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Visual Concepts in NBA 2K17 has been ahead of the curve
2016-03-29 10:39:48
The NBA 2K series has been the best basketball sim on the planet for years now, and somehow, the developers at Visual Concepts keep finding ways to top themselves. For the most part, NBA 2K17 is another incremental improvement over last year’s game. It’s prettier, has better handles, and somehow makes the world’s most realistic sports game even more realistic. With all that in mind, I have to categorize this year's take on MyCareer as a disappointment.
On the court, the players feel heavier and move more realistically - Visual Concepts says it has added 10,000 new animations to the game - and new dedicated buttons for lob and bounce passes make moving the ball around more precise. Teams have a more distinct feel to them, and you’ll need to cater your play style to fit the roster. The Los Angeles Clippers are a far different team than the Utah Jazz, and they play differently in the game.
The most noticeable improvement is on the defensive end, where the AI is far less susceptible to cheesy exploits and provides a real challenge. The defense will adapt over time, so you won’t find success running the same play or using the same move over and over. It's a bold attempt to tell an interesting story with some real gravity; but in the end, it doesn't even reach the level of a made-for-TV movie, a fact that is compounded by its near total lack of interactivity.
In NBA 2K17, things were taken a step further with the introduction of “Livin’ Da Dream,” a story line attached to MyCareer mode courtesy of Spike Lee. If you're familiar with Spike's many films during his incredible directing career, then you may be able to anticipate a lot of the stories and plot points thrown your way. If you haven't familiarized yourself with what Spike does with his stories, the early parts of MyCareer may blow your mind.
It’s as clear as the day is long what Visual Concepts, 2K and even Spike Lee himself were going for here. This was meant to be a mode in which you feel immersed in an NBA story loaded with hardship, difficult choices (that again, you don’t actually get to make) and genuine drama. Sadly, thanks to an engine that, while initially breathtaking at the beginning of the generation, is starting to feel its age, Livin ‘Da Dream feels little more than corny and tiresome by the end of its six hour run.
Because you aren’t getting to make the choices that you’re accustomed to making in an NBA 2K MyCareer mode, there’s no sense that this is anyone’s story other than Spike Lee’s. Most of these options are built around making your own highly-customized black man with various forms of appropriate hair in a fro or dread locked designs. However, even though I was playing as a man, I tried to make him sort of represent how I think I would look as a gender-bender (sorry, I couldn’t use the face scan to make myself some sort of face scanned monster).
NBA 2K17 is one of, if not the, very best looking sports game(s) on the market today. Visual Concepts has been ahead of the curve on this for quite some time though. Those who buy the game every year know that already. It’s not a shocker, the NBA 2K series has looked great for years, and this year is no different. And while plenty of criticism was levied at the presentation for NBA 2K17 and the ever-popular track list that accompanies the game, this year’s eclectic mix of tunes is also a return to form for the series.
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