'NBA 2K18' review: 'The Neighborhood' and 'MyGM' offer fun, truly crazy experiences
The two new biggest draws from "NBA 2K18" are certainly fun and worthwhile for fans of the franchise
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7 min read
"NBA 2K18" brings in all kinds of players, but there's one mode that brings in more than anybody else and that's their MyCareer mode. This feature has undergone a lot of changes since it was first implemented. For those who haven't played in awhile, every year now showcases a new story surrounding your created character as they enter the NBA.
New to "2K18," however, is another story mode: MyGM. It still exists as just the normal franchise mode for people that want to build their own super team, but now it features a story surrounding your created character as a GM on a team of your choice.
MyCareer mode
MyCareer is back and this year's big draw to it is 2K's new mode called "The Neighborhood" -- an open world central hub where everything for your player to do exists. No more skimming through menus to access features and get around. Everything is right here, and honestly it's 2K fully embracing its RPG roots.
Think about it: The 2K MyCareer mode has always been an RPG game at heart with grinding, stat buffs, and playing the role of a basketball player. It just has an NBA skin on it. It's appealing and fun and helps players live out their dream of being an NBA star. "The Neighborhood" fully embraces this with a hub world that the player can get around in and not only do whatever they desire, but see other players doing the same thing.
Also, players can equip animations and run around like a doofus, which might be the best part of the entire game.
Want to go play a Pro-Am game with other players? Just head over to the Pro-Am Walk-On building and queue up with some other players while you wait. Once you have 10 players, 2K will form up a game and off you go. Perhaps street ball is more your style. Then head over to "The Playground" and get next on any random court you choose. Once the game is over you and everybody else who's been waiting is up to play. Everything is very streamlined and easy.
One of the coolest parts of "The Neighborhood" might be the courts spread out throughout with different mini-games. Want to rack up the most dunk points possible? Walk over and give it a go, or you can try to own a specific court for as long as possible in quick games to whomever can get to three points the fastest. These are fun little breaks from the meat of the game, which is still your NBA career.
As for the storyline, your character is a former prospect who had a real chance at making the NBA, but instead had more interest in your music career and ended up going undrafted. After being away from basketball for a little while, your character, a DJ, gets discovered at a local street ball event and gets a chance to work out for the NBA team of your choice. Your player is no longer a top NBA prospect getting drafted in the first round. You go straight from the streets to a roster and you have to fight your way up to the top, and this is truly a breath of fresh air.
One of the biggest complaints I had with the previous games was how much they pandered to your created player with "2K17" being the worst offender. Coach Brubaker isn't around this time to call you "His Jordan" and your teammate "His Pippen." Everybody knows you're an undrafted rookie and they'll treat you like one. You will eventually reach that star status, and the story is designed around your character, but it's nowhere near as irritating to listen to as before.
The strongest difference between 2K18 and it's predecessors is the writing, which is strong. It's not a work of cinematic art by any means, but there are less eye-roll moments and the characters this time around are actually likable. The game is legitimately funny and isn't afraid to make fun of itself. I haven't finished the story of MyCareer yet, but I'm not dreading cutscenes anymore like I was in "2K17." That said, not being able to skip cutscenes is a huge problem for people that want to create multiple characters and get through their rookie seasons quicker.
Of course, none of this matters if the gameplay is bad. Luckily, "2K18" plays great and is much smoother than previous iterations, and not just on the court. Everything is streamlined and players won't often run into loading screens, which is nice. Remember how much of a pain it was to just start a game sometimes in "2K17?" Your player had to finish a game, slowly walk into his house, put his bag down, and then you'd have to be on the right day of the calendar. Here is starting a game in "2K18:"
Open up a screen, pick the game, select a jersey if you want and then the game begins to load up. Players have never had more freedom to do what they want and when they want, thanks to "The Neighborhood." There's a lot less waiting and way more playing, but that said, this does come with the downside of when there actually are loading times. Load screens can last as long as a minute sometimes and that's frustrating, but it's honestly worth the sacrifice of a more streamlined experience.
This is the best MyCareer has ever been. It's cut through so much of the annoyances from previous iterations and highlighted it's best attributes. It still has problems, of course. The online gameplay still feels very based on who just happened to invest the most VC (virtual currency) into a player's stats, creating a pay-to-win formula that almost feels required at times.
"NBA 2K18," more than any previous iteration, tries to create incentives to pay actual money for VC and it feels very gross considering the game itself is already $60 minimum. The game can be played without spending money on VC, but getting to enjoy the full experience in "The Neighborhood" will take longer because of it. There's also a handful of glitches that will hopefully be patched out eventually, but when they happen they can force you to quit out and restart 2K entirely.
All of this said, any fan of the MyCareer mode will easily overlook these issues and any other nitpicks. It's a fantastic experience and one any 2K fan will enjoy from start to finish.
MyGM mode
MyGM mode is one of the most insane experiences 2K has ever put out. The gameplay is just like any other franchise mode that has ever been released. Pick a team, keep players happy and try to build the perfect roster to win a championship. It's a formula that works, and as expected, 2K has fine-tuned the entire experience down to however the player wants it to be.
Want to play every game of an 82-game season? You can do that. Want to sim through everything and stay as hands off as possible outside of the front office? You can do that, too. MyGM let's you, for the most part, have the experience you want. That is until the story mode starts to kick in.
No matter what team you pick, the owner is going to put the team up for sale, because of cash issues they are having on a personal level. This usually involves an app of some kind that, honestly, when you hear about it at first, it's stunning these apps could ever fail. The team will be sold and you'll be forced to hire the owner's son.
The story is out of this world. The owner will try to force you to make a trade and if you don't want to then they have the ability to make the trade for you behind your back before you can even say no. Nepotism at it's finest! As the story goes on you'll find yourself faced with decisions that will decide your future, the team's future and the owner's future
This section is going to stay fairly brief, because the draw is the story and I don't want to spoil that for anybody involved. It's an absurd experience. I wasn't fond of the game forcing me to make a trade for story purposes, but for the most part, this is still your typical franchise mode that you can build however you see fit. Just don't pick the Knicks. Carmelo Anthony refuses to waive his no-trade clause no matter what you do.
Want to know who 2K predicts to win the NBA title this season? Check out our full season simulation review.
