Re: NBA 2K14 Impressions, Videos and Q&A From the Vegas EXPO (JasonWilliams55)
This. I completely neglected to mention that, excellent post polo. 
Yo JWill what's up man? I'm Lid's brother, was there with y'all early and then for "dinner" with Ronnie and Chris. Haven't been able to read everything that was posted thus far, but let me say I definitely drilled Chris on questions about defense. What he assured me of was exciting and most of it was evident in the stripped down build we were able to play.
This year you'll be able to block shots at a variety of different points which is HUGE when you think about it. Last year online guys would play the passing lanes with Bron and Wade, pick it off and your poor PG getting back would either have to get out of the way, or give up the And 1. This year if you time it correctly, you can block a dunk on the pull back (think Tomahawk) or when he brings it down to pump (think double pump reverse).
Another thing I noticed playing as both the Heat and the Spurs is when you get past the initial defender off the dribble, the help defense seemed to make the right rotations. Meaning one time Bron beat me off the dribble and Ray Allen was spotted up closer to him, but the help actually came from Wade's man on the other wing. I know, seems small, but I was delighted to see this. Continuing on the same play, Bron spun in the lane and was stripped of the ball before he could go up. It was a beautiful sequence to play and view and wasn't possible in 2k13
The walk up animations and perimeter animations while dribbling are revamped some as well. Chalmers attempted to crowd Tony Parker and he turned his back to him with contact still going, looking over his shoulder keeping the dribble alive and continuing the play. When I would drive out of this animation, Parker would put his arm/elbow up to create space between him and Chalmers to drive. I was told by Chris/LD2K that in this situation the defender would be able to draw charges and the offensive player would be able to counter that with a step back or any other move you can think of to get a shot off. The key point in that is none of it is canned and at no point are you stuck.
One of the big things I kept bugging Chris/LD2K about also was if great defense would be able to dominate average to poor offense. This answer was confirmed with a "Hell Yes" and a statement that there is no catch up or "cheese" AI that will try to give the offense an advantage. So no more shutting down a Bron cheeser for 22 seconds only for him to hit an unbelievable up and under. Definitely gives more incentive and tools for dominant defenses to shine.
There's a lot more that I saw and asked about, but it's escaping me right now. I can confirm that Ronnie and Chris were overly excited about next gen even though they can't reveal anything now. Just from being with them I'm even more excited than I was because you could tell this wasn't game, but real ball and video game lovers excited for what they have in store for us. With that said, current gen is definitely a real focus and what I played yesterday was leaps ahead of 2k13 and you couldn't even call plays, picks etc. and it was no where near as polished as the version PG and Ronnie played. That says a lot because the demo build would be enough to satisfy even the biggest 2k13 critic.
Lastly, I just want to say Chris and Ronnie are real down to earth and genuine guys. During our conversation they admitted things they loved and hated about past games and what they bring up to be fixed. It felt great to feel like they read every thread and suggest every great idea that comes from sites like OS. I think JWill, Lid and I got a better sense over some the struggle that they go through with taking a great idea to the powers that be and actually getting it implemented. It's not that everyone at 2k isn't trying or don't hear us, trust me they do, it's deadlines and other hurdles they have to cross that we don't see. But those guys truly do care and I'm not an easy guy to convince. I'll go back and read this whole thread later, but until then peace and I can't wait to own both current and next gen from what I saw, heard and from even what was asked and couldn't be answered lol.
This year you'll be able to block shots at a variety of different points which is HUGE when you think about it. Last year online guys would play the passing lanes with Bron and Wade, pick it off and your poor PG getting back would either have to get out of the way, or give up the And 1. This year if you time it correctly, you can block a dunk on the pull back (think Tomahawk) or when he brings it down to pump (think double pump reverse).
Another thing I noticed playing as both the Heat and the Spurs is when you get past the initial defender off the dribble, the help defense seemed to make the right rotations. Meaning one time Bron beat me off the dribble and Ray Allen was spotted up closer to him, but the help actually came from Wade's man on the other wing. I know, seems small, but I was delighted to see this. Continuing on the same play, Bron spun in the lane and was stripped of the ball before he could go up. It was a beautiful sequence to play and view and wasn't possible in 2k13
The walk up animations and perimeter animations while dribbling are revamped some as well. Chalmers attempted to crowd Tony Parker and he turned his back to him with contact still going, looking over his shoulder keeping the dribble alive and continuing the play. When I would drive out of this animation, Parker would put his arm/elbow up to create space between him and Chalmers to drive. I was told by Chris/LD2K that in this situation the defender would be able to draw charges and the offensive player would be able to counter that with a step back or any other move you can think of to get a shot off. The key point in that is none of it is canned and at no point are you stuck.
One of the big things I kept bugging Chris/LD2K about also was if great defense would be able to dominate average to poor offense. This answer was confirmed with a "Hell Yes" and a statement that there is no catch up or "cheese" AI that will try to give the offense an advantage. So no more shutting down a Bron cheeser for 22 seconds only for him to hit an unbelievable up and under. Definitely gives more incentive and tools for dominant defenses to shine.
There's a lot more that I saw and asked about, but it's escaping me right now. I can confirm that Ronnie and Chris were overly excited about next gen even though they can't reveal anything now. Just from being with them I'm even more excited than I was because you could tell this wasn't game, but real ball and video game lovers excited for what they have in store for us. With that said, current gen is definitely a real focus and what I played yesterday was leaps ahead of 2k13 and you couldn't even call plays, picks etc. and it was no where near as polished as the version PG and Ronnie played. That says a lot because the demo build would be enough to satisfy even the biggest 2k13 critic.
Lastly, I just want to say Chris and Ronnie are real down to earth and genuine guys. During our conversation they admitted things they loved and hated about past games and what they bring up to be fixed. It felt great to feel like they read every thread and suggest every great idea that comes from sites like OS. I think JWill, Lid and I got a better sense over some the struggle that they go through with taking a great idea to the powers that be and actually getting it implemented. It's not that everyone at 2k isn't trying or don't hear us, trust me they do, it's deadlines and other hurdles they have to cross that we don't see. But those guys truly do care and I'm not an easy guy to convince. I'll go back and read this whole thread later, but until then peace and I can't wait to own both current and next gen from what I saw, heard and from even what was asked and couldn't be answered lol.
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