We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Start your week here at the NLSC with a feature that’s dedicated to opinions, commentary, and other fun stuff related to NBA Live, NBA 2K, and other basketball video games. This week, I’m tipping things off with some thoughts on the quality of online play in NBA 2K; or, more accurately, the lack thereof.

Hey, remember when I wrote about the desire to balance positivity and negativity in my articles? I mentioned that I wanted to avoid writing an article about online play in NBA 2K that ended up being more of a rant than constructive criticism, cathartic as it may be. Well, I’m going to go ahead and vent a little. I was originally going to leave it at my Friday Five detailing my experiences with the Jordan Rec Center, but I need to expand upon that. As someone who was traditionally an offline gamer who has since been drawn into online in recent years, I’m now remembering why I avoided it.

When the NBA 2K League was announced, I noted the slight possibility that it would have some tangible benefit for the rest of us. Specifically, I suggested that in the best case scenario, it would encourage 2K to improve their servers and address some of the long-standing issues with online gameplay, in order to make the “home version” of the NBA 2K League more like the real thing. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case. NBA 2K online has strayed further and further away from sim basketball, and the servers continue to be extremely unreliable. Combine this steady decline with a toxic part of the community, and honestly, I don’t see the situation getting any better.

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Episode #293 of the NLSC Podcast is out now! As the preview season rolls on, Arcane and I are discussing the MyGM blog and “Next is Now” trailer for NBA 2K20, and the latest news on what’s happening with NBA Live 20.

Not everyone is thrilled about it, but the first NBA 2K20 developer blog revealed details on MyGM and MyLEAGUE. As we’re burned out on MyCAREER and thinking of returning to the franchise mode experience, it comes as good news. We’ve also received a longer look at gameplay thanks to the “Next is Now” trailer. It’s another slick production, but does it have us hyped for the game? Speaking of hype, the latest NBA Live 20 news has dampened our optimism somewhat. The game is slated to come out later than NBA 2K20 which may work in its favour, but with talk of a “different approach”, we do have some concerns.

Tune in below!

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:30:40 — 62.3MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify

What are your thoughts on the latest NBA 2K20 and NBA Live 20 news? Sound off in the comments section below, or join in the discussion here in the Forum! Additionally, feel free to hit us up with any feedback on the episode, as well as suggestions for topics that you’d like to hear us discuss in future episodes. For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki.

Exciting news! Basketball Classics is fast approaching a full release on Steam, and in the meantime, has received a new update. Version 0.8.1 is a content update for the game, and will come through automatically as long as you’re online when you fire up Steam.

Three seasons have been added to the roster: 1995, 2011, and 2019. This amounts to 240 new players spanning 48 teams, complete with new uniforms and individual attributes. These new teams are playable in both exhibition and the new Season mode that was added in the previous update.

You’ll also find signature shoes on some of the best players in the game, and some teams have also coordinated their style. This has been done to make players further stand out from one another visually, as well as in their abilities.

As I’ve said before, Basketball Classics is a great retro-oriented hoops game for PC that combines some modern mechanics with an old school aesthetic. It launched through Steam Early Access in a very impressive state, and has only gotten better since then. I’d definitely recommend checking it out, and am looking forward to the full release. For more insights into the development of the game, check out our chat with Josh and Dave!

Pick up some new faces in today’s file additions for NBA 2K14 PC! Please see below for all the download links.

BBTxJoKer
Kevin Knox Face
Pascal Siakam Face
Coby White Face
RJ Barrett Face

IceCr
Al Harrington Face
Michael Beasley Face
Patrick Ewing Face (Updated to v2.0)

Thanks to everyone who continues to contribute to our Downloads database! If you need help uploading files, be sure to check out this video tutorial. For more information about downloads, the modding community, and File Additions bulletins, please see this FAQ in our Wiki.

Welcome to this week’s edition of The Friday Five! The Friday Five is a feature that I post every Friday in which I give my thoughts on a topic that’s related to NBA Live, NBA 2K, and other basketball video games, as well as the real NBA, and other areas of interest to our community. The feature is presented as either a list of five items, or in the form of a Top 5 countdown. This week’s Five breaks down the five reasons that I’m putting MyCAREER aside in NBA 2K20.

Since finishing my second season of MyCAREER in NBA 2K19, I’ve played a grand total of one game in my third. I had still been dabbling with online play, but after a particularly demoralising session, I decided to play the season opener. The new roster was interesting to play with, and the thought of new goals such as reaching 10,000 career points and completing a threepeat has me considering a third campaign. I’d be simulating a bulk of the games – especially with the release of NBA 2K20 a month away – but I’m thinking about it. After that, however, I’m done with MyCAREER.

I know, I know. I said that almost a year ago, and ended up going further than I ever have before in MyCAREER. At the time I thought I was done, just as I do now. The difference is that after another year of playing MyCAREER, I truly feel ready to put it aside. My experience was significantly more positive in NBA 2K19, so I’m not ending my time with the mode on such a sour note. Furthermore, looking ahead to the release of NBA 2K20, I have other incentives to move away from the single player career experience. If you’ve spent a lot of time in MyCAREER these past few years and are similarly looking to move on, perhaps you can relate to my reasons for doing so.

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After informing us that we should set our notifications yesterday, 2K has dropped the first NBA 2K20 gameplay trailer, titled “Next is Now”! As usual, the trailer features gameplay from cinematic angles, so anyone expecting raw gameplay or further insights is going to be disappointed. Nevertheless, it’s another slick production, and does indeed feature gameplay footage from NBA 2K20.

The trailer features the new duos that have formed this offseason, including LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook and James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, and Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Other Team 2K players such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum, and 2019 first overall pick Zion Williamson are also featured. Notably, although WNBA players were confirmed by the earlier teaser, they aren’t featured in this trailer.

Watch the trailer below, or catch it here on YouTube if you can’t see the embedded video.

What are your thoughts on the NBA 2K20 gameplay trailer? Are you hyped for the game, or are you waiting for more developer blogs? Have your say in the comments section below, and join in the discussion taking place here in the NLSC Forum! We’ll of course be giving our thoughts in an upcoming episode of the NLSC Podcast, so stay tuned.

The latest file additions for NBA 2K19 PC update your game for the 2020 season! Check out the latest jersey, court, and face updates at the links below.

pinoy21
Oklahoma City Thunder 2019-20 City Edition Jersey (pinoy21)
Philadelphia 76ers 2020 Jersey – Leaked Design (pinoy21)

Torogi
Russell Westbrook Face & Model (With Dreads)

Manni Live
Golden State Warriors 2019-2020 Chase Center Arena

Thanks to everyone who continues to contribute to our Downloads database! If you need help uploading files, be sure to check out this video tutorial. For more information about downloads, the modding community, and File Additions bulletins, please see this FAQ in our Wiki.

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. This week, I’m taking a look back at the Japanese version of NBA Live 2002, which featured Michael Jordan in a Wizards jersey on the cover.

I like to think I’m fairly knowledgeable when it comes to the history of basketball video games, but from time to time, I learn something new about one of my favourite hobbies. Back in the 90s, I had no idea that one of my favourite hoops games on the Super Nintendo, World League Basketball, was released as an NCAA game in North America. I knew about NBA Action ’98, the precursor to the NBA 2K series, but I didn’t know that the PlayStation version was titled NBA Fastbreak ’98. And I certainly didn’t know that Michael Jordan was on the Japanese cover of NBA Live 2002!

Based on the responses to a Tweet I made, it seems I’m not alone on that last point. It wasn’t until I happened across Japanese copies of NBA Live 2002 on eBay several years later that I became aware of it, as it was never referenced in any other region. It’s an interesting collectable for many reasons, from the rarity of seeing His Airness in early video games or on video game covers, to him being featured in a Wizards jersey. I was delighted to add it to my collection, knowing that it would also make for a fun Wayback Wednesday topic. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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Polygon has confirmed that NBA Live 20 has been delayed until late 2019. After being listed as a Q2 release as usual in a financial report back in May, a new report lists the game as a Q3 release. This would indicate a release between October 1st and December 31st 2019.

EA Sports have remained quiet about the series’ future, outside of reps denying reports about potential cover players and stating that everything is “fine” with the game. When Polygon reached out to EA, they were told the company is “planning a different approach to NBA Live this year, and will have more to share in the quarter ahead”. No further details are available at this time, though EA has previously referred to targeting a new demographic with NBA Live.

Obviously, this invites further worry and speculation. Previously delayed games have ended up being cancelled, most notably NBA Elite 11 and NBA Live 13. Talk of a “different approach” is potentially concerning as well. At the same time, NBA Live 15 launched as scheduled after an initial two week delay. Additionally, without further details on what EA means by a “different approach”, it remains to be seen whether that’s a positive or negative for the direction of the series.

In any event, the current status of NBA Live 20 is that it is delayed but not cancelled at this time, and that EA has different plans for this year’s release. We’ll certainly do our best to stay on top of the situation, and bring you any details as soon as they’re made available. No doubt we’ll have plenty to say about the news on an upcoming NLSC Podcast, but in the meantime, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below, as well as here in the Forum.

We have our first insight of the preview season, courtesy of the newly posted NBA 2K20 MyGM blog! As in previous years, it’s a deep dive developer blog describing the new features and enhancements that we can expect to see, beginning with this year’s franchise modes.

I encourage you to read the blog in its entirety, but an overview of the key points is as follows:

• NBA 2K20 is introducing MyGM 2.0. The mode, which has been revamped to be more accessible, includes additions such as Action Points, score and leaderboards, new Skills Tree and levelling structure, new tasks, and sponsorships and branding.
• Action Points will determine which tasks you can perform each day, encouraging efficient use of your time and team-building strategies. How you perform in the GM’s seat will rank on the new score and leaderboards. These features are affected by the difficulty level you choose.
• Each save begins at Level 1, and will end up at around Level 20. The new Skill Tree begins with the general style of management that you choose, and branches in five directions: Leadership, Diplomacy, Insight, Finance, and Facilities. Each provides a different path to the ultimate goal of winning a championship, and you can respec once a month.
• Relationships, goals, and tasks have all been revamped. Requests will now come from players and other executives, and it’s not always in your best interests to fulfil all of them.
• Morale and Team Chemistry has also been enhanced in both MyGM and MyLEAGUE. Other additions and improvements include Staff Cards, new Personality Badges for max players, more functionality in Player DNA, extra details in History and Records screens, quick scroll options, improved Draft Class authenticity, and even the ability to force winners when simulating.

Be sure to check out the NBA 2K20 MyGM blog for the full scoop! Got any thoughts? Feel free to share them in the comments section below, and join in the discussion here in the NLSC Forum!

We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Start your week here at the NLSC with a feature that’s dedicated to opinions, commentary, and other fun stuff related to NBA Live, NBA 2K, and other basketball video games. This week, I’m tipping things off with a few thoughts on why it’s unlikely that we’ll get another retro mode in future NBA 2K titles.

While I don’t want to downplay the quality of NBA 2K11, I believe one of the reasons it’s still held in such high regard is that it was a landmark release for the series. Not only was it the first NBA 2K game to top five million copies sold – a feat helped in part by the cancellation of NBA Elite 11 – but it brought us actual retro teams out of the box for the first time. The NBA Live series experienced a similar phenomenon with NBA Live 2000. It introduced Legends, and was similarly noted as still being the best game in the series when later releases had clearly improved on it in many ways.

No matter where you rank NBA Live 2000 and NBA 2K11 in their respective series or among basketball games overall, both were tremendous releases that delivered big surprises in terms of their retro content. The Jordan Challenge was a great mode that would’ve been a tremendous hook even if NBA 2K11 hadn’t been unopposed. NBA’s Greatest in NBA 2K12 was a great follow-up, and the roster of retro teams has only expanded since then. Outside of Historical Domination in MyTEAM however, we haven’t had a challenge mode that makes use of the retro teams since then. Sadly, it seems highly unlikely that we’ll get another retro mode anytime soon, if ever again.

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Episode #292 of the NLSC Podcast is out now! Arcane is back on the show this week as we catch up on the latest NBA 2K20 news, and discuss how a focus on career modes this generation has affected the course and quality of basketball gaming.

‘Tis the preview season, which means that there’s a lot of talk about bullshotting as new NBA 2K20 screenshots continue to drop. The soundtrack for this year’s game has also been revealed, not only bringing tracks from the big names, but also providing an opportunity for unsigned artists. However, the biggest news of the week is that the NBA 2K20 Demo will be released on August 21st. We speculate on what the new MyPLAYER builder might entail, what other content we can expect, and how the demo experience will translate to the full release. After noting the lack of NBA content in recent NBA 2K demos, we move on to this week’s featured discussion: has the focus on career modes adversely affected other modes, and the basketball gaming experience in general? As much as we’ve enjoyed MyCAREER this generation, it does feel as though other aspects of the games have been neglected. We consider what this might mean for the genre moving forward, and whether it’s another sign we’re no longer part of the core demographic.

Tune in below!

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:53:46 — 78.2MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify

What are your thoughts on the latest NBA 2K20 news, and the heavy focus on career modes in today’s basketball games? Sound off in the comments section below, or join in the discussion here in the Forum! Additionally, feel free to hit us up with any feedback on the episode, as well as suggestions for topics that you’d like to hear us discuss in future episodes. For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki.

The latest file additions for NBA 2K14 PC include updates for the past and present, with new rosters and jerseys for the 2020 season along with some throwback player faces. Check them out at the links below!

Blang
Justin James Face

IceCr
Stephen Jackson Face
Latrell Sprewell Face
Jason Kidd Face

Pep
NBA Nike Oklahoma City Thunder 2019 Uniforms

ModManZZZ
ModManZZZ Updated NBA Rosters 2019-2020 (Updated to v9.0)

Thanks to everyone who continues to contribute to our Downloads database! If you need help uploading files, be sure to check out this video tutorial. For more information about downloads, the modding community, and File Additions bulletins, please see this FAQ in our Wiki.

Welcome to this week’s edition of The Friday Five! The Friday Five is a feature that I post every Friday in which I give my thoughts on a topic that’s related to NBA Live, NBA 2K, and other basketball video games, as well as the real NBA, and other areas of interest to our community. The feature is presented as either a list of five items, or in the form of a Top 5 countdown. This week’s Five is a list of five features that were planned for basketball video games, but ultimately fell through.

We’re in the midst of another preview season, waiting to hear about all the changes, additions, and improvements in this year’s games. Of course, one of the perennial worries in our community is that popular features will be ruined by changes or, worse yet, removed altogether. It’s particularly frustrating when we look back at some of our favourite games and see features that are no longer available. It especially stings when they were originally implemented in the early days of basketball gaming, yet have been missing for several years.

That’s a tough enough pill to swallow, but it’s arguably even worse when we hear about great features and content during the preview season, only for it to ultimately fall through. Hearing about plans that didn’t come to fruition after the fact also leaves us wondering what might have been, as does discovering the remnants of scrapped features in game files. Features are never axed for malicious reasons; rather, factors such as time constraints, licensing issues, and other unfortunate circumstances are what cause them to fall through. They’re interesting trivia notes and What Ifs though, so let’s take a look at five of them, including one you won’t have heard before.

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2K has announced that the NBA 2K20 Demo will be available on August 21st 2019, going live at 12:01 AM Pacific Time. It will be available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch, but not PC. Contrary to the limitations in The Prelude in previous years, it seems as though we’ll be able to try out more than one build before the full game is released.

Starting on August 21st at 12:01 am PT, you can get an early start on your MyCAREER while testing out the new MyPLAYER builder and hitting the court two weeks ahead of the game’s launch by downloading the NBA 2K20 Demo. In the NBA 2K20 Demo, you can try out multiple MyPLAYER configurations to create the player that best fits your play-style, which will be carried over to NBA 2K20 at launch on September 6th. The NBA 2K20 Demo will be available exclusively on Xbox One, PS4 and Nintendo Switch.

This certainly comes as good news, as previous glimpses of the game via The Prelude offered little in the way of replay value, forcing gamers to choose one Archetype to trial in a single playthrough of the early stages of MyCAREER. Providing the opportunity to test out more than one Archetype has been a common request, so it’s nice to see 2K taking the community’s suggestion on board. As yet, there’s no word on whether or not any changes have been made to Archetypes this year.

Another controversial issue that has dogged The Prelude in recent years is that its gameplay settings are juiced up, providing an inaccurate snapshot of what to expect in the full game. This is obviously something we won’t know until after we’ve played both, but hopefully this year’s demo will take a more honest approach.

What are your expectations for the NBA 2K20 Demo? Have your say in the comments below, and join in the discussion here in the NLSC Forum!