Publisher 2K is under fire for adding unskippable advertisements to NBA 2K21, a full-priced game that's been out for over a month already. Of course, it's not like there hasn't already been terrible user reviews and critique, but this does look like the straw that broke the camel's back in the eyes of consumers. Don't know what I'm talking about? Here's a video example:
That's... not great. Still, 2K has been reactive on this issue, issuing a statement on the ads that are directly impacting the gameplay experience of many. In it, they state that in recent years the ads have been integrated into the 2KTV segments and not impacting the players' experience. It is something that they didn't intend, and that they aren't meant to run as part of a pre-game introduction and that it will be fixed in future episodes.
As PlayStation Lifestyle notes, this is a reoccurring issue, with the issue surfacing as far back as NBA 2K19. It also happened in NBA 2K20. To quote Ian Fleming: "Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action." This has become a pattern, and literally everyone would appreciate it if 2K stopped putting ads in their full-priced games.
NBA 2K21 is available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. It will be available for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on November 12 and 10 respectively.
Quick Take
This should surprise me, but this is 2K, who has made this type of behavior an art form. 2K is probably the worst publisher out there when it comes to this kind of thing, and I'm not being hyperbolic. Sure, EA and Activision have committed sins of their own, but at least they aren't putting ads in their full-priced titles. Imagine playing Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and being stopped before a boss fight so you can buy that boss' figurine. I probably shouldn't give EA any ideas, but when does this end? This needs to get nipped in the bud before it truly takes off.
What do you think of this news? Does this surprise you? What other franchises do you expect this to pop up in? Let us know in the comments!
