With NBA 2K21, you just understand what you're getting into--a basketball simulation with NBA 2K21 MT the presentation chops, star power, and gameplay mechanisms to embody the sport on a professional and cultural level. You know you'll build a customized player to experience a story that contributes to a full career and take to the roads and rec center for pick up games. You know that you can play a management sim via MyGM or build a playable fantasy team through card packs in MyTeam. And you also understand all too well about the scheme of VC that looms over all of it, which remains among the prominent culprits of intrusive microtransactions.

Now, NBA 2K21 suggests that the franchise is outside of surprises. It comes with a robust suite of modes, but despite minor remixing year after year, the annual releases are starting to mix together (if they haven't already). Mechanics get minor tweaks or additions, but largely stay untouched. So, for all those embedded in the 2K cycle, you know what the deal is, but since this season's game changes things mostly on a surface level, it's difficult to be excited about yet another entry.

Do not get me wrong, as a lifelong basketball fan who embraced the culture as a wee lad and cherishes street basketball memories from back home, I'm still a bit in awe of how well the sport has translated into video game form (I stated as much in my NBA 2K19 review). And that does not just come from the player likenesses, character development tools, or even the broadcast-style presentation; it is a matter of the core gameplay, too. Dribble moves with the right stick offer almost full charge of ball handling. It can feel a bit cluttered using so many activities mapped to marginally different moves on just 1 rod, as errant inputs may sometimes have you pull on a pump-fake rather than the crossover you planned. However, if you're able to master a few key moves, you'll be at an advantage for chances to drive to the basket or mitigate shot . The same goes for making the right moves at the post-game to either get under defenders or get placement over them. All these have been principles of NBA 2K for quite a while.

The big new addition concerning crime is that the discretionary Pro Stick shooting. Ahead of Buy MT NBA 2K21, shooting could either be done by holding down Square, X, or the ideal stick and timing your release in the height of your jump, signaled by a shot meter overhead. With Guru Stick shooting enabled, you hold the ideal stick down without having to be concerned about release timing and rather concentrate on accurate stick alignment according to the shot meter prior to your participant releases the shooter. While it's a lot simpler to just use square or X for scoring from the paint, Guru Stick is a workable new alternate for jump shots, particularly in situations when lag or latency can throw away traditional-style launch time.