NBA 2K25 PS5 Review. While no steady competition stands in its way, the NBA 2K franchise maintains a steady level of success without any major dropoff in quality. With that in mind, the lack of competition makes it that much easier for the franchise to keep trying new ways to cash in. This year is no different.
NBA 2K25 Review (PS5) – Positive Changes Slightly Outweigh Consistent Problems
With each new year comes enhancements to the gameplay experience. NBA 2K25 adds even more animations, expanding on an already impressive range of player movement. However, one thing remains true across the board: natural acceleration. I face this common problem when inbounding the ball. Instead of backing up and turning while dribbling, the player often seems to stagger while turning.
This type of odd movement also appears when trying to make significant directional changes. This especially holds true when trying to sprint. Granted, you won’t be affected as much by these if you efficiently use the Right Joystick for Pro Stick movements. These allow you to do tricky movements, jukes, and sidesteps to throw off defenders. Without it, though, you often end up at the mercy of basic movement. This ultimately makes the entry point harder to get passed, leaving new players potentially feeling unable to enjoy the game.
To counter this, 2K25 does do a good job of placing tutorials in front of you, especially if you choose the lower difficulties. Learn 2K acts as a full-on how-to for everything you can do in-game. Yes, that includes moving in general. This time around, the 2K team wants to make its game that much more accessible without simplifying the gameplay mechanics too much.
Leaning Into Learn 2K
Learn 2K is borderline necessary in a lot of ways. There are so many ways to navigate through and around other players, and basic movement just doesn’t cut it half of the time. Besides, figuring out those finesse movements helps make the game feel that much more empowering to play. Unfortunately, 2K doesn’t give you specific sessions for each mechanic while using Learn 2K. Instead, the game prefers to show you what the controls are and then let you take that information into mini-games.
This can work for some people. Personally, I have a bad habit of sticking with what I know in sports games. With that said, I wish I had to go through specific training for each mechanic. That way, I use that controlled environment to see what I like. Trying to figure out preferences while playing actual games just feels frustrating, especially when those particular controls don’t work well for you.
Either way, without a solid command of the controls, just using the Left Joystick and shoulder buttons to get around feels somewhat clunky. New animations keep coming in each NBA 2K release, but the team doesn’t seem to put as much focus on basic player movement. In the opinion of this lower tier NBA 2K player, the next step to strengthening this franchise comes when basic player movement, without the need for Pro Stick movements, feels more natural.
Get In the Game
While on the topic of controls, I am not crazy about the new shot timer HUD overlay. Do keep in mind that the shot timer functions exactly as it did in previous years. However, something about the minimal presentation of it makes it harder for me to properly time my shots based on visuals. When it was a solid gauge that you filled, it felt easier to process that information without directly looking at the gauge all the time. While all shot types have different timing, you almost need to get a feel for it rather than rely on the gauge itself. This can be a good thing in the long run, but the sheer amount of time needed to acclimate to it could easily put some people off if they’re just getting into the franchise.
In my mind, the biggest change in 2K25 appears in The City. In particular, the size of the city itself is much smaller. Instead of a full-fledged metropolis or even a neighborhood, it resembles more of a main street strip. This keeps stores, courts, and events closer together and easier to reach. This also helps keep frame rate up while running around in The City, much unlike previous years that featured massive maps.
MyPlayer offers a handy option for people who just want to play basketball and level their player. Instead of skipping through tons of cut scenes, you can choose to simply level your player. Coincidentally, this mimics the MyPlayer experience found in the WNBA section of the game. While having both of these options available in both major leagues would bring more variety to the 2K franchise, it’s a small step in the right direction.
Take The Good With The Bad
With that said, nothing gets added to WNBA that truly impacts that side of the game. The closest thing is having press conferences during your player’s season, which to be fair is a decent addition to the mode. Beyond that, the WNBA players received additional animations all their own, just like the NBA players have done. As you develop your player, you can also compete against other rookies in the league based on overall growth. Progress is progress, whatever the pace. Still, the surging popularity in the WNBA surely would have merited a little more attention than this.
The microtransaction push continues in 2K25. Practically every time you reach the main menu, the pop-up appears two seconds later, advertising either new cards or the season pass. At this point, NBA 2K fans know what to expect from these games, but the persistence borders on irritating. Many times, the main menu loads up and I end up pressing Cross to open a mode only for the microtransaction pop-up to appear. Due to my “hasty” input, it takes me directly to a purchase screen. When it happens, I can’t help but feel trapped.
Finally, menu navigation consistently has an input delay on PS5. This game plays from a solid state drive; no matter the reason, it’s a fundamental lack of polish.
Back On The Court
As expected, gameplay remains the reason to keep coming back to the NBA 2K franchise. NBA 2K25 adds additional animations and gameplay elements to enhance the experience without veering away from what makes the franchise popular. Still, progress is slow, seeing the incremental improvements that come with annualizations. Be warned that the historically incessant microtransaction presence in this franchise remains, though. Die-hard fans already own this game. However, if you haven’t jumped into the franchise in a year or so, NBA 2K25 is a solid release to get back on the court.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qx0A921z8mAReview code kindly provided by publisher.
NBA 2K25 is available now on PS5, PS4, and PC.