Every great sports team has its downsides. Jordan’s Bulls were missing a dominant big man. Steph’s Warriors sometimes struggled on the defensive side of the court. And though they were always electric and dominant, Kobe and Shaq’s personality clashes sometimes felt like a powder keg poised to explode. Despite those flaws, each team was able to put an incredible product on the court and bring home multiple championship rings. Similarly, NBA 2K25 delivers when you’re playing the game of basketball, but once you step off the hardwood, bigger problems emerge that have the potential to derail much of that goodwill.
The on-the-court product of NBA 2K has always been the best representation of any sport in a video game. The biggest stars largely look like their real-life counterparts, and you’d be excused for thinking a real game of hoops was on the TV after just a glance. The well-produced halftime studio show and the dynamic commentary booth are authentic. Playing feels just as great; the NBA has evolved as much as any other pro sport over the last decade, and the gameplay improvements of NBA 2K25 keep up with the times thanks to improved defense and a ton of new animations that impact ballhandlers and off-the-ball players alike.
The modern NBA largely downplays the traditional big man role in favor of those who can shoot from beyond the arc, and NBA 2K25 has admirably kept pace with this evolution. You can still find success driving to the hoop for a layup, but you had better learn how to time your shots with the in-game meter if you want to find success in the league’s current META. Few things feel as good as using strong ball movement until the defense breaks down and you can drain an open three. Realistic defensive schemes can be challenging to crack, particularly on higher difficulty levels, and there were times when I wondered how I could possibly stop a momentum-fueled run from a stacked team like the Luka/LeBron Lakers. In these moments, NBA 2K25’s fantasy of playing for or running a pro basketball team sings.
The NBA fantasy permeates through most parts of 2K25, but it is particularly potent in MyNBA, which casts you in the role of GM for the team of your choosing. I love having the option to play a fully featured version of the mode, complete with all its in-the-weeds intricacies, or opting for the thoughtfully streamlined “Lite” version of the series’ Franchise mode. Negotiating trades, signing free agents, scouting draft picks, and following your team year after year is endlessly rewarding and myriad customization options let you make your experience in the league your own. All this praise also applies to MyWNBA, the season-based mode that shines a spotlight on the women’s game.
By far the coolest option available in MyNBA is the “Eras” feature, which transports you back in time to iconic stretches in the NBA. Whether you want to experience the Magic vs. Bird rivalry in the ‘80s, the rise of Jordan’s Bulls in the ‘90s, the emergence of Kobe’s dynasty with the Lakers in the 2000s, or the newly added Steph Curry era of the 2010s, MyNBA Eras gives you more era-appropriate presentation, gameplay, rulesets, draft classes, and mostly complete rosters from the time. Even if some players are missing, like Charles Barkley from the ‘90s Era, you can download community-created rosters to fill the gaps. MyNBA Eras is one of the best features available in sports games today, and I wish it held a more prominent place in the genre.
In the single-player-focused MyCareer, you create your digital likeness and control that player’s time in the league. I appreciate being able to sim to key games in the season and only control my character when he steps onto the court for his team. The steady stream of optional objectives gives me additional pursuits beyond simply raising my teammate score or winning the game, and having the option to relive moments from my character’s earlier days or take him online through streetball is a great side dish. However, once you enter the online City hub, the mode bloats to drag down the overall experience.
The moment I stepped outside, two other players on go-karts drove straight through me, and a drone whirred above my head while a character dressed like the Grinch ran into a store selling State Farm insurance merchandise. Rather than menu navigation, I’m forced to traverse an actual 3D city full of other online players, keeping me out of the core gameplay and breaking the immersion. I vastly prefer the minimalist interface of The W, the WNBA version of MyCareer that offers a more traditional single-player career mode and less monetization.
Player-lock career modes like MyNBA have long been my favorites in most sports series, but NBA 2K’s integration of various free-to-play-adjacent elements like ads and microtransactions has long soured me on MyCareer. The ever-alluring thrill of taking a low-level rookie and building him into an all-star is tainted by the constant pressure to boost your character by spending real money on VC, the game’s main currency. You earn a decent amount of VC through regular play, but with higher attributes breaking the bank and customization items using the same currency, not to mention other modes pulling from the shared VC pool, NBA 2K25 frustrates in hopes you’ll opt to ease the grind by opening your wallet.
I wouldn’t be so sour on the monetization scheme if it was isolated to MyTeam, 2K’s card-collection mode. Here, you crack open packs to build the best team possible, which, as any TCG collector can attest to, can be exhilarating. Putting together a trio of my favorite players from different eras for a special-rules game is fun, as is completing objectives to earn packs, but with a core design built to monetize, I vastly prefer the more traditional longform sports modes.
The series’ emphasis on microtransactions is perhaps best exemplified by the main menu. Each time you start the game or switch modes, you must bounce back to the menu, which autoplays 2KTV, video content to inform you of the new game content. However, each time I go to the main menu, the autoplay is interrupted twice by in-game pop-ups for the season pass – two ads interrupting another ad when all I want to do is go from one single-player mode to another. It’s a minor frustration, but it almost perfectly typifies how it feels to play certain modes. It’s annoying when free-to-play games pull this tactic, but it’s downright unacceptable for a $70 premium product.
Despite the persistent pressure to spend on microtransactions, NBA 2K25 shows the long-reigning dynasty might still have some gas left in the tank. Each mode delivers a different experience, truly delivering a targeted mode for nearly every basketball fan. Though some modes are bogged down and bloated, once the team steps on the court, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone that does it better.
