The basketball primus returns this year with NBA 2K23 – and this time the focus is on superstar Michael Jordan. The Jordan Challenge returns in this year’s installment!
The Jordan Challenge makes a comeback in the new NBA 2K23, letting you relive the legacy of arguably the greatest superstar in basketball history. You’ll relive the greatest moments from Michael Jordan’s days as a collegiate sensation, early playoff fights, and his most iconic performances in the NBA Finals.
Returning for the first time in over a decade, the Jordan Challenge game mode will explore 15 playable moments from Michael Jordan’s career – all the way through to the Game Winner in the 1998 NBA Finals. 2K itself summarizes the most important facts and features of this mode as follows:
- The tangible recreation of a bygone era, from the 1982 NCAA National Championship to the 1998 NBA Finals. Each challenge includes a pre-game interview with a luminary who played a part in making this game special;
- A full presentation package, including a specially designed video filter system, that recreates the TV experience of these games as originally broadcast during the 1980s and 1990s to create the look, feel and sound players* return inside to the game at that time;
- Major gameplay changes befitting the era, such as a greater emphasis on post and mid-range play for a 1980s feel, along with tighter transition lanes and more players going to the basket for numerical superiority versus spot-ups with three players in today’s NBA;
- More physical modeling on the ground and markings, plus new signature style upgrades for classic greats like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, with brand new jump shot, layup and dunk packages;
- Hand checks and hard body ups add a different feel to the 1v1 matches with precisely illustrated rules that reflect the basketball era of the 1990s, like the Detroit Pistons “Bad Boys” with their famous “Jordan Rules” and more.
In short: Compared to the games with today’s teams, 2K will turn a lot of screws to bring the retro feeling from the Jordan era to the screen.
NBA 2K23 will be available on September 9th for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Switch and PC.