Question for those that play association mode

[Cantgetright69]

This isn't really for people who are new to the series or people who recently got it. But my question for the seasoned vets is how long did this years association mode entertain you? Did it start off hot like all years then before you knew it, out of no where you just felt this intense boredom and almost emotional pain that struck out of no where? And you conditioned yourself over your life span to keep coming back day after day but after a certain point this year as much as you tried to come back and keep grinding away with your favorite team, it just couldn't keep your interest no matter how much you died to feel that great feeling of pleasure that comes from a good franchise mode?

Well if you are anything like me then thats exactly what happen this year. It probably has happened every year but this year was a big disappointment in my book. Because I bought into the hype again. But can you blame me? Who wouldn't want to believe this year was going to be "The Year". Now I'm starting to reach the point where it is becoming more and more clear that as much as I want that killer game I just don't think we will get it mainly because if you compare sports games to say the modern warfare series, sports games development time is way shorter.

If you look at replay ability in a nutshell and compare sports games with first person shooters I firmly believe technically these games should be just as replayable as the other. The reason I feel they are not is because one is more well thought out and thorough than the other.

It has gotten to the point where I would love nothing more but to see sports games come out by some kind of law or common courtesy every 2 years. Instead of one. I just get tired of these half ditch efforts we see in every sports game created. Not saying no sports game in the history was well made but lets face it, the more you spend on creating a game the better.

[2SiQ2Quit]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

To me to really get into a sports game I have always loved to chises and posting on sites like this which I'm new to but also IGN which I have over 10k post. I just feel like getting involved in the community keeps me having fun in my franchise and always makes the trades realistic

[J.Bauer24]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Generally my association modes only entertain me for like the first month, but this years has been going strong. Im just hoping the playoff atmosphere is better this year.

[Boge]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Yeah, I'm getting a little bored of it. I think it's because, like many, I'm trying to get the perfect setup, the players playing perfect, the sliders and stats perfect, but there're always a few things that are just hard coded and you can't change. Every game those things come up, I get a little more frustrated with the game.

As for the games being half baked, I seriously think they do it on purpose. Think about it. These games are always just good enough to consider buying and playing a bit, but never good enough for you to not consider next years game. You're always playing and thinking,"Man! If they'd just done this, the game would be so much better!" Guess what happens, next years version comes out and you get all excited, hoping that it will be at least as good as last years except that one thing was fixed. Sad part is, everyone is so busy talking about how perfect Kobe's finger tape looks that you can't get a straight answer whether the gameplay is for you or not. So you bite the bullet and find out for yourself. Just like last year, the game is good, but if they'd only done this, then it would have been better. They completely fixed this, which is awesome, but what happened to this? Why did they screw that up?

I think they purposely don't make the game as good as it could be, or the make some features ruined from last year in order to get you to look forward to the next version.

[Armor and Sword]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

I won't need to buy another NBA 2K game for years.


Disagree 100%. This game is as good as it has ever gotten. And the getting is fantastic. Basketball IMO has long been the most difficult game to pull off. I only had enjoyed 2 basketball games in my entire life that gave me at least a year of replay value and those were NBA Live 95 and NBA Live 2005. This game is the mother of all NBA video games.

Everyone has their own opinions. So mine is:

I don't understand how anyone could not agree that NBA2K11 is the GOAT in the basketball console sports games arena. And quite frankly maybe the GOAT in sports video games.

[Cantgetright69]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Yeah, I'm getting a little bored of it. I think it's because, like many, I'm trying to get the perfect setup, the players playing perfect, the sliders and stats perfect, but there're always a few things that are just hard coded and you can't change. Every game those things come up, I get a little more frustrated with the game.

As for the games being half baked, I seriously think they do it on purpose. Think about it. These games are always just good enough to consider buying and playing a bit, but never good enough for you to not consider next years game. You're always playing and thinking,"Man! If they'd just done this, the game would be so much better!" Guess what happens, next years version comes out and you get all excited, hoping that it will be at least as good as last years except that one thing was fixed. Sad part is, everyone is so busy talking about how perfect Kobe's finger tape looks that you can't get a straight answer whether the gameplay is for you or not. So you bite the bullet and find out for yourself. Just like last year, the game is good, but if they'd only done this, then it would have been better. They completely fixed this, which is awesome, but what happened to this? Why did they screw that up?

I think they purposely don't make the game as good as it could be, or the make some features ruined from last year in order to get you to look forward to the next version.

Yeah this is a great post. I look at what the text sim programmers like ootp and even draft day sports create with their franchise modes and they have no real budget just one programmer with a passion. And they are able to do great things.

Then you look at all these big time video game companies who care 100% about money and not much else and you can't help but notice how for the huge millions of dollars in their budget we just aren't getting the type of product you would expect from a billion dollar business.

Comparing what one man can do with a passion programming then comparing what 20-30 programmers getting paid great money can do and its not even close.

[Armor and Sword]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Yeah this is a great post. I look at what the text sim programmers like ootp and even draft day sports create with their franchise modes and they have no real budget just one programmer with a passion. And they are able to do great things.

Then you look at all these big time video game companies who care 100% about money and not much else and you can't help but notice how for the huge millions of dollars in their budget we just aren't getting the type of product you would expect from a billion dollar business.

Comparing what one man can do with a passion programming then comparing what 20-30 programmers getting paid great money can do and its not even close.

Console sports games are supposed to be fun and accesible first and foremost. What makes the 2K series, Show Series, and the EA NHL series so fantastic is they have that balance just about nailed. The gameplay is fantastic first and foremost, but they also have deep and immersive franchise play for those that want to delve into running a team and at the same time not be overwhelmed by menus upon menus of text, numbers and spreadsheets.

I think it is so difficult to please everyone. These 3 series do it well. The last thing I want is any gameplay sacrificed for more room for off-season mumbo jumbo.

95% of my time is either on the diamond, court or ice with these titles.

[travis72]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Yeah, I'm getting a little bored of it. I think it's because, like many, I'm trying to get the perfect setup, the players playing perfect, the sliders and stats perfect, but there're always a few things that are just hard coded and you can't change. Every game those things come up, I get a little more frustrated with the game.

As for the games being half baked, I seriously think they do it on purpose. Think about it. These games are always just good enough to consider buying and playing a bit, but never good enough for you to not consider next years game. You're always playing and thinking,"Man! If they'd just done this, the game would be so much better!" Guess what happens, next years version comes out and you get all excited, hoping that it will be at least as good as last years except that one thing was fixed. Sad part is, everyone is so busy talking about how perfect Kobe's finger tape looks that you can't get a straight answer whether the gameplay is for you or not. So you bite the bullet and find out for yourself. Just like last year, the game is good, but if they'd only done this, then it would have been better. They completely fixed this, which is awesome, but what happened to this? Why did they screw that up?

I think they purposely don't make the game as good as it could be, or the make some features ruined from last year in order to get you to look forward to the next version.

Very well said.

[Cantgetright69]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Console sports games are supposed to be fun and accesible first and foremost. What makes the 2K series, Show Series, and the EA NHL series so fantastic is they have that balance just about nailed. The gameplay is fantastic first and foremost, but they also have deep and immersive franchise play for those that want to delve into running a team and at the same time not be overwhelmed by menus upon menus of text, numbers and spreadsheets.

I think it is so difficult to please everyone. These 3 series do it well. The last thing I want is any gameplay sacrificed for more room for off-season mumbo jumbo.

95% of my time is either on the diamond, court or ice with these titles.

You fail to realize that it has never been an issue of a good franchise mode or good gameplay. Thats not the case here. Coding an association mode that is very deep can be coded right now in a year with the big team they have with no sacrifice to gameplay.

Coding association mode is easy to code. They just don't want to do it because they know that they can just keep adding one or two features each year and keep milking it.

If you are okay with them milking it then thats fine. However anyone with any ounce of coding experience will see that their association mode is without a doubt not close to their ability with their team.

Coding association mode I repeat is the easiest thing to code. A one man team can code it. Graphics takes a huge team but if they had just one man who was allowed to add all the features he wanted then would this game reach its potential.

[Armor and Sword]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

You fail to realize that it has never been an issue of a good franchise mode or good gameplay. Thats not the case here. Coding an association mode that is very deep can be coded right now in a year with the big team they have with no sacrifice to gameplay.

Coding association mode is easy to code. They just don't want to do it because they know that they can just keep adding one or two features each year and keep milking it.

If you are okay with them milking it then thats fine. However anyone with any ounce of coding experience will see that their association mode is without a doubt not close to their ability with their team.

Coding association mode I repeat is the easiest thing to code. A one man team can code it. Graphics takes a huge team but if they had just one man who was allowed to add all the features he wanted then would this game reach its potential.

Oh...I see the point now. Well that indeed does suck it they are holding back for the purpose of the all mighty $$$.

I guess my next question is what coding are you not seeing in NBA2K11 that would make it "perfect"? It is about as close to perfect as I have ever played. And they will not got my $$$ for 2K12....I don't have a reason to buy it with this years title. I don't need a roster update (2K share) and I have all the features and modes I could want, love the AI (best i have ever played against). I am a 2-3 year cycle sports gamer these days.

[Cantgetright69]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

Oh...I see the point now. Well that indeed does suck it they are holding back for the purpose of the all mighty $$$.

I guess my next question is what coding are you not seeing in NBA2K11 that would make it "perfect"? It is about as close to perfect as I have ever played. And they will not got my $$$ for 2K12....I don't have a reason to buy it with this years title. I don't need a roster update (2K share) and I have all the features and modes I could want, love the AI (best i have ever played against). I am a 2-3 year cycle sports gamer these days.

Not only are the association mode features lacking but some of the stuff is broken too. The only way to see which assistant coaches are available is by firing the assistant coach then you get to see thats the only way. I made a mistake and fired my assistant coach who had atleast a B rating in every category and then tried to back out of the coach mode only to not be allowed.

Then I tried to sign tim duncan in free agency who was injured and they wouldnt let me sign him.

I mean I could go on and on the fact is this just isn't up to the quality that you see in text sims and that should never happen.

The gameplay is fine I don't expect much for that area because its harder to get right. But if they could atleast get the simple things right, the things that I see in one man coding teams like draft day sports basketball(Text sim) Then I would be able to enjoy this product.

As it stands this current product is already played out. I understand its a business but don't hold out on us just because you know that as much money you spend on advertising its going to sell millions of copies each year.

[Mos1ted]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

It's really up to the consumer. There's nothing saying that we have to buy each new game that comes out. As you can clearly see with the demise of College Hoops, EA's NCAA Basketball, and past sports franchises, companies will abandon their annual releases if sales are too low. Because these games continue to sell, companies will continue to release sports games annually. Just look at the Call of Duty franchise. What innovative changes have happened in that series since the original Modern Warfare? Not much, but the game is so popular, users just flock to the newest one only because all of their friends are doing it.

As consumers, we control the market. It's not the other way around. 2K Share and EA Locker are very innovative features. It used to be that the primary excuse to buy sports games every year were for updated rosters. But we've had access to user generated rosters for about 3 years now. People still play College Hoops 2K8, but how many still play NBA 2K8? Not very many because there's a 2K9, 2K10, and 2K11. Mentally, the consumer just feels like he/she is missing out by not having the latest and greatest. With CH2K8, there is no alternative so consumers have to be resourceful themselves to keep the game interesting (i.e. the user generated rosters)

The way NBA 2K11 is now, I don't really see what else they can add to this game that doesn't already exist in the existing NBA. Other than bugs and glitches, what really is missing from Association? Pretty much anything a real GM can do, we can do on this game. Sure, there are users that want All-Star Weekend integrated, but are you really going to pay $60 just to play an indoor dunk and 3 point contest?

[Boge]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

are you really going to pay $60 just to play an indoor dunk and 3 point contest?

No, but I'll pay to get a game with better player movement than the past 3 years. This year everyone said it was better, but it's still bad. Everything else in the game is satisfactory for me but the player movement. Now when next year's game comes out, I'll be posting asking if the player movement is better and all the hype will say,"Yes! This is the best basketball game of all time! Heck, the best sports game of all time!" Guess what I'm going to do? Bite the bullet and trust in peoples reviews. Guess what's happened? The player movement is very similar to 2K10 and not improved upon what I was hoping.

Not to mention all the issues these games have after they're released. Many people complain about certain modes or features that are completely broken and they cannot play the game until a patch comes out. Poor PC gamers get yo-yo-ed back and forth on a patch until 6 months later. So tell me, does 2K care about the quality of the game? Do they really want to make the best game ever? They've had 11 years to do it, yet there are still many flaws. I think they do it on purpose to get your money again next year.

[Armor and Sword]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

No, but I'll pay to get a game with better player movement than the past 3 years. This year everyone said it was better, but it's still bad. Everything else in the game is satisfactory for me but the player movement. Now when next year's game comes out, I'll be posting asking if the player movement is better and all the hype will say,"Yes! This is the best basketball game of all time! Heck, the best sports game of all time!" Guess what I'm going to do? Bite the bullet and trust in peoples reviews. Guess what's happened? The player movement is very similar to 2K10 and not improved upon what I was hoping.

Not to mention all the issues these games have after they're released. Many people complain about certain modes or features that are completely broken and they cannot play the game until a patch comes out. Poor PC gamers get yo-yo-ed back and forth on a patch until 6 months later. So tell me, does 2K care about the quality of the game? Do they really want to make the best game ever? They've had 11 years to do it, yet there are still many flaws. I think they do it on purpose to get your money again next year.

It is a very loud and vocal minority.


Most of us have been playing this game non-stop. And are still going strong.

[ewing6]

Re: Question for those that play association mode

I was having a great time with my Knicks chise, till i accidentally ended it Gonna try one with the Wiz likely