Village Gamer

Ahead of the October 5th release date for NBA Elite 11, EA Sports has released a playable demo for the latest Burnaby-developed basketball title. The demo already available for download on the Xbox LIVE™ Marketplace for all Xbox LIVE Gold Subscribers. The demo for will be available for PS3 players on the PlayStation®Network on September 22nd, and then available for all Xbox Live Silver Subscribers on September 28th.

In the demo, gamers will get their first chance to try the all-new Hands-On Control system that allows for one-to-one responsiveness and introduces a skill-based shooting system to the basketball videogame genre. Only in NBA Elite 11 will you have the control to pull of exactly the right move at exactly the right time, and hit that buzzer beating shot based on your own skill.

In addition to a having a chance to rewrite history by playing through the 4th quarter of the 2010 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, the NBA Elite 11 demo will feature modes to help users practice the new Hands-On Control scheme and prepare for the release of NBA Elite 11. These include:

* Tutorial Mode – An interactive tutorial will walk users through the basics of Hands-On Control
* Practice Mode – Like in real life, the more time you spend in the gym the better you will be. In Practice Mode, users will be able to spend as much time as they want practicing Hands-On Control in a virtual gym environment. Have a friend jump on locally and both players can master both the offensive and defensive sides of the Hands-On Control system
* Become Legendary – Start your path to becoming an NBA legend in the demo by creating your character and playing in the Jordan Draft Showcase. Earn XP and carry your character onto the full version of NBA Elite 11 in October. In addition, players who share the demo with friends on Xbox LIVE and the PlayStation Network will also earn additional XP for their Become Legendary character.

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHR7lB9ppr8]

The demo for NBA Elite 11 will also allow users to play the game using a button control scheme, if they so choose. “Like putting in time at the gym, there’s learning curve with Hands-On Control, says David Littman, Creative Director, NBA Elite 11. “But once you feel the difference between Hands-On Control and the traditional button configuration, you’ll understand why we chose the direction we did.” To compare Hands-On Control to the old button configuration, players can switch between the two control schemes in the Lakers-Celtics and Become Legendary portions of the demo by entering the Control Settings section of the Pause menu.

Using the design principles from some of EA Sports top rated franchises, NBA Elite 11 introduces several significant gameplay changes that center on user control. The new ‘Hands-On Control’ scheme allows for one-to-one responsiveness of a player’s movement and actions on the court, while a new physics system in the game allows each player on the court to move independently of one another, removing the two-man interactions that have long taken the user control out of basketball simulation videogames. Combine all of the above with a new skill based shooting system, the EA Sports Basketball Association, as well as three free modes of NBA JAM included in all new copies of NBA Elite 11, and it’s easy to see why NBA Elite 11 is poised to revolutionize the basketball videogame experience.

EA has also announced that Grammy Award Winning Producer and DJ, 9th Wonder, and Roc Nation star MC, J. Cole, have created the soundtrack for EA Sports™ NBA Elite 11. The game will include a full soundtrack designed by 9th Wonder and title track “The Plan” by J. Cole. This is the first EA Sports NBA title to have a custom soundtrack that has been created solely by two artists.

A force in the music industry, 9th Wonder has worked with some of the biggest names in hip hop. His first major label placement occurred on Jay-Z’s critically acclaimed “Black Album,” and his work with Mary J. Blige on her album, “The BreakThrough” earned him a Grammy. 9th has also worked with Destiny’s Child, Erykah Badu and Ludacris among other recording artists. He is currently in the recording studio with rap superstar David Banner working on their much anticipated album “Death of a Pop Star,” which is slated for release in November.

“Being the first artist to throw down the full soundtrack for NBA Elite 11 was pretty amazing,” says 9th Wonder. “I was able to mesh together the two things that I love in life, basketball and music.”

J. Cole, the first MC to be signed onto JAY-Z’s Roc Nation label, is on a path to becoming the next big name in the Hip Hop industry. Embarking on his passion for music at age 12, J. Cole draws inspiration from some of the biggest names in Hip Hop to create his own signature style. Currently recording and producing his first album under the Roc Nation label, the critically acclaimed Cole has already appeared on JAY-Z’s “The Blueprint 3” on the song fittingly titled “A Star is Born”.

“As a big sports video game fan, it’s an honor to be a part of EA Sports NBA Elite 2011. I thank EA for trusting in me to create the game’s main song. I truly enjoyed the experience.”