NBA The Run Review

When it comes to NBA games, people tend to think of the annual release of the 2K games. Whilst I love the realism of those games, they are very hefty on hard drive space. The best memories I have with basketball titles are the old-school NBA Jam games. NBA Playgrounds managed to bring some similarities, but for me, they didn’t really become memorable experiences. NBA The Run is now available on Xbox Series X/S, which is developed and published by Play By Play Studios. This isn’t your traditional NBA title; think FIFA Street meets NBA.

Gameplay

NBA The Run is an online multiplayer-only title, at launch at least, with a campaign to follow in 2027, according to the roadmap. You’ll have the most fun playing with friends as a group of three, but you can also play solo as well. I spent most of my time in Knockout Solos and Squads. They are essentially short and snappy matches with rotating rulesets that change the dynamic of the game. Squads mode is more tactical, as communication is key if you’re gunning for the win. Playing with randoms who hog the ball and shoot every time they get towards the opposition’s hoop can become infuriating, but this is always the risk with any sports game.

With the matches being short, though, if you get stuck with randoms who don’t gel together, it isn’t long before you can hop into another match and go again. Matchmaking was pretty speedy during the day, night and even into the early hours. What keeps the game interesting is that when levelling up, you can use in-game currency to purchase cosmetics, and with daily and weekly challenges, I’m sure there’s loads more to come. Whilst I felt things were a little light in the game mode department, it’s encouraging to see that there is content on the way and will be supported well into 2027.

Visuals & Audio

NBA The Run performs well on Xbox Series X at a smooth 60fps. During my 12 or so hours with the game, I didn’t notice any visual hiccups whatsoever. The standout is the court design and its urban environments. They have done a fantastic job of bringing varied and colourful basketball courts to some of the biggest cities in the world. Not only do the courts look great, but the surroundings wrapped around them are brilliant as well. Crowds are present, observing the fast, fluid game in front of them, with the environment seamlessly blending into the background.

The UI is minimal and stylish and fits in well with the overall aesthetics of the game. Character design is another standout, with some good animations that present well within the quick-paced gameplay loop. NBA The Run nails the audio with a well-curated soundtrack featuring classic hip-hop and more. Sound effects are, as you’d expect, with slam ducks being heard as well as felt. The prominent sound of the ball hitting the backboard, the screech of sneakers and the thud of a ball being caught as it’s being passed around all sound top-notch on a decent headset.

Final Thoughts

There is no doubt about it, NBA The Run is fun, but I do believe in its current state that replayability and longevity have limited scope. If you’re someone who doesn’t like to engage in online competitive multiplayer, then this won’t be your bag. For hardcore basketball fans, though, you’ll likely love it, and the 3v3 aspect makes it so easy to jump into with friends. Short, snappy matches which are fluid, fun and fast make it a very appealing game. Time will only tell how it carries itself over time with the player base. That said, the developers are listening to feedback and no doubt there will be plenty of additions and tweaks in the future as long as there is demand.

Future Roadmap Detailed!

Just before I was about to publish this review, the closing of this article was answered. Not only has the team been hard at work pushing patches, but lots of future content has been revealed. Below are just some of what is on the way, but if you want the full intel, check out the link HERE.

• June 25th: Game Patch w/ a bunch of fixes & gameplay tuning updates.
• July: Game Update w/ new content & new players… Is it feeling drafty in here?
• August: Time to kick off Seasons, starting with Summer Heat. New players, new features, new content and more. It will be Legendary.
• Fall: We’ll be continuing to drop new content and Seasons every 2-3 months.
• 2027: The big one… You want a campaign mode?! We’re giving you one… Game Time!