NBA 2K (series)

This article is about the game series. For the first installment of the NBA 2K series, see NBA 2K (video game).

The NBA 2K series is a series of basketball video games developed and released annually. Beginning in 1999 to 2001, the NBA 2K series was an exclusive to the Sega Dreamcast. The series was originally published by Sega, under the label Sega Sports and is now published by 2K Sports. All of the games in the franchise have been developed by Visual Concepts. Its primary competitor in the marketplace is the NBA Live series from EA Sports.

History

The first four games of the series featured commentary from fictional announcers "Bob Steele" and "Rod West" (voiced by Bay Area sports radio personalities Bob Fitzgerald and Rod Brooks who's working at KNBR 680 San Francisco. They also host a radio show called "Fitz and Brooks"), but since NBA 2K3 the game's announcing team has been something of a revolving door, featuring commentary from the likes of Bill Walton, Tom Tolbert, Kevin Frazier, Michelle Tafoya, and Bob Fitzgerald. The color and play-by-play commentary in NBA 2K6, NBA 2K7, and NBA 2K8 is provided by Kenny Smith and Kevin Harlan, with Craig Sager providing sideline reports. Peter Barto is the PA Announcer. NBA 2K9 features commentary from Kevin Harlan and Clark Kellogg, with Cheryl Miller as sideline reporter.

In 2002 Sega implemented the American television network, ESPN's brand with their Sega Sports video games. The ESPN brand was used for 3 games until ESPN signed a 15-year deal with EA Sports.

In 2005 Sega sold the NBA 2K series along with Visual Concepts to Take-Two Interactive. The series is currently published by 2K Sports, a publishing label of Take-Two.

The PlayStation 3 version of NBA 2K7 was the first version to support motion sensing controllers with a free throw shooting mechanic that has the player move the Sony SIXAXIS controller in a motion similar to a real free throw shot, but was discontinued for later games in the series.

In 2009 2K Sports released the newest version of the NBA 2K series. The series has been present on the sixth-generation of consoles starting with the Dreamcast in 1999 and with the scheduled release of NBA 2K11 for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii in October 2010.

Games in the franchise

Title	Publisher	Cover	Release Date – Platform	Innovation
NBA 2K	Sega Sports	Allen Iverson	Dreamcast: November 10, 1999
NBA 2K1	Sega Sports	Allen Iverson	Dreamcast: November 1, 2000	Network mode for internet play
NBA 2K2	Sega Sports	Allen Iverson	Dreamcast: October 24, 2001 PlayStation 2: January 12, 2002 Xbox: February 27, 2002 GameCube: March 20, 2002
NBA 2K3	Sega Sports	Allen Iverson	GameCube: October 7, 2002 PlayStation 2: October 8, 2002 Xbox: October 9, 2002
ESPN NBA Basketball 2K4	Sega Sports	Allen Iverson	PlayStation 2: October 21, 2003 Xbox: October 22, 2003	NBA player face scans, 24/7 mode, Isomotion
ESPN NBA 2K5	Sega Sports	Ben Wallace	Xbox: September 28, 2004 PlayStation 2: September 30, 2004	Association mode
NBA 2K6	2K Sports	Shaquille O'Neal	PlayStation 2: September 26, 2005 Xbox: September 26, 2005 Xbox 360: November 16, 2005	Shot stick controls
NBA 2K7	2K Sports	Shaquille O'Neal	PlayStation 2: September 25, 2006 Xbox: September 25, 2006 Xbox 360: September 25, 2006 PlayStation 3: November 13, 2006	Signature animations, 2K Reel Maker
NBA 2K8	2K Sports	Chris Paul	PlayStation 2: October 2, 2007 PlayStation 3: October 2, 2007 Xbox 360: October 2, 2007	Blacktop mode, Hotspots, Lock-on defense
NBA 2K9	2K Sports	Kevin Garnett	PlayStation 3: October 7, 2008 Xbox 360: October 7, 2008 PlayStation 2: October 7, 2008 PC: October 21, 2008	Association 2.0, Living rosters, 2K Insider
NBA 2K10	2K Sports	Kobe Bryant	Wii: November 9, 2009 PlayStation 3: October 6, 2009 Xbox 360: October 6, 2009 PlayStation 2: October 6, 2009 PC: October 12, 2009 PSP: October 6, 2009	My Player Mode
NBA 2K11	2K Sports	Michael Jordan	PC: October 5, 2010 PlayStation 3: October 5, 2010 PSP: October 5, 2010 Xbox 360: October 5, 2010 Wii: October 5, 2010 PlayStation 2: October 5, 2010	Deeper My Player Mode, and deeper Legacy. Ability to play with Michael Jordan, Ability to play with Snoop Dogg in Street Mode for the celebrities.

Series features and awards

NBA 2K6

• Features Shaquille O'Neal on the cover.

NBA 2K7

• Features Shaquille O'Neal on the cover.

NBA 2K8

• Features a Slam Dunk Contest & Three Point Contest mode similar to EA Sports NBA Live series. (only on next generation version)
• Features Chris Paul on the cover.

NBA 2K9

• The first Windows release of the NBA 2K series.
• Features Kevin Garnett on the cover.
• First game to feature live roster updates from the 2K Insider rather than periodic roster moves available for download.
• Uses Steamworks for authentication and update.
• The ability to imported draft classes was removed for this edition as the College Hoops 2K series began its hiatus. A limited feature to edit draft classes was used in its place.

NBA 2K10

• The first PlayStation Portable and Wii release of the NBA 2K series, and the first on a Nintendo system since NBA 2K3 for the GameCube. The newest part of this game in the series is the My Player Mode. This allows you to customize your very own player and play as this player throughout the Summer Circuit, training camps, and even the D League
• Features Kobe Bryant on the cover.
• Special Features:NBA 2K10 Share Rosters

NBA 2K11

On Wednesday June 2, 2010 Michael Jordan was officially announced as the cover athlete for NBA 2K11, making him the first inactive member of the NBA players' union to have the honor. In a press release Jason Argent, vice president of marketing for 2K Sports talks about a new game mode called "The Jordan Challenge." Argent explains, "While playing The Jordan Challenge, fans can try to stun the world in Jordan’s self-described greatest game by torching the Cavaliers by 69 points in March of 1990; attempt to battle back from the flu to defeat the Jazz in Game 6 of the 1997 finals; or leave the world wanting more as they relive one of Jordan’s finest performances during his last game as a Chicago Bull on June 14, 1998. In addition to The Jordan Challenge mode, gamers will have the unique opportunity to play as some of the greatest teams in NBA history, including the ‘85-’86, ’89-’90, ’90-’91, ’94-’95, ’95-’96, ’96-’97, and ’97-’98 Chicago Bulls." It has also been announced that the game will be using PS Move for the PS3. The game will release on October 5, 2010 for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 consoles, as well as the PC.

References

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