![]() Even after over 15 hours with the game, I was still struggling to consistently make shots I would undoubtedly make in past games, which forced me to push the ball to the post and force unintended drives for higher percentage shots that move away from both what I want to do on a given possession and what the real game looks like right now. While it does make you buckle down and learn its quirks, the new system changes a lot of the dynamic of how the game is fundamentally played, and it often took my focus off of the strategy of the game to focus on something that should be less important.Įven with my best shooters, I lost confidence that they could make any given shot because the Pro Stick is so inconsistent, especially in online games. It had me guessing where the best spot was and, more often than not, getting frustrated that I missed yet another open three where I thought I released well. The grey area that constitutes the “slightly left” or “slightly right” release is noticeable, but a lot of times even the best shooters miss the easiest shots with a release just off of center. For starters, the on-screen meter is incredibly small, and the area to get a perfect release is almost invisible. "On the court, gameplay is pretty similar to past iterations, but there is a mixed bag of noticeable changes."īut in practice, the new way of shooting is too clunky and inconsistent for its own good. And when you get a perfect release, it’s a rewarding sign that you made it work and had a release point that mirrors something that would work in real life. I really like this idea in concept because it offers both a more realistic way to look at shooting and a new learning curve for experienced players to overcome. If you do opt to use the face buttons to shoot, the mechanic is closer to past games, but it still requires you to adjust to your situation and notice timing. This forces you to be more cognizant of where you’re shooting from and adjust accordingly. If you’re at the center when the player shoots, you get a perfect release. You want to move the line so it’s at the center of a grey area, which changes depending on the type of shot you take and the amount of coverage. The meter starts centered, and the right stick controls a line along the meter. Instead, it’s a way to emphasize release point. The right stick doesn’t just mirror the face buttons anymore. On the surface, this change makes a lot of sense. Most prominent is the evolution of the shooting meter to the Pro Stick. On the court, gameplay is pretty similar to past iterations, but there is a mixed bag of noticeable changes. ![]() Its inclusion of the WNBA in both Quick Play and Season modes, too, while not brand new for the franchise, is a nice way of including the women’s game and its superstars. Some courts have “Black Lives Matter” printed on them as they do in the bubble, and, while it doesn’t have the courts from the current playoffs, there are references to current events everywhere, from missions in MyTeam to recreate Jamal Murray’s 50-point outing from this year’s first round to acknowledgements of next season’s delay due to the pandemic in future seasons of MyGM. ![]() It’s also surprisingly up to date with the issues affecting the NBA in real life. "While the characteristics of the franchise are still present for NBA 2K21, it doesn’t put itself in Hall of Fame contention compared to its predecessors." While animations are mostly familiar, and it did sometimes feel like I’ve seen these halftime shows before, there are a few new touches like James Harden’s one-legged three-pointer and some new pregame introductions. The broadcast is as true-to-life as ever, and players are immediately recognizable in both their character models and their signature shooting motions. In its off-the-court presentation, NBA 2K21 is as impressive as always. While the characteristics of the franchise are still present for NBA 2K21, it doesn’t put itself in Hall of Fame contention compared to its predecessors. For 2K21, though, a few quality-of-life improvements and tweaks to existing modes aren’t enough to overcome the feeling that it’s mostly unchanged year-over-year, and gameplay changes range from unnecessary to downright detrimental. In a lot of ways, even though EA has a stranglehold on a handful of other sports, the NBA 2K series is the genre leader, pushing gameplay innovation, broadcast design, and mode differentiation that have become universal in sports games. It’s so perennially popular that it’s almost synonymous with the name “2K” itself, boiling down a big-name publisher to a single game. When it comes to sports game franchises, the NBA 2K series is one of the most consistent and important annual releases.
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