NBA 2K22

Fundamentally you’re paying £60 for a very good game, perhaps the best in the history of the 2K series, but for all the commendable work on gameplay, production and new features, 2K22 should be considered one of the most egregious exploitations of a player base in the history of gaming.

69%Game Brain Score

gameplay, graphics

stability, monetization

69% User Score Based on 23,794 reviews

Platforms

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About NBA 2K22

NBA 2K22 is a single player and multiplayer management game with a business theme. It was developed by Visual Concepts and was released on September 8, 2021. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

NBA 2K22 puts the entire basketball universe in your hands. Play now in real NBA and WNBA environments against authentic teams and players. Build your own dream team in MyTeam with today’s stars and yesterday’s legends. Live out your own pro journey in MyCareer and experience your personal rise to the NBA. Flex your management skills as a powerful Executive in MyGM and MyLeague. Anyone, anywhere c…

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Reviews

69%Audience ScoreBased on 23,794 reviews

gameplay252 positive mentions

stability342 negative mentions

gameplay
847 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30% positive mentions, 58% neutral mentions, 12% negative mentions
The gameplay of NBA 2K22 has received mixed reviews, with many praising its smooth mechanics and improved animations, while others criticize the lack of innovation and persistent issues such as lag and unresponsive controls. Players appreciate the realistic basketball experience and new features, but express frustration over microtransactions and the game's reliance on online play, which is marred by hackers and server problems. Overall, while some find the gameplay enjoyable and a step forward, others feel it remains stagnant and plagued by technical flaws.
- “The gameplay itself is a revelation, delivering a visceral experience akin to being present in the hallowed halls of Madison Square Garden or the Boston Garden.”
- “Great gameplay, smooth response and very interesting multiplayer are what NBA 2K22 makes the best game for me.”
- “The gameplay seems to have improved from 2K21, the movements are a lot more fluid and the AI is more forgiving.”
- “The passing mechanics are like passing balloons with tennis rackets.”
- “One of the worst games I've ever played from a pure gameplay standpoint.”
- “Gameplay is hot garbage.”
graphics
573 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30% positive mentions, 58% neutral mentions, 12% negative mentions
The graphics of NBA 2K22 have received mixed reviews, with many players noting that they are largely similar to previous iterations, lacking significant upgrades, especially on PC where next-gen graphics are not supported. While some users appreciate the detailed visuals and smooth gameplay, others criticize the game for its outdated graphics, bugs, and performance issues, leading to a perception that it feels like a rehash of older titles rather than a true next-gen experience. Overall, while the graphics can be visually appealing, they fall short of expectations for a modern sports game, particularly on PC.
- “The graphics are absolutely beautiful and the character animations, crowd, and everything is so detailed. You can tell they worked very hard on this year's 2K.”
- “This game features some highly detailed graphics as well as some very realistic gameplay.”
- “The graphics and gameplay are phenomenal, definitely top 1 sports game in the world.”
- “If you're reading this trying to figure out whether or not you should buy this game, just do yourself a favor and don't spend money on this. It's like you're playing a 2005 game with modern graphics, absolutely horrible experience.”
- “The graphics are from 2008.”
- “This game is just downright horrible. Movement mechanics have only gotten worse year to year, graphics are the exact same since 2k16, and the career/myplayer is unplayable your rookie year, never been such slow progressions.”
stability
346 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 99% negative mentions
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and crashes that significantly hinder gameplay across various modes, particularly in MyCareer. Many players express frustration over matchmaking issues, unresponsive features, and a lack of meaningful updates or fixes from the developers. Overall, the game is described as a "buggy mess," making it largely unplayable for many users, especially in online modes.
- “Runs great with some visual settings configured on a GT 730.”
- “Good game, runs great on my 1440p monitor with a 2080 Ti GPU and 3600 CPU.”
- “This game is a broken buggy mess that treats customers like ass.”
- “Mycareer is literally unplayable, when I'm at the start and benched, it doesn't even let me sim to next appearance and it just goes in super slow mode where I waited 3 minutes to get in the game, just for it to do it again and the game then freezes and shuts down.”
- “Instead of putting in time to fix the endless glitches and bugs they do absolutely nothing, the little fixes they do put out break the game further or fix very little.”
story
316 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17% positive mentions, 67% neutral mentions, 16% negative mentions
The story aspect of the game has received overwhelmingly negative feedback, with many players describing it as boring, linear, and lacking depth compared to previous installments. Critics note that the MyCareer mode's narrative feels recycled and unengaging, often forcing players to grind or spend money to enjoy the experience fully. While some appreciate minor improvements and the inclusion of quests, the overall sentiment is that the storytelling is shallow and fails to provide a compelling journey through a player's basketball career.
- “The story in MyCareer is really nice. I love listening to the whole story, especially for the first time. It's like Netflix; I am not even done with it yet.”
- “For example, the improved graphics, new badges, new animations, better dunking and shot-blocking physics, new commentators and their voice lines, the MyCareer story is the best it's been since 2K14 in my opinion.”
- “The MyCareer story is also the funnest I have had since NBA 2K12 and 2K17, respectively.”
- “Waste of money, the story is boring and it is just like 2k23, AI bots have insane defense and boring dialogue.”
- “The gameplay was better in 2015; and the only thing they have added since then is a career story that is boring, long, and uninteresting.”
- “The story is lackluster and is at no point a thrill to make it to the league.”
monetization
188 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3% positive mentions, 48% neutral mentions, 49% negative mentions
The monetization strategy in the NBA 2K series has drawn significant criticism, with many players labeling it a "cash grab" due to the overwhelming presence of microtransactions and in-game advertisements. Users express frustration over the necessity of spending real money to progress in modes like MyCareer, which detracts from the overall gaming experience and feels exploitative, especially given the game's high initial price. The lack of innovation and reliance on repetitive content further exacerbate these concerns, leading to a general consensus that the franchise prioritizes profit over player enjoyment.
- “The game's focus on microtransactions and loot boxes is particularly concerning, as it appears to prioritize monetization over player enjoyment and engagement.”
- “There is a lot of monetization, and to completely upgrade your personal character costs more than the game.”
- “As solid as it’s ever been on the court, NBA 2K22 is still an astonishingly good sports game, but its continued reliance on cynical microtransactions in MyCareer and MyTeam leaves a sour taste.”
- “The monetization and greed have gotten worse each year, made the myplayer games impossible without buying stats with real money, and cut most of the content that was included in new generation consoles from the PC release.”
- “It's a straight cash grab and they don't care about the players.”
- “This game is simply a cash grab not worthy of an NBA deal to make games based on their product.”
grinding
143 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1% positive mentions, 6% neutral mentions, 93% negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is heavily criticized, with many players noting that it requires an excessive amount of time and effort to improve their characters, often leading to a "pay-to-win" environment. While some find the grinding enjoyable and rewarding, others feel it detracts from the overall experience, making it tedious and frustrating, especially for those who prefer a more casual playstyle. Overall, players agree that significant grinding is necessary to succeed, which may not appeal to everyone.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “2K really thinks I'm about to spend half a decade grinding MyCareer just to upgrade my 3-point shooting by 2 attributes.”
- “Your character is literally unplayable until you spend money on VC or just be terrible for 100 hours grinding VC; it's literally Diablo Immortal's sports version.”
- “This is a very well put together game; however, the MyCareer mode is nearly impossible when you're starting out, and it requires a lot of grinding as well as multiplayer, so it's not a very good option for people who want a casual single-player experience.”
optimization
82 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12% positive mentions, 29% neutral mentions, 59% negative mentions
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with many users reporting persistent lag, crashes, and poor performance even on high-end hardware. Players noted that it is primarily locked to 60 fps, with cutscenes dropping to 30 fps, and many experienced issues such as stuttering and input lag, particularly in online modes. Overall, the consensus is that the game is poorly optimized, lacking essential updates and support, making it unplayable for many.
- “Game runs smoothly both online and off with great visuals.”
- “I'm pretty much satisfied with the optimization of the game and the content.”
- “Game is more optimized, career mode is a lot more fun depending on your build yet still grindy as with any sports game.”
- “This game is not optimized at all, lags all the time and crashes non-stop.”
- “The game is soooo un-optimized. My specs are way higher than the recommended, and it was still glitchy and ran poorly when I tried to play a game. I even retried on the lowest possible settings and it still wouldn't play properly. Don't buy even at sale price.”
- “Complete trash, looks really old even on my 3090 in 4K with max settings. I was playing a match and my PC completely crashed because of the poor optimization. There is no reason to buy this if you have 2K21; they pander to console players because that's their cash cow.”
music
70 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26% positive mentions, 48% neutral mentions, 26% negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it enjoyable while others criticize it as subpar or repetitive. Many feel that the soundtrack is merely a rehash of previous titles, lacking originality and depth, and some even describe it as "ear cancer." Despite these criticisms, a few users appreciate the menu music and note that it is better suited for the game than in past iterations.
- “Soundtrack is better suited for the game than before.”
- “Good music.”
- “Better graphics, better MyTeam system, good music and faces are more realistic and recognizable.”
- “The soundtrack for 22 is garbage in my opinion, with the exception of only a handful of songs.”
- “I am an old man - 50 years old - been playing NBA games since the days of Double Dribble on the NES - and, while certainly not even remotely close to my cup of tea, the music is just ear cancer.”
- “Glad the crappy music doesn't play during games; half of it is all weird sounding from so much censoring.”
humor
49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
96% positive mentions, -2% neutral mentions, 6% negative mentions
The humor in the game is often described as unintentional, stemming from frustrating gameplay mechanics, absurd scenarios, and technical glitches that lead to laughable moments. Players find themselves amused by the game's inconsistencies, such as mismatched player sizes and erroneous commentary, despite their overall dissatisfaction with the game's quality. Many reviewers express a love-hate relationship with the game, acknowledging its flaws while still finding it entertaining enough to share laughs with friends.
- “Very good game, have spent a lot of time laughing with my mates and making some awesome builds!”
- “On my very first play; playing as the Bulls vs the Suns just to get a feel for the game, the announcer said 'Pacers 3!!!' and 'Pacers basket!' It was funny for being so confidently wrong; but then it happened again and again in multiple games; so it seems that the Bulls arena simply has a broken PA announcer.”
- “This game is a joke... the game works half of the time, but can be pretty hilarious.”
- “The humor in this game is non-existent; it's just frustrating to play.”
- “I expected some laughs, but instead, I just found myself getting angry at the mechanics.”
- “The jokes fall flat, and the gameplay is more irritating than entertaining.”
atmosphere
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40% positive mentions, 40% neutral mentions, 20% negative mentions
The atmosphere in this year's basketball title is highly praised, with top-notch graphics that create a realistic experience akin to playing in a real-life stadium. The inclusion of stadium announcers significantly enhances the immersive quality, contributing to an overall revamped and engaging gameplay experience. Reviewers express being particularly impressed by the game's ability to evoke a genuine basketball atmosphere.
- “The graphics and atmosphere are still top notch and make you feel like you're actually playing basketball in real life.”
- “Stadium announcers also add so much to the atmosphere.”
- “I was actually blown away by the atmosphere in this year's title.”
- “This review is more about the revamped gameplay and overall change of atmosphere that I experienced while playing.”
- “Basketball atmosphere:”
emotional
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
Players express a strong sense of frustration and emotional detachment from the game, citing poor writing and shallow character development that hinder emotional investment. The negative experiences have led some to destructive behavior in-game and ultimately to uninstalling the game altogether, indicating a significant disconnect between the game's intent and player experience.
- “It made me feel like Bron.”
- “So that's it, after 4 hours, I have destroyed 2 controllers and rampaged through a couple of neighborhoods, killing cats and dogs, because that's what that game made me feel like doing.”
- “Furthermore, the game's narrative modes, including MyCareer and MyTeam, are plagued by lackluster writing and shallow character development, resulting in a lack of emotional investment in the game's characters and storylines.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 67% neutral mentions, 33% negative mentions
The game's replayability is heavily criticized, with users expressing frustration over the lack of saved settings and significant lag issues, which detract from the overall experience. Many feel that the game offers less replay value compared to simpler games, suggesting it may be more of a cash grab than a well-developed title.
- “I love how you have to go to settings every time when you turn on the game, because it never saves them. Major lag issues and less replay value than console games. It seems that these types of games have become a quick cash grab for the companies.”
- “Tic Tac Toe is more playable than this game.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
Character development in the game is criticized for its lackluster writing and superficiality, leading to minimal emotional investment in the characters and their storylines, particularly in the mycareer and myteam modes.
- “The game's narrative modes, including MyCareer and MyTeam, are plagued by lackluster writing and shallow character development, resulting in a lack of emotional investment in the game's characters and storylines.”
- “The character development feels rushed and superficial, making it hard to connect with any of the protagonists or their journeys.”
- “Despite the potential for rich storytelling, the characters remain one-dimensional and fail to evolve throughout the game.”