When it comes to recently released NBA 2K video games, NBA 2K23 and NBA 2K24 stand out for me. This is because NBA 2K23 featured the Michael Jordan career mode, while NBA 2K24 had a career mode for the late, great Kobe Bryant.
If we go further back in history, my favourite NBA 2K video games of all time are now well over a decade old. NBA 2K11 was legendary because it was the first to include Michael Jordan as a playable character. My personal favourite still has to be NBA 2K8 because it featured the best dunk contest mode in NBA 2K history.
Sadly, though, NBA 2K is an annually released franchise, and many iterations start to feel and look the same. I remember reviewing NBA 2K25 last year, and this game did not stand out for me at all. It did not feature any career mode, most of the game modes were the same, and the shot meter was also horrible that year.
Well, NBA 2K26 is here, and it comes with some minor improvements from last year. I’m still disappointed there is no career mode, as the WWE 2K video games have their Showcase modes every year.
Despite having no career mode, NBA 2K26 still has the same modes that feature in the games every year. Most players will spend their time in the MyPLAYER mode, where you can create your own player and guide them to become a potential NBA legend starting from high school.
There are multiple different options to create the appearance for your character, and you can also use the accompanying NBA 2K app to scan your face in the game. Most people play the male MyPLAYER for NBA players, but in more recent years, you can also guide a female player to the WNBA finals too, which is cool.
If you find the story mode and its lengthy cutscenes to be boring, you can bypass all of that and skip to the “play basketball only” part. This is a cool option to have if you don’t care about the story mode and just want to level up your player to become an NBA/WNBA champion.
If you don’t care about the actual traditional basketball part of MyPLAYER, you can instead roam around ‘The City’ and play online in the park. This is a mode many players love to hang, although you need to stay competitive because your player can be rubbish online if you don’t level them up first.
Probably the biggest change in NBA 2K26 is the improved shot meter. The shot meter wasn’t great in NBA 2K25, but it is much better in NBA 2K26. The meter is larger, and it’s easier to spot when you should release your shot. When you shoot, you should aim to release the analogue stick during the green part on the meter.
The green part of the shot meter will increase or decrease depending on the situation. For example, the green part is very large if you go for a layup that is uncontested by the opponents. The green part gets much smaller, though, if you go for a 3-pointer that is currently being defended.
Graphically, NBA 2K26 is an improvement over NBA 2K25 as the colour saturation is better and looks less washed out. The game also still has different commentary teams depending if you are playing an NBA or WNBA game.
Speaking of the NBA and the WNBA, NBA 2K26 is the first game in franchise history that allow players to use male and female players all in the same team! The only time I recall male and female players playing together is during the celebrity game that takes place during All-Star Weekend in February.
That being said, male and female players on the same team only occur in the MyTEAM mode of the game. MyTEAM is always a controversial mode, though, because the game requires players to pay real money in order to get the best cards and players. Because of this, I didn’t really spend too much time on this mode.
The last major mode in NBA 2K26 is MyNBA, which is the game’s Franchise mode. This is where you take control of a General Manager and take charge of a team. It’s a really cool mode for players who want to fantasy book their favourite teams.
MyNBA is also the only mode in the game where you can access the Dunk Contest and 3-Point Shooter Contest. I miss the days when they were their own separate modes, because they were super fun back in the day. Even EA’s NBA Live video games had better Dunk and 3-point contests nearly two decades ago!
Much like other games in the past, monetization continues to plague the MyTeam and MyCareer modes. Virtual Currency is needed to level up your player, and earning it via playing games is super slow. This is why some players opt to pay real money to level up faster to stay more competitive.
While NBA 2K26 is an improvement over NBA 2K25, it still doesn’t feel like a revolutionary evolution of the game. I do appreciate the improved shot meter, but most of the other game modes feel and look the same. I’m not expecting a big change in NBA 2K until the next consoles arrive in the near future.
Verdict: 7.5/10
