The release of NBA 2K26 is nearly here and for gaming fans, the latest version of the game is bringing significant changes to its gameplay.
ProPlay, 2K's technology that translates real NBA footage into gameplay and realistic animations, is bridging the gap between reality and virtual even more, completely upgrading how the players move on the court.
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2K described the Motion Engine as "the biggest change to player movement since NBA 2K21."
"Leveraging machine-learning technology, ProPLAY powers an all-new Motion Engine in NBA 2K26, making actions feel more lifelike and realistic across all on-court movement," 2K said.
"Dynamic lower-body pose matching adjusts the exact positioning of players' legs and feet on the fly and ensures they launch, plant and cut realistically."
Making the game as realistic as possible has been 2K's main focus for 2K26, overhauling the rhythm shooting in the process.
“In NBA 2K26, Rhythm Shooting extends beyond mimicking each player’s signature shooting animation to giving you full control over every aspect of the shot," per the latest Courtside Report.
"This shooting control method still relies on a DOWN-UP flicking motion with the shot stick, but now your Shot Timing and Tempo will actually manipulate the shooter’s upper body and impact how the shot looks throughout the complete motion by reflecting how you move the shot stick.
"From the start, you’ll see and feel the difference between early, late, slow, and fast releases. If you flick UP early and rush your shot, you can do quick releases. If you flick UP late and slowly, you’ll see the effect with a delayed pushing motion and lazier release."
Along with the player movement and shooting upgrades, 2K has added the Green or Miss Shot Timing to every mode in 2K26, along with improvements to the defensive side of the floor, with the new collision system, which delivers sharper body-to-body defensive coverage over the previous motion-captured animations.
The updates also include more intuitive controls for quicker feedback and smoother gameplay that rewards fast decision-making, a green meter for rebounding, a new mix of player-realistic layup styles, the ability to create your own custom layup packages, and intermediate tutorials to get you up to speed with the new features.
Overall, the look and feel of NBA 2K26 is super-polished, with gameplay speed and fluidity the most noticeable upgrades from what we've seen so far.
Early access for NBA 2K26 begins August 29, ahead of the game's official release on September 5.