I’ve got a basketball jones that only NBA 2K23 Arcade Edition can fill

October is a great month for sports. We’ve got the World Series and MLB playoffs happening, the NFL is in full swing, and both NBA and NHL seasons are beginning. So what a wonderful time to start the season with the new NBA 2K23 Arcade Edition coming to Apple Arcade.

I’m a pretty big fan of the NBA 2K franchise. In fact, NBA 2K was the first basketball game I owned on the original Sega Dreamcast. A few months ago, I compared NBA 2K Mobile with NBA Live Mobile in a head-to-head battle and declared NBA 2K Mobile the winner. Suffice to say...the series has a special place in my heart.

This is why October 18 can't come soon enough! That’s when NBA 2K23 will launch for iOS, though it will require a subscription to Apple Arcade. According to Apple, NBA 2K23 will feature some exclusive content like theTakeOver meter. Where you can perform GOAT basketball actions on the court to fill up your meter and once it’s full, you’ll receive a performance boost. There will be a few  boosts to choose from, and you’ll be able to pick those that match your style and upgrade them for increased effect. There will also be some classical features and modes familiar from other versions of the game like MyCAREER, The Association, Quick Match Modes, and Online Multiplayer Mode. Cross-Platform Gameplay is available across apple devices, and you can Play on your own or against friends via iCloud–on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV.

But perhaps the real icing on the cake is the all-new “Greatest Mode.” In this mode, players can complete challenges and earn points to see who’s the greatest finisher, shooter, playmaker, or defenseman in the NBA. To crown these superlatives, you’ll be able to play as twenty of the greatest-of-all-time NBA players. That includes superstars from the 2021-2022 NBA season, like Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Luka Doncic, as well as NBA legends, such as Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dirk Nowitzki.

Releases like this are starting to highlight the value of Apple Arcade and make me wonder if Apple will start taking gaming on their devices a bit more seriously. As we begin to see more major releases on the platform with cross-compatibility features on other Apple devices, I’m becoming more convinced that they really do care about games on the platform. Let's see what the future brings. Until then, I'll see you on the court.