It's Champion Week. Selection Sunday is almost here.

College basketball fans everywhere are about to begin experiencing the phenomenon that is March Madness once again.

For sports gamers, this time of year used to be prime-time for the latest NCAA Basketball or College Hoops title. Unfortunately, a college basketball game has not existed since NCAA Basketball 10. Sure, you can play NBA 2K15 until your thumbs fall off, but the NBA game just is not the same as NCAA hoops. The modding community has released several impressive mods for 2K in recent years that add in college teams, jerseys, courts, players, etc., but there just is not a way to capture true college basketball in an NBA game.

The lack of a college basketball game is disappointing to say the least. We have already seen what is possible on the new consoles, and having a college basketball title on the Playstation 4 and Xbox One is likely something that would have college basketball fans chomping at the bit to play.
Since there currently is no hope for a college basketball game any time in the near future, I can’t help but think what could have been with College Hoops 2k15.

Presentation
Presentation would likely be one of the strongest points in a new college basketball video game. The presentation in NCAA Basketball 10 was incredible for its time. With ESPN and CBS scoreboards, graphics, and network-specific commentators, this game had a presentation package that was almost as realistic as it could get. Today, the EA Sports rival, 2K sports has put together a great presentation in NBA 2K15. The game features a pre-game show featuring Shaq and Ernie Johnson, great commentary (even though it has become somewhat repetitive), graphics for stats/standings, and sideline interviews with some of the best players in the league. There certainly are not any promises that a college basketball title would have presentation that is quite as impressive, but with the strides that have been made by basketball titles it is safe to say that a new college basketball game would have an impressive broadcast.

Updates
It is obvious that in-game updates in a college basketball game today would be incredible. Of course, roster updates by 2K would likely be illegal, but that doesn’t mean that we wouldn’t get uniform, court and tuning updates promptly. This is another aspect that 2K excels in, as users get updates just nearly every day. With the uniforms that both Nike and Adidas pump out for the schools they endorse, updates to include these uniforms would be a major improvement to the user experience of the game. On top of that, updates to include neutral-site arenas and courts would add another level of realism that college basketball fans would love to play.

Graphics
It goes without saying that a college hoops game on new consoles would be visually stunning. 2K has done a great job graphically with their first two titles on the new generation, and a college basketball game would more than likely be the same. Of course, the players’ faces wouldn’t be all that accurate, but we would still get beautiful jerseys, floors, baskets,
basketballs, fans, and much more. And with some decent athlete customization options, the roster gurus here at OS would be able to provide us with accurate player looks as well. Graphically, this game would be right up there with today’s NBA games, and would be a significant improvement from the most recent (and unfortunately now outdated) NCAA games.

Game Modes
This is a part of the game that 2K has never lacked in, and certainly would not lack in now. College Hoops 2K8 delivered arguably the greatest game mode in sports video game history with Legacy Mode. It was about as deep as a gaming experience could get, and it was way ahead of its time. Today, 2K would only improve on that game mode. MyGM made huge strides from 2K14 to 2K15, and it is likely that they would have done the same in College Hoops 2K15 and only built on a game mode that would still be incredible if it were released in a game today.

Gameplay
Sure, presentation, updates, game modes and graphics are important in a basketball game. However, the bread and butter of the game would still be gameplay. To me, this would be the biggest question mark in the game. NBA 2K15 delivers very impressive gameplay, but the college game is different. 2K’s last stab at a college game was a great basketball game on the court, especially for its time. It would be intriguing to see if they could alter its already great gameplay to fit the college game, and include things such as crowd noise to alter the performance of players on the court. A college basketball game just is not complete if the Cameron Crazies aren’t throwing off a UNC player trying to sink last-second free throws.

College Hoops 2K15 would have been a gem, and a must-buy for basketball fans. It would have featured many of the great features that the latest NBA 2K title has, and it likely would have been unique to the college game. Unfortunately, sports gamers are left again with an “if only” moment. NBA 2K15 is great, but it does not get the job done when it comes to having a bad case of March Madness.