NBA 2K17' Hands-On Impression Part 1 of 4: Gameplay and Realism
As many know, I was in Novato, California at 2K Sports headquarters earlier this week to play the upcoming NBA 2K17 prior to the release on September 16.
Every community and all of the members of the media was loaded with information about every mode over the two days in Novato, thus it took time to structure the news.
I ran a poll on my Twitter TWTR +4.52% account to find out which aspect of the game fans of the game wanted to hear about first, and gameplay edged out modes and options. The latter will be covered in a separate article.
I’ve attempted to simplify each aspect to hopefully provide a proper representation of the different gameplay components. So, here we go.
Speed
One of the first things you’ll notice the moment you pick up the sticks to play NBA 2K17 is the speed of the game. All the action moves are quicker they were in NBA 2K16, and that’s a positive.
The pace of the game doesn’t feel hurried. It instead feels smoother and carries more of the symmetry that you see from NBA-level athletes. The speed thresholds are still proper and realistic, but every player felt quicker.
Contact
My favorite aspect of the gameplay is the contact, the various animations that stem from the collisions and the amount of variables at play with each instance covers almost all of the if/then scenarios.
For example, when I grabbed rebounds with LeBron James and took off running up the court looking to make play, there would be at least one player attempting to stop the ball.
My opponent kept trying to cut LeBron off as he pushed the ball up the floor.
Some of these attempts resulted in contact with James. The defender was only able to make James pick up his dribble on a few occasions. Most of the time, James would glide past the defender with a realistic evasion animation and only a slight bit of slow down.
In other instances, James would draw a foul and even the most rare case, the defender would square up well enough to draw the charging foul. I absolutely loved the detail and realistic possibilities.
Another situation where the new contact logic shines is in and around the paint. If you’re working in the post, the defender has a better chance at success than before–unless he allows the offensive player to gain a deep setup.
It’s all about positioning–and of course the offensive repertoire of the man with the ball.
Last but not least, good defenders will no longer allow a cutting player from an opposing team to simply run off screens without giving him a chuck, a grab or some sort of contact to impede his progress.
There are over 700 animations in post defense alone.
This seemingly subtle tactic can be the difference between a shooter getting an open shot or not. Drives to the basket can create a whole slew of animations. Almost every one of these instances looked authentic. As a matter of fact, in eight games, I can only remember one instance with clipping/body pass through.
That’s pretty good. The physics were also seemingly improved when touching the ball.
There are far more realistic deflections, less-than clean rebounds and more. The caroms are true to life after the ball hits the rim, the floor and even the floor. You can even do tip-ins or tip back rebounds.
Precision
You may have heard, signature size-ups have been removed from the game. When I first learned about this, I was a little bummed. I’d take control of Kyrie Irving and Chris Paul do serious work with them off the dribble by using their sizeup moves.
The good news is: those handles are still in the game, but you are charged with pulling off every move on your own. Every right stick movement is a dribble move that can be chained together for custom sizeups.
Executing these moves in NBA 2K17 is more about skill and precision than anything else.
Another aspect of the game this is based on precision is shooting. Every shot–with the exception of dunks–have a timing component.
You can still shoot the ball with the square/x button, but using the shot stick as an aiming device opens up the possibility for a more accurate shot.
The shot meter has been simplified. Now, you’re simply watching for the meter to fill up before you release. Obviously, the better the shooter, the slower the meter.
It tales some getting used to–especially after a set of dribble moves. That’s why I used the square/x when working off the dribble, but I tried to use the analog stick in catch-and-shoot situations.
Getting green releases for perfectly timed shots are difficult to get, but when you find the sweet spot, you’ll never miss. That’s why I know I’ll stick with playing without the meters in the retail version.
Seeing the meter takes away the more realistic.
Reaction
With increased speed and precision, it’s imperative the controls be responsive. That’s not a problem in NBA 2K17. In NBA 2K16, i always had a problem with wing shooters seemingly taking an extra half-second to shoot the ball on drive-and-kick situations.
In this year’s game, those corner shooters come up firing.
Likewise, the responsiveness on the sticks with dribble moves is phenomenal as well. If it’s becoming obvious how much I loved the gameplay, then you’re accurately catching my drift.
Adjustments
Smart CPU opponents and teammates will make adjustments mid-game and even throughout the season if you’re playing MyGM and MyLeague.
I was controlling a classic Los Angeles Lakers team with Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant against the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls team. Steve Kerr of the Bulls was driving to the hole and I was controlling Robert Horry on the other side of the court.
The cpu-controlled O’Neal quickly rotated over to take sway the easy path to the hoop. This came after the announce team had just mentiond the Bulls scored 12 of the last 14 points had been scored in the paint.
Those are the cpu-controlled adjustments, but you’ll have a set of changes you can make as well. You control the type of help defense that is provided by teammates, or you can instruct your team to switch on the fly after screen and rolls.
Playcalling
Scott O’Gallagher and the Da Czar have done another stellar job with playbooks and offensive and defensive schemes. You can control the extension of ball pressure up to 94″ 6″.
There’s also a new way to choose freelance offenses on the fly.
A triangle will populate, and you can simply point the right stick in the direction of the look you’re ready to run. It’s much better than the wildly confusing system in NBA 2K16.
Overall, NBA 2K17 has delivered their best in-game performance I’ve seen in the series thus far.
