Monday Tip-Off: Depth vs. Simplicity In Modes

We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Join me as I begin the week here at the NLSC with my opinions and commentary on basketball gaming topics, as well as tales of the fun I’ve been having on the virtual hardwood. This week, I’m tipping things off with a comparison of the benefits and drawbacks of depth and simplicity in basketball video game modes.

Generally speaking, we want to see deep, engaging modes in sim basketball games. Whether it’s a franchise or career experience, or even a card collecting/team building mode, depth is a vital ingredient to them remaining immersive and engaging. On top of being a more accurate representation of the NBA – wherever applicable – there’s simply more to do and care about. As modes have become deeper throughout the years, our expectations have naturally increased proportionately. Shallow modes are criticised for their lack of features and detail, and considered to be behind the times.

At the same time, there’s merit and appeal in simplicity. I’m not just talking about retro gaming either, though that can be part of their draw. Even in modern games though, there’s an argument to be made for simplicity and streamlining in modes. This runs contrary to calls for deep and comprehensive experiences, but for some gamers, that depth and detail can be overwhelming. While having more to do and care about sounds like a great time for many of us, many still see too many moving parts, and tasks that distract and detract from the point of the games: playing virtual basketball. As such, developers are challenged to a balancing act as far as depth vs. simplicity.

I’ve traditionally advocated for deeper modes. I was hooked on Franchise mode when it debuted in NBA Live 2000, because it was everything that those of us who had dreamed about multiseason play wanted to see. Well, actually, not quite! It was a fantastic first iteration of the mode, but there were aspects of the salary cap and team management that were yet to be added. There was so much promise to Franchise, which is why it was frustrating when it stagnated somewhat over the next couple of games. Dynasty was a welcome revamp in NBA Live 2004, and there were some further improvements after that, but it was NBA 2K that perfected franchise modes.

I remember messaging with an NBA Live developer who was working on Dynasty mode, and bringing up 10-day contracts. He asked me “Do people really want to see that?” It’s admittedly not always easy to detect tone through text, but he seemed kind of surprised and puzzled by it. That did concern me, because it gave the impression that the people working on Dynasty weren’t keen on making it as deep as possible. With the benefit of hindsight, we can definitely say that was a problem with NBA Live! NBA 2K just kept innovating with franchise modes, from The Association right through to MyNBA Eras in NBA 2K23. They understood that deep modes are vital.

It’s why I regret not spending more time playing the franchise modes in NBA 2K, and why I’m open to changing that in the future. I have spent a considerable amount of time playing MyCAREER in various NBA 2K titles though, and I’ve appreciated the depth of that mode. I don’t agree with every design choice they’ve made, particularly when it comes to the stories and adoption of an open world environment. However, in the games where I have greatly enjoyed NBA MyCAREER, I’ve appreciated all of the immersive elements that kept me engaged; the RPG elements done right. I struggled to get into Rising Star and The One in NBA Live, as they felt shallow in comparison.

The same goes for MyTEAM and Ultimate Team. There are a variety of submodes in MyTEAM that keep things fresh, from the on-court gameplay to how we use the cards in our collection. Ultimate Team falls well short of what MyTEAM is doing, instead feeling extremely shallow and repetitive. It’s a recurring theme with the modes in NBA Live and NBA 2K. While NBA 2K has kept innovating with depth and creative ideas, NBA Live has – at least for the past couple of generations – opted for simplicity to the point of being bare-bones. It’s been disappointing to see NBA Live do the bare minimum – if even that – when NBA 2K has shown such imagination and creativity.

This is well-known, and my stance that deeper modes are superior is hardly unusual. Why even humour the depth vs. simplicity debate? Well, long-time NLSC community member Mike (aka mp3) made an interesting comment on Twitter. He noted that he greatly enjoyed Franchise mode in NBA Live 18 and 19, owing to its simplicity. Even though I’ve grumbled about NBA Live’s franchise experience stagnating, and losing even more depth on the eighth generation, Mike’s take really resonated with me. Yes, my preference for a deeper mode led to the opposite view of Franchise in those two games, but Mike brought up an important point that the developers must consider.

For some gamers, there is such a thing as too much depth, or at the very least they’re fine with a more streamlined approach. I can understand and indeed relate to that. While I can appreciate franchise modes delving into financial responsibilities and other non-basketball tasks, I’m personally not interested in managing ticket prices and the like. I also prefer a more traditional or sandbox approach, rather than the RPG-based concepts explored by the various MyGM modes. I believe they should be in the game for people who enjoy that side of things, but the rest of us need to be able to ignore or automate them, if they’re not separated into their own alternative mode.

Franchise modes have generally done a good job of this. The separation of MyGM and MyLEAGUE, and the in-depth options of MyNBA, has allowed us to avoid aspects that we don’t want to have to deal with. Franchise and Dynasty in NBA Live have likewise presented us with the ability to automate certain tasks, as did NBA 2K’s Association mode. The approach to Franchise in NBA Live 18 and 19 isn’t ideal, as it doesn’t give us much choice about the depth. Nevertheless, it remains a more basic and streamlined alternative to NBA 2K’s franchise modes. The same could be said of the games’ respective career modes, as NBA Live eschews stories and open worlds.

There’s value in offering something different in the approach to staple modes. It’s why alternatives are sorely missed in the basketball gaming space! A plethora of options can also be overwhelming. I have seen people express confusion and frustration with the setup options in NBA 2K’s franchise modes. With so many screens and settings, it can give the impression that it’s necessary to make a number of adjustments before you begin a game. The default settings tend to be optimal for most gamers, reducing the choices we absolutely have to make to set up the game the way we want. That’s not always apparent though, and this is where simplicity is more appealing than depth.

Indeed, I’m inclined to leave most of those settings alone whenever I’m planning on starting a game in NBA 2K’s franchise modes. I’ll only look to tweak something if it doesn’t feel right or to my tastes as the game progresses. To that point of course, the options need to actually be available, so that we can change or ignore them as desired. That’s where NBA Live’s approach currently comes up short. It’s also missing details such as contract extensions, two-way contracts, and so forth. Such details are essential if the goal is to be a deep, comprehensive, and realistic depiction of the NBA. With that being said, it’s obviously still possible to enjoy a more basic mode without them.

Career modes are a more complicated issue. The NBA side of MyCAREER has been affected by integration with the online scene, as well as a focus on a cutscene-heavy story and the open worlds of The Neighborhood and The City. In that respect, I like how NBA Live has kept things simple with Rising Star and The One. However, I do also find them to be somewhat dry and difficult to get into, since they lack some of the appealing flavour content of MyCAREER. Looking back, I’d say that NBA 2K17 struck the best balance as far as a pre-NBA tale, an ongoing narrative, and traditional career mode staples. Ideally, I’d have both games strive for a version of that approach.

Ultimate Team is the mode that’s easily the worst off due to simplicity. Franchise and career modes can conceivably be streamlined without feeling too shallow or repetitive to enjoy, but card collecting modes thrive on fresh content. Frankly, Ultimate Team fell off a cliff in NBA Live 19. There was only one real campaign mode, and while it ended up featuring plenty of challenges, each challenge was comprised of a series of games against the same lineup. It was arduous and unrewarding, so I gave up on the mode very quickly. In that instance, simplicity went hand-in-hand with a lack of effort and poor design. Depth could’ve helped, but it was clear the mode wasn’t a priority.

The depth vs. simplicity debate applies to gameplay as well. As controls have become deeper and more complex, and gameplay has achieved greater realism, some gamers have come to realise that they prefer a simpler take on the sim style. There’s nothing wrong with that, and I can see the appeal myself. In fact, that’s why I’m a keen retro basketball gamer, even though I do enjoy newer titles as well. There’s an undeniable fun factor that comes with the simplicity in older games, especially compared to the way that modern titles cater to the online arena with boosts and meta-gaming. As with modes, depth can focus too much on aspects that have nothing to do with basketball.

I’ll always advocate for depth over outdated or bare-bones simplicity, but I’m also in favour of giving gamers a reasonable amount of control in modes. That also means not having to tinker with options if you prefer, and focusing on aspects that you enjoy. As for games that don’t offer as much depth, they can still make simplicity work, and they may well be preferable if too many options and features are overwhelming. I’d argue that it’s better to have that depth and ignore it than try to overcome its absence, but I can also relate to making the best of simplicity. Ultimately, we all want great basketball games that stay focused on what they’re meant to be, and keep us hooked.

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