NBA 2K24 has been announced and will feature crossplay as well as changes for MyCareer and the Parks on old and new gen versions. One big thing in particular is that it looks like main quests won’t be forced upon the player in MyCareer so you can hoop at your own pace and decide if you want to take part in quests or not.
As the for the Parks, it sounds like old gen will be going back to the Neighborhood again after being on the cruise ship for the last two installments. Retail descriptions say that this new Neighborhood will be “scenic” with “picturesque views” so we’ll see what direction they decide to go in with that. The City on new gen is supposed to be a tropical location, and with Kobe Bryant being on the cover of 2K24, it’s pretty fitting to see why they’d go in that direction since Kobe, as we know, was a Laker.
Ever since The Park was introduced back in 2K14, this streetball world has become a huge part of the fabric of the NBA 2K community and is an iconic mode in sports games. One very cool feature that was added in 2K16 was MyCourt, which was your own cozy little basketball court for you to work on your game and play games on against others. This feature was super popular when first introduced as I remember player always sharing what their custom MyCourts looked like as you could customize the floors, walls, hoops, basketballs, etc.
This now longtime feature still exists but only for old gen platforms. On new gen, when NBA 2K21 made its way to PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, 2K decided to go in a different route with MyCourt and focus on the Gatorade Training Facility, which currently features rental courts for you to play on. This is essentially MyCourt for new gen.
The courts are fine, but you do really miss the charm and customization of the MyCourts. It was not only a great practice facility but it was a fun way to show your personality and/or your fandom. I always would have the Bulls floor and then customize the hoops’ colors to match that of my alma mater — or go black and white to match that of the White Sox (not fun talking about them these days, though). It’s the little things like these that make the MC feel like your home in 2K.
Yes, thankfully it’s still there on old gen as we speak, but it just makes so much sense for new gen to offer the courts especially with the power of these new consoles that may allow developers to deepen the MyCourt experience with more customization and overall features. Something like the ability to change the entire look of your MC room at any time would be awesome (although that would probably cost a lot of VC unfortunately).
Having more floor options, basket options, changing the lighting, and so on are all things that can be added for a new gen MyCourt experience. Changing the hoops entirely would be cool as well. Instead of the basket hanging from the ceiling, maybe you want a full blown NBA-style basket? That would be a fun way to give you the NBA experience at the crib when you’re not balling out in the streets.
Speaking of the Crib, if you remember the small, but awesome mode from the old NBA 2Ks called The Crib, it had a couple of mini-games in it like air hockey and darts while also featuring a jukebox, a trophy case, and the room was decorated a bit to represent your favorite team (ah yes, I remember the Kirk Hinrich cutout in my Crib). So it would be cool to not only bring MyCourt to new gen but to add a mini-game back or two as well. The MC on old gen has the mini-basketball game, which is always fun. Seeing things like darts and maybe even a golf putting green would be neat (2K does have a PGA Tour game after all).
They don’t have to have the mini-games but to see MyCourt make its way to new gen NBA 2K would be a very welcome addition whether it’s NBA 2K24 or beyond. Practice in real sports is very important and it’s no different in video games like NBA 2K, so it’s only right that critical aspect of your game gets the royal treatment with a court you can truly call your own and make yourself feel right at home as you drill threes with that newly equipped jumper.
