Tag Archives: Collecting

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 video game boxes that I personally think are awesome.

For those of us in countries that celebrate the holiday, December 26th is Boxing Day. The day isn’t about the sport of boxing – as Maxwell Q. Klinger humorously thought in an episode of M*A*S*H – but rather was originally about donating gifts to those in need. These days, it’s more of an extension of Christmas celebrations, though here in Australia it also means Test cricket, a yacht race, and sales similar to Black Friday in the United States. With all of that being said, what kind of basketball gaming-related topic would be relevant for me to discuss today?

Why, basketball video game boxes, of course! Alright, that’s a little cheesy, but cool video game boxes from the heyday of physical media can be as nostalgic as the games that they contained. Moreover, countless video game boxes – basketball or otherwise – have been opened on Christmas Day, or during Boxing Day gift exchanges. Please note that I’m not just talking about covers here. That’s certainly a part of what makes basketball video game boxes awesome, but there’s also the other box art including the previews on the back, as well as other fun design elements. I’m not saying these are necessarily the best basketball video game boxes, but they are some of my favourites.

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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 offers up five warnings for basketball video game collectors.

As a 90s kid who got into more than a couple of collecting fads over the years, I’d have to say that basketball video games have been among the most satisfying things to collect. It certainly helps that I don’t have to rely on favourable odds and hope that what I want is in a pack I’m opening, but compared to trading cards and other such collectibles, video games have a practical use. Of course, there are some people who collect video games of all genres simply for the purpose of displaying and eventually selling them, but I collect basketball games to play them…and yes, to create content.

Mind you, whatever your reason for collecting video games – whatever the genre – it’s a hobby with fluctuating difficulty and expense. Furthermore, because there is money to be made, too many people are hoping to cash in on the enthusiasm – or indeed, the desperation – of collectors. I’ve strived to be as savvy and frugal as I possibly can be while building my basketball game collection, and I’ll always advise any would-be collectors and retro gamers to do the same. To that end, there are some warnings that I strongly suggest you heed. Retro gaming and collecting is a blast, but you do need to be careful about costs, and keep a few things in mind if you want to play those games.

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #555 of the NLSC Podcast!

Player Lock is arguably one of the most underrated gameplay features outside of its use in career and online team play modes, but picking a suitable role is paramount whichever mode you’re playing. To that end, this week we join the community in choosing the players that we’d most prefer to lock on, from a shortlist of notable names from the 2000s and today. We also reflect on the excitement of making a new video game purchase – especially when physical media is involved – and share some more advice for capturing highlights on the virtual hardwood, whether you’re playing on PC or console.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 41:25 — 28.8MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m taking a look back at basketball trading cards.

As a young, newly-minted hardcore basketball fan in the mid 90s, I couldn’t get enough of the sport. I indulged this new love of hoops in a variety of ways. At school, I hit the blacktop with my friends as often as we could, with at least three or four of us bringing our own ball most days. I eagerly anticipated the Game of the Week and every episode of NBA Action, either staying up late or setting the VCR to record them. Obviously, I played basketball video games, especially NBA Live, NBA Jam, and World League Basketball. And yes, I collected basketball trading cards, too.

Trading cards, basketball or otherwise, are indeed still a thing. It’s actually cool to see, given that online resources and a move away from physical media in general easily could’ve rendered them an outdated concept. I haven’t actively collected cards in a long time, but in the early years of my basketball fandom, I enthusiastically bought packs whenever I could. There’s also a connection to basketball gaming here, as they were once handy sources of information when creating roster mods. They’re certainly nostalgic for many of us basketball fans, so let’s take a look back…way back…

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From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #518 of the NLSC Podcast!

While we have our concerns about future releases, we’re arguably in a golden age for retro gaming! To that end, we note the further improvements to PCSX2 and Windows 11’s ability to run NBA Action 98 without issues, and recap our recent sessions with ESPN NBA Basketball (aka NBA 2K4) and NBA 2K18 for PlayStation 3. The latter was a game we played by request, and it surprised us with its quality! Revisiting a game from the end of a generation also leads us to reflect on whether NBA 2K24 will be the final prior gen release. We also react to the news of massive layoffs at EA, and join the community in speculating what it might mean – if anything – for the future of the NBA Live series.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:05:30 — 45.3MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! From retrospectives of basketball games and their interesting features, to republished articles and looking at NBA history through the lens of the virtual hardwood, Wednesdays at the NLSC are for going back in time. This week, I’m reminiscing about re-playing the 1995 season in NBA Live 95 PC, a few years after it had concluded.

As I’ve said, I was born to be a retro gamer. My introduction to gaming was through a console that was already outdated, and even in the late 90s I was sticking with and going back to old favourites. The family’s aging 486 PC and the Nintendo 64 being the console I owned were also factors, especially when it came to basketball gaming. I didn’t have much choice without the hardware to play the newest NBA Live, nor could I convince my folks that I needed yet another basketball video game (“you’ve already got plenty!”). Nevertheless, my collection began when I was a teenager.

One of the most exciting pickups was NBA Live 95 PC. The Super Nintendo version of NBA Live 95 had been my introduction to 5v5 sim basketball games, but it was a frequent video store rental. NBA Live 96 was the first game I owned on PC, and also one of the first basketball video games that I actually owned, period. It was by chance that I happened across a copy of NBA Live 95 PC one school holidays, and as soon as I had it, it entered the rotation of games that my cousin Clinton and I played as often as we could. We eventually decided to re-play the 1995 season, and it became one of my all-time favourite hoops gaming experiences. Let’s take a look back…way back…

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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 regrets I have regarding basketball game collecting.

Generally speaking, basketball game collecting is something that I don’t regret. I’ve enjoyed building up my collection, playing some games that I overlooked back in the day, and having a variety of titles to fall back on if I’m not enjoying the latest release. I’ve aimed to be a savvy collector with a sensible budget, so I don’t really have any regrets as far as the money I’ve spent. Well, sort of. In the past, I’ve carelessly bought the wrong version of a couple of titles, as well as a manual instead of the actual game, because I didn’t pay enough attention to the eBay listing. Rookie mistakes!

Fortunately, I wasn’t out of pocket for those erroneous purchases. Beyond that, adding to my collection has been fun and exciting, especially when I’ve been able to track down a rare game at a great price. I am, for the most part, quite satisfied with the games that I currently have at my disposal. However, I do have some regrets when it comes to my adventures in basketball game collecting. I’ve missed out on a few opportunities over the years, and at this point, I’m not going to get a second chance. There were understandable reasons that I passed up those opportunities of course, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t occasionally grumble at myself for letting them slip by.

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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 reflecting upon five types of basketball memorabilia that I’ve collected over the years.

Although I’m still passionate about basketball, there’s nothing quite like your first foray into a new hobby or interest. When I first got hooked on hoops, I couldn’t get enough! I needed to read every magazine and learn everything I could about the NBA and its history. I eagerly devoured highlights and any full games that I was able to watch. If I saw a basketball player on a cover or poster, heard their name on the news, or simply caught mention of the word “basketball”, it grabbed my attention. I can’t imagine how much it must have bugged my parents, but they supported my interest.

Needless to say, there’s a ton of basketball and basketball-related memorabilia that one can collect. Over many years of following the sport, I’ve indulged my passion with a variety of collectibles and keepsakes. Of course, I haven’t sought to get my hands on absolutely every bit of basketball memorabilia that I can find. I’ve never been to an NBA game, so I don’t have any ticket stubs or programs, and I’m not looking to buy anyone else’s. I’ve also never been into figurines or pop vinyls, so they’re not in my collection. There are other things that I’ve enthusiastically collected though, and they represent many fond memories as a long-time hardcore hoop head.

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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 tips on how to get into basketball game collecting.

So, you say you want to get into collecting basketball video games? I’ve seen some people express interest in the hobby, especially with how often that Dee and I have talked about our collections on the NLSC Podcast! We’re admittedly at the crazier end of the hobby, doubling up on different platforms, picking up spare copies if we see them for ridiculously low prices, and seeking out some more expensive titles. One doesn’t have to be a completionist to collect though, especially when it comes to video games. It’s fine to just amass a collection of favourites that you want to have on hand.

We’ve received a couple of strange YouTube comments in regards to our collections, which seem to imply that we’re somehow doing something nefarious, or that we’re in some exclusive hobby that requires great wealth. To put it bluntly, neither is true! I believe the former comment mistook our discussion of shared experiences using Parsec as somehow hoarding games, while the latter is assuming that collecting needs to be an expensive hobby. We did respond to those comments and provided some tips on basketball game collecting way back in Episode #436 of the Podcast, but I’d like to offer some further advice, including a summary of key tips at the end of this article.

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The official NBA 2K Twitter recently posted a reminder about the NBA 2K21 server shutdown, which is scheduled for December 31st, 2022. This is in line with the promised duration for online support, which was extended to 27 months back in 2014 after the NBA 2K14 server shutdown led to much controversy.

To state the obvious, all online play and functionality will be unavailable following the NBA 2K21 server shutdown. This includes MyTEAM and MyCAREER, as an offline version of the latter mode hasn’t been available since NBA 2K19. Roster sharing will not be possible (at least on console), and official roster updates will not be redownloaded if the game is reinstalled. All unused Virtual Currency and MT will be lost, with no option to transfer the remaining balance to NBA 2K22 or NBA 2K23.

Additionally, 2K have confirmed that NBA 2K21 will be pulled from digital storefronts following the server shutdown. In the past, older titles have sometimes remained available to buy for up to a few years later. Infamously, the special editions of NBA 2K18 were still being sold as of December 2020, despite their bonuses requiring online support that had long since concluded. Since then, 2K has been quicker to pull games that are no longer supported. To that end, if you’re a collector/completionist and don’t own NBA 2K21 yet, you’ll have until January 1st 2023 to add it to your library of basketball video games.

As always, anyone who already owns NBA 2K21 on PC or console will still be able to download it again and continue to play offline modes beyond the server shutdown. Nevertheless, I’d recommend wrapping up any unfinished business ASAP, as well as downloading any custom rosters before the servers go offline. Feel free to suggest any rosters for your fellow gamers to check out while there’s still time, either in the comments below or here in our NBA 2K21 Forum.

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #449 of the NLSC Podcast!

NBA Live 99 PC is arguably one of the most underrated basketball video games of all-time, and we had a blast revisiting it using a 2002 roster update! In addition to giving NBA Live 99 PC its due, our session also inspired us to reflect on the Boston Celtics and Michael Jordan-led Washington Wizards of the 2002 season. We also discuss the latest NBA 2K23 patch, which thankfully appears to have done more good than harm. There’s also some recent retro basketball game pickups to share, including Arch Rivals for the NES, the later NBA 2K titles for PlayStation 2, and a few other classics and rarities that will undoubtedly appeal to our fellow enthusiastic collectors and retro gamers.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:06:32 — 46.0MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #448 of the NLSC Podcast!

After circling back to our plans to revisit NBA Showdown 94, we connected on Parsec for a head-to-head game. Although it was a lot of fun, we can’t help but reflect on what a massive jump NBA Live 95 made in just one year. We also recap our other basketball gaming sessions from the past week, which included another co-op game of NBA Live 2003, and a devastating injury in NBA 2K14 MyCAREER. Additionally, we discuss our future plans with NBA 2K23, and feeling more inclined to play old favourites instead as of late. In this week’s mailbag, the community tells us which retro hoops titles they’d pick up if they had $20 to spend.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:15:31 — 52.2MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #442 of the NLSC Podcast!

It’s the final countdown to NBA 2K23! Snippets of news are coming through on a daily basis leading up to the release, though the details aren’t always substantial. We’ve got thoughts to share on the MyCAREER trailer, GOAT Boat developer blog, J. Cole cover, guest announcers, and soundtrack reveal (such as it was). We also reflect on an incredible steal of a retro collecting pickup, and respond to a Tweet that perfectly demonstrates Next Gen snobbery. In this week’s mailbag, our listeners tell us about the role players and benchwarmers that became Virtual Hardwood Legends for them, and we share a few more examples of our own unlikely stars throughout many years of basketball gaming.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:12:19 — 50.0MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #441 of the NLSC Podcast!

The latest developer blogs delivered some more great news about NBA 2K23, this time concerning MyTEAM and The W. As release day looms, we’re allowing ourselves to feel optimistic. We also revisited NBA Live 2001 this week, while dusting off an old retro season mod. It produced a dramatic win, but we were reminded that the game can be very hit and miss! A session with NBA Inside Drive 2003 yielded a fun Easter egg, though a reply to a Tweet about it prompts us to defend retro basketball gaming once again. There are also a couple of recent retro pickups to reflect upon, updates on our NBA 2K19 MyLEAGUE and NBA 2K14 MyCAREER games to share, and a mailbag question about using players out of position.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:20:25 — 55.6MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!

From courtside of the virtual hardwood, it’s Episode #440 of the NLSC Podcast!

MyNBA Eras have added a feature to the franchise experience in NBA 2K23 Next Gen that we once thought wouldn’t ever be possible. Although we do have some concerns about the quality of certain elements, and its absence in Current Gen is a bummer, we’re definitely impressed and excited! That joy carried over to our retro gaming this week, as we were able to resolve some technical issues for a better experience. Another instalment of Dee’s Deals provides a roundup of some very fairly-priced classics for aspiring collectors. We also reflect on the lineup of basketball games circa 2002-2003, once again lamenting the lack of choice we have some twenty years later. In this week’s mailbag, our listeners tell us which MyNBA Era they’re most excited to play in NBA 2K23.

Download or play on your mobile device/tablet: CLICK HERE (Running time: 1:20:32 — 55.7MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

To get involved with the mailbag or to provide any feedback on the show, hit us up in the comments, reach out on social media, or post here in the NLSC Forum! For more information on the NLSC Podcast including episode guides, check out this page in our Wiki. You can also find the show on our YouTube channel, along with the rest of our video content. As always, thanks for tuning in, and go get buckets!