NBA Live 14 producer addresses 'disappointed' fans, says updates coming

NBA Live 14 executive producer Sean O'Brien wants players to know that the development team has heard the feedback and has a plan to "make NBA Live 14 a better game as quickly as we can."

O'Brien addressed recent criticism of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One basketball game in an open letter published today on the EA Sports website.

"We hear loud and clear that some of you are disappointed in various aspects of NBA Live 14, and I'm sorry if the game doesn't live up to your expectations," he wrote. "Looking at your feedback, we have laid out a plan to make NBA Live 14 a better game as quickly as we can."

Player feedback indicates that the game is too difficult to learn, and the developers are "working on improving the way the game teaches the controls and on-boards new users." The developer will also conduct a series of Twitch stream to teach players having difficulty with the game. Developers have also created blog posts called the Controller Guide, Perfecting Your Style and Levels of the Dribble to help players.

O'Brien explained that EA also plans to make "drastic and immediate improvements" to NBA Live 14's animations and graphics, explaining that those weren't a priority given that they wanted to launch the game this year.

"In order to get gameplay up and running this year we had to prioritize," he wrote. "We felt authentic gameplay, control and the connected experience would provide the best foundation for the future. As a result, game visuals and animation polish suffered. Improvements on these fronts are also in development now for NBA Live 14. You will notice in the coming weeks and months that the game's visuals and animation will improve significantly."

EA CEO Andrew Wilson also addressed NBA Live 14 on the company's official site and reiterated the desire to improve the game.

"I do think we have built a strong foundation, so we're accelerating a number of game updates to address your biggest issues, including improving the way the game teaches the new gameplay controls," Wilson wrote. "We promised to get back to top form with NBA Live, and we're committed to delivering on that. We are in this for the long haul."

EA also addressed launch problems with another EA Sports property, FIFA 14, today. According to a support article, launching the game on Xbox One with two controllers connected may cause it to crash. A day one update is in the works to fix the issue.