NBA 2K Mobile Basketball Game: The Most Authentic NBA Live Basketball Experience

There's a fine line to walk when you're trying to make a midcore sports game. You need to make the game as accessible as possible but, especially if you're one of the big brand holders, you need to ensure that there's something there for more committed players as well.

It's a shame, because there are some really nice ideas in NBA 2K Mobile Basketball, and when the game is flowing there's a slickness to it that we don't usually see on mobile. But that off-kilter balance means things aren't ever as good as they should be.From downtownOne thing the game certainly has going for it is how good it looks. And for the most part the animations slip by smooth like silk. That said, on an iPhone 7 there was a little bit of chug here and there, but it didn't do too much to detract from the experience.

nba 2k mobile basketball game

Once you've been shown the basics you're pretty much left on your own to start playing. There are a number of different game modes, from a single player campaign made up of different seasons, to multiplayer matches that see you taking on other players from around the world. There are drills you can run too.

It's going to be a familiar system to anyone who's played the likes of FIFA Mobile before, and NBA 2K Mobile Basketball takes plenty of other leaves from out of that book. Matches here are cut up into different chunks, rather than following the more traditional stylings of the console version of the game.

And that's fine. It's one of the decisions made here to ensure that the game works well on mobile. It's the auto play where things start being a little less fine though. Tap it on and you'll still be able to play, but if you lift your fingers from the screen your team is going to get along alright without you.

In fact, it's going to do better than that. A team on auto will start running plays that you're not going to be able to perform with the limited control options. It isn't just easier to play on auto, your team somehow manages to get better when you choose to do it, and that feels a bit like a slap in the face to anyone still bimbling with the buttons.Can't buy a bucketThere's enjoyment to be had in NBA 2K Mobile Basketball, but it always feels like it's the game that's having the most fun at your expense. That's going to lead to frustration among any players who are looking for a more meaty basketball experience.

And even casual players are likely to find the auto-mode a little bit too much. Sure, you don't have to turn it on, but when progression through the game's modes is easier when you do, there are times when it's going to be too tempting to resist.

This isn't the full AAA version of the game that some people might have been hoping for, but in trying to open the experience up to as many people as possible, NBA 2K Mobile Basketball only manages to ensure it's going to upset even more.

NBA 2K is a series of basketball sports simulation video games developed by Visual Concepts and released annually since 1999. The premise of the series is to emulate the sport of basketball, and more specifically, the National Basketball Association.

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Each installment in the NBA 2K series emulates the National Basketball Association, and present slight improvements over the previous installments. As such, gameplay simulates a typical game of basketball, with the player controlling an entire team or a select player; objectives coincide with the rules of basketball and presentation resembles actual televised NBA games. Various game modes have been featured in the series, allowing for gameplay variety. Numerous elements of the games feature customizable options. Each game features the teams and players from the current NBA season; historic NBA teams and players have also been featured, as have EuroLeague teams and (starting with NBA 2K20) WNBA teams. Fictional players and teams can also be created and compiled.[1][2][3]

A staple of the series is its career mode, which has been described as a sports-themed role-playing video game. ESPN NBA Basketball was the first game in the series to feature such a mode, but it wasn't until NBA 2K10 and its successors that the mode became a more integral part of the series. The mode was initially titled 24/7, before being changed to MyPlayer, and settling on MyCareer. The modes center on the basketball career of the player's created player; the player customizes several aspects of their player and plays through their career in the NBA. Key events in the player's career are depicted, such as the draft and their retirement ceremony. A storyline is often present in the modes, and high school and college-level basketball has also been depicted. The player upgrades their player's attributes as they play, and can participate in off-court activities.[4][5][6][7][8]

Another mainstay of the series is a mode allowing the player to assume control of an NBA franchise, acting as general manager. The mode has been featured in numerous NBA 2K games and is often titled Association; the most recent games in the series feature the MyGM and MyLeague modes. In the modes, the player controls virtually all aspects of a team, rather than just playing games with the team. As the player simulates through seasons, they must satisfy the needs of the team's personnel and the owner.[9][10][11]

MyTeam mode, which was introduced in NBA 2K13, focuses on building a team of players and competing against other players' teams online. The player's primary venue for acquiring players for their team is card packs; the player purchases a card pack, which features random items the player can use in the mode, including players. In addition to compiling a select group of players, the player can also customize their team's jerseys and court, among other things. The game mode progressed even further on NBA 2K19, with a MyTeam tournament between the best Xbox and PS4 players for a prize of $250,000 occurring. Other online-focused modes have also been featured in the series, such as Pro-Am, which focuses on players building a team together with their custom players.[12][13][14][15][16]

In addition to regulation NBA games, street basketball has been featured in numerous games in the series. Created players and real players can be used in such modes; additionally, some celebrities have made appearances as playable characters in the series.[17] In more recent games, the street basketball modes are titled Blacktop and MyPark. Blacktop is structured in the typical style of street basketball. MyPark consists of an open area filled with players who can join different games on different courts.[18][19] Several games in the series feature a mode which allows the player to hold a slam dunk contest.[20]

Several games in the series have featured game modes that are exclusive to that particular game. NBA 2K11 featured the Jordan Challenge mode, in which players are tasked with recreating some of Michael Jordan's most memorable feats, such as scoring 69 points in a single game.[21][22][23] NBA 2K12 featured the NBA's Greatest mode, where the player can play with past NBA players, such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Julius Erving, and Bill Russell.[24][25] The PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows versions of NBA 2K14 featured a mode titled Path to Greatness; similar to the Jordan Challenge mode, it focuses on the career of LeBron James.[26]

All twenty-four of the series main installments have been developed by Visual Concepts. The first six games were published by Sega Sports, before the company sold Visual Concepts to Take Two Interactive, thus forming 2K Sports.

The original NBA 2K Game was initially released in November 1999 for the Dreamcast, featuring Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers as the cover athlete. The first four games in the NBA 2K series feature commentary from fictional announcers Bob Steele and Rod West, portrayed by Bob Fitzgerald and Rod Brooks, respectively.[27][28]

NBA 2K1 was initially released in October 2000 for the Dreamcast. Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers returns as the cover athlete. NBA 2K1, among other things, introduces a mode which focuses on street basketball, and a mode which allows the player to act as the general manager of a team; most of the game's successors feature variations of the two modes.[29][30] This was also the first game in the series to allow for online play, allowing for 8 people to play together online.[31]

NBA 2K3 was initially released in October 2002 for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube. It is the second and final time of the game in the series to be released for the GameCube. Allen Iverson of the 76ers made his fourth appearance as the cover athlete.[34][35]

ESPN NBA Basketball was released in October and November 2003 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox consoles. Allen Iverson made his fifth and final appearance as the cover athlete. The game introduces a 24/7 mode, a career mode in which the player can create a customizable character and use them to compete in basketball tournaments and other competitions. Online game modes are also present, and each player has a unique facial design, also a first. The game features a commentary team consisting of Bob Fitzgerald and Tom Tolbert; Kevin Frazier hosts pre-game shows.[36][37]

ESPN NBA 2K5 was first released in September 2004 for PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It is the last game in the series to be published by Sega Sports before the company sold Visual Concepts to Take Two Interactive, forming 2K Sports. Ben Wallace of the Detroit Pistons replaced Iverson as the cover athlete. It is the third and final in the series to feature ESPN branding. The game features Stuart Scott as a presenter, Bob Fitzgerald as a play-by-play commentator, Bill Walton as a second commentator, Michele Tafoya as a sideline reporter.[38][39]

NBA 2K6 was initially released in September 2005 for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and, for the first time, Xbox 360. It is the first game in the series to be published by 2K Sports. Shaquille O'Neal of the Miami Heat serves as the game's cover athlete; he was also involved in some of the game's motion capture development.[40][41] In NBA 2K6, Kevin Harlan is the play-by-play commentator, Kenny Smith is the color commentator, and Craig Sager is the sideline reporter.[42] The next two installments in the series feature the same team.