Do you smell this? No, it's not the return of the NFL, but it's almost time to hit the virtual hardwood when NBA 2K25 it's enough After the game's release, HHW Gaming I talked to Ronnie 2K.
Since the first virtual basketball bounced in 1999 NBA 2K on the Sega Dreamcast, the basketball video game franchise from Visual Concepts published by 2K Sports has become a behemoth that is no accident.
Now the premiere basketball video game after EA Sports bowed out with it NBA Live privilege, NBA 2K has continued to not only be a place for your favorite NBA franchise to reach the championship, but has become more than just a video game where you play basketball. It's also a cultural phenomenon that literally funds streaming careers.
The team at Visual Concepts is well aware of the importance of community to the success of the annual video game and has been organizing 2K Community Day events ever since.
Community Day has since grown in scale as the game's online component's player base has ballooned, becoming one of the game's most popular modes.
HHW Gaming watch the 12th iteration of 2K Community Day, where Press and 100 popular NBA 2K content creators gathered at the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame to get in touch with NBA 2K25.
We talked to Ronnie 2K, Director of Digital Marketing at 2K Games and the Social Media Voice of NBA 2K about the importance of 2K Community Day, overall ratings and more.
HHW Gaming: Okay. Why Community Day is critical The evolution of NBA 2K every year?
Ronnie 2K: Yes, I mean the people who play our game and are familiar with the content. I want them to be part of the process. I think that was the genesis of why we established Community Day. The development team wanted to hear from people. I mean, you get that on social media, but to have those real interactions and really be able to, you know, separate the noise from the real, uh, you know, feedback. There is no better place to do that than here. Well, we're making these guys dive deep, and we still have a few weeks to tweak if needed. It seems like everyone is really happy with what's going on here. So maybe not too much tweaking, but just having the opportunity to get this team that loves our game, the opportunity to put out the news, be part of the process and be part of the content flow. But you know, I think that was the genesis, and it worked really well. We've been doing it for 12 years and I don't see an end in sight.
When it comes to presentation, NBA 2K is second to none. There is no sports video game on the planet that comes close to this franchise. This is also the case with the online community. How does the team determine what to bring to MyPlayer, keeping it fresh while keeping the community happy?
Ronnie 2K: Again, I think it allows them to be part of the process and be heard. I think we do a great job of innovating, as you said, better than any other annual sports title, but probably any annual title in general. We take this feedback seriously. we are our own competitors. We want to innovate as fast as we can and try to make things happen. Are we doing everything right? No. But we do our best to, you know, be the fan's company, and I could say that being a fan of the brand before I started working here obviously 17 years ago, we really want our fans to feel like a community and feel a part of of the process and feel heard. It is very important to us.
Overall ratings in NBA 2K have become very important. NBA 2K ratings have taken on a life of their own to the point where they appear on sports networks like ESPN. Why do you think NBA players care so much about their virtual ratings?
Ronnie 2K: I think it's a few things like one. They've been playing it all their lives, right? This game is our 26th NBA 2K and a lot of kids come to the league. They're under 26, so they've been playing it their whole lives. So it's a badge of honor to be in the game like you're drafted and to make it to the game you've been playing all these years and aspiring to be. Not even the current generation but the previous generation, where we put the legends there and allow you to respond to them. So I think that's part of it. And then, they're competitors, right? And just like in competition, you're going to want to be the best, and it's a benchmark that a lot of people take the fans and everyone, our community, against your peers seriously. Well, I know the top of the locker room isn't about the number, it's about how you deal with people who play your position or a similar style of play or what have you. I think that's why it's so controversial every year and it fires up these guys in a way that you just wouldn't expect.
Has any player impressed you already this year with their rating?
Ronnie 2K: I don't think we'll have a lot of that by the time we're done, because I think the comparative thing, we're up to the top 30. I think we still have to reveal, so I think that's where it's going to get a little spicy, especially that top 10. I mean, the top 11, the top 11 guys, I think you can make a case that any of them should be in the top three first ones. I like it and by reasonable I really mean that. It's tough, the top tier of NBA players right now is at a level we've simply never seen before. Well, it's going to be spicy because there's a lot of arguments about it, but that's great for us, right?
Absolutely. The WNBA has become a staple of the game since NBA 2k20 and is more popular than ever this year. With the arrival of Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark and their rookie class, and more recently, Team USA Women's basketball bringing home gold at the Paris Olympics, you think the popularity will carry over to the game and bring more players to the W Way ;
Ronnie 2K: Absolutely. You see the growth they've had in the media and their watch time, and all their numbers are through the roof. We fully expect this to translate to our game as well. We were early, right? We have had female cover stars for several years now and have incorporated them through W in various steps as an annual title. We can't do everything in one year, but being able to grow the game with him, I mean our great partnership with the WNBA and the NBPA, really drove the growth in the early thoughts of being able to play in the woods. you probably saw with 3v3, like this Park style is really cool and people are really excited about it. Then, you know, we're just going to continue to evolve and find out from their players what's important to them, and we're going to continue to grow just like we do on the men's side, we're looking for, you know, as much parity that we can bring to the framework the ability of what we do.
Our favorite addition to NBA 2K25 this year is Learn 2K. NBA 2K has not only improved graphically over the years but also technically. The gameplay has become a bit complicated. Yes. So why do you think, why did you have to feel now? the time has come. They introduced a more comprehensive tutorial.
Ronnie 2K: It's not just that I was one of my favorite features is the risk/reward, right? So that you can be rewarded if you're really good and have greens, of course, calculate the shot release time for a certain build or whatever. We have to follow this balance as we want to reward the 100 content creators here and all the competitive players, people have blood, sweat and tears in 2K. But we also need to be able to, you know, please people who are jumping for the first time or, you know, playing a little bit more casually with their friends and family. And I think that's the perfect line. Like, we're going to put it in the player's hands. For example, if you want to be competitive, go do that.
NBA 2K25 introduces Learn 2K, a revamped learning mode with beginner-friendly mini-games 🏀
Full practice report: pic.twitter.com/4XoNAOHoMd
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) August 27, 2024
Learn 2K can be used as a device to get you to whatever level you want, right? Like, if you want to be a dribbling god, we've got what you need there. If you want to be just functional, we have what you need there. We allow the user to take the power into their own hands to be as good as they want to be or to just be able to play and feel like they're part of the community and can, you know, compete naturally. We have to think about our whole community and it's huge now, right? I think that's why we're introducing it now compared to previous years. It's just like we probably have this cross division of people who have played it for 26 years and then people who are coming there for the first couple of years. It's something we have to take into account.
NBA 2K25 releases September 6th on consoles and PC.