Sports video games may not have had the “grandest arrival” into the industry, but once they took off, they didn’t really stop. Just look at the NFL and how they have a new game every single year, for better and for worse, and many other sports have followed suit, and that doesn’t even talk about all the more “cartoony” versions of sports games that have filled up the industry on both the AAA and indie side. EA Sports has been at the center of many of those simulator-style sports titles, and they recently teased that they were going to bring back college basketball to their lineup after the success of college football last year and this year.
The problem? Well, its rival in this genre, 2K Sports, apparently also made a pitch offer to key to people within the college basketball ruling body, and it appears that this proposal is what the governing body will go with. As noted by Extra Points, a memo was sent out by EA Sports’ VP of Commercial Partnerships & Licensing Sean O’Brien, who noted:
“Given there are some schools choosing to accept the 2K Sports proposal for inclusion in NBA 2K, the offer to be included in a college basketball video game will unfortunately have to be rescinded.
Everyone at EA SPORTS is disappointed that we couldn’t find an acceptable path forward, but we appreciate your support in trying to bring a stand-alone college basketball game with all men’s and women’s Division 1 institutions and student athletes, conferences, as well as the NCAA, in a way that fans have told us they want. We really appreciate your support.
Good luck with back to school and an exciting start to the football season.”
It’s interesting that he would end that memo with a mention of college football, as that’s the sport that they are making a game of. Likely a subtle dig at the decision, but we’re just speculating.
So, why did things fall apart? It’s hard to say, but a key thing noted by Extra Points is that, unlike EA’s college football title, 2K wasn’t trying to get every college to be a part of a singular game. Instead, they were trying to bring in select schools to be part of a special DLC for their NBA franchise, which certain schools likely saw as more beneficial, since they would be in the spotlight versus having to share things with everyone.
