Tag Archives: Legends

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 some of the quietest additions that have been made in basketball games over the years.

Not all additions to basketball games receive a big announcement and a lot of fanfare, be they a brand new feature, or content pushed through during the season. As demonstrated just last week, new content in particular can be added very quietly. Of course, when it comes to the preview season, both EA Sports and Visual Concepts do tend to go to much greater lengths to inform us about new additions to NBA Live and NBA 2K. It stands to reason, as along with improvements to existing features, any exciting new additions are strong selling points that are likely to move units.

With that being said, even during the preview season, there are additions that seem to fly under the radar. There are a few reasons as to why this may happen. A long time ago, the preview season wasn’t as comprehensive and in-depth as it is now. There’s also oversight, and underestimation of a feature’s appeal. Alternatively, something may be kept under wraps to keep it a surprise, though this runs the risk of wasting a good selling point. Some additions may be kept quiet to avoid potential controversy. Whatever the case may be, there have been several additions to basketball games that have had little to no hype or promotion. Let’s look at five of them.

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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 Legends and Champs rosters for NBA Live on PC.

The announcement that NBA 2K18 will be receiving new historical content, not only in the form of additional classic teams but also All-Time squads, drew a lot of excitement from gamers who are also enthusiastic NBA history buffs. While there have been omissions and other issues, historical content is something that the 2K series has generally done a great job with since NBA 2K11. Of course, as more than a couple of people have pointed out here and on social media, All-Time Teams are not a completely original concept, as many fan-made rosters featuring such squads have been created in recent years.

However, the concept goes back a lot further than that. Rosters comprised of All-Time squads date all the way back to the early days of patching NBA Live on PC, as Lutz’s Legends rosters demonstrate. For that matter, the concept of classic teams was also utilised by his Champs rosters. It’s been a while and a lot of newer basketball gamers probably aren’t aware of those influential mods, so let’s take a look back…way back…

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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 modes and features that are missing in recent games, and as such, tend to be sorely missed.

With their annual releases, sports video games are often criticised for being little more than a patch, roster update, or expansion pack sold at retail price. While it’s an understandable criticism, and those of us who buy the games every year certainly do want to get value for money, it is selling developers like EA Sports and Visual Concepts short. A lot of time and energy goes into the development of the games, and while the results aren’t always want we want, we generally see some pleasing improvements, and new content beyond updated rosters for the new season. Of course, it’s always frustrating when it seems like one step forward, two steps back.

As much as we hate to see new games make missteps in terms of the gameplay experience, it’s arguably even more frustrating when modes and other features that we really enjoyed in previous games are cut from future releases. Even though there may be perfectly valid reasons for their removal – technical or otherwise – it generally doesn’t lessen the sting of losing the experiences and functionality they provided. As I look ahead to NBA Live 18 and NBA 2K18, and think about the news I’d like to hear in the upcoming preview season, I can’t help but reflect on some of the modes and features that I miss in both games.

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Ready for some more mods for NBA 2K17 PC? Today’s new releases include an update for the Chicago Bulls’ United Center, a pack of NBA Legends faces, and Seattle SuperSonics logos for use with an expansion team. Download them all at the links below!

Manni Live
Chicago Bulls United Center HD V2

PeacemanNOT
Legend Pack 3

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Seattle SuperSonics Logo Pack

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.

I originally planned for last week’s Five to be the final instalment in my current series of articles discussing what I’d like to see in future NBA Live games, beginning with NBA Live 18 later this year. However, there are a few more ideas that I wanted to put out there, as they didn’t quite fit into any of the previous areas that I was focusing upon. While it’s crucial that core elements of the gameplay and existing game modes are fixed and enhanced, and that features such as roster editing return, there are a couple of other ideas that I believe would help make future NBA Live games even better.

These are the ideas that cater to specific needs and preferences, and contribute towards making NBA Live a deep and well-rounded game. Again, getting the gameplay right, enhancing the existing game modes, and implementing roster editing are all improvements that are absolutely vital, but once progress has been made on those fronts, it’s important that NBA Live innovates and expands upon its content, as the series once did so well. There are certainly more than five things that can be suggested here, but these are the ideas that either appeal the most to me, or I believe will have the biggest impact.

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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.

Today, December 7th 2016, is Larry Bird’s 60th birthday; Happy Birthday, Larry Legend! To mark the occasion, I’ve been trying to think of basketball video gaming topics that are related to the Boston Celtics great. Since I’ve already talked about Bird’s presence in NBA Jam Tournament Edition as a secret player, that idea is out. Glancing at the list of topics that I’ve compiled for future Wayback Wednesday features, I noticed one that’s probably overdue, and certainly has ties to Bird: NBA Legends in NBA Live 2000.

I remember that many of us were very excited to hear that a selection of NBA Legends from the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s would be featured in NBA Live 2000. The long-awaited addition of Michael Jordan was obviously a huge selling point, but the inclusion of Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain, Julius Erving, Isiah Thomas, and other all-time greats, also came as very welcome news for basketball gamers who wanted to see some historical content in NBA Live.

It’s the kind of content in basketball video games that helps us reminisce, so it’s only appropriate that we take a look back…way back…

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When NBA 2K17 was released, many gamers were disappointed to discover that Steve Nash was missing from the rosters of the 2003 Dallas Mavericks and 2005 Phoenix Suns. Since Nash’s inclusion in NBA 2K16 was still covered by the NBA Players Association license, it was speculated that his absence from NBA 2K17 was simply due to oversight, or an inability to work out a deal for his likeness rights before the rosters had to be finalised and approved by the NBA. It certainly wasn’t due to a lack of respect or knowledge on 2K’s part.

Fortunately, it seems that we won’t have to wait until next year to get the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player back in the game, as Steve Nash is included in the latest NBA 2K17 roster update. Nash appears on both the 2003 Mavericks and 2005 Suns, with appropriate ratings and bio data for each season. 2003 Nash is rated 86 Overall, while 2005 Nash is rated 93 Overall.

This isn’t the first time that 2K has managed to add a missing historical player through the official roster updates. Julius Erving was originally absent from NBA 2K14, but after coming to terms on a new deal, 2K were able to add him to the game. It remains to be seen whether any more missing historical players will be added in future updates, as there are still some noteworthy players absent from historical team rosters, including Rasheed Wallace.

As per Mike Wang over in the Operation Sports forums, the latest roster update also includes Adaptive Coaching Engine updates by Da_Czar and Scott O’Gallagher, and a decrease in injury frequency to lower body parts. Contract extensions have also been updated, along with some three-point tendencies and other player attributes.

See below for a couple of screenshots of Steve Nash on the 2003 Mavericks and 2005 Suns in NBA 2K17, and as always, feel free to have your say in the comments section!

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