One of the easier decisions to make for our 2023 awards was giving NBA 2K24 the title of best franchise mode.
With the addition of MyEras last year, MyNBA has become the easy choice back-to-back years now in this category. MyNBA continues to be an easy mode to point to as something that clearly showcases a love for both franchise modes and the NBA itself. We might have some interesting competition next year if EA Sports College Football comes back strong, but my guess is that we’ll be crowning the same game this time next year.
When I factor in the amount of community creations for MyNBA/MyEra, it’s hard to see something else competing for the belt in the next couple years unless MLB The Show can bring back year-to-year saves and really embolden folks to go crazy again with custom rosters.
If I factor in modding, Madden on PC does get more intriguing as well (especially with 2K taking a real step back on PC), but the base version of Madden’s franchise mode gets lapped by NBA 2K’s in various ways, so even the modding community can only do so much in a year to make up that ground.
NBA 2K24‘s MyNBA mode added in another new era (LeBron Era), and the addition of MyNBA Lite remains an underrated addition as it simplified the mode and allowed you to get through multiple seasons in a way that felt very much like a return to a simpler time in sports gaming. Things like rule changes, sneaking in stuff like the NBA on NBC theme song, and even getting in a version of the In-Season Tournament just showcase why 2K is only competing against itself.
This was not quite the landslide victory I would have expected. NBA 2K24 won with 43 percent of the vote, and MLB The Show 23 came in at 32 percent of the vote. I do think MLB The Show did absolutely get better this year, and they’re making some smart choices it seems by trying to focus on one aspect of the mode to improve year-to-year right now. The issue is that they’ll never probably catch up to 2K by going that route.
Still, the presentation took another leap forward as well, and the gameplay is very strong in MLB The Show 23, so it helps to keep things rolling game to game when it’s just fun to play the game in general.
Super Mega Baseball 4 came in third (and I think that’s the correct choice), and then nothing else really entered the community voting conversation. Here’s to hoping the competition gets a little stronger in 2024.
