NBA 2K11 Review

Every year developers of sports franchise games try and produce a new and better game to make gamers keep on coming back for more. 2K sports are no exception, every year they bring us a new NBA game annually with something new. So will this year be the same or have 2K sports ran out of ideas?

I am happy to say that they haven't and this installment is better then ever. The first thing that you notice when you load up the game is the involvement of Michael Jordan. When you first load up the game before you see any menus you are thrown into the 1991 NBA final, between Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat. The problem that you will find straight away is with jumping straight into a game without see a menu is that you can't set the difficultly level. For some people this may be a problem because the default difficulty setting maybe to high and you will get destroyed on the court, or the difficulty could be to low and you will defeat the computer too easily. Ether way this could give you a bad first impression. When you finally get to the menus then you can change the settings, and if you feel that you need more practice before you go back out onto the court there is a practice.

With Jordan Gracing the cover of NBA 2k11 you will be thinking if he is included in the game like any normal player or is there something special to do with the greatest player ever. Well there is a game mode just about Jordan, the Jordan Challenges. This lets you replay the most iconic games in his famous career. These challenges aren't exactly a walk over either as to pass them you will need to play as good as Jordan. With every challenge that you complete you unlock special edition Jordan Trainers which can improve you're game by improving your speed and shooting etc. obviously there is a franchise mode, where you take control of your favourite team play the full season, you can either choose from a 24, 48 or 82 game season depending on long you are willing to play the game for. Also there are the trade windows were like in the real game you can trade player who you think will make a difference to your team and help you will the league. Also like most sport games these days there is a mode were you can make your own player and work through a career, playing games just controlling yourself, building up your skills and eventually play for a big team like the LA Lakers. Obviously you will have to start from the bottom and the first game that you play is with some random people in what looks like a school hall. In the game you will need to do challenges, like take 5 jump shots in a game.

The hardest part in the be a pro game mode is keeping your game rating up to the necessary grade to pass, because every bad pass and even every bad call that you make your rating will go down, its also good to remember that it is easier to lose grades then gain them. Multiplayer is like any other sports game online you join into a lobby and from that lobby you choose someone that you want to play by sending them a game invite. If the enthusiasm from the gamers that are playing online continues you will not be stuck in the lobby waiting for a game, for the last couple of games that I have played I have been sat in the lobby for less then a minute. Also the Blacktop game modes make the game fun and are mini games that you would play on the courts out in the street. Like the slam-dunk challenge were you need the see if you can beat your competitor by doing more elaborate tricks while trying to dunk the ball within a specified time, and playing 3 on 3 game on a half court against three NBA stars.

Graphically NBA 2K11 is good but not exceptional, when the camera zooms in on player through the match you can see little beads of sweat forming on there heads. But the game is let down by how the players and coaches don't really look life like. But this doesn't really affect the game so much and in a way the animations and the movement of the players on the court make up for the bad player realism. Also while playing through a game you can see people buffing the floor were you have made marks with your trainers. Again this is a good addition it the game but it would be better if you can see the marks appear on the court and then disappear when it gets buffed.

Overall the addition of Michael Jordan back into the game is rather disappointing and his come back seems more of a gimmick to sell the game as he just disappears into the game and it seems like he is just a normal player. Apart from the disappointment of Jordan the game play and graphics could do with a little tweaking to make the game better. But with the addition of the mini games you will be able to jump on the game and challenge your mates without needing to sit through a whole match.