NBA 2K16 is a basketball simulation video game based on the
National Basketball Association. Like past games in the series,
NBA 2K16 simulates the experience of the NBA. Players play NBA games with any real life or custom team, and can customize many aspects, such as camera angles, the presentation of players, the sound levels, and the level of realism. Like other
NBA 2K games,
NBA 2K16 is marketed as being as realistic as the actual NBA, with all the things featured in NBA games, such as commentary, pre-game shows, halftime shows, post-game shows, replays, interviews, crowds, and real player movement, among many other things. Meanwhile, the game commentary is performed by
Kevin Harlan with
Clark Kellogg and
Greg Anthony, while
Doris Burke is the sideline reporter.
NBA 2K16, like past games in the series, was marketed as being 'better' than the predecessor, as many features were added and improved upon. One such improvement, is the tattoos; when creating a player, there are over 1500 different designs available, whereas past games only had a few dozen individual tattoos. Other things that are touted as being improved are the visuals, the player customization (haircuts, accessories, etc.), several of the game modes (particularly MyCareer, which is marketed as a central feature), and the overall gameplay. Many aesthetical improvements are made as well, such as new animations, and redesigned menus. Along with the current real world teams, such as the
Oklahoma City Thunder and the
Brooklyn Nets, and the Classic teams (first introduced in
NBA 2K11) that have been featured before, like the
1985–86 Boston Celtics and the
1995–96 Chicago Bulls, The
1999–2000 Toronto Raptors, featuring
Vince Carter and
Tracy McGrady, the
2000–01 Los Angeles Lakers, featuring
Shaquille O'Neal and
Kobe Bryant, the
2002–03 Dallas Mavericks, featuring
Steve Nash and
Dirk Nowitzki, and the
2007–08 Boston Celtics, featuring
Paul Pierce,
Kevin Garnett, and
Ray Allen, are some of the new Classic teams. The
EuroLeague teams, first featured in
NBA 2K14, return for the third time. Some of the 25 EuroLeague teams include
Olympiacos Piraeus,
Panathinaikos Athens,
Maccabi Tel Aviv,
Real Madrid,
Alba Berlin, and
CSKA Moscow.
NBA 2K16, for the fourth time in the series, features MyTeam mode. MyTeam mode was first introduced in
NBA 2K13, and is based around the idea of building the ultimate basketball team, and maintaining a virtual
trading card collection. Players build their own custom team, selecting the players, current and past, jerseys, coach, court, and other basketball related things, and play with their team in basketball tournament-style competitions against other players' teams. Players collect cards that unlock players, playbooks, and other items that can be used in their team or sold. Players purchase card packs with Virtual Currency (VC) which gives the player random items. Starting NBA 2K16, cards have different levels that are indicated by their overall rating including: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Amethyst, and Diamond. A player will commonly receive Bronze cards if they purchase cheaper card packs. However, if the player purchases high priced packs, the chances of getting Gold cards are higher. There are also rare cards, such as Amethyst and Diamond cards, that are rarer and better than other cards. The level of a card isn't always the most important factor as the abilities of the actual player, and their rating indicating how good they are, is most often more important. Players can freely customize their team on the fly; players may change the coach, players, jerseys, and anything else at any time. Customization aspects were touted as being the major improvements for the mode. In addition to the MyTeam team customization, players may create their own brand new team from scratch and play 5-on-5 games against other players and their teams online, in the 2K Pro-Am game mode. Similar to previous games' Crew mode, players customize team logos, colour schemes, court designs, jersey styles, and certain other basketball related aspects. Players can create a variety of designs and themes; for example, the player has the ability to create the logos of past NBA teams, such as the
Seattle SuperSonics, or create a team which features logos that consists of individual players. Unlike other game modes, Pro-Am teams consists exclusively of MyPlayers. Players may also play 5-on-5 games against other players using regular teams. Regular online games are played in a mode called Play Now. In Play Now, the player essentially levels up as they win games and move through the online ranks. Also returning in
NBA 2K16 is the MyCareer mode; MyCareer is a story-driven campaign that first appeared in
NBA 2K10. The story is called ''Livin' Da Dream'' and focuses on an up-and-coming basketball prospect. The story starts with the player in high-school, but the player eventually enters college and then the NBA. and has an African American family. Certain other details about the character are also not customizable, such as the player's personality and birthplace. The character is from
Harlem, New York and had an underprivileged upbringing.) Returning from
NBA 2K15, players may scan their own face into the game. The MyGM mode returns as well. Instead of only playing with the teams, players customize all the aspects of one team as they are essentially the boss of the entire organization. Players sign new players, complete trades, negotiate contracts with players or coaches, customize prices, add features to the arena, provide better facilities for the players, maintain a good relationship with the team owner, the players, media members, and fans, make a profit, and guide the team to NBA championships. Prior to release, the MyGM mode was said to have been drastically improved, with many new features having been added. For instance, players may relocate their team to a different North American city, a first for an
NBA 2K game. Other additions include redesigned
draft presentations, more off-season activities, the ability to customize arenas and jerseys, players that can have multiple injuries at once, three-team trades, and a mini game the player may play while simulating games, to give the player interactivity during simulations. MyLeague mode is touted as a "sandbox" version of MyGM and is more similar to previous games' Association mode. MyLeague features most features in MyGM in that the player controls an NBA organization, customizing basketball aspects, and making money. However, MyLeague features more online multiplayer components, whereas MyGM is single-player only, and has similar customization options to MyTeam. MyLeague features more customization options than MyGM and removes certain 'rules' to allow flexibility for the player. For example, the player can freely relocate their team, trade players, change team aesthetics, and purchase upgrades without restrictions. The player may enter a MyLeague association made up of 30 user-controlled teams, instead of one user- and 29 CPU-controlled teams. ==Development==