NBA 2K22 Reviews
NBA 2K22 features the best gameplay in the series to date, but also succumbs to the weight of its other feature sets. While a step in the right direction in terms of gameplay, its over-reliance on a player's time or money (and sometimes both) continues to be the hurdle keeping the series from achieving new heights.
Despite all of its gains…and perhaps I'm being over-critical…but NBA 2K22 remains a gorgeous but ultimately non-fun experience unless for those who spend lot of money on VC. Yes, you can grind, but this alternative would take dozens of hours and hundreds of painful losses online/offline. Also, the solid improvements to the shot meter, off ball defense and overall AI cannot overcome the lack of on-ball spacing, right stick spamming requirements, and/or omnipresent sensation of being stuck to a defender indefinitely.
NBA 2K22 offers the best on-court experience in the history of the series. That’s no small thing for a franchise long known for rock-solid gameplay. The problem is that so much around that experience feels incomplete or messy. NBA 2K22 provides such a wide range of experiences that many players will get what they need from it. The overall package, however, is a lot more uneven.
NBA 2K22 is less a video game and more an advertisement for the sport. The controls are obtuse and unresponsive, slowdown is constant, the story is bland, and it's simply not fun to play.
NBA 2K22 does many things well, most of which has already been done well in the past. Exceptional, challenging gameplay keeps the strength of the game close to its chest, and NBA 2K22 offers an impressive spread of modes to complement that gameplay. Apart from a few misguided choices, the biggest crippling factor this year comes from how The City takes a good idea and stretches it way too thin. NBA 2K22 is great for hardcore fans of the franchise, but it doesn't leave the door open for many others.
Game development is hard and a year after being the only major sports video game franchise to produce a full-on next-gen experience, they followed up with the most polished and still feature-rich game they have produced, maybe ever. NBA 2K22 is a must have for anyone who has remotely enjoyed the series in the past or who has a taste for basketball and the culture it powers. Still, there is room for improvement on multiple fronts. It’s the gift and the curse of producing a game with so many layers.
NBA 2K22 has the best offensive flow in years, matched by improvements to defense. Still, technical problems persist and microtransactions are hard to ignore in some modes.
At this point, I don’t even know what else to say. NBA 2K22 is gorgeous and plays better than its predecessors. Visual Concepts does improve upon its predecessors with each new installment, but the cringeworthy story mode, obscene usage of product placement, and the abusive microtransactions are just too much to handle.
NBA 2K22 makes some appreciated improvements to on-the-court gameplay and tries some refreshing, if not entirely successful innovations in MyCareer that make this year’s version feel like a bit more than just a roster update.
NBA 2K22 is another fine entry in the franchise that continues the developer's habit of delivering satisfyingly solid ports of their basketball sims on Nintendo Switch. Yes, most of the modes don't try anything massively new - beyond MyCareer's revamped Neighbourhood setting - and the loading screens will have you pulling your hair out from time to time, but refined core gameplay and enough content to keep you playing until the end times make this one an easy recommendation for b-ball fans.
NBA 2K22 is an excellent next-gen addition to the franchise on Xbox Series X, delivering revamped gameplay that feels better than ever before on the court, smoother transitions between modes and all manner of graphical bells and whistles to boot. My Career's new City area has been well implemented and could well be a huge timesink for those who are into that mode and, although there's no other major changes to speak of, what's here is undoubtedly still the slickest basketball ticket in town right now.
NBA 2K22 is an almost impossible game to rate, because it’s a damn good basketball game at its core. The biggest problem is how it tries to be anything but a basketball game, and while that doesn’t damage the overall quality on the court, it makes it hard to root for it. It’s the ‘03 Lakers, and I hate the ‘03 Lakers.
NBA 2K22 is not a perfect basketball game, but it is the best installment of the series in years. The creators implemented novelties that have a big impact on the gameplay, and the biggest scratch on the project are still cumbersome microtransactions and the emphasis on them.
Review in Polish | Read full review
NBA 2K22 offers a more immersive career mode with a system of quests and objectives, but which is unfortunately poorly exploited with numerous and long loading times in addition to display problems related to the online aspect of the title. The new generation experience is long overdue despite a successful atmosphere during matches while microtransactions spoil clashes against other players.
Review in French | Read full review
If you are looking for the best version of NBA 2K22, the eighth generation release is probably not the best place to look because it lacks any truly new features compared to the last year's outing and a yearly franchise with not many new ideas is always a disappointing product that you have think twice about buying.
Review in Persian | Read full review
NBA 2K22 continues to set the standard for gameplay, with changes this year that ensure a much more realistic and satisfying pace of play. But it's the same old story: it's one of the most aggressive games in the industry when it comes to micropayments, and its star modes can't be enjoyed unless you're willing to pay.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
NBA 2K22 follows the triumphant path of its predecessors. A very fine gameplay and with corrections in defense to balance it as much as possible, a neighborhood rebuilt and adapted to the cruise of the "Cancha del Mar" that limits differences with the Next Gen and a MyTeam that increasingly enjoys more and better free content. The game shines with its own light and brings out all the juice to the current consoles with a great graphic section.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
While there isn’t enough new content in NBA 2K22 to justify a full-priced upgrade, its online component is a marked improvement over its predecessor.
Microtransactions are a trouble one more time, but, despite them, NBA 2K22 is one of the best sport videogames in history, because of its playable class on the court, its graphic muscles and its bench full of options. Visual Concepts wants to win the ring one more season.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The new shooting mechanism along with the changes in the alley-hoop and the dunks, the improved setting in the defense and the attack and the rest of the changes in the gameplay, give a better basketball experience.
Review in Greek | Read full review