NBA Live 13 Cancelled By EA Sports

EA Sports simply can’t get its pro basketball game in gear, as the last b-ball game the publisher released was the mediocre NBA Live 10. That was followed by the abortive NBA Elite 11, before EA Sports threw up its hands and abandoned the court, leaving 2K Sports’ game to monopolize the genre.

The company then announced NBA Live 13 with a fanfare, noticeably abandoning the “Elite” moniker and re-adopting the “Live” banner.

However, it seems that there won’t be an EA Sports basketball game this year, either, as NBA Live 13 has been cancelled.

EA Sports released an open letter:

We also made a commitment to deliver a high quality experience — this is what our fans expect and what we demand of ourselves at EA SPORTS. But making great games is not easy, and we’re just not there yet on NBA LIVE 13. Having continued to look at the game over the past few days, it’s clear that we won’t be ready in October. And rather than launch midway through the season, we’re going to sit out the full year and stay focused on making next year’s game great. This decision puts us on the right track for success well into the future in a rapidly changing industry.

I’m disappointed that we have not yet met our high expectations with NBA LIVE, but I remain motivated about where we’re going. We’re committed to delivering new innovation in online, and our progress in the visual presentation of the game continues to take big strides. We also know that a great game starts with great gameplay, and this remains a huge priority for us.

This wasn’t an easy decision, but it’s the right one for our fans. I hope you’ll agree when you’re able to play the game next year.

The letters apparent sincerity was seriously undercut by EA censoring (!) the word “update” when fans demanded a roster update to NBA Live 10.

NBA 2K13 is due to be released on October 9 for every platform imaginable.

Jonah Falcon is a blogger for TMRzoo and GameStooge.com and covers all gaming consoles and platforms including Sony Playstation 3, Microsoft XBOX 360, Nintendo Wii, Sony PSP and computer games designed for Mac OS, Microsoft Windows and Linux operating systems. Jonah provides his readers with reviews, previews, release dates and up to date gaming industry news, trailers and rumors.

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