Because of the shortened (and therefore stacked) NBA Season last year, I got more than my fair share of basketball on TV. I'm not mad at that, because we were all struggling to get some finality on the lockout that robbed us--and several injury-stricken players--of a full, proper season. I played THE HELL out of NBA 2K12 in anticipation of the upcoming season, and the momentum that was created from having several games played on any given day, with NBA TV and NBA.com supplementing my 2K fix, really carried me up until just about now. As much as I can't wait, I still have my MyPlayer from 2K12 going strong. I did happen to start a new MP just for kicks since I don't have as much of a vested interest in carrying him forward after this month, but heck, I'm even seeing cool little subtleties and hearing commentary here and there that I've never heard before.

All of the additions to MyPlayer/MyCareer are going to make this mode deeper than it's ever been. It seems like everything I thought to add to improve the overall experience of this mode has been added this year. Talking to the GM, talking to your teammates ON THE COURT before the game, player personality, sig skills, additional endorsement contract options, and off-the-court activities make for the deepest CAP mode in basketball games ever, to my assessment. I'm going to actually hold off on going into MyCareer until after I've screwed around with other modes this year; I really have to get this control scheme down before the Rookie Showcase

The control scheme feels intuitive (I got to play it last week), but I still have to master it before I feel really good about it. As far as the sig skills and how they affect the game, that'll hopefully make otherwise-scrubby players with very specific traits more valuable this year (a la Reggie Evans). I want to see how teams play with several players using their skills in tandem, though. I just hope it doesn't become a clustertruck on the court, but I'm sure it'll be smooth. Also, I REALLY hope they worked on the crowd interactions/reactions.

I was honestly never a Live fan. I had Bulls vs. Blazers back in the day, and then I got heavy into RPG's in the mid-late 90's, so basketball games really weren't my thing until 2K started making waves. The fact that you have EA, for them to be such an industry superpower, completely fumbling the ball at the 1 (excuse the ironic metaphorical dissonance) really gives me appreciation for what Visual Concepts has been able to accomplish for the last several years. It's not easy to make a current-gen basketball game, let alone any simulation game, because we gamers are starting to get REALLY close to that uncanny valley of realistic expectations out of a completely fantastical medium. When we start complaining about cloth clinging and facial acne, that's when you know it's time to get back to basics.

By the way, I've said this before, but EA needs to just focus on NBA Street. Bring that ish back, and all will be forgiven (at least from the non-fanboys).

Take-Two/2K is really killing 'em out there. It's almost as if...*gasp* Take-Two is becoming what EA was in the late 90's/early 00's!!! Anyway, I'm pumped about this game, after only seeing 10 mins of gameplay here at work and then learning more about it through trailers and interviews. I've already pre-ordered it, and therefore will not probably see the light of day on weekends for several months on end.