'NBA Live 19' is the first pro sports game to allow men and women to play on the same team — but there's still tons of room to grow
NBA Live 19
NBA Live 19
  • "NBA Live 19" lets men and women play together on mixed-gender teams, a first for a professional sports game.

  • "Live 19" also allows you to make custom female players for the first time, and both custom characters and real-world WNBA players can mix it up with the men in the game's streetball modes.

  • Last year's "Live" was the first basketball game to include WNBA teams, but they could only play against each other.

  • In "NBA Live 19," women feature more prominently in the game's core modes, but there's still a long way to go towards equal representation in these games. 

This year's "NBA Live 19" breaks new ground as the first professional sports game to offer mixed gender competition, continuing a progressive trend from developer EA Sports.

Equal representation of both genders has been a struggle for the video game industry, with major developers often more interested in pleasing core male gamers than engaging the ever-growing audience of women playing video games. But EA Sports has quietly been taking strides to create games that reflect a global athletic community and include women competing at the highest level of their respective fields of competition.

EA Sports's NHL franchise was the first to allow female create-a-players in a professional sports game in 2011. In 2015, EA added 12 international women's teams to "FIFA 16," another first. The following year, female fighters entered the octagon for "EA Sports UFC 2," with Ronda Rousey, the UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion at the time, sharing the cover with Men's Featherweight Champion Conor McGregor.

UFC2 Rhonda Rousey
UFC2 Rhonda Rousey

Rhonda Rousey was a cover star for "UFC 2," which featured a full career mode for women fighters.

So, maybe it shouldn't have been a surprise when EA announced last year that "NBA Live 18" would feature all 12 WNBA teams and their rosters.

The move was announced just a month before the game's release, but came as a welcome addition for fans of the WNBA and women's sports in general. It was the first time WNBA teams were included in a video game in the league's 21-year history. However, the WNBA teams were limited to only playing each other in the game, and the announcers did not reference specific players during commentary. Despite their inclusion, the WNBA portion of the "NBA Live 18" seemed more like a fun novelty than a part of the core game.

NBA Live 19
NBA Live 19

NBA Live 19/EA Sports

"NBA Live 19" addresses this issue by placing women front and center in the game's career mode, dubbed The One. Players can create and play as a woman or man, and are placed alongside mixed gender teams of NBA and WNBA players. As a game mode, The One is focused on building the best possible streetball team to dominate courts across the world. Facing off against different stars will allow you to unlock them for your team, encouraging players to experiment and find the best combination of men and women.