NBA 2K21 Current-Gen impressions

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NBA 2K21 Current-Gen impressions

Postby ThePointForward on Thu May 06, 2021 7:25 pm

After looking through this forum and not finding a thread I could necro, I have decided to make my own thread - that nobody ever wanted, because it's about current-gen which is just somewhat changed 2K20 anyway, right?

But alas, here we are, and I really wanted to do a little writeup either way.

So little background first, aka why the hell am I writing about current-gen now.
It was discounted. Yeah. After a year of not playing NBA game I was nostalgic and thought I'd get the new one on sale.
And let's face it, I'd have bought it on launch if PC got next-gen version, because I'm a sucker like that. But PC got the same as PS4 and X1 and I'm not buying PS5 or XSX just for NBA 2K. Xbox exclusives are coming to PC anyway and Sony seems to be down for that lately as well, although there's usually some waiting period.
So realistically I'd be buying a relatively expensive console for one game and I can't justify that. I will be considering Xbox Series S, because it's cheaper, I play at 1440p anyway and once corona is over I can once again take it whenever I visit my parents for an overnight stay.
I've always been a PC first guy, partially because my parents didn't want to buy me just a toy (console), but a tool (PC). And given I now have a career in IT I guess they were right. My home PC is pretty powerful (i9-9900k and RTX 3080), so again, spending considerable amount of cash on next-gen console for one game is not justifiable for me at the moment.

Anyway, now that's said and done, to NBA 2K21
Well, I got the game on sale, installed it and started playing with an Xbox One controller (I have big hands, so I prefer it's size over PS4 controller).

I'm not big into MyTEAM anymore, so there I pretty much just unpacked the starter kit and entered current locker codes just in case.
One thing that immediatelly jumped out at me - pachinko machine. Amazing. Even for a code where there's one guaranteed outcome - you can only get an Onyx D Wade and nothing else. You're still forced to "play" this pachinko machine in-game. Yes, the machine that is a large problem in Japan because of pathological gambling.

Well, onto MyCareer, because that's what I play the most.
Of course, current-gen has the same pie chart system instead of next-gen system. I feel like that's something that could've been implemented into current-gen but OK.
I picked shooting and defense pie for my SG. I didn't get any pre-order bonuses and I bought the regular edition so no extra VC for me. I was starting from zero, just as the devs intended right? (I did get extra 2500 VC from daily spins)
I did get through the story, it was... fine. I didn't get overly amazed by it, but it was alright. Overall a net positive. Ending was good, suddenly bunch of stuff made sense.
I managed to get drafted as number 2, right after Hendrix Cobb. We were both drafted by LA Lakers, because that somehow makes sense for the current champions to snatch up both first and second pick overall, but hey... Cobb is a beast. He was guaranteed three machine.
That didn't last forever though as sadly Lakers have traded Cobb away when I made the starting lineup.
And this is something that's grinding my gears somewhat. The team, any team in fact, has little to no reason to trade Cobb away and keep only me. I'm SG, but I can play PG and in fact that's what I regularly do for Lakers anyway. So they have two rookies on rookie contracts who are beasting their way through their first year in the league and the team lineup could easily be me in PG, Cobb in SG, LeBron in SF, Davis in PF and Drummond in C. That's basically a "big five".
And they have me and Cobb locked down for up to 4 years on rookie (albeit first and second pick) salary.

This is where "story" got in the way of realism. Yes, the draft itself was unrealistic, but it is what it is. Suddenly they break it even more with a senseless trade.
If we were both 7'2" centers I wouldn't say anything, you can't really start two of these just like that.

So what about gameplay?
It's... ok. Due to my selected playstyle I'm actually able to shoot threes, be good on defense, have decent ball handling (no pro moves for me though) and finally I can finish a layup, which this year doesn't seem to be a big issue.
I have bunch of gripes though.
My player handles like a combine harvester. I assume it's because of low physicals (I'm now 75 OVR), but it's annoying to see myself handle as if I'm 250 kg and CPU players not being affected by the laws of physics at all, instantly changing momentum on a whim.
The defense of CPU is abysmal. Same old. Transition defense is terrible, CPU is bunching up and leaving shooters open. The CPU teammates are incapable of switching on double screens and only switch when you manage to get around the screen and keep defending your guy but you get penalized for not switching to opposing center for no reason.
And they keep double teaming me. My current stat line is something like 20 points and 15 assists. I lead the league in assists, so while double team is a nice idea, this is the one guy in the league you do not want to double team because, you guessed it, he passes the ball to open players. Like... c'mon. If I were dropping 50 points then sure, double me, makes sense. If you're doubling me because I have too many assists... just why.
Other than that, my major gripe is with getting stuck on people. Often when running through traffic I get stuck on an invisible wall around a player. There needs to be some interaction when I try to get past.

Other than that, shooting feels fine, layups are actually going in when uncontested and teammates get the idea that they're supposed to shoot when I pass the ball and they're open.


So I guess my question is for the people who play on next-gen: how much of this is relatable in next-gen? Are some of these issues fixed now?
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Re: NBA 2K21 Current-Gen impressions

Postby TGsoGood on Mon May 10, 2021 4:32 am

I have both 2K21 on PC and next gen.
I prefer 2K20 and 2K17. I do like a lot of things in Next Gen but I got tired of playing park right after rookieville lol.
Then MyNBA (the myleague +MyGM mode) had too many issues back when I played so I haven't really played next gen in a few months. I did enjoy playing as Ja Morant and changing speeds but overall the game was too frustrating to keep playing at the time.
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NBA 2K21 TGsoGood Mods and releases - viewtopic.php?f=267&t=110608
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Re: NBA 2K21 Current-Gen impressions

Postby hova- on Thu May 20, 2021 8:27 pm

I would really love to post in every thread about the last three editions of 2k (no matter if current or next gen).

Recently watched some youtube videos of 2k8, 2k11, 2k14 and WTF these all look better than 2k19, 2k20, 2k21. Less skating, way better lighting. Yes, bodies look worse, CFs as well, but all in all when playing broadcast, 2k8 looks better than 2k20 in my opinion. Especially considering that I had frame rate issues with all the recent editions no matter how low I set graphic settings.

2k needs such a big overhaul. I would love to play a basketball game on PC now, but there is currently just no edition for me that fits best.
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Re: NBA 2K21 Current-Gen impressions

Postby Uncle Drew on Mon May 24, 2021 8:09 pm

hova- wrote:I would really love to post in every thread about the last three editions of 2k (no matter if current or next gen).

Recently watched some youtube videos of 2k8, 2k11, 2k14 and WTF these all look better than 2k19, 2k20, 2k21. Less skating, way better lighting. Yes, bodies look worse, CFs as well, but all in all when playing broadcast, 2k8 looks better than 2k20 in my opinion. Especially considering that I had frame rate issues with all the recent editions no matter how low I set graphic settings.

2k needs such a big overhaul. I would love to play a basketball game on PC now, but there is currently just no edition for me that fits best.


Yeah 2K needs to blow it up and rebuild. Kinda like the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons.
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Re: NBA 2K21 Current-Gen impressions

Postby ThePointForward on Tue May 25, 2021 8:50 pm

Lighting is pretty much subjective. There is no way I'll consider 2K8 or 11 having better lighting than 21. For example: shiny jerseys. The only jersey that has any business shining is the Mavs' trash bag jersey.

But mainly comparing 2K8/11/14 with 20/21 on minimum or very low settings is just not a good comparison. That's as if I said that original Modern Warfare looked better than the 2019 Modern Warfare... with latter on minimum settings.
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