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The NBA's esports league postpones 2020 season due to coronavirus
Just a day after two NBA players tested positive for COVID-19 and the league announced it would suspend activities for at least thirty days, its esports arm followed suit. The NBA 2K League will postpone the start of its season, which was planned for March 24th. Of course, unlike the real game, esports can be played online and the league said in a statement that "in the coming weeks" it will hold preseason competitions remotely. According to NBA 2K League Managing Director Brendan Donohue, "We will continue to evaluate the situation and do everything possible to bring the excitement of the NBA 2K League to our fans through remote preseason exhibitions and other content. We look forward to sharing additional information about these exhibitions and the start of the 2020 season as it becomes available."
NFL and 2K revive their partnership to make more football games
2K is well known for its NBA, WWE and PGA video games, but it hasn't made an NFL title since 2004. That's about to change. Today, the NFL and 2K announced that they've revived a partnership to produce new non-simulation football video games.
NVIDIA GeForce Now loses support for 'Borderlands,' 'Civ' and other 2K games
NVIDIA is dropping even more titles from GeForce Now's shrinking selection of games. In a post on the company's forum, a staff member has revealed that NVIDIA will start removing 2K games from the streaming service today. 2K's most popular franchises include Borderlands, Civilization, BioShock and XCOM. The staff members didn't elaborate on the situation, only telling forum posters that the games' removal was "per publisher request" and that the company is working with 2K to "re-enable [its] games in the future."
Make-A-Wish Foundation gets a fan into 'NBA 2K20'
It's not unheard of for Make-A-Wish Foundation kids to request tours of their favorite game studios, but when 2K heard that 15-year-old Make-A-Wish recipient William Floyd wanted to visit the NBA 2K headquarters in Novato, California, the company decided to go one step further. It created Floyd as a playable roster member in NBA 2K20 and made him available as a free agent to millions of players around the world.
2K plans 'Battleborn' shutdown, yanks the game from digital shelves
More than two years after the team behind squad-based shooter Battleborn announced that efforts were winding down, 2K has officially put the game on deathwatch. It's no longer for sale in digital storefronts, after February 24th players won't be able to purchase any in-game currency, and in January 2021 the game's servers will shut down, rendering it completely unplayable.
Nike will drop exclusive, limited-edition sneakers inside ‘NBA 2K20’
Those of you who are into NBA 2K know that, for years, you've been able to buy sneakers from different brands for your virtual player in the game. But now, thanks to a new partnership between Nike and software publisher 2K Sports, you'll have a chance to get real sneakers for yourself as you're playing NBA 2K20. And they won't just be any kind of shoes -- they're going to be limited edition and exclusive to the popular basketball title. Nike says it will drop 10 "Gamer Exclusives" through NBA 2K20, starting on October 29th, when players will have the opportunity to purchase them by completing in-game challenges.
Even 'Civilization VI' is getting a battle royale mode
Firaxis and 2K are taking an all-too-familiar approach to revitalizing a game: tack on a battle royale mode in a bid to capture the Fortnite crowd. They've released an update to Civilization VI that introduces Red Death, a 12-player competitive mode that grafts battle royale on to a strategy game that was definitely not designed for it. Instead of filling the shoes of a historical political leader, you play as one of numerous post-apocalyptic factions (no nuclear Gandhi, though) determined to get off the planet before a radioactive storm closes in and wipes you out. The basic mechanics remain intact, but your focus is clearly not on advancing society.
'Borderlands 3' will arrive September 13th on PC, PS4 and Xbox One
Gearbox and publisher Take Two will release Borderlands 3 on PC, PS4 and Xbox One September 13th, confirming the date mentioned in a deleted tweet earlier this week. On PC, the RPG/shooter hybrid will be a digital exclusive through the Epic Games Store until April 2020, when it will arrive on other digital storefronts.
Deleted 'Borderlands 3' tweet suggests a September 13th release date
Gearbox seems to have given away the release date for Borderlands 3 a little earlier than expected. A now-deleted tweet from the Borderlands Twitter account read "Mayhem is Coming September 13th." It appears the date leaked a couple of days before the official announcement -- when Gearbox officially announced the sequel last week, it said it would reveal more details on April 3rd.
'Civilization VI' expansion 'Gathering Storm' launches February 14th
Civilization VI is a strategy game with some legs, and we don't just mean its ever-expanding platform support. Firaxis and 2K have revealed that the title's second expansion, Gathering Storm, will reach Windows gamers on February 14th, 2019. Mac and Linux users should get it soon afterward. It's not just adding the usual round of cultures, technologies and units (although there are more of those), either. Rather, Firaxis is changing how the world itself works.
Empire-builder 'Civilization VI' comes to the iPad for $30
Usually, playing Civilization on the go means playing one of the cut-down Revolution games. They're fine, but they're not the same thing. You won't have to make that compromise from now on, however. Aspyr Media has released Civilization VI for the iPad -- yes, the whole thing. If you can't stand the thought of waiting to get home before advancing science or invading an empire, you just have to tuck an Apple tablet in your bag. That's no mean feat given how visually and computationally intensive the turn-based strategy game can be.
Sacramento Kings to build NBA 2K League training center inside arena
Now that the National Basketball Association has its own eSports initiative with NBA 2K League, it's only a matter of time before various teams jump into the digital arena. Qualifiers start January 1st, with draft rounds planned for March of 2018 for a season that's set to begin in May. Further blurring the lines between real and digital sports, the Sacramento Kings have just announced a new eSports training facility to be housed within the Golden 1 Center pro arena.
The NBA’s big eSports push begins in May 2018
The line between eSports and traditional sports is blurring, and organizations like the National Basketball Association are looking to stay ahead of the curve. Seventeen teams from the NBA will be part of the upcoming 2K League, a competition it created in partnership with Take-Two Interactive, the developer of the popular NBA 2K series. And that league is going to have its first season next May, NBA 2K League Managing Director Brendan Donohue revealed to Engadget in a recent interview.
'Battleborn' is free, but you'll need money to make the most of it
We all had high hopes when Battleborn was shown off at E3 in 2015. The first game from the studio that brought us Borderlands mixed MOBA and FPS genres to create something that looked even more dynamic and fun than previous arena-based shooters like Team Fortress 2. Unfortunately, Blizzard's Overwatch eclipsed 2K's friendly shooter and left Battleborn far behind. Last year, the publisher offered a price cut and a new hero in hopes of attracting new players and encouraging game owners to return to the action. Today, in what might seem like a last stand for the arcade shooter, Battleborn is available as a free trial for new players on PS4, Xbox One and PC via Steam.
The Cavs and Warriors will have their own 'NBA 2K eLeague' teams
The inaugural season of the NBA's "2K eLeague," featuring eSports teams owned by NBA franchises, is looking more promising now than when it was announced in February. Today, the NBA revealed that 17 of its 30 teams will participate in the eSports competition, which it created in partnership with Take-Two Interactive (developer of the NBA2K series) and is scheduled to begin in 2018. Earlier this year, the league had said it only expected about 12 NBA teams to join the project, but clearly it managed to get many more of them interested before launch.
The historical research behind the biracial antihero in 'Mafia III'
The 1960s were a period of dramatic upheaval in the United States. By 1968, the Vietnam War was raging abroad while civil-rights activists at home were mourning the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who was assassinated in April. The Civil Rights Act, Fair Housing Act and Brown v. Board of Education -- landmark rulings in favor of racial equality in the United States -- were all in effect, though racism still reared its ugly head across the nation, particularly in the South. The FBI finally admitted in the 1950s that organized crime existed on a large scale, and by 1968, the sun was setting on the Italian mob's golden age.
One month after going free, 'Evolve' averages 15,000 players
Pick a random moment in June and you'd likely find about 100 people playing Turtle Rock Studios' Evolve on Steam. That's not a lot of players in general, but this number is especially sad for a game billed as an online multiplayer extravaganza. One and a half years after launch, it looked like Evolve was dying. And then, in July, Evolve's active player base shot up to an average of 15,400 at any given time on Steam, according to current lead designer Brandon Yanez. This didn't happen by accident: Developers at Turtle Rock knew they had to take drastic action to save Evolve and so, on July 7th, they did. They made the game free on PC.
'Mafia III' drops you in a '60s gang war this October
A new Mafia III trailer dropped today, teasing more of the game's mobster action from the late 1960s. It all takes place in the fictional city of New Bordeaux, a locale loosely inspired by New Orleans, as Vietnam veteran Lincoln Clay returns from war. When his surrogate family, the black mob, are attacked by the Italian mafia, Clay seeks all-out revenge. There are some brutal scenes, however the new trailer is also incredibly stylish in its depiction of the time and place. Much of that can be attributed to Son of a Preacher Man, which plays in the background throughout.
'XCOM 2' gets its first DLC pack on March 17th
2K has revealed a launch date for the first XCOM 2 downloadable content: March 17th. Titled Anarchy's Children, the add-on pack will come with more than 100 "exotic" goodies, which you can use to deck out your soldiers. This includes new armor, helmets and masks, as well as fresh hair styles, face paintings and decals.
Snag 'Tales from the Borderlands' on disc in April
In Tales from the Borderlands, Telltale Games turns Gearbox's frantic alien shooter into a narrative-driven point-and-click adventure, broken into five episodes that were released across 2014 and 2015. All of these action-packed, emotional episodes will be collected in physical form on April 26th for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC. Rejoice, completionists and collectors alike.
