In August 2023, NBA 2K24 shared the news that one of the biggest rewards in this year’s version of MyTeam would be a top-rated Kobe Bryant that would come out in April 2024 through the Collector Level. However, that window has come and gone and NBA 2K24 fans can’t help but notice that there’s no new Kobe Bryant card in MyTeam. Unfortunately, it was recently announced by 2K that fans won’t ever be getting that promised reward for reasons that aren’t exactly clear. As you’d expect, that announcement has been met with widespread criticism and anger.
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NBA 2K24 Won’t Release Promised Kobe Bryant Reward
Before diving in, it’s important to explain what the Collector Level is in MyTeam. Essentially, players are encouraged to collect as many player cards as possible to earn new rewards. The best reward of the year was meant to be a new version of Kobe Bryant that 2K said would be available by the end of April. This was stated by 2K in its pre-release developer blog. The exact phrasing was “Collector Level rewards have always been important in MyTeam, and last year the rewards came as surprises with a hidden end goal. So let’s look forward a few months and reveal that Kobe Bryant will be the top reward in the Collector Level, and this reward will be available in April, during Season 6.”
It’s also worth noting that to get to the top reward in the Collector Level at this point, most players need to have spent real-world money to acquire enough cards. But seemingly out of nowhere, 2K posted on its Discord that “a change to a reward has occurred.” Instead of getting the promised Kobe Bryant, players will get access to two previously released 100 OVR cards, but there’s even a catch with this reward. The current best 100 OVR player is Yao Ming, who is not available in the Collector Level player pick. So, not only is 2K axing a promised reward, but its make-good doesn’t include the best player in the game.ย
Again, it’s not hard to see why players are upset by this change from 2K. Players on Twitter are calling the move “absolutely pathetic,” and major content creators are saying this is yet another step in the series’ “slow downfall.” It’s also worth noting that 2K has yet to make a further statement about why the change was made. Some fans have been speculating that it might be a rights or licensing issue, but that seems unlikely given that Kobe received a new card in February, and the original plan was outlined before NBA 2K24 was available.ย
Regardless, this is quickly becoming a major issue for the developers. Hopefully, they will address the change in a statement soon, explaining what changed between August and now. That said, no matter how good the reasoning is, NBA 2K24 has seemingly lost a significant chunk of its fanbase over this decision.
NBA 2K24 is available now on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC platforms.
