Pros and cons of 2k's rise to basketball dominance

[qnzballa5]

I'm proud of how far 2k has gone from the early dreamcast days until now. The game is worldwide known and a must have for any basketball fan but there still are major issues that used to not be present in previous titles.

Maybe its that the game got too big for itself but the online simply can not stay the same. Back on ps2 an xbox the nba 2k online lobbies were perfect, your rank would be known and the top players would go against the top players and we would battle to be the best rank. Being in the top 100 meant you were a great player and you only wanted to play against the likes of top ranked players yourself. Now that there is random match making it makes the experience so much more random and unlikeable. To go against 5 newbie players in a row and then see a competitive player throws my game off a bit. I'd like to choose who I'm playing again and I dont know why 2k downgraded their online gameplay choices and such instead of enhancing them. Anyone else agree or have their own opinion?

[ClevelandinDistress]

Quote: Originally Posted by qnzballa5

I'm proud of how far 2k has gone from the early dreamcast days until now. The game is worldwide known and a must have for any basketball fan but there still are major issues that used to not be present in previous titles. Maybe its that the game got too big for itself but the online simply can not stay the same. Back on ps2 an xbox the nba 2k online lobbies were perfect, your rank would be known and the top players would go against the top players and we would battle to be the best rank. Being in the top 100 meant you were a great player and you only wanted to play against the likes of top ranked players yourself. Now that there is random match making it makes the experience so much more random and unlikeable. To go against 5 newbie players in a row and then see a competitive player throws my game off a bit. I'd like to choose who I'm playing again and I dont know why 2k downgraded their online gameplay choices and such instead of enhancing them. Anyone else agree or have their own opinion?

One pro is that NBA 2k now has the money to hire people from OS to represent the SIM NATION. A con would definitely be how big the brand is getting and we don't see the same level of grassroots marketing like we once did.

Everything is shut off, controlled, locked down tight over in Novato California. I miss the developer diaries and behind the scenes videos when we could put faces to names and feel as if we were somehow part of the development process.

And while I appreciate Mike and the gang coming around to OS to tease us every now and again, I miss the wealth of information we used to get in relation to improvements and upgrades.

Perhaps this is because NBA 2k is a world leader in sports video games, and now that they've reached that level, they no longer have to try so hard to win us over.

I just miss the good old days of a 300 word written article. I'd choose that over a sizzle trailer any day of the week.

****..maybe I'm just getting the old and feeling nostalgic.


Oh and bring back the Draft Combine and D league. That was tight.

[ffaacc03]

Be it an indie, a niche, a pretender or a leading videogame genre company, there are pros and cons ... I concur with cleveland approach ... evolution comes with a price, w will just have to kep voicing and hope for some change, but mostly, we will just have to live with it ... then again, given the attention 2K has seem to put on our wantings and needs for 15, there is hope !

Now, in regards of the cons of lobbies, I always believed that having such fragmentation placed too much burden on their known weak servers ... specially since more and more online modes and features have been added (I know, I know, many more have been taken away) and more users seem to be exponentially brought in on yearly bases. I also remember how with such model it wasnt the norm to see 2 "well ranked teams" matchup, but rather them play against noobs to increase their Ws ... back then, rankings were far from the best model ... I remember how, after a while, hof & sps were virtual deserts ... I believe the current model is the one that more closely mimicks the NBA league, were all teams face off, power houses and weak ... we have player matchs to selectively face off againts friends, community guys and users within the leaderboards ...

Then again, I am not against restricting users but rather giving more options to us, so see no harm in having them back (obviously tweaked), thus hopefully we get the stability and online performance up to top notch standards (be it new servers or whatever) before taking such step ... not so long ago, I wouldnt have think as near possibility, but given their reencourse to apparently please our needs and wants, I think its doable, maybe for 16 !

[Mrleaderboards]

i dont wanna throw bs numbers around, but put it this way, Im sure out of everyone whose ever played 2k games, that a huge percentage of the gamers arent that good. The huge majority of folks come online and "play for fun". I dont knock these folks. They're kinda like civilians. They are in their own little world and dont see the war thats going on outside. They play mostly offline with their friends. They don't know about being elite. they dont care for leaderboards. They don't care because they're comfortable being AVERAGE.
If you're like me Being average is not an option.

The fact of the matter is 2k wouldnt let us get away with ranked lobbies because it invites people to hunt on the average....NOOB Hunting so to speak.

Not that their online has ever been great...lol but i dont see why changing from having lobbies to no lobbies even matters. In my honest opinion, when i see the matchup screen these are what should pop up and and ultimately should be deciding factors in whether i play my opponent or not:

Record
rank
dnf %
play style(pip, 3pt% mid range)

You shouldn't have to be forced to play someone with a terrible record, a person who constantly quits their matches, or someone who abuses points in the paint or shoots a million threes a game. Then again, we don't want everyone playing the same, so i digress.

[thedream2k13]

Quote: Originally Posted by Mrleaderboards

i dont wanna throw bs numbers around, but put it this way, Im sure out of everyone whose ever played 2k games, that a huge percentage of the gamers arent that good. The huge majority of folks come online and "play for fun". I dont knock these folks. They're kinda like civilians. They are in their own little world and dont see the war thats going on outside. They play mostly offline with their friends. They don't know about being elite. they dont care for leaderboards. They don't care because they're comfortable being AVERAGE. If you're like me Being average is not an option. The fact of the matter is 2k wouldnt let us get away with ranked lobbies because it invites people to hunt on the average....NOOB Hunting so to speak. Not that their online has ever been great...lol but i dont see why changing from having lobbies to no lobbies even matters. In my honest opinion, when i see the matchup screen these are what should pop up and and ultimately should be deciding factors in whether i play my opponent or not: Record rank dnf % play style(pip, 3pt% mid range) You shouldn't have to be forced to play someone with a terrible record, a person who constantly quits their matches, or someone who abuses points in the paint or shoots a million threes a game. Then again, we don't want everyone playing the same, so i digress.

I say play for personal glory and not leaderboards. Competitive matches shouldn't involve hand picking your opponent IMO.

[Mrleaderboards]

Quote: Originally Posted by thedream2k13

I say play for personal glory and not leaderboards. Competitive matches shouldn't involve hand picking your opponent IMO.

That's the equivalent of telling Lebron to go play for the love of the game. I doubt anybody with a bone of competitive spirit would want to just play for personal glory. In this day and age, these players play for titles, rings, championships. Why would we be any different? I can't speak for anyone else, but if you're not playing to be recognized for your skills in the game, then what are you here for? Everyone has the right to do what they choose with their time. Me, I like most adults have a 9-5 with responsibilities so with the little time I get to play some 2k, I'm not here to play games. I'm here to take people's heads off and dominate. I'll leave that friendly play for the glory type of stuff for when my friends come over.

Teebone, whether you acknowledge this or not, most people who play online have this mindset of "me versus them". There are no friends or people who will play nice or play fair or not cheese you to death. You adjust to your opponent and learn from experience and then use those learned strategies and dominate the competition.

Its not that hard bro...come to the dark side... Hahaha

[Vni]

Funny thread.

[Kaanyr Vhok]

Quote: Originally Posted by ClevelandinDistress

One pro is that NBA 2k now has the money to hire people from OS to represent the SIM NATION. A con would definitely be how big the brand is getting and we don't see the same level of grassroots marketing like we once did. Everything is shut off, controlled, locked down tight over in Novato California. I miss the developer diaries and behind the scenes videos when we could put faces to names and feel as if we were somehow part of the development process. And while I appreciate Mike and the gang coming around to OS to tease us every now and again, I miss the wealth of information we used to get in relation to improvements and upgrades. Perhaps this is because NBA 2k is a world leader in sports video games, and now that they've reached that level, they no longer have to try so hard to win us over. I just miss the good old days of a 300 word written article. I'd choose that over a sizzle trailer any day of the week. ****..maybe I'm just getting the old and feeling nostalgic. Oh and bring back the Draft Combine and D league. That was tight.

The combine and the D League were relatively knew so you arent nostalgic. I miss them both as well.