Developer Visual Concepts and publisher 2K announced a brand-new way to play MyNBA in NBA 2K23 with the mode rebranded as MyNBA Eras. The rebranded mode is only available for current-gen consoles, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, and allows players to turn back the clock and change history throughout specific eras in NBA history.
As described by Visual Concepts, MyNBA Eras gives players the power to find out what could have happened. “What if Kobe and Shaq never went their separate ways? What if the Houston Rockets selected Michael Jordan with the No. 1 overall pick in 1984?” These questions and more can be answered by players in MyNBA in NBA 2K23 simply by choosing a specific point in time and choosing what happens next.
“This is a banner year for MyNBA, and our team is incredibly excited for fans of the game mode to explore the changes that have been in the making for over a decade,” said Erick Boenisch, VP of NBA Development at 2K and Visual Concepts. “MyNBA Eras takes the in-depth MyNBA experience of years past and plugs it into some of the most iconic periods of the NBA, allowing players to explore endless ‘what if?’ scenarios in the most authentic way possible.”
MyNBA NBA 2K23
On booting up MyNBA Eras, players will have four eras to choose from; Magic vs Bird, Jordan, Kobe and Modern.
- The Magic Vs Bird Era: Starting in 1983, players will find themselves in the heat of the Magic Johnson vs. Larry Bird rivalry that took over the league. Fans can rewrite 1980’s NBA history while they compete to draft the likes of Michael Jordan, Akeem Olajuwon, or any of the other NBA legends who were drafted in that legendary decade;
- The Jordan Era: Beginning in 1991, The Jordan Era puts players right at the beginning of Jordan’s dominant run with the Chicago Bulls. They will battle with Isiah Thomas’ “Bad Boys” Detroit Pistons, John Stockton and Karl Malone, Olajuwon’s Houston Rockets, and Patrick Ewing’s New York Knicks for a chance to claim 1990’s basketball supremacy;
- The Kobe Era: The Kobe Bryant era takes fans back to 2002, where a new generation of talent had emerged in the West, including Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs, Kevin Garnett and the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks, and of course, the Black Mamba himself, Kobe Bryant. In addition to competing against the legends of this era, players will also be fighting for draft position in anticipation of the legendary 2003 draft class;
- The Modern Era: The previous MyNBA experience is now dubbed the Modern Era. Longtime fans of the mode can continue to start with the most up-to-date rosters available and enjoy the traditional MyNBA experience.
Throughout these eras, Visual Concepts explained just some of the hooks for players. For example, in the Jordan era, in 1992 Shaquille O’Neal entered the league while in the Kobe era, LeBron James joined the NBA in 2003. Other possibilities include Jordan not retiring and having the Bulls win eight straight, or Jordan never having joined the Bulls and instead becoming a member of the Bad Boy Pistons.
To make MyNBA Eras as authentic as possible, Visual Concepts has provided each team with at least one unique court and uniform(s) as well as designing and implementing a special system that recreates the television viewing experience of the day. Teams will enter the league at the appropriate time and their logos, colours and visuals will be represented appropriately and authentically.
Beyond just the presentation of the eras, the way the game is played will change depending on which era players choose. For example, Visual Concepts says, “we make sure that most of the normal rule changes that were introduced over the league’s history are present. It’d be impossible to think of Jordan-era gameplay without hand checking, so that’s an option and enables more aggressive defence on the sticks. The league shifting from zone defences being illegal to legal, the playoff format changes, it’s all here.”
However, players are free to play fast and loose with the rules and make the eras their own. “That said, we want to make sure that MyNBA Eras remains the sandbox you’ve known and loved for years now. It was a goal to make the rebranding, relocation, and league expansion easy for those that wanted to see history unfold as it did in the past, but also make it easy to change them. If you want to take the league in a completely new direction, you can absolutely make it happen. 36 teams in 1983? Sure. No team relocations allowed, ever? You got it”
Aside from the three past eras, MyNBA Eras’ Modern Era begins in 2022 and allows players to play 80 years into the future just like they’ve been able to in previous iterations of NBA 2K.
We had the chance to ask Erick Boenisch, VP of NBA Development at 2K and Visual Concepts about MyNBA Eras and the work that’s gone into creating an authentic experience of NBA basketball across these different time periods. He told PowerUp! that just creating the roster for NBA 2K23 was an enormous undertaking. Figuring out which badges to assign to players and what skill level they have, especially if they’re starting to enter a year of decline as their career moves forward. Boenisch explained that the 1983 era was by far the most difficult, especially because a large number of staff members at Visual Concepts weren’t even alive at the time.
Boenisch said, “I don’t think people will appreciate the amount of work that went into this feature, and I think that’s what makes it so beautiful for us because we know how much effort the team put into creating this experience.”
For more in-depth information about MyNBA Eras, head over to the Courtside Report.
NBA 2K23 will be available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S on September 9, 2022.
