Developer Visual Concepts has already revealed the changes it’s making to gameplay for NBA 2K13 and the inclusion of Dream Team. Now it’s time to dig deeper and learn what improvements the developer is touting for the various game modes.

My Player

In previous years, My Player was the name of the single-player career mode where you created a rookie player and tried to turn him into an NBA all-star. This year, My Player refers specifically to the player creation and customization.

No matter what game mode you play in NBA 2K13, you earn Virtual Currency that allows you to purchase new apparel and skills for your created player.

This year the apparel extends beyond what you wear on the court for practice or on the blacktop. If you want to dress up for press conferences, you can save up for suits or luxury clothes. The team shop has real-life hats, shorts, t-shirts, and jerseys for you to choose from, and Visual Concepts plans to add more apparel as the season moves on. Some of the clothing items simply offer cosmetic changes, but others may give you stat boosts to make you a better player. The goal is to allow people to individualize their characters to the point that another person sees your character and asks, “Where did you get that?” Finally, you can look as ridiculous as Russell Westbrook!

Players can also use Virtual Currency, or VC, to purchase new skills. The specific packages available are smaller this year so you can evolve your skills more quickly throughout your career instead of saving up to buy one huge package. You can also purchase signature skills. Between individual drills and VC, you will have more currency than ever before to customize the way your players acts on the court.

This year, you can even buy pre-game rituals, like Kevin Garnett’s chalk routine. Some are individual rituals, while others will involve your teammates as well.

My Career

My Career takes the place of My Player as the destination single-player mode.

Visual Concepts wants to keep players completely immersed in their careers. To do so, they plan to give you consistent feedback about what you are doing and how you are doing during your career.

One of the major ways the mode interacts with the player is with a virtual Twitter account. As you progress through your career and become a more integral part of your team and the league, you will earn new Twitter followers. These followers interact with you to congratulate you on big games and give you a hard time after a rough outing. As you get more famous, opposing players may trash talk you, celebrities may name-drop you, and NBA legends may offer advice on how to reach the pinnacle of the sport.

All of the things you say and do during press conferences or in relation to team loyalty feed back into the dynamic commentary system. If you’re acting selfishly or being a bigger man by squelching a perceived controversy, Kevin Harlan, Clark Kellogg, and Steve Kerr will discuss your off-court behavior during the game.

Last year the teammate AI never understood what kind of player you were, whether it be a spot shooter or a post player. In the lead-up to NBA 2K13, an engineer spent two months developing a new recording system so the AI better recognizes your tendencies. If you post up a lot this year, your teammates start to funnel plays your direction. If you’re lingering along the perimeter waiting for a chance to showcase your long distance sniping skills, they know to kick the ball out to you if you have an open look.

No doubt taking inspiration from the Dwight Howard trade drama from the offseason, this year your player can be invited to sit down with the general manager to have conversations about the direction of the franchise. Once you attain superstar status, you can start influencing his decisions, whether that be the fate of your head coach, the types of players he pursues in free agency, the players you would prefer to have on the court with you, or your position at the club. If you attain LeBron James status you can even force a trade to another team.

Visual Concepts reworked the AI management logic so it no longer starts trading away your best teammates once you crack the starting lineup.

The development team also spent a lot of time tweaking the teammate rating balancing so players aren’t punished too excessively for minor mistakes a coach wouldn’t necessarily call out . Hopefully this takes into account when you hold a great player under his scoring average instead of knocking your grade for letting an all-star like Derrick Rose score a couple of baskets.

Hopefully this takes into account when you hold a great player under his scoring average instead of knocking your grade for letting an all-star like Derrick Rose score a couple of baskets. A new coach feedback system informs you about what you’re doing well and what you need to work on. You also need to listen to your coach. If you take a 90-foot jump shot, he’ll tell you to stop being stupid. Try it again, and you may find yourself riding the pine.

As your career progresses, you have the opportunity to pursue branching endorsements. If you start with Jordan, you can eventually jump ship for Nike. If you achieve a certain level of fame, you make even be asked to create your own Nike shoe. Design guru Tinker Hatfield will give you tips on combining materials and technologies as you construct the ultimate shoe in the Nike Innovation Kitchen.

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