NBA 2K21 is Take-Two’s best-selling game in recent years, with more than ten million copies sold across PC and consoles since its release in late 2020. However, the records might break once again when 2K Sports and Visual Concepts release the newest installment in the long-running basketball sim franchise, NBA 2K22.

As many of you already know, NBA 2K22 will launch globally on September 10th this year, which is a month away at the time of writing. We don’t have much info about the next entry in the NBA 2K series, but a few important bits have managed to trickle out as we approach the release date for PC, last-gen, and new-gen consoles.

From what we have heard and seen in the last few weeks, it seems NBA 2K22 will double down on Take-Two’s successful basketball sim series. Those who have been out of the loop for a while should definitely continue reading as we highlight everything we know about NBA 2K22.

NBA 2K22 Trailer: Watch the Official Announcement

2K Games dropped a 30-second long announcement trailer for NBA 2K22 on July 14. While it doesn’t have any gameplay footage, the ending gives fans a first look at the game’s cover athletes, which you can check out below.

NBA 2K22 – Announce Trailer | PS5, PS4

NBA 2K22 Release Date: 10 September

2K released NBA 2K18 on September 15, 2017, and NBA 2K19 on September 7, 2018. Similarly, NBA 2K20 landed on September 5, 2019, with NBA 2K21 releasing on September 4, 2020. Although the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of NBA 2K22 were made available in November last year, it was only due to the release date of those new-generation consoles.

Following the pattern of 2K’s release dates for NBA 2K titles, NBA 2K22 will be out on September 10, 2021, for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.

NBA 2K22 Cover Athletes: Making Bold Moves

Last year, 2K produced a limited “Mamba Forever” edition of NBA 2K21 featuring basketball legend Kobe Bryant on the box cover, following his tragic death at the age of 41. However, the cover athletes were different for the standard editions on last-gen and new-gen consoles. Damian Lillard, Trail Blazers point guard, was featured on the PS4 and Xbox One versions, while Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans power forward, made his appearance on the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions.

This year, the main NBA 2K22 cover athlete is Dallas Mavericks star Luka Dončić, rocking the colors of his native Slovenian country flag. He will be featured on both the NBA 2K22 standard edition and cross-gen digital bundle.

NBA 2K22 will also see a WNBA 25th Anniversary Edition this year, with Candace Parker of Chicago Sky being the first-ever female cover athlete in the history of the basketball sim franchise. It will be available only in North America, but it’s a welcome start.
Lastly, the NBA 75th Anniversary Edition of the game will have three basketball legends on the cover: Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Durant, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. It’s worth mentioning that this is Kevin Durant’s third appearance on an NBA 2K cover after NBA 2K13 and 2K15.

There’s also a Japan-exclusive standard edition of NBA 2K22 that features Washinton Wizards’ Rui Hachimura as the cover athlete. You can see the cover art for all four editions of the game on the official NBA 2K website.

NBA 2K22 Editions & Bonuses

The price for the NBA 2K22 Standard Edition on PC and last-gen consoles is $59.99, with no free upgrades to the new-gen consoles this year. Those who plan to snag a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X console soon have to pay $79.99 for the Cross-Gen Digital Bundle. This version of the game also grants you 10K MyTeam coins, 10 MyTeam tokens, a few special MyTeam cards, promo packs, and more.

If you want more in-game items with your purchase, the NBA 75th Anniversary Edition for $99.99 is what you need. It comes with 100K VC and 10K MT coins, as well as exclusive MyTeam cards and special promo packs.

2K Sports is also offering pre-order bonuses for the NBA 2K22 Standard Edition on both PC and consoles. It gets you the following items:

• 5000 VC and MT coins
• 10 MyTeam Promo Packs
• 95 Rated Luka Doncic MyTeam Agent Card
• Luka Doncic MyPlayer Jersey
• Boost for each MyCareer Skill type
• Boost for each Gatorade Boost type

It’s worth noting that MyTeam progress is transferable between consoles of the same family, along with 2K22 MT, VC, and MyTeam token wallets.

NBA 2K22 Gameplay Features

According to 2K Sports, NBA 2K22 is supposed to offer best-in-class visual presentation, player AI, and a wide variety of hoops experiences. Put simply, long-time fans of the series can expect to find more versatility across the defensive and offensive sides of the court.

Below is a list of announced features and upgrades you will notice in NBA 2K22:

• Overhauled shot contest and blocking systems.
• New signature movies and combos.
• Revamped fatigue system that will encourage players to use the bench more often.
• The City will feature a quest system and non-player characters, integrating into the game’s MyCareer mode. (Available only on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X)
• Last-gen consoles will keep using My Neighborhood as the MyCareer hub.
• MyNBA, MyWNBA, and The W game modes are exclusive to the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of the game, whereas MyGM will remain available to the last-gen versions.
• MyTeam will have new seasons throughout the year, adding in new challenges and rewards for the players.

The NBA 2K22 playlist will include tracks from several popular artists. You can check out the list of confirmed artists in the image below.

NBA 2K22 Microtransactions

Obviously, it isn’t an NBA 2K game without annoying and disruptive in-game microtransactions. Virtual Currency or VC makes a return right alongside MyTeam or MT coins in NBA 2K22.

However, you can always buy NBA 2K MT from NBA2King, a trusted and secure alternative to the in-game store that provides MT and VC bundles at affordable prices.

Wrapping up

That’s almost everything you need to know about NBA 2K22, the upcoming installment to the popular end-to-end basketball sim title. Since Take-Two has decided not to offer a pre-launch demo this year, we highly recommend you wait for early reviews and analysis videos before pre-ordering the game.

What are your honest thoughts on NBA 2K22 so far? Are you planning to buy it this year? Tell us in the comments below!