The Big NBA 2K18 Patch For Switch Is Finally Here

Let's wait to see what it doesn't fix.

Dribble drivel.

I’d still love to know what is on the cartridge and what needs to be downloaded (size wise).

And if it actually works, of course.

So does this mean I can actually buy the game now?

Probably too late for the game's chances of finding success.Just like FIFA the vocal minority who never had any intention of purchasing either game had their say and infested every comment section from here to YouTube,likely putting many off making a purchase. Now the ship has sailed, not many more will be boarding.

Double
@SLIGEACH_EIRE Dribble.

@OorWullie To be fair I'm still waiting on the retail version which hasn't released yet. I'm sure many still are

Hopefully the retail version will have all these patches already downloaded. The first experience with the retail version will be a lot better i guess.

@masterLEON Exactly and that's a foul.

Should never have happened. Companies releasing broken games that aren't finished should be held to account.

Still can't believe you guys left the review scoreless.

@HappyMaskedGuy They should not have released the digital version at all, just waited for the retail version with all the patch work. A Switch owner who decided to buy this game wouldn't mind waiting 1 month longer for a better experience.

The debacle was NintendoLife giving a major software publisher with a huge marketing budget a free pass on releasing a broken game at a premium price.

will grab the retail version. not at all keen on the career/story guff tho.

Does it remove all the microtransactions and currency malarky?

This along with "loot boxes" are enough to destroy any interest I may have in a game.

I don't recall other games being given extra time to be patched before getting a review score.

Nice to see they are working on the issues. I have been enjoying NBA 2K18 even though I'm pretty bad at it.

Do you have to pay for the patch through a microtransaction?

Nice job 2K. Still the extreme use of micro transactions is a problem and man the timing of the layups is a problem. People not happy.

Oh, my...

@riChchestM They've given several games free passes, the most recent being the Switch version of FIFA 18.

@riChchestM Not sure how you came to that conclusion. The review very clearly stated, "do not buy the game at this point". Doesn't sound like much of a free pass to me.

Or maybe, like half the commentators, you didn't bother reading the review itself.

The site took its responsibility to inform the reader about the product more seriously than the self-aggrandising role of 'moral arbiter'. It prioritised giving a well-written piece of information above dishing out 'punishment scores' in the interests of 'gaming retribution'.

Most importantly, it reviewed the game - thoroughly. This fact seems to have gone over the heads of a few people with a maximum attention span of two digits and an angst-addled sense of justice.

If you're going to take any number away from the review, then I'd suggest 1814; the number of words you seemingly didn't bother reading.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE probably scared to put a low score on these games as they then get put under pressure by the publishers as to justifiy it. Supposedly already happened when one site gave 2k a 3 out of 10

I got both NBA 2K18 and FIFA 18 in the hope for releases next year and possibly a portable Madden. Honestly both play fine when you are in game and outside of some features missing (No online play with friends being most notable) these are very solid ports of their XBO/PS4 counterparts. If you expected the same exact game well then you expected a little much, but if you are like me and just like playing exhibitions with friends and messing around in season mode, these games are great and have served me well. I haven't played a FIFA since FIFA World Cup 06 on Gamecube or a NBA 2K since 2K13 on Xbox 360 and I am ejoying both of these very much so. Don't let bad review scores deter you if you are just looking for a solid basketball and soccer simulation.

is this game now worth buying after this batch of bug fixing ?

Well bottom line here is that they fixed it. We're not in 90's anymore.. All games now are released with bugs that get fixed on the long run with patches.Yes internet connection is mandatory. Get used to it.

I am interested in having sports on the go. Bought FIFA, and am waiting to see how this patch fixes 2K18 before I cosonder this. Really madden on the go is what I'm looking for.

I do think the review specifically said that this game is a no go as is. Anyone that needs a number to understand that should realize that's a failing in themself. I think the arbitrary number system is useless anyway, how many times does a game receive a 7 or 8? It's almost pointless. A good review gives you the info and you make the decision based on this information.

I will say the fact that this was even released was disagcaceful. But the "punishment" people want to be levied by giving the game a low number isn't going to happen. If the game doesn't sell, there just isn't a release in the Switxh next year. I won't buy a bad game just to get a sequel, no one should be satisfied with this digital release. I just ask that commenters think before making accusations of a pass being given.

Where is that NBA Jam sequel? I need my boom shakalaka's

@OorWullie That's untrue and unfair. I plopped down $100 for this game and was VERY vocal about my displeasure with the Switch port. There are standards in software development that all developers have to abide by. 2K didn't do that. So you can't accuse upset consumers of poisoning the well when the blame rests squarely with 2K. The biggest bugs that were Switch exclusives (like the desynced cut scenes that make MyCareer unplayable) were present for almost every user on the Switch. That means 2K knew full well they were releasing a game with a major mode broken, but they decided to greenlight the game and make their deadline anyways. That was their decision, and they have no one to blame but themselves if that decision hurts their sales.

@JHDK I've been playing too (season mode). Very happy with the purchase. Any improvements are welcome.

I have yet to play the story mode or the MyTeam thingy (seems microtransaction laden).

@dimi Did they though? "Improved framerate/audio syncing during tunnel/locker room scenes in MyCAREER" First off, doesn't say "fixed" says "improved". Second, those issues occur during ALL scenes, not just the tunnel/locker room ones. If you want to play broken games, great. If you want to buy a game and understand that you need to wait a month before a major mode of it even starts becoming playable, great. But please don't act like someone's being unreasonable when they expect to be able to actually play a game they just bought.

@BravelyDavid I agree.

My biggest issue, and the issue I was waiting to get fixed before I purchased, was the save game glitch that would wipe your save under certain circumstances. Has that been fixed yet?

@NintndoNik I don't believe that's a big issue on the Switch. Truthfully, part of me wonders if the "glitch" was people just forgetting to verify their email address. If you don't do that, after a few days the game wipes your save.

@OorWullie I am sure thousands and thousands of people will purchase the physical edition. Don't see where your negativity comes from.

Why the hell is this game getting a free pass (no pun intended!) with a second chance at a score? Especially this late after release!

It deserves to be scrutinised based on its release build, otherwise all future games should also be granted such an amnesty for the sake of fairness.

Absolutely ridiculous.

And it also deserves to be ripped to shreds for being unplayable without a massive mandatory 17GB download for the retail release. The game could very well have fit onto a 32GB cartridge. If they wanted to use cost as an excuse, then they could have at least coughed up a 32GB cartridge for the ridiculously expensive Legends edition (AU$140 here), or the even more expensive "Gold" edition, but nope. Screw the customers, because who needs them, right?

@NintndoNik Yup it was fixed

Been playing since it came out on eshop and think the game is awesome, if you like sport games i highly recommend it

@Pizzapasta Yep, you're right. This one deserved the criticism it got. It was unfair of me to compare this one with FIFA, which didn't really deserve it.I woke up on the wrong side of bed this morning

@OorWullie I think I did too... Sorry. I came in guns ablazin' before my first cup of coffee.

@Spoony_Tech @Cosats I was a bit grumpy when I left that comment. I was trying to have a game of FIFA but couldn't find an opponent to play, that's not the first time either . As for NBA, you're right,once the retail version is out it should do fine.

I wish they would finally fix the bug with pricing, because right now it's most expensive game on the eStore!

@OorWullie I hope you are wrong. I think there a lot of people like me that are excited to get a great sports game on Switch and don't expect it to match the quality of Xbone and ps4. Both fifa and 2k are a blast on switch. Best mobile versions of sports games ever. Better than I exepcted. I'm still hopeful they will be relatively successful.

I'm not excusing 2k for releasing a broken game, I too think that shouldn't have happened. They should have waited to release the digital version to pair it up with the physical release, giving themselves time to release this patch. One point that I think many are missing though when being angry at Nintendo Life for "giving them a pass" is that many prospective buyers are waiting for the physical release, and therefore won't ever see the bugs this patch fixes. It would be unfair to physical media buyers to see an inaccurate score that wouldn't apply to their day 1 experience, just because some of you believe that Nintendo Life should give the digital version a punitive score. That said, I think it would be irresponsible of Nintendo Life to have not issued a score on the day of the physical release of the game, patch or no patch, but that isn't the case here.

@SlayerG I don't quite understand people being upset with NintendoLife for "giving them a pass". That review torn the game up and said at the end "we don't recommend you buy this game". I don't understand how that's a pass. At least they mentioned the Switch specific problems. No one else did...

Ya, confirmed by Redditers the patch fixes the cut scene issues, and fixes the save corruption issues from playing offline.

Also, they greatly lowered the VC cost of haircuts, from thousands of VC to just 100 (for reference, you get 5,000 VC just for preordering).

I'm all in. This is what I was waiting on.

@Oubie I downloaded it at launch and if I had known about these small glitches and was given the choice to wait and not experience them...I still would have downloaded it day 1. I never experienced anything game breaking just small annoyances (like a few broken cut scenes)

@NintndoNik I downloaded this game the moment it became available and I've played MyCareer a lot, but I've never experienced this save data corruption glitch. My guess is it's pretty rare if it exists at all

@Pizzapasta I know right.

"So about that review in which you explicitly advised against purchasing the game on account on its numerous technical failures which were listed and described in detail?

Well... FREE PASS!"

Yes it's fix but it still doesn't change the fact that this wasn't the same game that got review on release date, this is the fix version and should be grade as a fix version.

@Pizzapasta I agree, they did shred it in the review, unfortunately many just look for the score because they arent willing to put the time commit into reading the review.

Sounds like I would be better off buying Sega Sports NBA 2K for the Sega Dreamcast. Only £7 and no download patch!

Theres just too many games out nowadays to care about a broken mess of a game thats "been fixed now, promise!".
NEXT.

I'm grabbing the physical. Easy buy

@Maxz This might be the roast of the century lol

So it was buggy as hell on every platform?

Wish a developer would make a good basketball game. Also not a front for microtransactions.

Yeah I am all in on retail. Need a sports fix.

@Oubie
They won't.
That's why they are making a patch instead.

@sillygostly What's the bet they'll give it an 8 or 9? About 1/100.

So the save data thing is fixed?

'Users will no longer lose their facial hair when re-scanning their face'

What? I thought this was a feature and not a bug! Already sold my electric shaver because whenever I wanted to shave my beard, I just needed to scan my face.

😆

I used to trust Nintendo Life's reviews without thinking twice. This whole situation was a big blow in my trust of you guys.

The review was quite explicit in saying tje could not recommend the game, so I really dont see the problem.

@Maxz Why give any other game a score at launch in that case? Why not wait for every game to patch up all the issues? When do you even hand out the score at that point? When is the game finished? After a week, a month, a year?

The curse of the modern age in gaming, releasing broke games just to hit a deadline.

So much more playable no morelong laggy cut scenes make for abetter experience. Dont see any difference on the matches still runs at 30 fps which is still playable. The corrupt save bug is gone. The loading screen is slightly improved. Gonna have tough time time switching between this fifa stardew arms and mini snes.

@Oubie @HappyMaskedGuy @riChchestM @dimi @kobashi100 @Deanster101
Welcome... to the world.... of tomorrow... where the technology gives us the amazing ability to add incredible content by downloading it from the comfort of your own home... like fixes to game breaking bugs that should have been done before release.. like the second half of a game that wasn’t included on the cartridge... the gaming world will be ...like you’ve never imagined... a gaming wonderland of half baked quick draw money makers.

I still can't believe that the damn save file requires FIVE gigabytes... that was the first thing they should have fixed, dammit...
I'm upset 'cause I really want to grab the game, but I just can't stand the size of the save file

thankfully i decided to wait for the physical copy.

Hear that? That's the last tattered shreds of any journalistic integrity NL had flying right out the window.

Hope the $$$ from 2K was worth it guys!

@OorWullie
Well, good for those who passed on the game : it's a scam anyway !

I'd use some 8bit mockery with 'Double Drivel' but it says update #3. : Sentiment still stands.

@Octane That is indeed the question. There's no concrete rule, and with regards to this game, there was apparently a good deal discussion beforehand as to how and whether it should be immediately scored.

Obviously, leaving a game unscored at launch is not a stunt you want to pull off very often. I believe the reason for the 'wait and see' approach with this game was based on its fairly unique disparity between underlying quality (when it worked) and general brokenness (when didn't), combined with the lack of knowledge of how permanent the issues would be at launch. It could have been that a patch dropped on day 1 that fixed absolutely everything, meaning any potential customers would be advised against picking up a game on account of issues that simply were no longer there (had a single, unchanging review been written).

You could argue the developer 'deserved' the resulting drop in sales for releasing a faulty product, but that only makes sense when looking at the situation through the vengeful eyes of an irate game commenter. A review is not created to punish or praise the developer, but to inform the customer.

I'm not saying there would have been anything hugely wrong with scoring this game based on its apparently broken launch build and calling it a day. Reviewers can't be expected to hang around forever in the hope that all their issues in review Ver 1.0 eventually get fixed by a patch down the line.

What I am saying is that if the reviewer decides it may be in the customer's interest to see what happens in the launch period, then they should be entitled to do so without being subject to the kind of absurd accusations commentators have levied in this case.

The general takeaway from the review seems to be that it is a good game, marred by some heavy but seemingly patchable issues. You could legitimately take the standard approach of giving a single conclusive review with a single conclusive score, but I find it hard to get too angry at the author for giving the review he wanted to give. Namely, "This game is not worth buying at the moment; it's simply too much of a liability. But there's a good game in there potentially only a patch away, so let's keep eye on it".

TL;DR: It's reviewer's discression. I don't expect to see it happening much, but so long and there's a solid piece of writing to inform the customer, I feel the reviewer has done their job and at least deserves to have their review read before being accused of "handing out free passes".

Sorry if this was a bit long and messy.

@Joelols how you find timing of shots on layups? See lots people not happy with it

@victimOfNirvana Out of interest, what aspect of Nintendo Life did you lose trust in?

Its ability to give thorough, in depth reviews that describe the aspects of the game most relevant to potential buyers? Or its ability to put a number at the bottom of said review so you don't have to actually bother reading it?

Because while they've failed at the latter (at least for the present), I think you'll find the former is present and accounted for.

Not a good way to launch a game. This could potentially mean we don't see another NBA2K game on Switch due to a bad launch by the developer.

Not giving a score is absolutely dumb. I’ve had the game since launch and it’s a blast. Did it have issues? Sure but still a very enjoyable game and the actual basketball gameplay is as great and realistic as ever. Best year.

@electrolite77 I'm absolutely fine with that. I just don't see the reason why this game had to be the exception. If it runs like garbage, then it deserves to be judged like a garbage game.

@kobashi100 i dont see any issues layup timing issues but i am no expert so take it with a grain of salt. I turn off the gauge bar and go off the hd rumble and the animation for my timing.

@electrolite77 But scores would still not reflect if the released game is in "beta state" (=lots of glitches) or if it's a "game as a service" with drip feed content (=Splatoon/ARMS)?

@electrolite77 True, but how many reviews are forgotten after a year? I've read plenty of reviews that promised an update when the rest of the game was released, but those reviews never got an update. It works in theory, but in practice I can see many sites forgetting about their reviews and never update them. I mean, why even bother when most people won't read the update unless it's featured on the front page again.

I was hoping that the wait for physical was too see if 32GB cart prices would drop so the whole game could be included on cart. We can but dream lol. FIFA by all accounts, as a single player offline experience is pretty good. I am having a really good time with FIFA. I have this on preorder with Amazon, so will most likely continue on to purchase.
Id say until you have played out, you can't really judge it.
To be honest simply getting this game on switch at the same time as the other console versions is a pretty big deal. Outside of the issues raised here, my biggest issue is the forced digital download for a game that is by no means cheap. I think it's a bit of a slap in the face to collectors, and in an ideal world simply should not be allowed. But I'm afraid I am well so will be all in to feel that 2k nostalgia on the go. Not played an nba2k game since 2k16 on pc. Plus I don't think I'll be hitting the micro trans modes so I should be ok there.
Will update all once I have given it a go.

@Pizzapasta Woah back up - are you saying that in order to keep save game data of nba 2k on my switch, I need to supply my email to them and then verify it? Otherwise the game wipes my save? That can’t be right. Is that really a thing?

@electrolite77 Well I don't mind if they did away with review scores altogether. I just want to see equal treatment. Either give every game a score day one, or don't attach a score to any review. I just don't understand why NBA deserves a second chance while other game don't.

Why couldn't they have fixed all this before launch? How hard is it to get 20 people to play the game for like 2 days and write down all the bugs for you to fix before launch?

I am sick of so-called triple A companies treating early buyers as beta testers who PAY to work for them.

When Nintendo 1st party games have bugs, they (usually) feel like things that were obscure, weird, honestly seem to have been missed. But many other major companies release games and they don't even feel like they were tested.

@SharkAttackU Why on Earth would 2K Games pay Nintendo Life to write a review which explicitly recommends the reader not to buy their product? Who pays someone "$$$" to use the words "simply can't recommend" in their conclusion?

It's like an automobile firm paying for advertising space on a billboard only to write, "our car is a bit pants" with the space.

I'm not saying you have to be CEO of a large multinational corporation, but... do you have any business sense at all?

I get that conspiracy theories are fun, but at least have them make some sense.

Man I was prepared to give 2K the benefit of the doubt. Just read they are using an 8GB card for the retail version.

I can understand not using 32GB but to go lower then 16GB. That's unacceptable

@NintndoNik You have to supply your email for your online 2K account. Your "MyCareer" save isn't saved on your system, but rather on the 2K servers. So if you want to play the MyCareer, MyGm, etc modes, you absolutely are going to need to supply your email address and confirm it.

Boy are the dramatics out in full force today.....

@Malcrash It's on the Wii.

@Maxz @electrolite77 I think "free pass" is a poor choice of wording. The emphasis should be on the fact that any game can officially now be allowed an entire month's time to patch critical flaws before having their final score submitted to Metacritic, which particularly works in larger companies' favors. Now that NintendoLife has allowed this to happen, if they are going to be fair in the future, they must now allow all other games which release with critical flaws in the way that NBA 2K18 a similar amount of time (an entire month) to potentially be patched before receiving a final score. Otherwise, that company can claim, "Well, hold on, you gave 2K the benefit of the doubt, why not us?"

This was absolutely unheard of in the print review age. (Although sometimes reviews were printed late for other reasons, e.g. GamePro having a preview(!?!?) of Wario Land in May 1994 instead of February, even though it released in March.) I don't recall this happening in the recent past either, though I could be wrong there. I don't know what happened behind the scenes- I doubt NL was paid off, but clearly someone talked to someone somewhere along the way. There's definitely a rift between user expectations and critical responsibilities.

Currently, 45 critic reviews have been submitted to Metacritic thus far for the PS4 version, while only 12 reviews have been submitted for the NS version, with NintendoLife, of course, not yet being one of them. The reception was generally far more well received with the press (with plenty of critic reviewers ignoring or downplaying the problems before the patches and giving high or decent marks anyways), while being widely condemned by users who are not so forgiving.

Interestingly, the user score for the NS version is actually almost 3 whole number points higher than the PS4 version (forgivable 4.5 instead of abysmal 1.8), even though the NS version was supposed to be the most immediately problematic. Perhaps this means that Nintendo users tend to be a lot more forgiving than others? That's certainly the impression I get from you two, as well as others at NL.

But yeah, the precedent has officially been set. The acceptance of this type of behavior by publishers (releasing an unfinished game) has now been normalized at NL- they're still the only one in the list of reviewers for 2K18 on Metacritic to be listed as "In Progress & Unscored."

@Octane I'm beginning to think NL staff really should seriously consider abandoning the numbered review score system. It's the only good way to get out of this precedent they've set now. Otherwise, if they're going to be fair and treat all products equally, every game with the kind of issues 2K18 had upon release must now be allowed an entire month's time to be patched before a score can be submitted to Metacritic. It would not be fair to decide, "Oh well, we're going to give 2K this special treatment, just this once, and for no one else..."

@PlywoodStick Well, I don't think they're going to. Too many people care way too much about the number at the end than the actual review itself. And look, I'm not against review scores either, it's an easy way to separate the wheat from the chaff, but it's just not the most important thing in a review.

@Octane I agree with your sentiments. It's just that what drives business beyond each site's viewership are indeed the droll numbers, regardless of their degree of real importance (or lack thereof). The content of each review is paramount to most (or at least many), but it's not what ultimately resounds into the business and decision making at Metacritic- the numbered scores are. So long as NL continues to be an active participant in that process, allowing an entire month's time of "In Progress & Unscored" is henceforth tied to their integrity, despite having stated that they could not recommend the game in it's release state. If another game ever comes along which also cannot be recommended in it's release state, it too must be allowed a whole month of "In Progress & Unscored" to remain fair to this precedent.

@PlywoodStick With respect, I think "normalised" is a poor choice of wording too. It happened once. We can start using the word "normalised" when it becomes anything more than a one-off. I mean, keep your eyes peeled - I'm not saying it won't or can't be normalised - but it's premature to be using that term at this point.

It's also worth noting that the reviewer doesn't use review scores on their own site and has expressed some distaste for the amount of time people spent arguing about whether a game deversed a 88 or an 87 when working at ONM. I'm not saying they left the review unscored as some sort of 'protest against the system', but it could have influenced their view that covering a game in a thorough piece of writing still constitutes a 'review' even if it's missing a single digit at the bottom.

So yeah, I basically think people have resorted to knee-jerk hyperbole over a relatively trivial issue. One guy turns up to review a game, concludes that NBA 2K18 is an solid title ruined by some seemingly patchable flaws, and says "hey guys do you mind if we hold off the score to see how many of these issues get patched sharpish". Admittedly, it's been three weeks, which is stretching things, but I don't blame the reviewer for entertaining the possibility that the game might have received a magical fixing update within the first week, or possibly even on day one. If a game-fixing day one patch had dropped, I think the reviewer would have been almost fully justified in taking the approach they did. If you end up bashing the product on a review code completely different from the game that customer will actually play, then the review isn't worth much to the reader as a description of what they're getting. Of course, it is the developer's responsibility to send out review codes that do represent the final product, not the reviewer's responsibility to hang around and wait, but I still think it's worth bearing in mind.

In conclusion, the gap of three weeks from launch to patch would make me wary of pulling the same stunt in the future, but I can sympathise with the reasoning behind deferring the score in this case, and I think the idea that this has 'opened the flood gates' or set an irreversible precedent are somewhat hyperbolic. And the idea that Nintendo Life were being "paid off" to write a review in which they recommend people don't buy a game is utter swivel-eyed lunacy.

(Also I wouldn't say I'm "forgiving". If I were "forgiving" I'd probably own more games than I do, which isn't many as I tend to be quite picky. I don't buy video games on account of who I think "deserves support" and who doesn't. I buy video games that I want to play, and then I play them. It's a completely self indulgent act, not one of "moral benevolence". I just hope the system is constructed fairly enough that the people who make the games I want end up getting paid fairly)

Anyway, I'm happy to wait and see if your fears play out, but for the time being I don't think anything particularly catastrophic has happened.

@Maxz
Well said, bravo, kudos, applause. A considered, sensible and god dang reasonable summary of the "situation".
Even the word situation seems strong here. This whole controversy is so asinine, hollow and overblown.

Can always count on Maxz for a reality check.

Did hey patch the pro players missing layups constantly or jump shots bouncing out of the basket or the AI never missing a shot, the game still sucks.