Published 15:12 IST, October 19th 2020
NBA 2K21 gets criticized by fans for inclusion of unskippable ads at flagship $70 price
NBA 2K21 game is being criticized by fans in the mainstream for its decision to include in-game unskippable ads even when it asks for a flagship price of $70.
NBA 2K21 released back on September 4, 2020, and has since then been subjected to a number of controversies. The game opened to abysmal reviews with Metacritic rating the game a poor 0.9 score. However, it looks like the NBA 2K21 controversy is here to stay for a while at least as the game now features unskippable ads which are taking over the internet as of now.
The ads in-question are of the Oculus Quest 2 which are now being pushed on NBA 2K21 on the PS4, XBOX One, and PC version of the sports game. While in-game ads are understandable and even appreciated in free games which depend upon paid advertisements to survive, NBA 2K21, on the other hand, can cost a player up to $100, depending on which version of the game they have their hands on. Thus the NBA 2K21 ads are being criticised by fans.
NBA 2K21 Ads controversy
The game, during its launch, was heavily criticised for not being any different than the previous versions of the game. There were no significant changes in the game's controls or graphics which led to players writing that the game hasn't been updated and only been repackaged as a new one. Now, the inclusion of advertisements has left players disappointed even more. Players of the game are now taking to social media and complaining about the same.
Twitter users by the name @NolanJoseph13 took to the reply section of one of NBA 2K21's tweets and wrote -'I came here to specifically say how garbage and greedy this game is. Ads? Really? In a $70 game? It was bad enough how it’s the same game every year. Anyone who plays this game and is reading this, stop supporting it. It’s wasting your time and money.'
Image courtesy - NBA 2K21 Twitter official
Whereas, another user by the name @bernieljacobs wrote - '@NBA2K y’all really put ads in the game?!?!? Done, even if you take it out im NEVER buying 2k again. You guys started selling NBA and NFL 2k for $20 now your the most greedy studio in the industry' (sic). The backlash to NBA 2K21 putting ads in their game has been immense. The backlash is only expected to grow furthermore as the game's next-gen version for the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S with an inflated price of $70 is also expected to feature ads in it.
Updated 15:13 IST, October 19th 2020