REVIEW: NBA 2K24 — A Shot That Came Up Short

This year we saw the FIBA Basketball World Championships held in the Philippines. Top basketball players from around the world including NBA superstars played in our arenas only days prior to the release of NBA 2K24.

With the Philippines being a basketball frenzied country, NBA 2K24 is one of the highly anticipated releases for the year.

NBA 2K24 also marks the franchise’s 25^th Anniversary release and this is the 4^th instance that basketball legend Kobe Bryant has graced the cover after NBA 2K10, NBA 2K17, and NBA2K21.

STORY

NBA 2K’s My Career has always been the game’s story mode. In this mode, you get to create your own player that you’ll play through the NBA season or in exhibition or tournaments in the open-world The City.

NBA 2K24’s My Career places you again the role of MP (stands for MyPlayer), 2K’s protagonist since his introduction NBA 2K14. As compared to previous editions of My Career wherein you start as either a college player or an undrafted star, NBA 2K has decided to get rid of an extensive backstory.

This year, you are placed right in the middle of the action and being touted as the next big generational talent since MP is a 3^rd generation NBA player after his grandfather and father before him. It’s also notable that creating My Career has been the easiest in years. You now have the option of building your custom player or base it on build of an existing NBA player. As for my review, I decided to use Klay Thompson as the base of my player.

As you play through NBA games, aside from winning you are given objectives such as outplaying rivals from the opposing team. Completing these tasks lets you earn VCs (Virtual Currency) to help improve your player’s stats or purchase in-game cosmetics such as NBA gear, clothing, accessories, and leading footwear brands and these don’t come cheap. You would need to decide how to use your VC whether it’s for fashion or function.

If you wouldn’t invest real world money to purchase VCs, it would be a long grind before you level up your player. Even with the inclusive 100,000 VCs to start the game, I was only able to come up with a pitiful level 79 player since I started this review. It’s an average player at best and hard to complete with established NBA superstars.

GAMEPLAY

NBA 2K is the only basketball simulation game out today. It has put out the competition indirectly years ago because of how close the gameplay to the real sport. Real basketball takes skill and players with basketball dreams can live it with their controllers instead of an actual basketball.

Over the years, NBA 2K has perfected the gameplay that NBA players don’t only look the same but also included their signature plays and expressions in the game. If you’re a casual NBA 2K fan, you might not notice the nuances added each year. I noticed that this year, the sound of the dribbling basketball is more noticeable, which makes it feel heavier like you’re actually dribbling a basketball.

Aside from minor differences, NBA 2K24 plays like NBA 2K23 generally. Depending on your perspective, this could be both a good and a bad thing. My take on it, why fix something that is not broken? NBA 2K’s gameplay works and does not require an overhaul as the sport has been the same in years.

NBA 2K24 also introduced ProPlay to this year’s gameplay – a feature that translates NBA broadcast footage in NBA 2K gameplay that makes it appear your watching a live game on television.  ProPlay is triggered when you execute the perfect shot by releasing the shot stick/button perfectly in the shot meter.

Speaking of changes, a feature that I’ve enjoyed for years, MyTeam – NBA 2K’s fantasy mode that lets you build your dream team by purchasing in-game NBA cards. It’s like gatcha in other games that you purchase with VCs.

MyTeam had a major change in NBA 2K24 starting with the shared progression in the season rewards along with MyCareer. This year allows you to earn rewards without having to play both modes. This year also introduced a paid season pass that when purchased earns you addition XP bonuses, skip level progressions, and additional premium rewards.

The Auction House was also removed and replaced with Player Market. Now, all players would have access to the cards available instead of a game chance with the Auction House. Cards are now sold with a fixed price with a rotating daily discount in Deal of the Day. Regardless of how good the Player Market is, you need still need VC or MTP (MyTeam’s currency) to purchase.

Another feature that was introduced in NBA 2K24 is Mamba Moments. A mode like the Jordan Challenges in the past – you get to relive iconic moments in Kobe’s legendary career complete with footage from the actual games. The broadcast for the earlier Mamba Moments even includes the NBA on NBC soundtrack that completes the nostalgia of watching an NBA game in the 90s. It’s only right that this appreciation is given to Kobe as he is arguably the closest that we got to see to another Michael Jordan.

VISUAL and PERFORMANCE

There has been no major leap in the next gen edition of NBA 2K24. As mentioned in our Gameplay review, this year’s edition looks and plays similarly to NBA 2K23. Aside from the introduction of ProPlay, and a few new animations to jump shots, layups, and dunks everything else stayed the same.

I’ve spent a lot of time with NBA 2K24’s Photo Mode. This can even rival the photo mode of other AAA games. There are a lot of options to choose from that brings that level of realism and recreate moments whether be it on the modern era, 90s, and even the 80s.

A minor addition is the inclusion of a celebrity guest courtside. Similar to an NBA broadcast, the game also acknowledges a significant guest in the crowd. So far, I’ve only seen retired NBA stars like Dwayne Wade when you play in Miami and David West in Golden State.

A mode that I seldomly play is The Blacktop, which is NBA 2K’s edition streetball. Players are now wearing their warm-up gear instead of plain clothes. What I love about Blacktop this time is the crowd celebration. When the game ends, the crowd rushes to the court celebrating with the player who hit the winning the shot.

VERDICT

The inclusion of ProPlay in NBA 2K24 elevated the gameplay experience. The quick cuts to different camera angles make NBA 2K24 look like an actual tv broadcast and brings more realism to the game.

The changes to both MyCareer and MyTeam are welcome addition for fans of both this modes. However, the experience is ruined with the growing microtransactions that were not in previous editions. You need to purchase in-game currency to be competitive with other players.

With NBA 2K being based on basketball, a sport that hasn’t changed much in years, there’s only so much that you can do with each release. Instead of a having an annual release, may be it’s time to consider having a paid update or DLC for future editions of the game.

If you’re a casual player that’s only playing exhibition games, you are not missing anything, you can still play NBA 2K23.

However, if you have budget to spare, NBA 2K24 is still worth picking up.

[This review is based on a retail copy of the game provided by the publisher.]