When I first opened NBA 2K21, the menu I came across was giving me the first signals of what kind of game awaited me. The menu of the NBA 2K21 stands out with its very simple design compared to the 2K series basketball games that were previously published. The menu is so simple that it is as if it was inspired by the website design that the local shopkeepers who sell carboy water had a relative who understands these works. Joking aside, it is a fact that this simple design, which is adorned with the visuals of Blazzers' star name Damian Lillard, does a very good job of quickly reaching the content you want.
For the NBA 2K21 review, let me first talk about the game modes. As every year, MY Team MY Career awaits you in NBA 2K21, MyLeague main game modes. Two, two, three, three street basketball modes, Blacktop and women's basketball league WNBA, where you can play online or against the computer, are among the game modes you can access under the Play Now menu. Did 2K, which did not do a very elaborate and innovative job in menu design, maintained this careless attitude in the gameplay dynamics? I decided to play a quick match. My first match against the All Star Chicago Bulls against the All Star Los Angeles Lakers unfortunately justified my doubts. The entrance ceremonies of the match, the warm-up of the players, the designs of the fans and even the speeches of the presenters are exactly the same as the last year's game. Of course, I don't need to mention that the graphics and sound effects of player face designs are the same as NBA 2K21. Still, I started my first fight with the jump ball, saying there are some changes in the gameplay.
The first notable innovation in NBA 2K21 is the shooting bar. Each year, a change was made in the design of the shot bar, which changes both in terms of design and location (such as hand alignment, underfoot). With a moving notch placed on the shot meter, you can now more easily determine the range you need to stop to shoot the perfect shot. Especially with the change made last year, the design problem that occurred in the shot bar (which was quite inconsistent) caused you to not be able to set the timing of the shot correctly. Thanks to this new design - notch detail - you can send accurately timed shots much more comfortably. Although this situation gives you an advantage in your own matches against artificial intelligence, there will be thousands of NBA 2K21 players who benefit from this innovation like you. It's okay for everyone to enter MJ mode in multiplayer matches!
If we say that the only innovation in the gameplay mechanics for the NBA 2K21 review is the design change in the shot bar, we would not have made a very wrong assessment. There are no noticeable changes in the tourniquet animations, dunk animations, basic animations such as dribbling, defensive postures, tackling, rebounding. This situation causes you to feel that you are playing a different game than the previous game in the last year as the general feeling of gameplay. Gameplay mechanics changes, which have positive and negative consequences for some years, do not appear this year at all.
The dramatic similarity between NBA 2K20 and NBA 2K21 continues to be seen in MY Career mode, the most played game mode of the series. The biggest change in My Career mode, where we witness the birth of a basketball player, is in the "story" part. Our character, nicknamed "Junior", is the son of a beloved basketball player. Living in the shadow of his father, Junior struggles to meet expectations. Michael K. Williams (The Wire), Djimon Hounsou (Captain Marvel, Blood Diamond) and Jesse Williams (Grey's Anatomy) are famous actors who accompanied us on Juniro's journey. NBA stars Damien Lillard and Zion Williamson are also voicing their own characters. The story follows Junior's journey from high school to college and the NBA, trying to make us feel like a true basketball player. However, I cannot pass without mentioning that this story mode does not mean much for the players who subscribe to the series, and that it is a cliché that X is pressed and passed.
Even the high school and summer camp matches are so long, the match times are so long that playing matches like this test of patience to get yourself into the Neighborhood mode turns into a little Chinese torture. The character development screen, the badge system, the My Career menu, and even the match rank you played until you reach the NBA is exactly the same as the previous game. It just goes without mentioning a small change added to the story mode.
As we move forward in the story, we have to make choices at some critical moments from time to time. This can lead to both minor changes in the progression of the story, as well as gaining or losing more in-game currency (VC). The choice in the finale of the story seems to have been placed in the story to let you know if you are more of a stingy person. An interesting selection awaits you in the finale!
The new character development system, where we select the badges we want from the classes by spending skill points, according to the movements we make in the match, the level of the class in which the relevant badge is filled, we earn one more skill point each time the level is filled, and the skill points we have used to increase the level of the badge we want has been preserved. Even the badge features have never been touched. This year, no changes have been made to the badge features that change every year.
The biggest difference between NBA 2K19 and NBA 2K20 was the new talent system and character creation options. The character creation screen in NBA 2K20 has been transferred to NBA 2K21 as is the talent system. You can imagine the difference between two games and even these three games. I think one of the biggest differences between the three games appears in the soundtracks of the game. The NBA 2K21 soundtrack is again made up of very good songs of the throttle-boosting fashion and basketball-lover-impulse genre.
Although it is not on the Playstation 4 side, especially on the PC side, gamers complain about bugs and connection problems. I did not encounter any bug problems in the game I experienced on PS4. However, I can say that there is no improvement in connection and lag problems are still continuing. I do not want to dwell on it as there is no graphical innovation. It still holds the title of being one of the best looking games of the current generation NBA 2K series. I am already looking forward to seeing the leap in the next generation.
My last overall comment
We have come to an end with my NBA 2K21 review content. We have a game that can be called the twin of the NBA 2K20, as if referring to the famous spider-man meme, with its menu designs, content, game modes and errors, where gameplay mechanics make it feel different. It makes us think that the game developer team, which looks more like a squad update, spends all its effort on the next generation game and keeps the innovations for the NBA 2K21 game, which will be released on the next generation consoles. If you want to switch to the new generation and transfer your MyCareer progress to the next generation NBA 2K21, it may be the right choice to buy NBA 2K21 now. However, if you are not interested in the new generation, it would be logical to continue playing NBA 2K20.
I am also playing this game, but you have define well. Appreciated you