PlayStation 3
Released in 2013 by 2K Sports
Grade: B+
2K had already established an impressive basketball sim, rich with realistic logic and lifelike animations, but unfortunately this version comes with some annoying quirks.
Where it falls in the series
On PS3, NBA 2K goes from 2K7 to 2K18. This is the first year that the series also has a PS4 version, and it shows.
Praises and gripes
This review is only negative because the game comes after the finely tuned NBA 2K13, perhaps my favorite basketball game ever. In a vacuum, this game is amazing. But compared to NBA 2K13, it’s frustrating and sloppy.
There’s great stuff baked into the engine here. The controls are deep, allowing many genuine moves. Every player has his own shooting animations, around the court and at the foul line. Every player also a distinct set of strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies. There are many plays to learn, and without knowing what to do, you’re lost out there. You need to be deliberate in your offensive approach. For example, players who come off a screen and catch-and-shoot smoothly are much more likely to score than if you just freewheel it.
This means that it’s almost imperative to choose one team and spend many games learning how to play with your unique players and unique set of plays. It’s rewarding to improve your skills over time. It’s the opposite of “pick up and play.” It’s more like “sit down and learn.” It’s pretty cool that 2K developed such a game.
The problem with such a detailed game, though, is when all the details don’t work out just right. And this version has some flaws. Kicked ball violations happen way too frequently. Passes are sometimes thrown to nobody, like nothing you’d ever see in the NBA. Shots near the basket are sometimes tossed sloppily high into the air, in what seems like a glitch that wasn’t fixed. Your teammates make more mistakes on defense than they did in years past. The shooting logic, which rewards open shots over shots with a hand in your face, seems slightly tweaked and it’s less clear what the game determines an open shot versus a guarded shot.
The game is challenging enough as it is, and these issues are sure to frustrate you. The few advancements — another new passing system, tweaked dribbling moves, and a Lebron James-focused campaign mode — don’t add enough value to overcome the game’s problems.