NBA 2K16 still holds up well

[RetroDee4Three]

Hi all,

I often go back and play past 2K's, especially prior to 2K18. Went back last night and played some NBA 2K16, and it holds up quite well.

In fact, several advantages exist in the gameplay department.

1. Better foot planting (Less skating/floating)
2. Shooting feels better
3. Better collision detection (Not perfect, trust me)
4. Less speed/acceleration breaks

Is it perfect? Absolutely not. But I find myself enjoying the 2K's (2K14 through 2K17) more than the current titles, mainly based on the players movement/flow to the game.

Of course, my reasons for enjoying a basketball game are not going to be the exact same as others. So many can look past the skating/floating, and pace issues in the newer titles. And, 2K20 does have some positives over 2K16 in some gameplay areas (IMO).

This gameplay video is from my modded roster for PC, its the 08-09 Lakers vs the 11-12 Thunder (First half). Game speed is turned up a tad in order to help with flow, but overall the game flows pretty nicely by default. And, IMO this game had the second best SFX on this gen behind 2K14.

No 2K16 sections exist, so I figured I would post this here. I still play and mod 2K16 and 2K17, mainly because I still enjoy the gameplay experience overall.

Maybe you can look at this as a 2K16 appreciation thread.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0teiCyexERo" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[ILLSmak]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

14-15-16 are all good. I dunno if I feel the same way about 17. I'm thinking of moving on to 16 now, but I'm really digging 15. 14 (ps3) is probably the best, but it's too easy vs the computer once you warm up to it. It would be great to play against friends.



I really like the power lay ups in 14 and 15. I don't like how money the fade away is in 15. I forgot if it's like that in 16 or not. Plus my whole mygm staff + badges in 15 has everyone I get on my team with an A- or above potential, so I got a team that is ridiculously overpowered.



But it's still fun to play because I really like all of my players. I'm way in the future where it's all generated dudes, but I have fun just messing around.



-Smak

[jkd32332]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

2K16 is the greatest 2K in my opinion. At least on this current generation of consoles.

[BasketBalla21]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

I miss how loud the blocks were. And being able to game capture with sound -_-

[Luke Skywalker]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

2K16 was a good one for sure. I am still playing 2K18 and having a blast. Surprised there are still people on MyTeam and All Star Team Up.

[The 24th Letter]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

NBA 2K16 is still my favorite 2k of this gen all things considered...it did so much right

[RetroDee4Three]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

I miss how loud the blocks were. And being able to game capture with sound -_-

The SFX were amazing. The sound of dribbling, rim sounds, blocks, tips, etc. The SFX have not been the same since.

NBA 2K16 is still my favorite 2k of this gen all things considered...it did so much right

I prefer 2K17 over 2K16, because it fixed almost all the small issues I had with 2K16. However, the things I love about 2K16:

1. Sim look/feel - They talk about "simnation", and how the new games are supposed to be more advanced in realism and sim wise, but this is not really the case IMO. Between blow bys, and easy scores in transition (And player movement in general), I don't think it stacks up to 2K16 sim wise. You have more control in 2K16, the pace feels more organic and like real life, and outside of the big man trailer three, the defense is tighter and smarter.

Look wise, the lighting and overall appearance IMO looks more sim. But others may like the lighting in the new games. Close ups are better in 2K20, but from the gameplay camera angle are the graphics anymore realistic? I don't think so.

2. Foot planting - Players planting when you want them to, movement that makes more sense in accordance to real life. Fastbreaks where the speed makes sense, drives where the speed makes sense, etc

3. SFX - As mentioned above, the SFX were awesome. I think 2K14 and 2K16 had the best SFX

4. Post game - I feel like we had more control, and going into a face up stance and making a move felt more organic, with no slow side by side drives, or being forced to pick up the dribble.

5. Shooting - It just made sense, the whole motion. You felt the proper weight in your shots, the animations looks fluid, the release made sense.

6. Sizeups - Front, back, and both sides all had size-ups... how cool was that?

Some issues I had with 2K16

1. Player weight - At times, players felt a tad heavy
2. Dribbling - Overall it wasn't bad, but it wasn't as loose and reactive as 2K15 or 2K17 IMO. They forced you into extra dribbles at times that you didnt intend to do (Even on simple crossovers)
3. Protected shots - This could be curved a tad with the sliders, but protected shots seemed to happen a bit often in 2K16, even when you clearly had enough space to get your shot off in a normal straight up motion

I understand why 2K16 is a favorite of many, as you can tell by my game highlights video the game is flowing really nicely. I love the pace (watch the way the players move up and down the floor fluidly, filling the proper lanes and making realistic moves on the go, with proper foot planting and speed).

I like 2K20's player size relative to the court (Reminds me of 2K11), the classic teams lighting, animations at times going to the hoop, the many cool dunk animations (More dunk animations than 2K16 even), and some things about the new dribbling system.

2K17 also had a lot of 2K16 in it, and it really flows nicely (Even out of the box, with default sliders). These highlights have slider adjustments by me (And is my roster mod), but you can see the good bones of the gameplay. This was the first game with the "Body up sensitivity" slider option, which helped curve the brick wall defense when placed at 0. But look at the flow and control on these highlights.

Note: Not trying to promote my channel, just having gaming discussion. I don't monetize or care about "clout", these are just gameplay videos that I have made in the past that help get my points across.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RVQEC4ywwmg" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[The 24th Letter]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

2K16 vs the CPU was a lot of fun, felt fair even on Hall of Fame.

2K16 vs. a human is still the standard IMO

One on one defense felt amazing, L2 didn't glue you to the offensive player, but if you anticipated correctly, you were rewarded.

biggest issue for me was transisiton defense and the inability to react to the ball in passing lanes...which kind of go hand and hand...

It was pre overcomplication of the shot meter..... Shot meter and jump shots indeed felt great. Layups were fast and non metered.

2K17 was personally my least favorite game of this gen though...

[RetroDee4Three]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

2K16 vs the CPU was a lot of fun, felt fair even on Hall of Fame.

2K16 vs. a human is still the standard IMO

One on one defense felt amazing, L2 didn't glue you to the offensive player, but if you anticipated correctly, you were rewarded.

biggest issue for me was transisiton defense and the inability to react to the ball in passing lanes...which kind of go hand and hand...

It was pre overcomplication of the shot meter..... Shot meter and jump shots indeed felt great. Layups were fast and non metered.

2K17 was personally my least favorite game of this gen though...

Yeah 2K17 was a mixed bag for people. Some LOVED IT, and put it as #1 for them on this gen, some say that they didnt like it and it was time to move into a different direction.

Agreed on 2K16 vs the CPU, and against humans. I feel like it was easy to get immersed in the action and not get frustrated. After all, it's about enjoyment and fun above all, right? I find that if frustration with a game overpowers the enjoyment, it's time to put it down.

[Hengist]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

Ah yes....2k16. The game where Steph Curry shot 3's at the rate of a league leading 3pt attempter.


.......in 2001😅

[Hengist]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

1. Nobody said the game was perfect, I even stated that in the first post. Also, Steph shot plenty of threes in the games I played against him after they adjusted his ratings/tendencies around March 2016. He didnt take AS MANY at launch.

2. Ben Simmons in 2K20 routinely is pulling up from the mid range with his default ratings/tendencies, and many other ongoings on the court are not accurate.

The way the CPU played in 2K16 is no worse than the way it plays in 2K20 IMO, in fact i find that they play more realistic in many ways

You may not have been on the same train of thought, or even attempting to insult the game, just felt the need to point that out. Mitchell Robinson Jack's threes at an alarming rate like he is Steph Curry in 2K20, with any space he shoots them.

A lot of people have stated that Curry was overpowering in 2K16 from three, so that's opposite of your statement.

I'm confused which 2k16 you played because from v1 to whenever the updates stopped saw Curry take nowhere near enough 3's to even come close to the season he made 405 of them. Many a thread was made about this topic, even by the SimNation roster makers. No tendency, badge, defensive setting, etc made a difference.

And yes, I'm HIGHLY disappointed with this years game. So much so, I haven't fired it up in a week. When tendencies are so bad and in confliction with each other that a Russell Westbrook (3pt tendency 40) fires 2x the number of 3's an Eric Gordon (99) does (with many of these coming before the first timeout), something hardcoded is very much wrong.

[RetroDee4Three]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

I'm confused which 2k16 you played because from v1 to whenever the updates stopped saw Curry take nowhere near enough 3's to even come close to the season he made 405 of them. Many a thread was made about this topic, even by the SimNation roster makers. No tendency, badge, defensive setting, etc made a difference.

And yes, I'm HIGHLY disappointed with this years game. So much so, I haven't fired it up in a week. When tendencies are so bad and in confliction with each other that a Russell Westbrook (3pt tendency 40) fires 2x the number of 3's an Eric Gordon (99) does (with many of these coming before the first timeout), something hardcoded is very much wrong.

Sorry for the multiple responses and deletes, just bad timing.

I played 2K16 all year, and I saw that the devs admitted to the Curry issue, and I remember an update to his tendencies/ratings later on. But again, this was almost 4 years ago, so my apologies if I am not entirely accurate.

And yes, overall I am disappointed in this years title as well. But, I am trying to make the best of it.

[ILLSmak]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

I tried 16 to refresh my memory. I still prefer 15 v cpu. There are things that I like: seems like you can get more fouls, a lot of the animations look better. You can't do that thing where you just kick the ball out on the break and get a 3... etc.



However, you can't grill someone. The way the defensive contact works in 16 makes it so you can't really pull up on someone realistically. I really dislike that. It's a 'game breaker.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NA_UdzLqn_E

I'm sorry, I just think you need to be able to do that. Not that you can't make those shots in 16, but the defender seems to be way too physical. It's harder, but if they kept all the other parts and left jumpers like they were in 15, it would be great.



-Smak

[The 24th Letter]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

I've never seen 2K pay more attention to a single player than they did Steph Curry that year.

The changes they made for him changed the entire dynamic of the game going forward. Logo shots galore.

I don't know about sim stats or any of that stuff, not my thing.....but even if you turn on 2K16 right now Steph takes and makes a ton of 3 pointers...

[RetroDee4Three]

Re: NBA 2K16 still holds up well

I tried 16 to refresh my memory. I still prefer 15 v cpu. There are things that I like: seems like you can get more fouls, a lot of the animations look better. You can't do that thing where you just kick the ball out on the break and get a 3... etc.



However, you can't grill someone. The way the defensive contact works in 16 makes it so you can't really pull up on someone realistically. I really dislike that. It's a 'game breaker.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NA_UdzLqn_E

I'm sorry, I just think you need to be able to do that. Not that you can't make those shots in 16, but the defender seems to be way too physical. It's harder, but if they kept all the other parts and left jumpers like they were in 15, it would be great.



-Smak

I actually agree with some of these points, I mention protected shots in one of my posts, and talked about the shots on the move issue on the NLSC. I dont find it gamebreaking, but I found it to be an annoyance and it did impact the way that I played.

I also enjoyed the gameplay overall of 2K15 over 2K16, because it still had quite a bit of 2K14 in it feel wise.

Shots on the move can be made like you stated in 2K16, so can some protected shots. But, something didnt feel right about it. And feel is incredibly important.