NBA 2K23 is the upcoming latest entry in the annual basketball series that is consistently one of the best sellers each and every year. The last few iterations have been hit with a bit more criticism than the series is typically known for, but developer Visual Concepts is banking on the return of the fan-favorite Jordan Challenge as a way to get people excited. Just about a month ahead of the release of NBA 2K23, I was able to take part in a preview where the development team explained what makes the Jordan Challenge so impactful and important to this year’s edition of the game.
The Jordan Challenge was initially included in NBA 2K11 and quickly became one of the most popular game modes in the series among players. There have been a lot of changes in game design since the release of NBA 2K11 back in 2010 and the development team dove into how modern consoles were able to bring the Jordan Challenge to life with the most authenticity to date.
Erick Boenisch at VP of NBA 2K development at Visual Concepts explained this version of the Jordan Challenge is completely built from the ground up, with the original 10 returning alongside five brand new challenges. He continued to say that the presentation for the Jordan Challenge is way beyond anything that would have been possible in NBA 2K11. The development team worked to be as true to the periods of Jordan’s career as possible with an all-new visual filter system.
This starts with his appearance in the 1982 NCAA Basketball National Championship game while at the University of North Carolina, which includes a simple and more traditional broadcast design complete with a little graininess and color saturation, as well as even arcing on the image that makes it almost look like it’s being broadcast on a tube TV. They didn’t just stop there and offer one style that varies from the usual presentation, as the overall look evolves throughout Jordan’s career in the Jordan Challenge as it moves into the ’90s.
During the presentation, it was asked if these visual filters and such would be able to be used in other modes of the game. Boenisch said that they were specifically talking about them in the Jordan Challenge today and “if they are usable elsewhere in the game, we will be talking about that in due time.” This seemed to hint that it will be an option since he did not shoot it down, but it’s definitely not confirmed yet.
These true-to-the-time visuals will also be paired with audio commentary Mike Fratello, who they say is a major addition to these challenges from an expert standpoint. They were also able to bring in Ray Clay, the legendary PA announcer for the Chicago Bulls that really helped to make player introductions what they are today. This was an important get since they used an impersonator in NBA 2K11, but they said he was gung ho to come in and do a full PA announcer set for the game. In fact, Boenisch says that his voice sounds just the same as it did back during the ’90s.
Visual Concepts took things a step further too with what they are calling luminaries in the Jordan Challenge. Each of the 15 Jordan Challenges will have one luminary give a pre-game interview about Jordan, with legends like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Patrick Ewing, and Phil Jackson being just a few of the names they were able to get. These icons are specially picked to tie into each moment too, so they sound like they really dived deep with each of them. One of the most interesting aspects is that Boenisch mentioned that every single one of the luminaries jumped at the opportunity to come in and be part of this, even ones who he thought had issues with Jordan or would be a tough get anyways.
Boenisch explained that the 15 luminaries were brought in to help educate people about the story of Jordan to modern audiences that may not have grown up when Jordan was playing. He went on to say “this was a very meticulously crafted user set top to bottom to both educate new users, because we are retelling the story of Michael Jordan to a whole new generation of NBA fans, and also anyone who might have played 2K11 or knows everything about Jordan, you will appreciate every single detail we put into this game.”
“you will appreciate every single detail we put into this game.”
The gameplay styles in the NBA have changed a lot since the ’80s and ’90s, so using the same AI and in-game logic for the Jordan Challenge would not feel quite right. That is why the dev team took major steps to ensure that the gameplay felt as authentic as possible. This includes era-appropriate dribble moves and finishing moves, as well as signature styles that include new jump shot, layup, and dunk packages in the game. Rule changes also play a big part too, as this will allow for hand-checks and hard-hitting body-ups that are certainly not allowed in the game now.
Picking the specific challenges that were included was also something they really thought about for a while, including working directly with Jordan himself. Having college basketball in the game allowed them to do Jordan’s time at UNC for the first time, which they were really excited about. Boenisch said that he could have had 30 to 40 to pick from and it still wouldn’t be enough. He joked that he would have even loved to have a Birmingham Barons game in there when he played baseball for a bit.
The Jordan Challenge will extend a bit beyond just the singular game mode, as there are three goals to unlock rewards for use in MyTEAM and MyCAREER. The ultimate reward here is a UNC Michael Jordan jersey that you can give your avatar in both The City and The Neighborhood depending on your generation of the game.
Also of importance during the session, it was confirmed that the Jordan Challenge will be part of all versions of NBA 2K23. This means not just the Michael Jordan Edition, but also the regular version across both current and last generation consoles including the Nintendo Switch and PC versions.
NBA 2K23 is set to release on September 9 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
