Incremental Changes Could Take MyPlayer Mode to the Next Level - Belly_of_a_Whale's Blog

Belly_of_a_Whale's Blog

Incremental Changes Could Take MyPlayer Mode to the Next Level

Posted on September 3, 2012 at 08:56 PM.

For the past couple years, I've been thinking that it was too easy to get your MyPlayer to legendary status, making the entire mode less fulfilling than it should be. Now that Ronnie 2K has shown a screenshot of his MyPlayer as a 19 year old with a 99 overall, this is really hammered home. That would make him one of the 3-4 best players of all-time, if not the best. Even Michael Jordan wasn't the "best player ever" in his first 4 years. It should be a challenge just to get to an all-star level (there's no shame in being Joe Johnson) and you should really feel like you've accomplished something IF you become legendary. Not every MyPayer should become a 99 overall and if they do, it shouldn't happen within the first few years of a career. I think a series of incremental changes can add longevity to this mode and make it much more rewarding.

Here are some of my ideas that I hope will be added to future versions of the mode:

In general, there needs to be higher prices to attain certain rating and skill boosts.
These prices should go up incrementally based on how good your MyPlayer becomes, making it harder to progress through each phase of his career, while giving value to being highly rated.
- For example, ratings and signature skill prices could increase when your rating reaches 80 (local star), 85 (league-wide All-Star), 90 (Superstar), and 95 (Legend).
- By setting up increments like this, it will be harder and harder to progress to the next level, giving a sense of achievement just making it to an All-Star level, which many NBA players would be very happy with.
The max for each individual rating should change based on your career. Each player type will have an ultimate max for each rating, but you won't start with that as your max. Some maxes may start 5-10 points lower than the ultimate max. You would have to reach certain "triggers" in your career to raise your individual rating maxes.
- For example, people often say they can't consider a certain player (ie LeBron) one of best of all-time unless they've won a ring, so 2K should make it that certain maxes only go so high until you win a ring, then you activate your ultimate max.
  - For example, your ultimate max for Off Awareness is 95, but as a rookie, that max is 89. Then, once you become an All NBA selection, your max for that rating can change to 93. And then, when you win your ring, your max becomes 95. (Or 90 to 96 to 99; whatever the increments may be.)
- You still have to purchase the ratings boosts, but certain "triggers" in your career are needed to raise your max. This can work for various individual ratings and a variety of "triggers".
  - Certain "triggers" may be 40 pt game, 50 pt game, triple-double, 15 assists, 15 rebounds, All-Star, multiple All-Star selections, All NBA, win dunk contest to go from 97 max dunk to 99, MVP , make playoffs, win NBA Finals, etc etc. These are all just possible examples, but really it's limitless how deep the mode can become when there are career "triggers" that incrementally access your ultimate max.
There should be limitations on the number of signature skills you can get early in your career.
- For example, in your rookie year, you are only allowed to purchase up to 3 skills.
- The next year, you can purchase one more, and you can continue to purchase one more each year (if you can afford it) until you reach the max (which I think should be 7).
- The challenge, though, is that signature skills should get a great deal more expensive each year, becoming incredibly difficult to obtain.
Certain signature skills shouldn't be available to purchase in your rookie year. Rookies don't come into the league as legends. Kobe, LeBron, Jordan, etc, even though they were great talents, it took them a few years to really become the great all-around players they became.
- It would make sense that certain skills like Floor General, & Defensive Anchor are not available to purchase right away. Maybe after a certain number of games or after a certain career "trigger" they become available to purchase, and at a higher price than some other skills.

These, and other similar changes, would really help to create a more realistic player progression, differentiate different MyPlayers, add years to the mode, and create a real sense of accomplishment if you become legendary.