- 2K asks players to 'contact local government' about Belgian loot box ban - 3 September 2018
Late last year, Sam Horti wrote about how the loot box controversy shaped gaming in 2017 . The same furore has inevitably rolled into this year, and a number of politicians, universities and gaming authorities have since expressed dismay with premium videogame consumables.  Now, publisher 2K has responded to the Belgian Gaming Commission's decision that loot boxes violate the country's gambling laws, with a number of changes to NBA 2K's in-game currency and purchases tied to its MyTeam packs. It has also asked NBA 2K players who reckon the publisher's practice now "comply with local laws" to "contact local government representative to communicate opinion." Here's the publisher's statement in full : In May, the ESA president defended loot boxes , and warned against government regulation. Blizzard, however, has since removed paid loot boxes from Overwatc…
- 2K makes changes to NBA 2K microtransactions to comply with Belgium and Dutch gambling laws - 26 August 2018
2K has removed some elements of microtransactions from its basketball franchise, NBA 2K, in a bid to comply with gambling laws in Belgium and the Netherlands. According to Rock, Paper, Shotgun , two undated statements on the basketball arcade game's website detail how the developer has had to strip the option to buy MyTeam packs - the NBA 2K equivalent of loot crates - from the title in Belgium, whereas in the Netherlands, players will not be able to access Auction House, a feature that permits you to buy and sell your players. In Belgium, MyTeam packs can remain on the premise that players may only use their in-game currency to purchase them, but given the law in the Netherlands prohibits "games which include 'loot box' style mechanics if the items they contain are transferable", Auction House has been removed in its entirety while 2K works on a solution. Read more…
- How game sizes got so huge, and why they'll get even bigger - 9 February 2018
'Crunch,' in modern parlance, is a period of unhealthy overwork during the lead up to a game's release. But in the not-too-distant past it could have also described the nature of the work itself: a crunching and culling of excess data, enough to squeeze the whole game onto a DVD or two and comfortably onto a 100GB (or smaller) hard drive. Game sizes have always been limited by their delivery medium—Myst was famously made possible by the introduction of the CD-ROM drive—but in 2004, when dual-layer DVDs were introduced, it was already too late for the PC game shelves at retailers. Steam launched around the same time, and as broadband snaked further into the suburbs and beyond, no physical medium could keep up with downloading. Games were allowed to grow, and grow, constrained only by users' bandwidth and hard drive space. That's resulted in 100GB-pl…
- These are the top 100 Steam games of 2017 - 2 January 2018
Another year over, a new one just begun, which means, impossibly, even more games. But what about last year? Which were the games that most people were buying and, more importantly, playing? As is now something of a tradition, Valve have let slip a big ol’ breakdown of the most successful titles released on Steam over the past twelve months. Below is the full, hundred-strong roster, complete with links to our coverage if you want to find out more about any of the games, or simply to marvel at how much seemed to happen in the space of 52 short weeks. (more…)
- The best sports games on PC - 11 December 2017
Sports games come in many shapes and sizes. Football Manager and Rocket League have almost nothing in common, but they’re both undeniably sports games. Meanwhile Fifa has added a story driven campaign, and Pyre is a fantasy RPG that plays like a sport. To try and help, I’ve broken this list down into four broad categories. Sports Simulations, which attempt to realistically depict a sport, Sports Management games (self explanatory), Arcade Sports, which depict a stylised version of a real sport, and Fantasy Sports, which are wholly invented. There’s obviously a lot of crossover, since even Rocket League is loosely based on football, but hopefully this will help you tell your QWOPs from your Fifas.  SPORTS SIMS Fifa 2018 Developer: EA Sports Release Date: Sep 2017 Link: Official site EA's annual football series is on a high right now, with the addition of a…
- NBA esports investment 'a long-term play' that will be 'around for decades' - 16 October 2017
Next year, the National Basketball Association will officially enter the world of esports by way of its NBA 2K League . Managing director Brendan Donohue has now billed the association's esports involvement as "a long-term play" that he reckons will span multiple decades.   In conversation with Gamesindustry.biz , Donohue suggests the NBA is confident of its place in esports and that the success of the NBA 2K series makes the jump a "logical" step.  "We have great data on NBA fans, and that's a massive audience," says Donohue. "We see that NBA fans are more likely to play video games, and actually more likely to engage in esports than fans of other sports. We think there's a pretty nice marriage here. "I don't think you have to be a fan of 2K to enjoy watching. That's one of our advantages: the NBA 2K game, and basketball more broadly, are globally rec…
- Daily Deal - NBA 2K17, 75% Off - 8 August 2017
Today's Deal: Save 75% on NBA 2K17 !* Look for the deals each day on the front page of Steam. Or follow us on twitter or Facebook for instant notifications wherever you are! *Offer ends Thursday at 10AM Pacific Time
- NBA 2K17 - On Sale This Weekend, 40% Off - 13 April 2017
Save 40% on NBA 2K17 this weekend*! *Offer ends Monday at 10AM Pacific Time
- Free Weekend - NBA 2K17 - 16 February 2017
Play NBA 2K17 for FREE starting now through Sunday at 1PM Pacific Time. You can also pickup NBA 2K17 at 35% off the regular price!* If you already have Steam installed, click here to install or play NBA 2K17. If you don't have Steam, you can download it here . *Offer ends Monday at 10AM Pacific Time
- Patch 4 Released - 12 October 2016
GENERAL - Corrected an issue where some postrelease uniform colors would clash with the opposing team’s uniform in certain matchups. - After a made basket, the score will no longer update on the scoreboard until after the animation has completed; this should be much less confusing. - Fixed a case where your friends list in the Who’s Online menu would disappear while viewing it. - Contact Dunk animations should now properly stay equipped on your MyPLAYER. GAMEPLAY - The Relentless Finisher badge should now give the proper bonuses on contact layups when leveling it up. - Fixed an extremely rare hang that could occur when a player was attempting to grab a rebound. MyPARK/2K PRO-AM - Fixed a case where certain jump shot animations would result in the shot meter reporting an incorrect very late timing during high-latency situations. - Addressed an issue where you would not be granted a win i…
- Patch 4 Released - 12 October 2016
GENERAL - Corrected an issue where some postrelease uniform colors would clash with the opposing team’s uniform in certain matchups. - After a made basket, the score will no longer update on the scoreboard until after the animation has completed; this should be much less confusing. - Fixed a case where your friends list in the Who’s Online menu would disappear while viewing it. - Contact Dunk animations should now properly stay equipped on your MyPLAYER. GAMEPLAY - The Relentless Finisher badge should now give the proper bonuses on contact layups when leveling it up. - Fixed an extremely rare hang that could occur when a player was attempting to grab a rebound. MyPARK/2K PRO-AM - Fixed a case where certain jump shot animations would result in the shot meter reporting an incorrect very late timing during high-latency situations. - Addressed an issue where you would not be granted a win i…
- Newest Patch Released - 5 October 2016
GENERAL - Updated court floors for both the New York Knicks and the Milwaukee Bucks. - Uniform improvements including the addition of a number of patches (e.g. Pacers 50th anniversary patch) and changes to more accurately represent uniforms for a number of teams. - Addressed an issue where some pre-order users were unable to see the ’92 Dream Team on the Play Now team select menu. GAMEPLAY - Substitutions made during a timeout will now immediately apply, rather than waiting for the next dead ball. - Reduced the frequency of lob passes and increased pass speeds across the board. - Fixed the 5-Second Closely Guarded rule in Euroleague-rules games such that the violation is only called when the ball carrier is holding the ball (as opposed to dribbling the ball). MyPARK/2K PRO-AM - Voice chatting has been added to the Pro-Am Team Arena. - As your Pro-Am Team levels up, you will now begin to…
- Newest Patch Released - 5 October 2016
GENERAL - Updated court floors for both the New York Knicks and the Milwaukee Bucks. - Uniform improvements including the addition of a number of patches (e.g. Pacers 50th anniversary patch) and changes to more accurately represent uniforms for a number of teams. - Addressed an issue where some pre-order users were unable to see the ’92 Dream Team on the Play Now team select menu. GAMEPLAY - Substitutions made during a timeout will now immediately apply, rather than waiting for the next dead ball. - Reduced the frequency of lob passes and increased pass speeds across the board. - Fixed the 5-Second Closely Guarded rule in Euroleague-rules games such that the violation is only called when the ball carrier is holding the ball (as opposed to dribbling the ball). MyPARK/2K PRO-AM - Voice chatting has been added to the Pro-Am Team Arena. - As your Pro-Am Team levels up, you will now begin to…
- The RPG Scrollbars: A Questline Of Sport - 3 October 2016
God, I hate sport. In other news, let’s talk sport! The fate of any successful game or genre is to be picked apart for reusable pieces, until it’s hard to remember a time when they owned it. Adventure games for instance began as one of the few genres with interesting stories and conversations and characters, before slowly being absorbed into RPGs, which now routinely offer much of the same experience minus the puzzles but with the option to shoot people in the face if they annoy you. In turn, sports games – FIFA 17 most recently – are increasingly turning their attention to RPGs to see what they might be able to add. Sadly, no sign of frost mages and dragon-based pitch invasions. Yet. …
- Steam Charts: Happiness Is Just Around The Corner - 27 September 2016
I’m trying to think who it could be. I don’t really have enemies any more, or not knowingly so. Some forgotten bully from school who never left our hometown and is still obsessed with tormenting me? A fellow journalist whose article I might have drunkenly tweeted something rude about in 2009? Someone I unfollowed or unfriended because they were tiresome or awful? You Know, Those Guys? Or: all of them, working together. Pooling their life savings to buy as many copies of a certain game as they can. Make no mistake: someone’s out to get me. It’s the only possible explanation. …
- The story of the worst basketball player ever in NBA 2K17's MyCareer mode - 20 September 2016
I decided to play NBA 2K17 s MyCareer mode as myself, except athletic and much taller. That s me in the screen above, via NBA 2K17 s face scan feature. That s also someone who will one day be wanted for a string of Burger King robberies in the Jacksonville area, but for now, he s the best high school basketball player in the country. I guess the MyCareer story doesn't really align with the face of a balding 31-year-old or, say, anyone who isn t an 18-year-old man, but I ll give NBA 2K17 this: the scan worked pretty well. You can even see the scar under my right eye (drunk laser tag accident) and the evidence of other mistakes everywhere else on my mug. But what you can t see is that I know nothing about basketball or how to play NBA 2K17. This man is an idiot and will destroy your team. A career begins I like basketball, and I watch basketball, but the main thing I know about playing ba…
- Now Available on Steam - NBA 2K17 - 20 September 2016
NBA 2K17 is Now Available on Steam! Following the record-breaking launch of NBA 2K16, the NBA 2K franchise continues to stake its claim as the most authentic sports video game with NBA 2K17. As the franchise that “all sports video games should aspire to be” (GamesRadar), NBA 2K17 will take the game to new heights and continue to blur the lines between video game and reality.
- Steam Game Charts: U Mad? - 20 September 2016
This is some kind of sick joke, isn’t it? …
- NBA 2K17 Career Stars Michael Jordan (The Other One) - 2 September 2016
Like a thespian Bo Jackson, Michael B. Jordan is acting all the sports. After mastering boxing in Creed and handegg in Friday Night Lights , he’ll now tread the boards of the balltobasket stage in NBA 2K17 . He’ll play your custom character’s best ballbuddy in the game’s MyCareer story mode, where players guide a character of their own creation through life on and off the pitch. The story’s written and directed by Creed co-writer Aaron Covington too. If this seems extravagant for a sports game, pssh, this is nothing: last year’s story was a Spike Lee joint . …
