Long gone are the days where career mode in a sports video game was simply “get drafted and play games as your player.” As games have gotten more advanced, so have the stories they tell and as such career mode has expanded significantly to include the off court aspect of being a professional athlete.
In NBA 2K18, that meant you were a player that left college to pursue being a DJ and had to earn a spot after being discovered at an outdoor run and earning a workout with a team. For NBA 2K19, the folks at 2K Sports are expanding that idea of having to fight for a spot in the league and work your way up the ladder in a major way.
On Tuesday, we got our first trailer for NBA 2K19‘s MyCAREER mode, titled “The Way Back,” that shows your player getting passed over at the draft and having to go overseas in the Chinese Basketball League before earning a G League roster spot and fighting for a call-up at the end of the regular season.
This seems like a much more realistic story than 2K18‘s career story, and 2K has brought in heavy hitters like Anthony Mackie and Haley Joel Osmont to do voice work (and lend their faces) to the game. Adding in the overseas element and the G League to the path to the NBA is a nice addition, but many players will be hoping for an even bigger addition to this year’s MyCAREER mode: being able to skip through cut scenes.
Those that order The Prelude will be able to access the first chapter of “The Way Back” on August 31, getting a jump on building your player up before the official release on Sept. 7 (20th anniversary edition) or Sept. 11 (standard edition).
