2K Games have just dropped some juicy details about how their upcoming NBA 2K22, will actually play, as it nears release on 10 September on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Switch and PC.

Dividing up the improvements this year’s release brings into categories, the developers have focused on these key areas:

• Defence – The shot contest and blocking systems have been completely rebuilt, intended to remove the ‘ghost contests’ that players have complained about in the past. The motion team has improved the feel of on-ball defensive movement, and steals have been upgraded to place greater emphasis on their related attribute, with low-rated stealers getting sluggish animations compared to high-rated ones.
• Defensive AI – New on-ball defensive positioning logic is intended to give defenders more consistency in their position, and less jittery movement. There’s also significant new hedge defender logic and behaviours, updates to fundamental defensive rotations, and a brand new cutter help defensive system to fill in defensive gaps and send in help to a player when they have a clear path to the rim.
• Dribbling – New 1-to-1 Signature Size-ups replace Basic Size-ups to create a new unique feel and rhythm, significantly faster overall pace and much tighter control in navigating the court, and a ton of other new combos, cancels, and move chains.
• Post Play – New content includes a range of new movement and back-to-basket moves, like cancels and aborts, new RT/R2 fakes, and more.
• Shooting – A new shot meter is featured, that dynamically expands when players take high-quality shots with good shooters but will shrink when heavily contested, shooting with a low-rated shooter, or fatigued. New emphasis on Shot IQ, means that the teams that work for open looks and take smart shots are going to see much more success than the teams that force up bad shots.
• Finishing – Rim protectors are getting more tools to make stops, and new timing meters are attached to alley-oop and aggressive skill dunk attempts. Dunk celebrations have been added, and players can also completely customize their dunk repertoire with an all-new Dunk Style Creator.
• Builds, Badges & Takeover –  The player builder has taken on feedback from last year’s release, and been adjusted to create more balanced builds. The amount of badge points at players’ disposal has been increased significantly, and the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions introduce exclusive (to new-generation consoles) Takeover Perks which you can unlock to strengthen your existing Takeover abilities.

A ‘gameplay reveal’ trailer also released yesterday shows off some in-game footage, especially a lot of glistening sweat on the brows of athletes, which is a major reason most of us tune in to B-ball. Check it out below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcUzwnA569M