I’m a sucker for RPG elements in game and sports history, so maybe I’m a little biased. The additions of the Magic-Bird Era, the Jordan Era, the Kobe-Shaq Era, and the Modern Era to play in MyNBA in NBA 2k23 was not only ingenious by 2K, but also a fantastic way to shake up the repetitiveness of sports titles’ career modes.
I can’t stress how brilliant it was for Take-Two Interactive and the 2K team to introduce the three game-changing eras of basketball into NBA 2k23 with the ability to take control of the iconic teams and change history. Like I said, nearly every single sports game today only focuses on the modern world of sports, which is perfectly fine as that’s the most representative of the world we live in.
However, such a model obviously neglects the past eras that define the way each, respective, sport is viewed. I mean, have you ever played a Madden game where you could go back in time and play as the 70’s Steelers, the 1985 Bears, the 90’s Cowboys and 49ers, or the early 2000’s Patriots? Or what about FIFA or NHL?
Obviously not.
And that was the case in 2K as well.
Aside from using legendary iconic sports like Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Isiah Thomas, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O’Neal in MyTeam (Ultimate Team modes) and online/offline pick-up games, there was no way to rewrite history and play with the iconic Celtics and Lakers teams of the 80s, the Pistons, Jazz, and Bulls of the 90s, and the Lakers and Spurs of the early 2000’s in a campaign/career mode.
Simply put, it just gets boring to play from the same modern starting point year after year as there’s only so much you can do before you’re playing with totally made-up characters that will never exist.
But no longer. Now we can literally rewrite history in the most impactful decades of the NBA and create new NBA timelines.
Maybe I’m just overblowing this a little bit, but I have always loved looking at the league history record, scoring records, Hall of Fame introductions, jersey retirements, etc. in all of the sports games that I play so much so that I write down the history of my games if no such in-game records exist.
I just find it awesome to draft a little-known character, win multiple scoring titles and championships with him, and then see where his career stacks against the greats of history when he retires.
Now, 2K has given losers like me the ability to rewrite the history of the most influential and impactful times of the NBA with the additions of these eras, while also adding/enhancing the records of the greats in our regular timeline.
Plus, there’s even era-based design layouts, historical changes, visuals presentations, game mechanics, etc. that add to the 80, 90’s, 00’s, and 20’s feel, which is awesome in its own right. This game mode is honestly a love letter from the Take-Two and 2K developers to sports history and RPG lovers such as me. And I greatly appreciate it.
Now, I haven’t played the other game modes of 2k23 that much yet, so this isn’t an official review. Still, there’s no way this game is getting anything less than an 8/10 if the rest of the game is as good as the MyNBA mode.
Images Source: Featured Image: (Take-Two Interactive/NBA 2K) (NBA 2K23: MyNBA – YouTube)
