NBA 2K26

“Ball Over Everything” is a fitting description for NBA 2K26. The smooth on-court action is better than ever and MyCareer’s excellent started-from-the-bottom journey to the pros story make it so the imperfections are easier to ignore.

NBA 2K earns another year as the best annual sports game available.

NBA 2K26 on Switch 2 fails to deliver the 60fps gameplay we've all been holding out for. It also runs at a lower resolution than I would have expected, and its online modes, thanks to no cross-play or cross-progression are ghost towns.However, if this is your only platform, and if you are okay with 30fps, there is still a huge festival of basketball to enjoy here. This is a game packed full of fun modes, and it'll teach you everything you could ever need to know about the sport whilst giving you some fine on-court action to boot. Here's hoping for a patch down the line, but 2K26 comes off as a great game underperforming on Switch 2 at launch.

NBA 2K26 is a good basketball game. It’s got a great on-court experience, and some of the rough edges have been sanded down. Still, issues that have existed for years persist. Philosophically, not a lot has changed. I’ve enjoyed my time with it more than I did 2K25 and 2K24, but I still yearn for a more well-rounded and fulfilling basketball experience.

NBA 2K26 retains its standard as being the most complete and polished hoops experiences out there, but I think one of the things that's holding it back for this old player is the feeling that it's still finding its way on how to nail all of the story elements in its MyCareer mode. It's done it before. I'd like to see them do it again.

NBA 2K26 has enough changes to make it worth it for players who value immersion and realism in single-player games. Meta builds, and the current skill gap may frustrate competitive online players, but learning how to time your shots, do dribble routines, and dunk can pay off big time. In the end, NBA 2K26 is a good addition to the series, but it’s not a new change.

NBA 2K26 is a solid basketball sim that feels more like a pocket transition than a revolution. Hardcore players will notice the recycled flaws, but they are still limited to the minute details. It’s fun, it’s flashy, but it still has room to grow. All that being said, you know, for a basketball game, nothing can really go shoulder-to-shoulder with 2K’s juggernaut. So NBA 2K26 has once again slam dunked on its competition (there isn’t any) and on our wallets.

NBA 2K26 should look and perform better on the Switch 2. It should also tone it down with all of the microtransaction noise on top of an already $70 game. But if you're willing to overlook those issues, you'll get a game that's a lot of fun to play and provides many ways to play it.

The game would be well served by a firm split between MyCareer and The City, with a Career mode and progression system more akin to MLB: The Show and an online multiplayer component that emphasizes parity rather than pay to win (or in most cases pay to simply be competitive). Feels like this is a pipedream based on the revenue that the series brings in, but it would definitely improve the overall experience.

NBA 2K26 represents a significant and welcome step in the right direction. After years of stagnation and controversial changes, the developers have focused on what matters most: gameplay on the court. Thanks to the new shooting system and significantly improved movement, playing basketball is more fun and satisfying than ever before. Add to that the best MyCareer story mode in recent years and an unrivaled audiovisual presentation, and we have a contender for the best installment in the series in a long time. However, the game still stumbles in the same, all-too-familiar areas: the neglect of offline modes, the ever-present shadow of microtransactions, and the W campaign.