As EA Sports continues to destroy the legacy of their NBA Live series on home consoles, they're slowly building a small portable edition that's not far off from where it should be on next-gen consoles.

While there are still sloppy mistakes to be had, the depth of this PSP edition is a blueprint for future Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 updates. As it stands, the lesser hardware provides a better basketball game than the version on the Xbox 360.

Another atrocious default camera greets users when they load up their first game. Better cameras are easily accessible from the menu system, and once settled in, the finer points begin to show through.

Defense is the glaring change, and on everything aside from the lower two difficulties, this handheld effort can put up a fight against a human opponent.

Slight glitches like the point guard standing still for the entire shot clock are a distracting issues on occasion, though slightly forgivable given the overall quality elsewhere.

NBA Live carries its slightly inconsistent, loose feel to the PSP. However, a change up in the animation prevents the player from simply pushing their way through a defense. Double teams now have a point, stopping a player immediately if the situation calls for it. The additional animation routine leads a frantic spurt as the offensive player struggles to find a way out.

Driving to the inside is also met with resistance. A defender will now stick to the offensive player in a natural defensive push. Depending on a number of factors, one side will win out and either score or stop the play completely. Finding an open man takes on a new level of importance.

A carry over from the current consoles, the X-Factor is an addition that picks a bench player who through solid play on the floor, can have access to Superstar moves.