anywhere on the court and run up the score. To play as Tony Parker, you're going to need to, well, play like Tony Parker, a player Synergy breaks down as scoring 58 percent of his points as the pick and roll ball handler, 23 percent as a spot-up shooter, and 11 percent through isolation.
And thanks to these daily updates, individual player ratings are going to rise and fall throughout the season based off of performance, making the video game characters seem a little more (should I say it?) human.
"You're going to live the ups and downs of the season through us," explains Parker. "You can't be on fire the whole season. You're going to see ups and downs your whole career. You're really going to feel that through the game.
"Fans are going to see everything now, especially with the updates and tracking our tendencies. It's a lot of information. It's almost like scouting. If you're ten years old, isn't this too much information? It's crazy how real the game is getting."
Parker, who claims he is going to save the data from games where he's "on fire" and continually relive those moments in Live, says he doesn't know exactly what makes a player get into a zone, but he sure loves the feeling once he's there.
"If I knew, I think everybody would try to steal it from me," Parker says with a laugh. "Everybody wants to have that feeling. Everything feels like you're in slow motion and everything you do seems like it's about two or three plays of what everybody else is doing. I felt it this year in the playoffs when I scored 41 against Phoenix. I wish I could bottle it up and have it all the time. That's why they call it on fire. When you reach that point you can basically do whatever you want to on the court. Nobody can stop you."
At this point, it's time for Parker to head back to capturing the dribble, pass, and shot motions that made him famous for the game, but before he leaves I fire off a few more questions ...
His favorite player to watch? "Kobe."
The most underrated player in the NBA? "Andre Iguodala, and not just because he's in the same room. People don't realize how much he does out on the court."
Parker's favorite team to score on? "That's not nice, man, that's not nice. I like to play against Phoenix. I like to play in the fast tempo."
The biggest trash talker he ever faced? "Gary Payton. He's not in the league anymore, but you can't even print what he said. It's like beep-beep-beep."
His video game habits now that he's married? "I used to play a lot. I play a little bit less now, obviously when you're married, you don't play as many video games, but I still play a lot on the road. I stop myself from playing when she's (Eva Longoria Parker) around. She doesn't need to say a thing."
Talk to Tony Parker about the Spurs being labeled "boring", however, and the superstar's eyes really light up. "I think if we had Knicks on our jersey they would love us. If we had Knicks on our jersey and we were winning, nobody would complain. It's because we're in a small market out in San Antonio.
"I don't think I'm boring. I don't think Manu Ginobili is boring. It's just the fact that we play in a small market. If Tim Duncan had Knicks on his jersey, he'd be a god. He'd be more than Patrick Ewing. With four championships and two MVPs, I think people realize he's one of the best ever, but if he played in New York he'd be way more famous."
Parker sat down with ESPN while in Vancouver to perform motion-capture for his new game while at the same time getting his hands on the title for the first time as he battled other players like Brandon Roy, Rudy Gay, and Andre Iguodala, each playing as their cyber selves (and of course, each trying to score 50).
But that's when reality set in.
The game is going to be the first NBA title to feature online player rating updates from Synergy Sports Technology, an analytics provider that more than 25 NBA teams use for scouting. Using this information, gamers (and ballers playing as themselves) will no longer be able to simply jack up shots from anywhere on the court and run up the score. To play as Tony Parker, you're going to need to, well, play like Tony Parker, a player Synergy breaks down as scoring 58 percent of his points as the pick and roll ball handler, 23 percent as a spot-up shooter, and 11 percent through isolation.
And thanks to these daily updates, individual player ratings are going to rise and fall throughout the season based off of performance, making the video game characters seem a little more (should I say it?) human.
"You're going to live the ups and downs of the season through us," explains Parker. "You can't be on fire the whole season. You're going to see ups and downs your whole career. You're really going to feel that through the game.
"Fans are going to see everything now, especially with the updates and tracking our tendencies. It's a lot of information. It's almost like scouting. If you're ten years old, isn't this too much information? It's crazy how real the game is getting."
Parker, who claims he is going to save the data from games where he's "on fire" and continually relive those moments in Live, says he doesn't know exactly what makes a player get into a zone, but he sure loves the feeling once he's there.
"If I knew, I think everybody would try to steal it from me," Parker says with a laugh. "Everybody wants to have that feeling. Everything feels like you're in slow motion and everything you do seems like it's about two or three plays of what everybody else is doing. I felt it this year in the playoffs when I scored 41 against Phoenix. I wish I could bottle it up and have it all the time. That's why they call it on fire. When you reach that point you can basically do whatever you want to on the court. Nobody can stop you."
At this point, it's time for Parker to head back to capturing the dribble, pass, and shot motions that made him famous for the game, but before he leaves I fire off a few more questions ...
His favorite player to watch? "Kobe."
The most underrated player in the NBA? "Andre Iguodala, and not just because he's in the same room. People don't realize how much he does out on the court."
Parker's favorite team to score on? "That's not nice, man, that's not nice. I like to play against Phoenix. I like to play in the fast tempo."
The biggest trash talker he ever faced? "Gary Payton. He's not in the league anymore, but you can't even print what he said. It's like beep-beep-beep."
His video game habits now that he's married? "I used to play a lot. I play a little bit less now, obviously when you're married, you don't play as many video games, but I still play a lot on the road. I stop myself from playing when she's (Eva Longoria Parker) around. She doesn't need to say a thing."