Rating
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2
"NBA arcade action is back with NBA Playgrounds 2 and it’s better than ever! This sequel to the original smash hit takes street balling to the next level with a host of new additions and improvements, including a new Season Mode and a new Playgrounds Championship ranked mode. This robust follow-up to last year’s high-flying arcade action also featu...
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NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 Reviews
Professional reviews from gaming critics
The eldest boy in our house is Basketball mad... he plays, he coaches he refs and when he's not doing those things he watches or plays NBA2K (which he updates
Last year's debut arcade basketball game from Saber Interactive was definitely a big surprise for many gamers. This year, they're at it again with a sequel so let's see if it's a slam dunk.
Last year’s release of NBA Playgrounds harkened back to an era of zany sports game that delivered a radically different experience from their simulation counterparts. In a gaming culture that was focused on single-player adventures and couch co-op titles like NBA Ballers and NFL Street fit the mould and were rightfully praised for their over-the-top take on what some players saw as mundane cash-grabs in the way of yearly sports releases. Having played around with the first NBA Playgrounds on Nintendo Switch, I was curious to see whether the sequel would fall into the trappings of a quick yearl...
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 adds depth to both the solo and multiplayer modes. Season mode improves the card collecting loop and Playgrounds Championship introduces ranked play for competitive users. The 2v2 basketball gameplay perhaps feels a bit too familiar but it’s refined in welcome ways. Pick-up-and-play arcade basketball is, thankfully, still alive and well.
A clear improvement over its predecessor. Looks better and plays better too.
Last year’s NBA Playgrounds sought to re-capture the magic that made the likes of NBA Jam and FIFA Street so much fun. In regards to the over the top style, it was a slam dunk, but it was generally a pretty shallow experience. Now under the guidance of 2K, Playgrounds has returned for a second attempt.
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 has a great presentation, a fun set of mechanics and a solid character progression system. There are microtransactions, as all sports games seems to be laboured with them these days, but it’s nowhere near as intrusive as some other sports games I have played. However, without any statistical tracking, limited number of players on the court and only a handful of modes, that this title won’t have quite the shelf life for me that a more involved simulation game like NBA 2K19.
This arcade basketball simulator steps onto the courts once more, but did it build on the formula, fall short, or become a blend of both? Find out in our NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 PS4 review.
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 is an arcade-sports game that raises the intensity of the series’ over-the-top, two-on-two street action with a new line-up of online and local multiplayer game modes, as well as new courts from playgrounds across the world.
