NBA THE RUN

I expected a game like NBA Street. But this game is more like a bad Basketball Fortnite. There is no Tutorial, no games against CPU. They fully expect players to learn the game playing against other players. Which is very frustrating. Also, for a game with a shop, the customization options are very shallow. You can buy different jerseys, unlock some players, unlock taunts and dunks and some colors for your profile. That's it.

[h2]Overall: 8/10[/h2] [h3]Story:[/h3] There's no narrative of any kind whatsoever. This game disregards any kind of story and instead places it's focus all-in on classic arcade-style gameplay built strictly around 3v3 tournaments, all without trying to tell a cheesy story or justify why there can hypothetically be up to 6 of the same player on the court at once. It knows exactly what it wants to be and never wastes your time trying to force in cutscenes, dialogue, or a paper-thin excuse to connect one tournament to the next. You simply choose your player, jump into a bracket, and play. Sometimes less really is more, and I actually appreciate that the developers didn't feel the need to shoehorn in a story that nobody would have cared about anyway. It's an unapologetically arcade-focused experience from beginning to end, and I think the complete lack of a narrative ultimately works in this game's favor. [h3]Gameplay:[/h3] I think the gameplay, at its core, is a very fun experience, but it's also one that I have a lot of minor gripes with. First off, given that NBA 2K is not only the only other real basketball game out there these days, but also the only other officially licensed basketball game featuring real NBA players, I think it's extremely refreshing to have a completely new basketball experience. The gameplay obviously isn't competing with 2K, as it's more of a spiritual successor to NBA Jam/NBA Street, but I also think it's very important to emphasize that it is NOT either of those games at heart since it's always-online, lacks true single-player content, and has no local multiplayer options, so buying this game expecting a nostalgia walk will probably leave you disappointed. It can definitely get a little repetitive due to the lack of variety in game modes, but I also think the simplicity is exactly what makes it so fun when everything clicks. That's made even better by the fact that each player has both their own unique stats, AND their own unique jump shot, so you're given plenty of incentive to experiment with different players or switch things up if you feel like trying a different play style. When things go wrong, however, and this is where my gripes start, this game becomes one of the most exhausting gaming experiences I've had in a long time. Maybe even ever. For starters, do yourself a favor and don't even think about buying this game unless you have at least one other friend to play with. Playing with one random in your squad can already be pretty rough if they're playing like an absolute moron (which happens way more than you'd think), but it's still possible to pull out a win if you and your friend have enough skill and chemistry. Trying to play with two randoms, though, is genuinely miserable more often than not. You literally have no way to communicate with them, and there's a good chance they won't willingly pass you the ball anyway because they'd rather chuck up a half-court shot over 2 defenders than simply swing the ball to you, a "random". And that leads to one of my biggest gripes. For a split second, the utter lack of ball movement between most of the player base of this game was genuinely shocking to me, but then I remembered that anyone who has played Park on NBA 2K should have expected that. No, my actual biggest issue is that there's absolutely no way to communicate with your team. I'm not even saying this game NEEDS voice chat, but there's also no text chat, no generic quick chat prompts, and literally all of the D-Pad emotes you can unlock in the shop are just taunts to flex on the other team. It's kinda hard to get too mad at every random you get placed with when they make a bad play since this game gives you absolutely no way to coordinate with them in the first place. Still, what's even worse is that if you have squad fill enabled while playing and get teamed up with someone who plays like a complete goober then ends up costing you the game, there's literally no way to remove them from your squad. You can't kick ANYONE from your squad EVER. Not during a game, not in the main lobby... nowhere. If they refuse to leave, you're the one who's forced to leave YOUR OWN SQUAD just to get away from them. [h3]World:[/h3] When it comes to the world/level design, there honestly isn't a whole lot to talk about. This game's world currently features just seven courts/locations that are iconic to basketball culture and history, four of which also have tournament finals variants. There's no kind of open-area aspect at all, so the courts quite literally exist only as backdrops for you to hoop on. Still, as cool as it is to play in places like Rucker Park or the Tenement with real NBA players, the courts get really repetitive really fast. I'm well aware this is a small indie team and they had a thousand other priorities to focus on, but I honestly think it would've been nice to have more courts to play on. Even if they weren't real locations and were instead completely original, like they did with their OC playable hoopers, I think having a bit more visual variety would've gone a long way toward making the game feel less repetitive over time. [h3]Visuals:[/h3] Besides the gameplay, the visuals are probably my favorite aspect of this game. I'll be upfront and honest when I say that I've always had a soft spot for stylized, cel-shaded graphics, and this game finds a really nice balance between realism and stylization. The visuals use a soft cel-shaded art style that blends realistic player models with simplified lighting and clean, stylized environments. Rather than leaning into thick outlines or an overt comic-book aesthetic like a game like Borderlands or anything made by Telltale, this game opts for a much more restrained look that perfectly complements the fast-paced arcade gameplay while still preserving the recognizable appearance of all the NBA stars. It has just enough personality to stand out without becoming distracting, and I honestly think the art direction gives the game a timeless quality that will age much better than if it had chased photorealism. On top of that, the bold impact effects whenever a dunk is finished, the motion trails during dribble moves, exaggerated animations, and all the other little visual flourishes do an excellent job of reinforcing the game's identity and making every big play feel more satisfying. My biggest issue, however, is the fact that there is absolutely no ultrawide support. Again, I get that this game was developed by a team of 18 people, but for a $40 game released in 2026 to leave the infamous black bars on both sides of your monitor is actually egregious. What's even worse is that this has actually proved problematic for me several times, such as when there's a cherry-picking dork camping on your end of the court waiting for a full-court inbound after you just scored. That's visual information you literally just don't get if you're playing on an ultrawide, putting you at a disadvantage for no reason other than the aspect ratio you're using. This problem could be somewhat mitigated if the developers had opted to give you more than two camera angles, but as you could probably guess, that's not an option either. [h3]Music/Sound Design:[/h3] The sound design relies heavily on generic, repetitive hip-hop style track loops and even more repetitive announcer lines. This is probably my least favorite aspect of this game, and I ended up muting both very early on because they got old so fast. The general basketball sound effects are actually pretty good, and I'd even go as far as to say they enhance the experience by making every dribble, pass, block, and dunk feel more satisfying. Unfortunately though, the music is just kinda monotonous, and since I have no nostalgia for Bobbito Garcia, his announcements just feel obnoxious rather than entertaining. Seriously, I could go the rest of my life without hearing this dude say "Pizza, Burgers, Hotdogs!" and it would still be too soon.