As the dwindling franchise of NBA 2K video games hangs on by a thread, their latest game—NBA 2K26—proved to be a means of slight redemption for the company.
With a release date of Aug. 29, 2025 for those who purchased the Superstar or Leave No Doubt editions, and Sept. 5, 2025 for players who purchased the standard edition of the game, there was much anticipation surrounding the release, especially because the 2K community responded so poorly to NBA 2K25.
With basketball players being the main demographic that makes up the game’s player base, Bishop Gorman’s basketball team proved to be no different. Most decided to purchase either of the editions that allowed them early access to the game. Tyler Johnson ‘27 did just this, although he stated that he was not too excited because “these past NBA video games have not been fun.”
Upon beginning to play the game, Johnson’s opinion was quickly changed. As a big fan of the 2K games and someone who’s been playing them for years, he stated that playing helps him take his mind off a lot of things, and it’s a good way to stay mentally engaged with basketball when he’s resting, injured, or just off the court. Johnson mentioned that he’s more excited to play during his free time this year because now “the gameplay is actually really realistic” and that when he’s controlling his character, he tends to do the same moves he does in real life.
Dino Roberts ‘26 had a similar mindset coming into the game as Johnson. He was excited to play but trying not to get his hopes up because of the past years’ let downs with the games. He also mentioned that he uses the game when resting just as Johnson does to pass time, with the belief that it does help with the IQ part of the game in some regards.
MyCareer, one of the most popular modes to play in the entire game, has an exciting and new story this year where the player goes to play basketball overseas before getting drafted into the NBA. Roberts said he enjoys this mode because of “the personal journey… and the competitive aspect it brings.”
Johnson added to this saying that modes like MyCareer are the most fun to play “because you can make your own character and upgrade him to try to be the best of the best, while playing with your friends.”
In MyCareer, player customization off the court is also something that attracts players. This year, 2K added lots of clothing options for players to buy for their characters that have seemed to be a big hit because they are real life clothing brands with hype behind them like Denim Tears and Chrome Hearts. Johnson mentioned that this new clothing is one of the updated aspects he really enjoyed and appreciated.
Both Johnson and Roberts did mention the overall pay to play nature of the game because of the high prices of the in-game currency, VC, does make the game less enjoyable. It takes a lot of VC to upgrade your player and personalize them which takes away from the game a lot. However, this is not new to NBA 2K games, unfortunately, because they have always required players to spend at least some money to buy VC to be able to compete with other players at a decent level.
The franchise’s new game is off to a strong start, which seemed to be necessary for a lot of the fanbase, as they were disappointed with last year’s release. Hopefully this is the start of a new era for the franchise so the 2K community can remain happy and satisfied with the product that’s being put forth for them.