Where Are Our College Basketball Video Game Rumors?

[pietasterp]

Quote: Originally Posted by tril

disagree with the first part of your statement about using NBA 2k gameplay. I think the reason why CH2k is beloved by so many is because the gameplay on the court reflected college basketball. NBA2k8 and CH2k8 stood on its own. They felt vastly different on the court. ID be happy with updated graphics and player movement with the exact same features and coding from CH2k8. CH2k8 was/is so deep that I constantly see different things on the court. Not sure who coded this game but who ever did, needs to be part of the development team if they ever bring CH2k back. 2k should take a chance and release a new version of CH2k. I also think the NCAA should want a developer to make a game. Usually its a star player or two in the college game that generates interest of fans, but now because so many players opt to go overseas or play 1 year, its up to the NCAA to generate interest through other means. Releasing a game may generate more interest in college basketball long term.

Quote: Originally Posted by tpattersoniv

All of this sounds great and it’s definitely what they SHOULD do, but it’s the NCAA so they won’t. They’re not even doing it with NCAA Football and it’s guaranteed to make more money than any college basketball game. My point was only to say, here’s an easy way to solve the money piece of developing it. CH2K8 and NBA2K8 are actually great examples of what I mean. Yes they felt very different but the gameplay was still the same base. Mostly the same controls, iso motion triggered by buttons, a lot of animations reused (specifically shooting and rebounding). They just tweaked the gameplay to feel different, playbooks were different things like that.

I agree with both of the above statements. For sure, tril, there is a different rhythm and pace to college basketball that is worth reproducing faithfully in video game form (especially with today's technology). That having been said, college basketball games just have not made the kind of money in the past that seems to justify their existence to publishers, hence the decade-plus absence of college sports games to date.

My point, as I believe was tpattersoniv's, is that if 2K can make a game for as little money as possible so that they can make a ton of money on it, it might be worth the business case to resurrect college hoops video games. Without a clear pathway to significant profitability, no one is going to even consider making a game any more.