NLSC Your source for basketball video games.
We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Join me as I begin the week here at the NLSC with my opinions and commentary on basketball gaming topics, as well as tales of the fun I’ve been having on the virtual hardwood. This week, I’m tipping things off with some reflections on how the NBA 2K12 intro makes me wistful nowadays.
To celebrate World Basketball Day – which has indeed been declared an official day of observance – I’ve taken to posting the intro from NBA 2K12 on the NLSC’s socials every December 21st. It tends to get some traction with shares, likes, and comments, because it’s one of the very best intros that we’ve seen in a basketball video game. Accompanied by Kurtis Blow’s iconic hit “Basketball” and re-creating some of the best moments in the history of the sport in a way that blends past and present, it truly is a love letter to hoops.
Thanks to the way that Facebook’s algorithms work, the post on our page is the one that achieved the furthest reach out of all our socials, and it’s still being watched and getting regular reactions as of writing. Many of the comments are praising it for being such an incredible intro to a basketball video game, and also calling NBA 2K12 the best game in the series. I’m more inclined to agree with the former sentiment rather than the latter, but nevertheless, I’m glad that I’m not alone in my enjoyment of the NBA 2K12 intro. At the same time, seeing those comments and watching the intro again has left me feeling wistful about changes in basketball and gaming since then.
I know, I know. That probably sounds incredibly jaded and pessimistic; a glass-half-full reaction to a nostalgic video game intro that people enjoyed seeing in their feed. Here’s the thing, though. The celebration of past and present in the NBA 2K12 intro is something we just don’t see any more, or at least, not nearly often enough. Notably, the intro shows historical players on equal footing with contemporary stars, and even getting the best of them with some of their famous highlights. With all of the foolish talk of supposed evolution, ridiculous “plumbers and dentists” rhetoric, and petulant “we’re done with the 90s” campaigns, can you imagine a new game daring to do that?
Even with the incredible amount of historical content that’s available in NBA 2K25, that same love of basketball and respect for its rich history just isn’t there. Granted, it doesn’t help when so much of the historical content is riddled with inaccuracies and a general lack of care across the board, but let’s face it: the people taking exception to that are “old heads” like me. Younger fans that don’t have the same nostalgia, not to mention fondness for NBA history and appreciation for what came before they were fans, generally aren’t bothered by insulting ratings and incorrect logos. They are the key demographic now, though with that being said, even that is questionable at times.
The popularity of NBA 2K has encouraged Visual Concepts to expand beyond its genre. Having conquered the competition in the basketball gaming space, 2K is now competing with other genres and leaping onto popular trends, regardless of whether or not they make sense for a sim basketball title. It’s reached a point where gamers that champion realism will be laughed at and shouted down, because “it’s a video game, it doesn’t need to be realistic!” Such a suggestion would’ve been bewildering to the key demographic circa NBA 2K12; a ridiculous request as the team at VC was dedicated to a goal of authentic gameplay, and deep modes replicating and celebrating the NBA.
Those remarks fondly recalling NBA 2K12 as their favourite or the best game in the series after watching its intro again are also quite telling. I’m not sure that we’ll see that same nostalgia for any recent releases in the NBA 2K series. Oh, many gamers will enjoy them and recall doing so, but they won’t stand out as landmark releases like an NBA 2K12, or NBA 2K11, or NBA Live 2000, or NBA Live 95, or NBA Jam, or any of the nostalgic favourites that are rightfully revered as classics. The games are too disposable now. They’re consistent and well-made – even if I don’t always enjoy them personally – but they lack character and unique features that inspire nostalgia.
Watching the NBA 2K12 intro and reading those comments, I was reminded of that shift in attitude, in basketball gaming and real life alike. NBA history is no longer respected and celebrated, but debated and derided in an effort to promote today’s league. Ironically, this makes the present less impressive, suggesting it cleared a low bar rather than being the next chapter in an epic story. Likewise, games are meant to be discarded in favour of the next title, since the live service content dries up. Once again, this ironically makes them feel less special, as they’re relying on a stream of updates to be playable rather than gameplay and features that make them timeless.
That’s not to say that NBA 2K12 is necessarily a better game than NBA 2K25 by most metrics. It has inferior dribbling and passing controls, shallower modes, and graphics that are two generations behind. Of course, there are people who would argue that it’s nevertheless more fun to play, and as someone who will happily stick to old favourites if the latest release doesn’t capture my interest, I can’t fault them for that! An old game can be technically inferior to a newer title, yet still be more fun. More to the point though, while NBA 2K12 has inspired nostalgia that makes people want to play and mod it even today, NBA 2K25 is far more likely to be cast aside.
It doesn’t help that basketball and basketball video games feel more like products than ever. That’s not to say they weren’t back in 2011 or indeed earlier, but it’s inescapable now. In both cases, there’s also the constant insistence that the latest is the greatest, a notion that just comes across as phoney; especially when you’re being told, not shown that this is the case. I’m sorry, but I don’t accept that mindlessly jacking up threes is beautiful basketball, or “complex and evolved” strategy! Likewise, modern graphics don’t mask legacy issues and new problems alike, or the greedy approach to designing popular modes like MyTEAM and MyCAREER, which emphasise revenue over fun.
The NBA 2K12 intro makes me wistful because it’s from a time when basketball and video games were discussed with more respect and insight. NBA 2K12 celebrated the all-time greats and current stars, but not at each other’s expense. It’s why they were depicted as peers in the intro. We didn’t question why John Wall was standing there chatting with Wilt Chamberlain; it was just about featuring a then-rising star next to an all-time great. No implications, no debate. If 2K were making that intro now, it’d probably be far less flattering to The Stilt. I could see it catering to the idea that he’d struggle to compete against today’s big men (even just writing that makes me cringe!).
Once again though, it’s not just about views on NBA history, but also video games. Yes, there have always been people who believe that the latest game in a series is the best, even when the developers later admit to blunders. To that point though, many of us recognise that there are peaks and valleys; big strides forward and missteps from time to time. Even when NBA Live or NBA 2K had a string of great games, we could identify standout releases, not all of which were the last in the run. As much as some will bleat about everyone hating the new game and praising an old one, just as often nowadays, the latest release is showered with undue praise simply because it’s new.
As successful as NBA 2K remains, many people don’t love recent releases. They may really enjoy them, but they don’t become favourites the way games used to. Look, it’s harder for annual sports titles to become nostalgic classics that gamers want to revisit compared to other genres, but historically speaking, long-time devotees of the virtual hardwood could name the releases that were special to them, and that they’d eagerly dust off. I’m not saying that NBA 2K25 is a bad game – in fact, I’ve spoken about it quite positively compared to its ninth generation brethren – but I’d be very surprised if basketball gamers one day reminisce about it with the same fondness as NBA 2K12.
And, while I hate the “true fan” gatekeeping that it implies, I believe the same applies to real basketball as well. How many people are diehard fans that can’t get enough of the sport and its history, and how many just like being part of the discourse? How many of them claim to love hoops, yet can’t stomach an 82-game regular season and wish it were shorter? How many people fancy themselves experts on basketball, yet the closest they’ve come to playing it is with a controller in their hands? How many of them only “know” NBA history through the classic teams and retro rosters in NBA 2K, which as I noted, are riddled with inaccuracies and a disappointing lack of care?
I’m not suggesting that everybody who played NBA 2K12 and enjoys its intro is an infallible source of basketball knowledge, or even a diehard hoops fan. Considering its dedication to authenticity and realism however, it was certainly aimed at people who were particularly passionate about the sport. Furthermore, it celebrated the game both past and present, without agendas or performative debate in mind. Put it this way: LeBron James’ only appearance in the NBA 2K12 intro sees Dirk Nowitzki shooting over him, referencing the 2011 NBA Finals. I can only imagine the utter caterwauling if a new intro dared not to crown him as the be-all, end-all of the NBA!
This is of course a cue for armchair psychoanalysts to declare that what I’m really wistful for is childhood, where everything made sense and my favourites were in vogue. I won’t deny my nostalgia, but I am compelled to point out that NBA 2K12 came out right before I turned 27, and that while I hold it in high regard, it’s not one of my all-time favourites. I appreciate what it represents though, from its celebration and respect of NBA history to an authentic depiction of the then-modern league. It’s a philosophy that applied to both video games and real hoops, and both were better for it. If nothing else, the discourse surrounding them was far less asinine than it is now.
To that end, I’m wistful that we’ve lost the respect for NBA history that allowed us to regard both the past and present fondly. I highly doubt that anyone who’s nostalgic for NBA 2K12 and its intro would dare to say that Wilt Chamberlain would be no better than Ryan Hollins if he were playing in 2012! Conversely, I fear too many gamers in NBA 2K25’s key demographic would insist that Chet Holmgren would effortlessly shut down The Big Dipper. The fact that people can recognise NBA 2K12’s strengths and appreciate it despite its age is an excellent metaphor for the way that we used to be able to enjoy the modern NBA, while still paying tribute to the all-time greats.
Of course I’m wistful for that as a long-time basketball fan! As a basketball gamer, I’m also wistful for a time when games didn’t feel so disposable, blending together and feeling more like annual subscriptions and roster updates, without the same milestone releases. I appreciate that NBA 2K has been consistently pretty good (if not always personally enjoyable) for years, but it feels like it hit a plateau. I’ll take that over NBA Live’s struggles, but the bar should be higher than that! I miss having games that held up years later and were all-time classics on top of nostalgic favourites, because they didn’t lose their replay value with the end of online support and live service content.
Honestly, I’m wistful for genuine positivity in basketball and basketball games. Not this contrived, disrespectful “everything always gets better, and you’re an out-of-touch old head if you don’t like it” take, born of an obsessive need to proclaim the latest the greatest. History proves that to be folly. NBA Live 07 wasn’t better than NBA Live 06. Paul Millsap wasn’t better than Tim Duncan. Do I even need to get into terrible sequels and reboots? Remember, recency bias can be just as myopic as nostalgia, and performative debate pollutes the discourse. NBA 2K12 and its iconic intro predates the explosion of that toxicity, so as much as I enjoy it, there’s some wistfulness, too.
