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Little More Info On NBA 2K12........
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Little More Info On NBA 2K12........Posted:
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Ill cut right to the chase: With the assistance of the good folks at Access Communications, I was given the opportunity to play the newest iteration of the NBA 2K series today. Given the status of the (actual, real-life) League, video game hoops may be the only NBA ball fans will get to experience for a while, so the anticipation around this years releaseNBA 2K12, which drops officially on October 4, 2011feels a little extra special.
Heres what I knew going in: While Michael Jordan graced the front of NBA 2K11, MJ, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird will all get their own covers of 2K12. And though last years version included a Jordan Challenge, giving the user an opportunity to recreate all of Moneys biggest games, 2K12 has an NBAs Greatest mode, in which the user can play as one of 15 classic NBA squadseach led by a different legendary superstaragainst a rival team of the same era. I played both NBAs Greatest mode and the standard Quick Play mode today, and heres some of what I learned:
The Gameplay
Each year, the newest version of a video game seriesany series, reallyaims to improve on the basic visual graphics of the previous years version. NBA 2K12 is no exception, it succeeds in doing so. Its probably the smoothest hoops game yet, as players glide around the floor effortlessly, but the realistic physics of the gameplay that a userspecifically one familiar with the game of basketballwould want are maintained. So you cant do things like, say, run one player right through another. If youre controlling an off-the-ball defender and knock into a separate player, it actually looks like what transpires when one guy runs into another guy. Or you cant just lazily toss a pass through traffic and expect it to magically fly through a bunch of defenders limbs. Theyll intercept it. (That was the case in NBA 2K11 as well, but it feels a little more natural this time around. A good thing.) You know, just like in real basketball. Except youre playing a video game. You might need to remind yourself this every few minutes or so.
Beyond the standard graphical improvement, the developers put an increased focus on some specific aspects of the gamplay. Here are a few that stood out:
Each tilt begins with an intense intro, not too dissimilar from the beginning of the type of television broadcast youre used to seeing nightly each winter. Theres a song that plays as we see the players warming up, and, fortunately, theres a rotating group of songs programmed to play in that slot (was told ones an Eminem song, but wasnt told which), so you wont go crazy from hearing the same music over and over. During the Mavs-Heat game I played, the first on-court image was of Dwyane Wade pulling his head up through the rim, so yeahthe detail is solid.
The in-game dynamic commentary has been held over. So the commentatorsKevin Harlan, Clark Kellogg and Steve Kerrmay be talking about a players back-story, then cut to some quick game action if something particularly wild goes down, then return right back to their story. And its all crazy relevanttheir discussions include references to the 2011 NBA Finals, amongst other previous-season happenings.
The standard play-calling system still exists for the in-depth, full-team maneuvers, but theres a new, simpler way to call quick plays. (Worth noting: Ive always been a fan of the pass-the-ball-around-until-I-can-somehow-find-a-way-to-score strategy, so I have no idea what the previous years play-calling systems were like. Apologies if something like this already existed.) By pressing an arrow on the D-pad, a few solid options come up, and theyre pretty self-explanatory. For example, if youre playing as the Heat and hit that button, the options may be: (X) LeBron iso; (Y) Wade cut to hoop; (B) Bosh post-up; (A) Chalmers get open. And then you can easily choose a play and run it. Easy and effective.
Post-up play has been refined, making the way things take place in the painted area even more realistic.
You know how in most basketball gameswell, probably in most sports games in generaltheres a kind of invisible wall surrounding the court/playing field, so if youre controlling a player and run him out of bounds, hell just be stopped by a supernatural force? That doesnt really exist anymore. If you run a defender into the scorers table, just like in real life, hell jump up and hop into the crowd, then gather himself and get back into the action. If you run him into the sidelines, hell leap over the folks lucky enough to be seated courtside before curbing his momentum and turning around. Cool, no?
The game developers put extra emphasis on the accuracy of the players tattoos, so the guys look even more like they do in real life. Its kind of unreal. Or insanely real, if you will. Whatever.
NBAs Greatest
As you probably know, the user has the option to play with 15 classic players on 15 classic teams, as was shown in the games trailer. If you watched the trailer (embedded as the bottom of this post), you also noticed there are many more familiar old-school faces in there beyond the 15 legends. Why? Because, technically, its not only the 15 legends that you have access to. For each of the 15 legends in NBAs Greatest mode (view them all here), you can play a game with his squad against one of its primary rivals. (So, when I played as Bill Russells 1965 Celtics, I took on the 1965 Lakers. Naturally.) If you win, both the team you played with and the team you beat become unlocked for standard Quick Play mode. (You can only play as the legends teams in NBAs Greatest mode, though.) Meaning, once you beat the 1965 Lakers with the 1965 Celtics, you can play as or against either of those two in Quick Play mode, and may pit them against any regular team from 2011. If you use the 94 Knicks (Ewing, Starks, Mason, etc.) to beat the team theyre matched up with in NBAs Greatest mode, which is the 94 Magic (Penny, Shaq, Horace Grant, etc.), you can use either of those two groups in Quick Play mode.
This is why, for example, you see Dikembe Mutombo in a Nuggets jersey in the trailer, even though Mount Mutombo isnt one of the 15 legends featured. Beat his Denver team with whichever of the 15 legends teams matches up with that Nuggets squadits Hakeem Olajuwons Rocketsand you can play with Dikembe and Co. Assuming you can win a few games in NBAs Greatest mode, there are potentially 30, not 15, classic squads at your disposal. Proceed accordingly.
(Actually, there are potentially 32if you pre-order 2K12, you get a code for two other squads: the Run-TMC 90-91 Warriors and Chris Webbers 01-02 Kings.)
The actual gameplay within NBAs Greatest mode is worth mentioning as well. Why? Because, its not like anything youre used to. If you play as, say, Wilt Chamberlains 1971 Lakers crewwhich matches up with the 71 Knicksit looks as if youre watching, well, playing, a game in 1971. Everythings in black and white. There are no corporate sponsorships on the court. Hell, there isnt even a three-point line. The scoreboard in the corner of the screen has some old-school block font. The scorers table is actually a long table with a bunch of pieces of paper on it. Its like youre watching a YouTube clip of a game from 1971, or just watching a game on television in 1971, if you prefer. Except, of course, the game is still crystal clearits not grainy or anythingand the graphics are as smooth as the standard Quick Play mode. And the teams are fully stocked with their actual rosters, so its not like you play with the five starters and thats itthere are actual substitutions with the reserves from these classic teams. (So if youve been fiending for an opportunity to play as a young Phil Jackson in 1971, just beat the Knicks with Chamberlains Lakers, and you can.)
For a full review of the game, stay on the lookout for SLAM 152, which will hit stands in September. As you could imagine, there are a bunch other improvements and updates from 2K11 to 2K12 not detailed above, some that youll have to wait until you pop the game into your PlayStation 3 or XBox 360 to learn about. At this point, all I can do is recommend that you make sure that takes place as close to the October 4 release date as possible.
Heres what I knew going in: While Michael Jordan graced the front of NBA 2K11, MJ, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird will all get their own covers of 2K12. And though last years version included a Jordan Challenge, giving the user an opportunity to recreate all of Moneys biggest games, 2K12 has an NBAs Greatest mode, in which the user can play as one of 15 classic NBA squadseach led by a different legendary superstaragainst a rival team of the same era. I played both NBAs Greatest mode and the standard Quick Play mode today, and heres some of what I learned:
The Gameplay
Each year, the newest version of a video game seriesany series, reallyaims to improve on the basic visual graphics of the previous years version. NBA 2K12 is no exception, it succeeds in doing so. Its probably the smoothest hoops game yet, as players glide around the floor effortlessly, but the realistic physics of the gameplay that a userspecifically one familiar with the game of basketballwould want are maintained. So you cant do things like, say, run one player right through another. If youre controlling an off-the-ball defender and knock into a separate player, it actually looks like what transpires when one guy runs into another guy. Or you cant just lazily toss a pass through traffic and expect it to magically fly through a bunch of defenders limbs. Theyll intercept it. (That was the case in NBA 2K11 as well, but it feels a little more natural this time around. A good thing.) You know, just like in real basketball. Except youre playing a video game. You might need to remind yourself this every few minutes or so.
Beyond the standard graphical improvement, the developers put an increased focus on some specific aspects of the gamplay. Here are a few that stood out:
Each tilt begins with an intense intro, not too dissimilar from the beginning of the type of television broadcast youre used to seeing nightly each winter. Theres a song that plays as we see the players warming up, and, fortunately, theres a rotating group of songs programmed to play in that slot (was told ones an Eminem song, but wasnt told which), so you wont go crazy from hearing the same music over and over. During the Mavs-Heat game I played, the first on-court image was of Dwyane Wade pulling his head up through the rim, so yeahthe detail is solid.
The in-game dynamic commentary has been held over. So the commentatorsKevin Harlan, Clark Kellogg and Steve Kerrmay be talking about a players back-story, then cut to some quick game action if something particularly wild goes down, then return right back to their story. And its all crazy relevanttheir discussions include references to the 2011 NBA Finals, amongst other previous-season happenings.
The standard play-calling system still exists for the in-depth, full-team maneuvers, but theres a new, simpler way to call quick plays. (Worth noting: Ive always been a fan of the pass-the-ball-around-until-I-can-somehow-find-a-way-to-score strategy, so I have no idea what the previous years play-calling systems were like. Apologies if something like this already existed.) By pressing an arrow on the D-pad, a few solid options come up, and theyre pretty self-explanatory. For example, if youre playing as the Heat and hit that button, the options may be: (X) LeBron iso; (Y) Wade cut to hoop; (B) Bosh post-up; (A) Chalmers get open. And then you can easily choose a play and run it. Easy and effective.
Post-up play has been refined, making the way things take place in the painted area even more realistic.
You know how in most basketball gameswell, probably in most sports games in generaltheres a kind of invisible wall surrounding the court/playing field, so if youre controlling a player and run him out of bounds, hell just be stopped by a supernatural force? That doesnt really exist anymore. If you run a defender into the scorers table, just like in real life, hell jump up and hop into the crowd, then gather himself and get back into the action. If you run him into the sidelines, hell leap over the folks lucky enough to be seated courtside before curbing his momentum and turning around. Cool, no?
The game developers put extra emphasis on the accuracy of the players tattoos, so the guys look even more like they do in real life. Its kind of unreal. Or insanely real, if you will. Whatever.
NBAs Greatest
As you probably know, the user has the option to play with 15 classic players on 15 classic teams, as was shown in the games trailer. If you watched the trailer (embedded as the bottom of this post), you also noticed there are many more familiar old-school faces in there beyond the 15 legends. Why? Because, technically, its not only the 15 legends that you have access to. For each of the 15 legends in NBAs Greatest mode (view them all here), you can play a game with his squad against one of its primary rivals. (So, when I played as Bill Russells 1965 Celtics, I took on the 1965 Lakers. Naturally.) If you win, both the team you played with and the team you beat become unlocked for standard Quick Play mode. (You can only play as the legends teams in NBAs Greatest mode, though.) Meaning, once you beat the 1965 Lakers with the 1965 Celtics, you can play as or against either of those two in Quick Play mode, and may pit them against any regular team from 2011. If you use the 94 Knicks (Ewing, Starks, Mason, etc.) to beat the team theyre matched up with in NBAs Greatest mode, which is the 94 Magic (Penny, Shaq, Horace Grant, etc.), you can use either of those two groups in Quick Play mode.
This is why, for example, you see Dikembe Mutombo in a Nuggets jersey in the trailer, even though Mount Mutombo isnt one of the 15 legends featured. Beat his Denver team with whichever of the 15 legends teams matches up with that Nuggets squadits Hakeem Olajuwons Rocketsand you can play with Dikembe and Co. Assuming you can win a few games in NBAs Greatest mode, there are potentially 30, not 15, classic squads at your disposal. Proceed accordingly.
(Actually, there are potentially 32if you pre-order 2K12, you get a code for two other squads: the Run-TMC 90-91 Warriors and Chris Webbers 01-02 Kings.)
The actual gameplay within NBAs Greatest mode is worth mentioning as well. Why? Because, its not like anything youre used to. If you play as, say, Wilt Chamberlains 1971 Lakers crewwhich matches up with the 71 Knicksit looks as if youre watching, well, playing, a game in 1971. Everythings in black and white. There are no corporate sponsorships on the court. Hell, there isnt even a three-point line. The scoreboard in the corner of the screen has some old-school block font. The scorers table is actually a long table with a bunch of pieces of paper on it. Its like youre watching a YouTube clip of a game from 1971, or just watching a game on television in 1971, if you prefer. Except, of course, the game is still crystal clearits not grainy or anythingand the graphics are as smooth as the standard Quick Play mode. And the teams are fully stocked with their actual rosters, so its not like you play with the five starters and thats itthere are actual substitutions with the reserves from these classic teams. (So if youve been fiending for an opportunity to play as a young Phil Jackson in 1971, just beat the Knicks with Chamberlains Lakers, and you can.)
For a full review of the game, stay on the lookout for SLAM 152, which will hit stands in September. As you could imagine, there are a bunch other improvements and updates from 2K11 to 2K12 not detailed above, some that youll have to wait until you pop the game into your PlayStation 3 or XBox 360 to learn about. At this point, all I can do is recommend that you make sure that takes place as close to the October 4 release date as possible.
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