Now they’re never
words that we thought we’d type, as despite several assaults on the
court, we’ve remained immune to possessing anything vaguely
resembling balling acuity.
Case in point? The full-on
expanded MyCareer in NBA 2K18 – just a small part of a
massive package. No dirty double entendre intended (but since it
worked out as one we’ll take credit).
Our guy DJ hit the
court in a tryout for the Jazz, and spent most of his time either
fouling or falling on his arse. But they picked him up! Obviously,
they saw some magic in him that defied logic... or it’s so that the
MyCareer didn’t end five minutes later with him working at
Subway. It’s an incredibly thorough experience – one that’s also a
touch too realistic in that it nickel and dimes you at every
opportunity. If you can afford to pay for various advancements then
you’ll triumph. If you can’t then, well, hopefully you know your
b-ball triv...
So, when one part of a game is both the best
and worst of it, where do you go?
Well, the fantasy management part –
MyGM - is a hoot for those (like us) who have less than zero
natural ability.
Then there’s the general outside of career
play. This really wows, with presentation that every other sports
game must ponder, curse and try desperately to emulate.
All
the real NBA teams feature with the real players (and our DJ), while
the game remains reasonably easy to get into and play without having
to absorb an encyclopaedic manual. The addition of” The
Neighborhood” (sic) to MyCareer is a big one – getting a
haircut, a tatt or doing the mini-game thing is fab - except for
that microtransactional moneygrubbing. A full-price title should
NEVER go there.
But then, it’s the way of the world today –
and the likes of the NBA. Hmm, maybe NBA 2K18 is the
ultimate real-world sports sim?