NBA 2K13

Visual Concepts didn't give us much info in our behind-closed-doors meeting (not even a screenshot!), but we were able to glean a few vague details about the follow-up to the best basketball sim on the planet.

2K Sports always plays coy at E3. While EA gives fans a deep dive of its varied sports titles on the show floor and behind closed doors, the NBA 2K series prefers to play its cards close to the chest and save the big news splashes for the summer months. No screenshots. No franchise mode details. No deep gameplay dives. Instead, we got a tour of the new All-Star Weekend DLC that fans receive for free if they pre-order the game, and we also saw a brief glimpse of the game in action.

The demo started with an impressive pre-game presentation package that once again ups the ante for the rest of the sports genre. The faux finals match-up between the recently defeated San Antonion Spurs and soon-to-be-defeated (fingers crossed) Miami Heat begins with a TNT-style intro that incorporates shots of the various players while hyping the epic nature of the showdown. It then cuts away to a "live" look at the Alamo in San Antonio, a real shot of the fabled landmark. 

2K says the game is already running at 60 frames per second, and they promise a rebalancing of the offense and defense. In the past few years the team has continued to add new moves to the already deep arsenal of offensive players, but the defenders best hope was to play off the ball handler and just try to stay in front of them. In 2K13, defenders have more counters at their disposal. Visual Concepts also promised streamlined controls that are more simple to use, but they are saving the details for a later date.

The already impressive animation systems are also receiving attention. Though players move fluidly already, last year's game still had awkward transitions between when a player performed a big dunk and their subsequent celebration. NBA 2K13 blends these transitions more quickly so players don't stand around for a half second like they are waiting for a command.  

We also saw a brief glimpse of the NBA All-Star Weekend DLC. This package includes a reworked slam dunk contest, three-point competition, rookie challenge, and the All-Star game. The new slam dunk competition uses a Guitar Hero-like button sequencing that requires players to quickly tap buttons in a specific order to execute the dunk. The harder the dunk, the tougher the button chart. Users can select from both current and legendary characters like His Airness himself, Michael Jordan. 

If you pre-order the game, this All-Star Weekend content will integrate with the My Player and Association modes as well so you can participate in the festivities during the season. The game logic looks at player ratings and performances to determine who competes, and if your My Player avatar makes the all-star or rookie team you get to participate. 

Look for more details on NBA 2K13 as we move closer to the October 2 release date for Xbox 360 and PS3.