<s>
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
is	O
a	O
basketball	B-Application
simulation	O
video	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
EA	O
Tiburon	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
EA	O
Sports	O
,	O
featuring	O
James	O
Harden	O
of	O
the	O
Houston	O
Rockets	O
as	O
its	O
cover	O
athlete	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
released	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
on	O
September	O
15	O
,	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
the	O
21st	O
installment	O
in	O
the	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
series	I-Application
and	O
the	O
follow-up	O
to	O
2015	O
's	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
16	I-Application
after	O
EA	O
took	O
a	O
year	O
off	O
between	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Though	O
it	O
received	O
criticism	O
for	O
its	O
gameplay	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
praised	O
for	O
improvements	O
over	O
recent	O
installments	O
and	O
became	O
the	O
series	O
 '	O
highest-rated	O
game	O
since	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
10	I-Application
according	O
to	O
Metacritic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
features	O
Houston	O
Rockets	O
guard	O
James	O
Harden	O
as	O
the	O
cover	O
athlete	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Harden	O
previously	O
shared	O
the	O
cover	O
of	O
NBA	B-Application
2K16	I-Application
with	O
Steph	O
Curry	O
and	O
Anthony	O
Davis	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
the	O
first	O
basketball	B-Application
video	O
game	O
to	O
feature	O
a	O
full	O
WNBA	O
roster	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
mode	O
allows	O
players	O
to	O
experience	O
basketball	B-Application
life	O
both	O
on	O
-	O
and	O
off-court	O
with	O
more	O
clothes	O
and	O
a	O
Game	O
Face	O
app	O
for	O
iOS	B-Application
and	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
allowing	O
players	O
to	O
scan	O
their	O
face	O
for	O
upload	O
to	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
soundtrack	O
was	O
also	O
made	O
available	O
for	O
streaming	O
on	O
Spotify	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
was	O
released	O
on	O
September	O
15	O
,	O
2017	O
,	O
several	O
days	O
before	O
its	O
rival	O
,	O
2K	O
Sports	O
 '	O
NBA	B-Application
2K18	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
received	O
"	O
average	O
"	O
reviews	O
from	O
critics	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
review	B-Application
aggregator	I-Application
Metacritic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
feels	O
as	O
accessible	O
as	O
a	O
basketball	B-Application
game	O
should	O
and	O
is	O
a	O
step	O
or	O
two	O
ahead	O
of	O
what	O
many	O
fans	O
might	O
have	O
anticipated	O
for	O
a	O
game	O
following	O
up	O
on	O
an	O
outright	O
cancellation.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
EGMNow	O
gave	O
the	O
game	O
7.5/10	O
,	O
writing	O
:	O
"	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
has	O
improved	O
in	O
almost	O
every	O
way	O
over	O
its	O
predecessor	O
,	O
making	O
a	O
strong	O
case	O
for	O
its	O
continued	O
existence	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
a	O
lackluster	O
franchise	O
and	O
a	O
sense	O
of	O
been-there-done-that	O
with	O
that	O
other	O
basketball	B-Application
series	O
puts	O
Live	O
18	O
one	O
step	O
behind	O
the	O
competition.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
gave	O
the	O
game	O
6.5/10	O
,	O
saying	O
:	O
"	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18s	I-Application
simplistic	O
and	O
fluid	O
mechanics	O
make	O
for	O
an	O
approachable	O
game	O
of	O
NBA	O
,	O
or	O
WNBA	O
,	O
basketball	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
GameSpot	O
said	O
"	O
Between	O
the	O
WNBA	O
matches	O
and	O
the	O
position	O
variety	O
of	O
The	O
One	O
,	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
succeeds	O
–	O
albeit	O
barely	O
–	O
as	O
a	O
viable	O
alternative	O
to	O
NBA	O
2K18.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Game	O
Informer	O
said	O
"	O
NBA	B-Application
Live	I-Application
18	I-Application
still	O
does	O
n't	O
match	O
or	O
best	O
NBA	B-Application
2K18s	I-Application
deep	O
feature	O
set	O
,	O
but	O
this	O
year	O
does	O
show	O
progress	O
.	O
</s>
