The NBA and those surrounding the league continue to find ways to honor the memory of the late basketball icon Kobe Bryant, who died tragically in a helicopter crash earlier this year. 2K Games has spent most of the week revealing its various cover athletes for NBA 2K21, its beloved basketball game franchise. After naming Portland Trailblazers guard Damian Lillard the cover athlete for the current generation consoles, and New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson as the cover athlete for the next generation, 2K said that there was one more player left to reveal. On Thursday morning, the company announced that Bryant would grace the cover of the Mamba Forever Edition of the game, honoring the legacy of the legend.
Videos by ComicBook.com
2️⃣4️⃣ Legend. Leader. Champion. We honor Kobe Bryant as our Cover Athlete for the Next Gen Mamba Forever Edition 💜💛 #NBA2K21 pic.twitter.com/OOONVibhvX
— NBA 2K21 (@NBA2K) July 2, 2020
There will be two different Mamba Forever Editions of NBA 2K21, one for current generation consoles and one for next generation consoles. The version for current generations will feature Bryant in his #8 uniform from the early years of his career, while the next-gen cover shows Bryant in his #24.
The Mamba Forever Edition will cost $99.99 on both current and next generation consoles, essentially replacing the usual Legend Edition version of the game. There is a nice catch with this one, though. If you pre-order the Mamba Forever Edition on a next generation console, you’ll get a code for the standard edition on current generations. It works the same way if you pre-order the Mamba Edition on current generations, you get the standard on next-gen.
8️⃣ Relentless. Driven. A true competitor. We celebrate Kobe Bryant as our Cover Athlete for the Current Gen Mamba Forever Edition 🐍 #NBA2K21 pic.twitter.com/1wfH4kTPPN
— NBA 2K21 (@NBA2K) July 2, 2020
“NBA 2K21 is a monumental leap forward for the franchise,” stated Greg Thomas, president of Visual Concepts. “We’re combining all of our experience and development expertise to craft the best game possible and for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, we are building the game from the ground up to take full advantage of next-gen power and technology.”
What do you think of the Mamba Forever Edition covers of NBA 2K21? Let us know in the comments!
NBA 2K21 will be released on current generation consoles on September 4th.
