But there was also a very strong sense that the community’s patience, which had been gradually tested more and more by 2K’s
microtransaction model for years, reached its elastic limit and
emphatically snapped. Virtual currency has been at the centre of the
experience for almost a decade, but having to pay VC just to get a
haircut and a shave at launch felt like a new low. That gave players a
short fuse for other misdemeanours, too, like B-Fresh.
The NBA 2K franchise is in quite a strange position then, all told. It’s the best example of its genre by a mile, but it also has plenty of
areas it can make real, meaningful improvements within. Plus, EA’s
veteran NBA Live series is breathing down its neck again, having
rediscovered its form last year, so it’s no time to be freewheeling.
This is the obvious one, isn’t it? The conversation about
microtransactions has never been more heated than at this time during
NBA 2K19’s development, and the last game took a lot of flak for its
practices. Something’s got to give.
What was especially noticeable last year was how much the rate of progress seemed to have slowed down for VC accumulation if you didn’t
pay. NBA 2K17’s glacial ‘Doin’ Stuff’ progress bar was at least
overhauled by a quicker attribute cap increase system, but the overall
journey from useless bench-dweller to MVP felt slower than ever. Maybe
it was because haircuts costs thousands of VC.
It’d be unrealistic to expect that 2K19 will operate outside any kind of microtransaction model, but some microtransaction models are
more predatory than others. Let’s just feel like we’re making progress
without dropping real money, and keep cosmetic customisation items
reasonably priced.Read More
