NBA 2K23 lets players rewrite league history on current-gen consoles

MyNBA Eras is set to shake up the formula in NBA 2K23, giving players the ability to play and alter 4 different iconic eras of basketball.

Changing the game

If you’ve played NBA 2K lately, then you already know that the series does a pretty terrific job of bringing the sport to life on gaming platforms. The last few years have seen a streamlining and distilling of the game’s formula, and delivered some of the best basketball titles in some time.

But this year’s game, among other things, is trying something altogether new. Called MyNBA Eras, this new mode will let fans go back in time to a total of 4 different ages of the game. And once there, they can then either relive or rewrite some of the biggest moments in ball.

Those eras include:

• The Magic Vs Bird Era: Starting in 1983, players will find themselves in the heat of the Magic Johnson vs. Larry Bird rivalry that took over the league. Fans can rewrite 1980’s NBA history while they compete to draft the likes of Michael Jordan, Akeem Olajuwon, or any of the other NBA legends who were drafted in that legendary decade;
• The Jordan Era: Beginning in 1991, The Jordan Era puts players right at the beginning of Jordan’s dominant run with the Chicago Bulls. They will battle with Isiah Thomas’ “Bad Boys” Detroit Pistons, John Stockton and Karl Malone, Olajuwon’s Houston Rockets, and Patrick Ewing’s New York Knicks for a chance to claim 1990’s basketball supremacy;
• The Kobe Era: The Kobe Bryant era takes fans back to 2002, where a new generation of talent had emerged in the West, including Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs, Kevin Garnett and the Minnesota Timberwolves, Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks, and of course, the Black Mamba himself, Kobe Bryant. In addition to competing against the legends of this era, players will also be fighting for draft position in anticipation of the legendary 2003 draft class; 
• The Modern Era: The previous MyNBA experience is now dubbed the Modern Era. Longtime fans of the mode can continue to start with the most up-to-date rosters available and enjoy the traditional MyNBA experience.

Looking the part

Along with the eras themselves, each of the ages listed will have “the atmosphere of the times.” Going beyond just courts and uni’s (though those are in there too), each Era will have “a specific filter system was intricately designed to recreate the television experience of watching these games as they were originally broadcast”.

And yes, you can expect all the items to be correctly placed too, including “every expansion team and franchise relocation”. With all of that, it’s sounding like MyNBA Eras is almost a game unto itself. Honestly, it’s pretty exciting stuff.

Again though, this is only on the Xbox Series X|S and PS5. Other platforms won’t have the mode, though the game itself will be debuting for the PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC.

All of the above arrives on September 9th.