(ThyBlackMan.com) We’re now less than three months away from the NBA 2K20 release. It means the time has come to focus on possible gameplay features, wishlists, and the announcement of the cover athlete. But beyond all the speculations, there’s one more thing that the game community needs to focus on – the rushed development cycle of NBA 2K games.
Soon after releasing a new game, developers at Visual Concepts start working on the next game of the series. NBA 2K has been dominating the basketball sports simulation video games space for years. It is giving tough competition to EA’s NBA Live which is also focusing on yearly release. It’s fair to say that the NBA 2K franchise brings the best basketball simulation games, but it is also true that most of the time, these games feel rushed.
Soon after the NBA 2K19’s release, everyone at 2K support was struggling to deal with the number of complaints from players. There were many issues related to the progression system, My Career, VCs, and microtransactions. It was funny – and sad – to see that just before the launch, 2K was urging players to contact their local government about the controversial loot box ban in Belgium. When the game was out, it was full of bugs. Many people poked fun at and criticized 2K when players started facing problems.
This wasn’t the first time when 2K had to face such complaints from the community. Many loyal fans skipped 2K19 after the backlash over microtransactions in NBA 2K18. These all are the side effects of the one-year development cycle where most of the ideas and suggestions by players get ignored and developers feel bound to complete a new game before September. Even now players have a lot of ideas on how the next game could be better, but everybody knows that it’s too late for developers to work on new ideas because the announcement time is almost here. Breaking this development cycle would mean people will get less number of games to play. But the time 2K Sports will get to work on things can significantly improve the experience.
If 2K takes 2 or 3 years to develop a new game, the final product would feel complete. The amount of content will be more and most importantly, the quality of the story would actually feel more relatable, meaningful and better. Microtransactions have already become an inseparable part of video games and it’s not at all bad. Players really don’t mind paying for in-game items if they get something valuable when they spend their money.
DLC content, special edition bonuses, and in-game items would have enough appeal to attract players naturally. To create a balance, the developer will also have the time to give something extra such as free content, new arenas, bonuses, and side quests. There’s nothing wrong in asking players to work hard to unlock certain items or features, but these rewards should justify the efforts people make.
NBA 2K20 release is most likely set for September, and the developer, like always, will add some fan-favorite features to the game. Breaking the one-year development cycle for NBA 2K games completely depends on the developer, but there are certain things that need to be done before the NBA 2K20 release. The first, and probably the most important thing, is keeping the offline and online experiences separate.
There’s no reason why your offline activities in MyCareer should impact the game when you play online. 2K should simply separate these two things because everyone is not ready to take their game online. You can still play MyCareer in offline, upgrade, customize your player and directly jump into the game without having to spend time on cutscenes. But in the end, the archetype system kills the fun and makes you feel stuck. So, this needs to be changed with the upcoming game.
Virtual currency in any game is not really a bad thing. It allows players to make in-game purchases, but the implementation of earning methods must be changed. It gets really difficult to earn money outside the MyCareer mode. There are very limited options available to get virtual currencies and on top of it, the storyline feels repetitive and boring. If developers take some more time, they will be able to create new methods of earning VCs and they will also get time to work on the storyline so that even with the limited options, players can at least get something interesting to do.
The game developer Visual Concepts has already fixed many issues players have been complaining about, but still, there are problems that need a proper solution. Graphics are getting better with each new game, but that’s not enough as the game seriously needs some major changes and new features. Hopefully, if developers take some more time, they can easily work on more things. They can add more valuable and meaningful features to the game and bring an experience we all have been waiting for.
Staff Writer; Corey Shaw
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