The Friday Five

Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five rosters that I’d like to make for NBA Live 06 PC.

Even though I haven’t been as active in the modding community as I was during the heyday of NBA Live on PC, the lure to tinker with the games I’m playing has always been there. Admittedly I haven’t been moved to mod recent NBA 2K games any more than I have been to play them, but should a future release capture my interest, I won’t rule out the possibility. For now though, just as I’ve gravitated towards retro gaming, I’m far more interested in creating mods for old favourites that find their way back into my rotation…or new old favourites, as the case may be.

One old favourite that I’d like to play more often and mod once again is NBA Live 06 PC. Although it was generally well-received in its day – and in my view, is the last great all-around release in the NBA Live series – that may sound like a strange choice. Compared to games such as NBA 2K13 and NBA 2K14, it doesn’t have the same significant following several years after its release. To that end, I accept that any rosters that I create for NBA Live 06 will be niche projects, and indeed likely largely for my own use. That doesn’t mean I can’t and shouldn’t create them, though! They’re worth considering at least, and to that point, here are five ideas that I have in mind.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is another list of things that you’ll see in games that are unpatched.

As I noted in my first article recalling things that you’ll see in unpatched games, official updates are a contentious issue. Day 1 patches do little to convince gamers that modern titles aren’t rushed out before they’re ready, and frequent updates can be annoying when they’re several gigabytes in size, essentially forcing you to download the entire game all over again. From the list of issues that they have to fix to some of the undesirable changes that are pushed through, the sight of a pending patch is one that makes many basketball gamers groan in frustration.

However, when we consider that we used to have to beg and plead for patches that barely fixed any issues, and for a long time weren’t viable on console, I’ve come to believe that having too many patches is actually the lesser of two evils. While there are times when foregoing an update or downgrading to a previous version is in fact preferable, you’ll also be reminded of some weird and bothersome issues when you play unpatched games. Of course, you’ll also see some interesting snapshots of the league when a game and its rosters are restored to their vanilla state. With that being said, here are five more noteworthy things that you’ll encounter without patches.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five of my best retro pick-ups as a basketball video game collector.

Expanding my basketball video game collection in recent years has been immensely satisfying. Sometimes I don’t like to think about the cumulative cost, but as I’ve said in previous articles and on our podcast, it’s always my goal to strive to be as savvy and frugal as possible. I’m not going to overpay just to get a game that I want right away, unless it’s particularly rare and difficult to get hold of. Even then, I’m still going to shop around and balk at any price tag that’s straight-up gouging. My advice to any would-be video game collector is to not overspend on your retro pick-ups.

Although snagging some bargains is definitely a part of what makes some of my retro pick-ups so satisfying, I don’t just collect for the sake of completion, or the thrill of the hunt. I want to play these games and create content about them, so it’s been a joy to finally get my hands on titles that I overlooked, couldn’t access, or simply didn’t know about years ago. Unsurprisingly, some of them are more challenging than others to obtain years and indeed decades later, especially without paying more than they’re worth. These five games are among my best and most satisfying retro pick-ups, as it took some good deals and good fortune for me to snap them up for my collection.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five things that frequently spoil multi-season modes in basketball video games.

So, I’ve explained why I strongly believe that multi-season modes are awesome, and I stand by that. I wouldn’t maintain an interest in them if I didn’t! However, I also won’t pretend that they’re perfect and that nothing can spoil the experience. Please note that when I say spoil, I don’t necessarily mean that the mode is completely ruined and no longer capable of being enjoyed. Again, if these were insurmountable issues, then my interest in multi-season modes would soon evaporate, and even after all these years, that obviously isn’t the case!

Nevertheless, there are quirky things that are annoying or detract from the intended experience in some way. Even if they ultimately don’t stand in the way of enjoying multi-season modes, they’re among my pet peeves in some of my all-time favourite basketball video games, and issues that I’d prefer future games to avoid. In other words, if you were to ask me what are my least favourite aspects in some of my favourite modes and games, the issues that I’m discussing here are definitely on that list! I adore multi-season modes and will always recommend them as a fun way to play basketball games, but be warned: these are some issues that you might encounter.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five things that make multi-season modes in basketball video games awesome.

Growing up with the basketball video games of the 90s, I was able to experience some classic releases and see the genre evolve in some big ways from year-to-year. That of course includes the introduction of multi-season modes. If you go back and look at our early Wishlists for NBA Live, you’ll see that we were keen to see Season mode expand into an experience that lasted several years, and truly allowed us to play GM. Our wish was granted in NBA Live 2000 PC, and since then, multi-season franchise and eventually career modes have become staples of NBA Live and NBA 2K.

For gamers who prefer online team play and competitive modes in general, playing several full seasons against the CPU may not sound like a lot of fun. Gamers who prefer the card collecting modes may also not find the structure of the NBA-oriented modes to be all that appealing. For that matter, anyone who’s satisfied with a single, isolated NBA campaign may not feel the need to continue into Year 2 and beyond. It should be noted that these are all valid opinions and ways to experience basketball games, but as someone who has really enjoyed the extended journey that franchise and career play offers, I’ll give you five reasons why multi-season modes are so fun.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five frustrating aspects of old school season modes.

So, I’ve already covered why old school season modes in NBA Live and other early titles were so much fun, and I stand by that. They were the pinnacle of campaign play at the time, and if you’re a keen retro gamer who doesn’t mind a simpler experience, I highly recommend beginning a season in an old favourite today! With that being said, once those modes were fleshed out with some basic staples, it took a while before the next big innovation. We certainly recognised the drawbacks and limitations, and we dreamed of modes that lasted longer and represented the NBA in greater detail.

Thankfully, video game developers had the same vision, which led to the introduction of franchise and single player career modes. Interestingly, old school season modes stuck around as a legacy option in games with franchise modes, such as NBA Live and NBA 2K. It also remained the flagship mode in titles that were lagging behind the two brand leaders. Although it didn’t hurt to keep them in games – indeed, I believe there’s value in offering a streamlined option – it was painfully obvious how primitive they now were! Once again though, we already had our criticisms before then. With that in mind, here are five ways that old school season modes could be frustrating.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five aspects that made season modes in old school basketball video games so much fun.

Being a keen retro gamer, one of my least favourite phrases in gaming discourse these days is “I can’t believe we used to think this was good”. It’s a myopic statement that forgets that we needed generations of technological improvements to get to where we are today. Moreover, just because graphics, mechanics, and modes have since been surpassed, it doesn’t mean that they’re retroactively terrible. Putting aside the fact that many classics do hold up on the sticks years later, they represent important stepping stones that ultimately led to major developments and improvements in the genre.

Of course, I’m not suggesting that modern games should be as basic as their more primitive predecessors. Just because I’m praising something in an old game, it doesn’t mean that I think it should be in a new one; at least, not in the same form. Once again though, games didn’t get to where they are now without those early attempts at modes and features that we enjoy so much, and indeed take for granted. Furthermore, beyond being nostalgic and worthy of appreciation for their innovation, there’s definitely an appeal to certain aspects of old school season modes. With that in mind, I’m not just reflecting on how those modes paved the way, but how their ideas are still fun today.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five major problems with open worlds in sports video games.

Since the introduction of The Neighborhood in NBA 2K18, open worlds have been a core part of the MyCAREER experience. Whether an urban complex, a cruise ship, or a beachfront town, they’ve taken MyCAREER and its connected modes from menus to an environment that can be explored. The Neighborhood has since given way to the much larger open world of The City in the flagship version of NBA 2K, although it was condensed slightly in NBA 2K25. Elsewhere, WWE 2K25 now features The Island, and EA Sports are reportedly also looking to bring open worlds to their games.

Now, I have nothing against open worlds in video games. I’m a fan of both the Grand Theft Auto and Fallout series, so I know how much fun the concept can be. However, I don’t believe open worlds belong in sports video games like NBA 2K or WWE 2K. Sure, they can be made to work, facilitating the MMORPG aspects of career modes nowadays. To that point though, I don’t think that it results in a better experience for gamers, particularly anyone who prefers traditional career mode gameplay. With that in mind, here are five big problems that are created when open worlds are forced into sports games, and therefore five reasons why they shouldn’t be a part of those titles!

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five players whose NBA careers ended abruptly.

Not all NBA players get to ride off into the sunset with the fanfare of a grand farewell tour. In fact, there have been perennial All-Stars and all-time greats who ended their NBA careers in rather unceremonious fashion. Of course, in many cases, age and injuries were still a factor. As such, while they may have deserved a better, more respectful send-off, they’d still enjoyed fairly long careers, and were now at a point where they couldn’t quite go anymore. At the very least, it’s not as puzzling as when a younger, healthier player is seemingly pushed out of the league well before their time.

Obviously, controversy is sometimes a factor. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf – an outstanding shooter who would thrive in today’s NBA – was effectively blackballed for his socio-political beliefs and demonstrations. Michael Ray Richardson declined to return to the NBA after his lifetime ban for substance abuse was lifted, maintaining that he’d been treated unfairly considering the leniency shown to players such as Chris Mullin. The five players I’m covering in this article may not have seen their NBA careers ended abruptly by controversies such as those, but they nevertheless went from mainstays in the league to outsiders in a blink; even as they remained both healthy and capable.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five reasons why Roster Players weren’t an entirely bad thing back in the day, and still have their charm now.

Even if you didn’t grow up playing basketball video games in the 90s, chances are you’ve heard the legend of Roster Players. The moniker – which comes from the naming convention they used in several games – refers to the fictional placeholder players that stood in for anyone who wasn’t licensed to appear. The name “Roster Player” is practically synonymous with Michael Jordan, since he was frequently replaced by such a player in games released during the mid to late 90s. Charles Barkley was another regular Roster Player, at least up until his final few seasons.

Big names and role players alike have been replaced by stand-ins when licensing issues prevent them from appearing. Ironically, while it’s often looked upon as a phenomenon associated with early basketball video games, it’s still happening today with NBA 2K’s classic teams and MyNBA Eras rosters. It’s hardly ideal – then or now – and so given the choice, we’d all rather see the real players in the game. However, while Roster Players may not be the most desirable sight to behold when we fire up a game, they’re not all bad! Here are five reasons why Roster Players weren’t (and still aren’t) a complete abomination, and indeed, can actually be fun in their own way.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is another list of five times that basketball video games messed up player appearances.

Considering that there have been several topics that I’ve turned into a multi-part series in The Friday Five in recent years, it’s surprising that I haven’t covered this one since 2018! However, a new batch of examples have presented themselves, so it’s time to talk about five more times that basketball games messed up player appearances. As I noted in the previous article, there are times when we’re a bit harsh in our criticism of video game aesthetics. Modders aren’t under the same restrictions as the developers, from deadlines to properly-licensed assets.

At the same time, there have been some surprisingly sloppy errors and efforts in basketball video games throughout the years, resulting in player appearances being messed up. Whether it’s a poor likeness, mismatched textures, or players having the wrong appearance entirely, they stick out like a sore thumb. Of course, some of these mistakes can fly under the radar if you’re not familiar with the players, or you never played the games in question. To that point, thanks to an expanded collection, an open-minded approach to retro gaming, and a tip on X, these five examples include some that I definitely wouldn’t have thought of in 2018. Let’s tip things off with…

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is another list of five brief stints that were captured for posterity in video games.

Yes, it’s time for another Five that underscores once again that basketball video games end up being interactive almanacs! Last June, I recalled five brief stints that made it into the official rosters of basketball video games, from Rasheed Wallace’s unlikely appearance as an Atlanta Hawk in NBA Ballers to Anfernee Hardaway’s frequently forgotten comeback with the Miami Heat, as seen in NBA 2K7. A combination of late releases, revised editions, and official roster updates have preserved a number of these odd stints for players that we generally picture in a different uniform.

To that point, if we’ve spent a considerable amount of time with a game – especially in the days before official roster updates – we may come to think of these brief stints as lasting much longer than they actually did. That’s definitely the case for me when it comes to at least one of the examples that I’m covering here today. As for the other brief stints, while I do remember them and that they didn’t last long, it’s still thanks to unusual and fortuitous circumstances that they were preserved in the official rosters of video games. Long-time readers will know how much I love trivia like this, so let’s not delay any further; here are five more brief stints that were captured in games!

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five changes that NBA teams have made to their branding that I’ve found quite baffling.

Look, I’ll put my hand up and admit to being a creature of habit that sometimes needs to be pushed – or indeed, dragged kicking and screaming – through the proverbial door of change. With that being said, I do still believe that change for change’s sake opens the door to bad ideas. To quote a classic pearl of colloquial wisdom, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. That certainly applies to a number of branding changes that NBA teams have made over the years. As a Chicago Bulls fan, I’m rather lucky that they’ve kept their iconic look decades beyond the championship years!

Although I’m not as personally affected by changes that other NBA teams make to their branding, I still have my likes and dislikes when it comes to what I see when they’re on the court. It’s understandable that teams want to freshen up their look, and admittedly, there have been many times when I’ve really liked the new designs that a franchise has introduced. Other times however, an NBA team will make changes to their branding that are simply baffling, either because it feels like such a step down, or the team didn’t seem that committed to the design because they change it again soon afterwards. With that being said, here are five baffling NBA team branding changes!

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five moments in modding that are extremely satisfying.

Needless to say, modding has long been a major part of what we do here at the NLSC. For nearly thirty years now, talented people in our community have added missing content, fixed and updated content that was in the games by default, made unofficial fixes for bugs and other issues, and created brand new experiences with amazing total conversions. These efforts have not only enhanced the virtual hardwood experience for a lot of people, but also been creatively satisfying for those who enjoy tinkering with video games. Indeed, some people mod the games more than they play them!

Naturally, modding can also be a frustrating and tedious activity. From repetitive data entry to tasks that are complex to complete and all too easy to mess up, certain parts of modding aren’t as enjoyable as others. The fun steps, breakthroughs, and technical triumphs along the way, are what keep modders going until the job is complete. As someone who has both successfully released major projects and unfortunately had others fall through for a variety of reasons, I’m quite familiar with some of the most satisfying moments in modding. To that end, here are five that I’ve experienced while messing around with some of my favourite basketball games throughout the years.

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Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five basketball games that you may not be aware that we can mod.

When we were founded as the NBA Live Series Center all the way back in 1996, the focus of our modding community was naturally the NBA Live releases on PC. When NBA Live went console-only and NBA 2K came to PC, we turned our focus to that series. Basically, we’ve primarily focused on the brand leader that’s releasing on PC, but we’ve long been open to supporting mods for other games as well. There haven’t been as many of those releases – at least not around these parts – but modders have branched out into other titles, such as johnz1’s efforts for NBA Jam: On Fire Edition.

To that point though, there have been some other hoops titles over the years that can be modded. A focus on NBA Live and NBA 2K, and the general lack of popularity of these games, are the main reasons we haven’t seen fit to mod them. Nevertheless, they can be tinkered with to some extent, even if it’s simply renaming players. With more and more enthusiasm for retro basketball gaming and modding nowadays, there might be niche interest in furnishing them with a simple mod or two. Even if there isn’t quite enough interest to warrant any major public releases, the knowledge that we can mod these overlooked games could always spice up our retro basketball gaming sessions!

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