NBA 2K21 Reviews
It would be one thing if this was just NBA 2K20 with some minor changes but this rips the heart out of last year's game solely to appeal to competitive online players, with many much-loved features stripped back or not included at all.
While there are issues, which are worst in MyCareer, it still is enjoyable.
In pursuing pro players, NBA 2K21 may be a little too intimidating for more casual players. Nevertheless, this is an obscenely detailed simulation that captures the ebb-and-flow of real-world basketball with unrivalled authenticity. It's also enormous, and while some aspects have been left untouched, the likeable story and revamped MyTeam modes mean that it's worth the upgrade. The in-game economy, which is heavily influenced by lucrative microtransactions, continues to be a sour spot – and it remains to be seen how much life this release will have with a next-gen successor right around the corner. Still, even with all of these drawbacks, it's comfortably one of the best sports games available on the PS4.
That means some kind of personal journey or transformation for the star, and supporting characters with some depth and likability. Given every chance to be a preening overdog, newcomer Vince Washington turns the character Hendrixx Cobb into a warm, believable friend instead. Michael K. Williams (Omar from The Wire) is just shady enough as a streetwise mentor to make an endgame choice - one the game even forced me to reconsider! - both reasonable and personally regrettable.
NBA 2K21 doesn't break the series' signature basketball gameplay, but its minor improvements and persistent addiction to obnoxious microtransactions mean more of the same isn't good enough anymore.
The problem with 2K, though, and it’s bigger this year than ever, is that you can rarely be so clear in your perspective. In 2K21, just like we’ve seen for the last few years, every moment of fun on the court is undermined by the racket being run off it.
These graphics don't interfere with the actual gameplay, though, so that issue isn't a massive one. In fact, most of the game can be explained with that same mindset. There are little changes and issues to be found throughout the game, but none of them really feel like too big of a deal. 2K21 is still a very playable game that fans of the franchise will be happy to purchase. Without that shooting patch, however, it would have been a much different story.
This current-gen version of NBA 2K21 definitely feels like a transitory episode of the game, with welcome improvements to MyTEAM, career and shooting mechanic, but without any other meaningful changes to the game's formula over last year.
Review in Italian | Read full review
As always, NBA 2K21 is a solid basketball experience, the only one that gamers can get their hands on this holiday season. It does what it does well, but there is very little that is new to get excited about on top of that.
NBA 2K21 is an enjoyable Basketball experience but unfortunately, its enjoyment is negatively affected by microtransaction. And to make it even more worse, NBA 2K21 has inherited old bugs and technical issues from its predecessors. In fact, i must say NBA 2K21 is almost the same as Its predecessors.
Review in Persian | Read full review
There aren't much changes in the latest entry in 2K's NBA series, and it seems that the developers are finally out of ideas, at least for this generation. If you already own the 2020 version, there is not much sense in paying the full price to get your hands on the new game, and maybe it's best to wait and see how the series will go forward when next gen arrives.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Gameplay wise, NBA 2K21 is once again an excellent product, and the best basket videogame on the market (also due to lack of competition). While very similar to its predecessor, it is also evolved and revised. However, being a 2K title, microtransactions are inescapable.
Review in Italian | Read full review
NBA 2K20 was a fun and serious game of basketball to play.
NBA 2K21 gives us the same observation as that established a year earlier with NBA 2K20: that of stagnating within the saga, without any real major improvement. But this time, the few bets attempted by the development studio have the main consequence of serving the game, at least in its first approaches and making it even a little less accessible to the general public. A quality episode certainly, despite its flaws, but not up to expectations. We could expect better for a transition to the new generation of consoles ...
Review in French | Read full review
An incredible simulation of the game of basketball, which might as well be a free-to-play mobile game with so many microtransactions at times. If you can resist the temptation to pour money in, it’s the best sports sim on the market by a fair distance. Unfortunately, this is the worst game in the franchise for attempting to exploit that temptation. Wait for a heavy discount to make any further outlay a more palatable decision.
NBA 2K21 is a copy over last year game with even more issues, you could only buy this game for its new story in the career mode
Review in Arabic | Read full review
NBA 2K21 suffers from the same issues that have held the series down for years. A poor MyCareer story, reused assets, shoddy servers, and an over-importance of VC/microtransactions. The one redeeming quality that NBA 2K21 can boast is its high-level gameplay. Luckily, that’s what you want most from a basketball sim.
NBA 2K21 despite the criticisms is an enjoyable game for those who love the world of basketball. With a convincing career and a new shooting system, difficult but rewarding, he manages to entertain well even for several hours. Too bad for the presence of microtransactions that, at times, wink a little too much at Pay-to-win.
Review in Italian | Read full review
NBA 2K21 marks a new low, which is really disappointing. At times, NBA 2K has been my favorite sports franchise, reinventing itself in ways that reverberated across the industry. But this year's edition feels incomplete and lacking. I would recommend revisiting older games before picking this one up; maybe the next-gen version will be more complete.
NBA 2K21 is the best that basketball simulations have ever been, yet the game buckles under the weight of intense microtransactions designed to bleed you dry.