NBA 2K21 Review

NBA 2K21 is a cross-gen title as it will obviously have its best version released on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, so with that in mind my NBA 2K21 review started quite biased due to the fact that I am playing on PlayStation 4. These biases, however, did not arise by chance, but dictated by the developers who for some years now have proved lazy in wanting to bring additional innovations to take the game a step further.

Take note that NBA 2K20 was not a terrible game at all, but for me it needed something different to the usual NBA game. Starting from the assumption that this is a sports title and, therefore, it cannot be changed too much, let’s see if 2K Sports and Visual Concepts did a bit of effort to improve the game. Here is my NBA 2K21 review on PlayStation 4.

THE RISE OF JUNIOR

Among the various categories that have been present for several years, such as “My LEAGUE”, “My GM” or “Play Now”, I started with the backbone of the title: My Career. After a precise and complex creation of the character that will determine not only the role that you will play in your team but also your style of play and the build of the character, you will be ready to start what will be a not so short and quite lengthy narrative.

The protagonists of the plot will be you, Junior. He is the son of a famous collegiate champion who has now passed away for some time. In all honesty, although 2K Sports and Visual Concepts did not create a plot at the levels of TLOU and is in some ways similar to the previous chapters, it does not offend the story of Junior at all.

The greater longevity and much more human-like dialogues made me appreciate the collegial rise that leads to playing in the most famous basketball league in the world. Furthermore, the arrival in the NBA will allow you to play in the Neighbourhood. Here it looks like a sort of Venice Beach with an area full of playgrounds to challenge other players, as well as some streets where you can buy shoes, upgrades, and so on.

PERFECTING YOUR SHOOTING

Playing in my first High School game with Junior, I realized how something had changed. Let’s talk first about the shooting mode. To shoot on PlayStation 4, in fact, a bar will appear horizontally on the player’s head and you will have two ways to shoot. The first is the classic seen in previous chapters and consists of holding down the square button and then releasing it at the right time.

The second method, however, consists in directing the right stick so that it centers perfectly with the indicator. Although it has aroused some suspicion in the community, once you get used to the new method, it will be more difficult than in 2K20 (or in the previous ones) to get those points, but it is a price to pay that helps to make the title even more realistic.

The changes in NBA 2K21 is not dictated solely by the shooting method, but also by adding movements more suited to the type of player and creating a more reactive defensive approach by players. Not only are the shots contested much better, but now the point guards will also defend better.

You will see that, for example, the point guards will snatch the ball from the hands of a center. Obviously, not everything is perfect from all fronts, but the various tricks and the elimination of some animations that made the title sometimes unplayable, have made the experience much more enjoyable.

BUILDING YOUR TEAM

Take note that the new chapter does not only present fresh additions in terms of gameplay. The mode with the most additions is undoubtedly My Team. In this mode you will have to create your team, player after player, and challenge after challenge.

To modernize everything a bit by making progress more dynamic, 2K Sports and Visual Concepts added a new level system, the Limited mode, the various tasks to complete, and the alternative reward system. By playing the various games against other users, in fact, the game will reward you with experience points aimed at making you advance in levels, unlocking prizes.

They divide everything into seasons and, once the season is over, you will return to level 0, ready to unlock new items and players. You can play the Limited mode in matches against other players, but by making use of this mode, it will impose some rules that your team will have to respect.

This is only available on weekends. By winning the various games you will have to find a ring and, if you get them all, you will win a high-value Grand Prize card. Of course, you can only unlock one ring per week and the rules will change from time to time.

In addition to the challenges that you need to complete in order to obtain rewards, the Unlimited mode will reward you with basic cards, but the type of card you receive will improve according to your performance. Although it remains a pay-2-win system, all these modes allow the user to earn credits and get players thanks to their commitment, increasing the challenge and, consequently, the fun.

VIBING WHILE PLAYING

The graphics sector of NBA 2K21 is basically the same as last year. 2K Sports and Visual Concepts always make the faces look excellent, as well as the arenas with attention to the smallest details and with their own sound effects. However, the cinematics that make up the plot in My Career are very scarce, which in turn, could have made a great career mode even better.

For the current gen, there were few improvements to the graphics sector, however, with the release on PS5 and Xbox Series X, I expect a significant leap forward. The soundtrack of the title is always very energetic and pleasing to the ears, with names such as Travis Scott and Juice WRLD. Not only musically speaking but, as mentioned before, all the in-game sounds are faithful to reality, as if we were really in the arena.

As for the online modes, based on the experience I had, the Netcode seemed much improved compared to last year where, especially in the period following the release of the game, there were continuous disconnections and very persistent LAGs. Visual Concepts have certainly worked on the infrastructure, in order to make everything more stable and efficient.

Do you want to try Visual Concepts and 2K Sports’ NBA 2K21? What do you think of my NBA 2K21 review on PlayStation 4? Please leave your thoughts in the comments below. Are you interested in more sports games? Check out our reviews for PGA Tour 2K21, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2, F1 2020, FIFA 20, and AO Tennis 2.