NBA 2K23 brings the beautiful basketball game to consoles in newer and improved ways. This further cements the series as the best virtual basketball option out there. If you’re a basketball fan with a console, chances are you already ordered this game before its release. We got our hands on the Michael Jordan edition for this review.
Karl Malone is my goat
This year NBA 2K23 focuses on the legacy of a particular player named Michael Jordan. Apparently, this Jordan guy is supposed to be the greatest of all time… I am old enough to have witnessed the GOAT in his prime and he was wearing a Utah Jazz jersey and answered to the name Karl Malone. Now all joking aside… Michael Jordan is truly the GOAT of basketball with countless accolades to prove it. But back in those days, I was a genuine Utah Jazz fan and a Karl Malone fan in particular. The mailman – as he was nicknamed – was truly a great player but always in the shadow of Jordan. Quite painful to start the new Jordan Challenge mode and get reminded right of the start with a replay of Jordan’s steal that cost the Utah Jazz the NBA title. Despite getting some salt in the wound, I truly enjoyed this new mode centering around Jordan’s career from the NCAA to the top of the NBA. Replaying those key games with challenges that replicate Jordan’s performance in those games gives the player a sense of the greatness that is associated with the GOAT.
Gameplay Enhancements
Releasing a yearly update to the game gives the team chances to alter things. 2K did this with NBA 2K23 by listening to the feedback of the fans but also analyzing the way games were played out in the previous version. The developers noticed online games would have lesser variation in shot selection as compared to their real-life counterparts. The emphasis was laid on shots taken from outside the rim because they would be more effective as opposed to driving and taking shots under the rim. With improved skill moves and a new feature called adrenaline boosts you have more options to get closer and go for that ultimate dunk. Next-gen players can even flex on the rim to really rub it in if you wanted to. The pro stick controls have expanded with new ways to flick the right stick in order to perform awesome moves with as little hassle as possible.
Best basketball experience
NBA 2K23 has many modes to experience the best possible basketball experience on a console. Play with the current roster or go crazy and alter things your own way. Liked the older era more, no problem, 2BA 2K23 offers some of the best eras from NBA’s history. They even include the option to add filters to make it look like you’re back in the 80s or some other era. For all those who have role models that aren’t on the men’s roster, the WNBA is featured in an even bigger way than before. All these different modes give you almost endless possibilities to play this game. The My Career mode is probably the one most players will go for. This is where everything gets tied together. First, you’ll build a player to join an NBA team. After that, it’s up to you to start turning your OK player into the best possible version by completing the quests offered in the city. These range from different types of games, the Jordan challenges, playing regular NBA matches, playing special events, and many more. Some are offline others are online. All these earn you in-game currency to further deck out your player.
This RPG lite approach with some added narrative was first introduced 2 years ago and has since expanded even further. The different places in the city invite players to play certain modes they would often just ignore. I found out I really liked the 3v3 games where you just play to 21. The major downside – and the reason I won’t give this game a higher rating – is the fact this is a huge grind if you don’t want to join the pay-to-win train. It’s almost ridiculous how little you gain per match. To improve your player you need to play a huge amount of games. Winning games earns you more but winning is hard with a lot of players splashing some extra money on their players just to give them that much-needed edge. Maybe I’m just not good enough and should just try harder but I found it demoralizing when playing an online mode in my career mode. I get why many players take the pay-to-win route because it seems almost necessary in order to get to that legendary status everyone is playing for.
My Team
Beyond the enticing in My Career to pay to win, My team is another way to get you to open up your wallet even more. In My Team, you open up packs hoping to pack the best players in order to play games in order to earn more packs. Hopefully, you’ll improve your team through these earned packs but more often than not, your packs aren’t all that good. Grinding is always an option but the pay-to-win-genie is fast to emerge from its bottle to grant you all you wished for. Micro-transactions will continue to infuriate me when they actually improve the gameplay instead of just adding some new aesthetics. They make it almost a necessity and a dangerous way to go if you happen to be prone to addictions.
Conclusion
NBA 2K23 is the greatest basketball sim on the planet. It’s what every basketball fan ever could dream about. Sadly the pay-to-win potential creeps around the corner diminishing the experience of those not willing to add more funds to the game.
