Season Pass details and pricing revealed

[ThePointForward]

2K has revealed Season Pass model and pricing: https://nba.2k.com/2k24/season-pass/

2K24 is joining the likes of other games with Season/Battle/Whatever Pass models.
There will be three tiers: Free, Pro and Hall of Fame.

Free option will work as it works in 2K23. 40 levels in MC and 40 levels in MT. You can earn all these by playing the game.
Pro pass, at 10 dollars, gives you extra 40 rewards to earn by playing the game and 4 additional rewards that are separate from the other rewards and are unlocked immediately on purchase.
HoF pass, at 20 dollars, gives you what Pro pass does, then 1 extra additional reward, 15 % XP boost for the duration of the season and 10 level skips.

Additionally you'll be able to purchase a 10 dollar pass upgrade which will upgrade Pro pass into HoF pass and level skips, which will be 2 dollars per pop.

Each season will be 6 weeks long.
Season passes will be available on all platforms including old gen.
You can purchase the pass after leveling up and you'll get what you would've earned.
XP boost starts applying after HoF pass purchase, doesn't act retroactively.

[ThePointForward]

Personal thoughts separately to not mix it with the news:

I don't like season passes in fully priced games. The game on launch is 77 Euro (Xbox Series, Czechia). I'm going to assume dollar-euro parity. If there's going to be 9 seasons, that's another 90 euro for seasonal rewards.

My main worry is that the premium rewards will not be just some cosmetics, but it will be badge points, skill enhancing clothing, or OP animations. I wouldn't put it past 2K to pull off some shenanigans like that.

[jmmontoro]

This and them releasing a day after the biggest juggernaut of this generation is enough to convince me to skip this release since 2K started releasing on PC.

[ThePointForward]

Yeah, I was planning that it might be a nice christmas sale purchase. I see no real reason to buy 2K now with Starfield releasing in two weeks. It will keep me busy for a while in regards to gaming.

[Andrew]

So when rumours of Season Passes first surfaced, I took it to mean that they were completely replacing the existing rewards system. Since the free rewards will remain, I'll say that it's not as bad as it could've been. I also think combining season progression for MyCAREER and MyTEAM is a good move. So that's sort of good news; it could be worse.

However, I'm still dismayed to see Season Passes in a full-priced release that will be superseded in a year's time. Nine seasons that last six weeks (as opposed to three or four seasons lasting four or three months respectively) also feels like a huge cash grab, even if one was to opt for the lower tier pass. Par for the course, obviously, but still lousy. They're - shall we say - "strongly encouraging" gamers to spend at least a few hundred dollars on NBA 2K24, to say nothing of spending even more money on MyTEAM packs and any additional MyPLAYER builds, since there's no re-spec. And sure, it'll be "optional", but when the rewards include boosts and gameplay advantages on top of status symbol premium cosmetic items, FOMO is going to get to people.

It's all gotten just a bit too greedy for my liking, to put it mildly.

[yummybear]

I wouldn't mind to purchase earlier or on the release date . But i am depending on the modders here as they make this game more beautiful to play. Thanks to you guys!!

Playing a thin body with big heads looks so much cartoon to me

[ThePointForward]

At this point honestly I'm just all for 2K (and tbh other companies as well) bleeding dry anyone who keeps spending more and more money.
Until we get another video game industry crash or governments (probably starting with EU) take notice and start regulating it.
Maybe a bit cynical, but oh well.

[Andrew]

I'd say it's being realistic. Competition, legislation, or a bubble burst/industry collapse, are what it's going to take at this point.

[ThePointForward]

So this is a good piece of information, Mike Wang tweeted that the paid tracks of the season pass will not contain anything giving a competitive advantage to players.

Tweet: https://twitter.com/Beluba/status/1695151244565004665

[Andrew]

I do wonder how long that will last. I still don't support the idea of season passes in NBA 2K, just as I don't support microtransactions, but if they are an inevitability, the best we can hope for is that they're as fair as possible, with the least amount of drawbacks or negative impact on the gaming experience. I don't exactly trust any Triple-A developers/publishers these days, though.