Sports Games got WEIRD 

Sports games did not get weird. They got worse.

Honestly micro transactions are anoying in sports games I don't care for a season pass I JUST WANA PLAY BASEBALL

The excitement over a college football video game is a perfect representation of what sports video game fans ACTUALLY care about.

This all started when EA Sports bought the exclusive rights to the NFLPA in 2006, setting a new precedent and ending competition

Bring back EA Big. The streets need a new NBA Street and SSX game.

Former Madden fanboy here. I think the frustration you pointed out about losing features from old games while being advertised to aggressively is half the problem. But the game switched from the ignite engine in Madden 25 (2014) to frostbite, which was basically a commitment to cinematics and graphics, while making the game feel more scripted and on-rails. I think the AI took a nose dive for both FIFA and Madden when they embraced frostbite. In any video game you just want to feel in control of the game. Another problem is that the community will eat up anything that looks pretty and displays the players’ faces glamorously, and the developers realize and are counting on that.

I think you've nailed it in this vid. Sports games are fun when you just let us play the sport, and not have to worry about things like ultimate team. I'm loving my career in Cricket 24 because it just lets me play without being asked to drop cash to max my stats out like in NBA 2K. We really need a big reset or new competition in the genre.

"We're the audience. It shouldn't matter to us how the business works." 👏👏👏

I just wish people would honestly say to themselves "I am a victim of a predatory business model." Sports games that come out every year are already pretty suspect, but when you've got lootboxes, season passes, and you *literally* are only leasing the game until the servers shutdown in 4 years...is that really a good investment? I would rather regress to the 80s, a time before I was even born, and enjoy the games of that time period than give this manipulative garbage the time of day.

I once lost an NBA2k solo franchise in year 12 because the servers shut down with no internal warning, and I didn’t realize that my file was only saved on the network

Microtransactions are the huge reason of sport games' downfall

The thing is with NBA 2k they make it hard as possible to play the game without micro transactions.

As far as ice hockey immolation goes, the Zamboni is a vehicle that resets the ice between period and flattens and smoothes it with hot water. So… being on fire would help melt the ice but it would probably happen so fast that the ice wouldn’t have time to freeze again so the results wouldn’t be helpful. It might depend on the ambient temperature of the arena. But I’m not a physicist. Hope that helps

Micro transactions ruined video games 😭 this is a post mortem, they’ve been dead for years

Lack of competition is the problem. EAss and 2k got lazy and greedy because they have no competition.

Lack of competition and the popularity of online play is the reason for the lack of passion in sports games and just video games in general

Admittedly, an amazing video that touches on how almost all video games these days have become money grabbing corporate entities, not just sports games. The biggest indicator is at the end of the video when you put together the montage. Every game looks amazing and nostalgic and I missed every game you showed… then PGA 2k23 popped up, and the ball flying in the air just looks lifeless and dull. Sad times these days

What sucks is that MLB the show felt like the only good sports game bc it wasn’t so heavy on micro transactions on its diamond dynasty mode, but they recently just kept shoving packs in our throats that cost way too much making you want to spend money

They basically became all sims besides Mario sports and any clones. We used to have SSX, NBA Street, NFL Blitz

Hardcore 2K gamer from 11 to 22 here, I really can only agree with your sentiments here. 2K has managed to get away with so much, it feels like there's a major controversy every year since 18 -- from unskippable ads, to deleting players, to 2K24 literally lying and scamming people out of card rewards ... the audacity of sports gaming companies is insane

Who are the people who gamble on the packs and skins and stuff??? I don't know anyone like that, where are they hiding? Who's playing online and sweats? I just want a great franchise mode...

Excellent video, as always! Also, although they're not conventional "sports" games, I do miss the EA NASCAR games of the early to mid 2000s. I played the hell out of those back in the day.

Sports games are trying to not be sports games. They’re trying to be open world like mmorpgs, they’re trying to have grand story modes, theyre trying to have microtransactions like mobile or casual games, etc. while also being sports sims. And they can’t do all of these things so they do each of them poorly and the quality of just the sports gameplay alone stagnates or declines

Very surprised this video doesn’t have a lot of views. Very well put together and informative! I’ve been playing sports games my entire life and this completely sums up the genre. Great video bro‼️

wimp exposing modern gaming one genre at a time

Super underrated stuff, never see people with

The problem with madden is not only do you get nickel and dimed but the gameplay also sucks but they have the exclusive license so you have no choice.

This video better pop off and your channel better grow! This was a fantastic video! Summarized everything perfectly. I recently returned to NBA 2K to be disappointed that the my career mode changed so drastically. But you really hit the nail on the head with every point in this video. FANTASTIC work!!!!

I wish there would be an NBA or basketball in general and a soccer game similar to games like super mega baseball series or the golf club series. The state of sports games, for the most popular of them, is disappointing, at least.

i think it’s also been fascinating to see how more common emulators have become and the advancement of those as well.

This is exactly the kind of thing I subbed for. Doesn't matter if it's the "usual" genre or not - at the end of the day it's a funny guy, making a video on a topic he's passionate about, with some entertaining gags and some good editing.

Found this video on the home page and really enjoyed. Wish you had talked more about cricket and rugby games, they're a really interesting case in a discussion that's usually centered on annual release American sports (and FIFA/EAFC)

Bro so glad I stumbled upon this video today man. Your videos are are absolutely blast to watch! Looking forward to more amazing contents from you!

I was so glad to see the clip of Backbreaker in the montage section, that is one of my favorite sports games ever, every day I imagine how good a modern day high budget nfl game would be with the same physics engine as that game

The Show Games are not getting better, they feel like they are getting worse... I find myself playing 21 and 22 instead of 23 and 24 lol. The graphics look worse, presentation, the gameplay has totally gotten worse. The baseball looks different, they haven't made any changes to franchise, the online modes are fucked rn, the only big additions they made to 24 were women in ROTS... which is all good but that's all we got...

Correction:sports games got BAD. Exclusivity led to laziness and greed.

missed opportunity, could have went on the F1 series hard because its had the EA treatment the past few years as well codemasters had issues before the buy out but man are they hitting a whole new level of terrible now

Absolute gem of a video you made here, 100% agree with all your points, hopefully one day we can get some competition back in the sports genre. Maybe we'll get a small taste of that with Madden, with the new college game coming out. Same company but maybe some pressure will be given if it performs well

as a long time 2k player, the show was SUCH a breath of fresh air. i have never really been a fan of other sports because any fandom for any sport i ever had came from video games, and i've been playing 2k since i was 4 or 5 years old. last year, i tried the show for the first time and fell in love with both the game and baseball itself. don't get me wrong, it's loaded with microtransactions as well, but compared to recent 2ks, it was so muted. i play basically every mode in any sports game, so going from 2k's ridiculous 99 overall craze with shaq having 90+ 3 point ratings in my team to getting baseball players that somewhat play like how they do in real life was such a relief. it's fun, it's interesting to learn something new, so it's so much better for me personally. the mynba eras is the best addition i think 2k has made in years, and they've already half-abandoned that mode and it's still loaded with generic players winning awards and completely abandoning the boom-or-bust potential system that they hyped up so heavily. 2k seems like they legitimately don't care about basketball. at least the show seems like it's made by people who like baseball.

youtube gave me an advertisement 6 seconds into your nostalgia montage at the end, and it was so ironic i thought i was going to rip my hair out

Hi Mr. Wilson, this was in my recommended today & ended up binge watching all your videos. You gave me some genuine chuckles and your reviews are now strictly how a base what games I play lol

A few thoughts: 1. Licensing is a real problem in sports games and is a big reason their is lack of competition and depth to current games. The upcoming limitations of CFB 25 is an example of this. 2. I don’t think the video game industry is all to blame. Some of the publishers of sports games make non sports games just fine sometimes. 3. Which means the underrated culprit is sports itself. In many ways sports games mirror real life sports where they have moved away from telling good stories to being filled with betting and gambling. MyTeam modes, online gameplay modes, and mycareer modes have turned into essentially large arenas for gambling like practices. However so have sports. In the 90s and 00s sports was largely compelling for the stories being told and we all played games to create our own stories. Hence the sandbox component of older games being so much better. Sports games will always mirror the culture of sports more broadly because presumably their dominant market is going to be the modern generations who are hooked on sports as they are.

All ima say is the community is at fault for the way sports gaming is we keep buying trash product that’s overpriced 🤷🏽‍♂️ accountability.

I’m just waiting for the day when EA and the NFL get investigated for monopolizing there games. Also goes for Sony and The Mlb

Anyone else remember how awesome the EA sports ads used to be?

Sports games are unfortunately monopolized and those companies sign sports organizations to exclusive deals which essentially cuts out all competition. I miss when 2k and EA Live competed for sales and pushing new feature because they HAD TOO.

I’m 23, I have played MLB The Show every year since I was 12; this is the worst product they’ve put out by far! Such an obvious cash grab.

Great work video about racing games as usual, not many cars though, in all seriousness the big ant cricket games slap and have no natural enemy or competitor. Weird observation but your shirt looks like it would be heavy and would feel scratchy, please confirm. Keep up the great work!

what these companies don’t realize (or refuse to acknowledge for some reason) is that they’d make more money creating a good game that customers will play year round instead of a game based on micro transactions with the only new content being packs that kills the consumer interest in a matter of months. i just don’t get it. nostalgia always plays a part but old sports games are and feel pure and innocent, because they aren’t focused on sucking every dollar out of you possible and instead focus on giving you a fun experience.

You’re spot on with the 2K assessment. Old games really felt like a basketball RPG instead of VC cash dump simulator

No matter where you are in the world, everybody can do that 'Texas football coach' accent🤣

I want to play a season system offline on EA FC 24 but I don't know if I can, the menu's are super confusing. I just want to relax and boot a ball around a pitch

This vid hit close to home. Cheers man. Great vid

I don’t personally I really enjoy the old art style and presentation of the old 2000s sports game, like they’re sort of timeless and I can go back to the old games and not really complain about graphics compared to the HD era where it’s so easy to tell the graphical difference that the old games will always look inferior

NFL Blitz on Dreamcast was Gold (in my student day's) but main one we played was the rugby league games and the NHL and jonah lomu rugby and Shane Warne cricket 99 ;)

I think an optimistic future for games like these can be found in some sports management games. Both Football manager and F1 manager to be specific. Football manager has been an excellent game in the genre for years and is now at the point where any addition is just adding to a masterpiece. As for F1 manager, as a new franchise, they constantly build on what they created the year before. Delivering a game that is genuinely worth buying each year as it really is a whole new game. The main thing about each is they haven't chased the micro transactions. They both build a game and sell that game, no bullshit. I mean F1 Manager 24 comes out next month for just £29.99. You can't argue with the value these games have in them. The biggest thing is these games see there player base as people, not walking piggy banks.

This is why we used to always say monopolies are BAD. Shockingly, monopolies are BAD. Loved this video! From a Yank married to an Aussie..

This dude is gonna blow up and I’m gonna be able to brag that I subbed when he was less than 3k.

The 2k story about my career is exactly what happened

It’s not just micro transactions… it’s the stupid trading card games they put into games that are already simulation-style. Idc what no one says I remember in 2009-2010 when madden first introduced the whole trading card thing. And they said it was to help pay the nfl legends which were no longer just playable. But I’ve watched these trading card games go from fun modes to all out money grabs. Devs aren’t even hiding it anymore. It’s just “put in your card number here” even after you already paid 60-150$ just to own the game itself.

I wish this video was focused more on The Show. Slowly it’s been getting worse and worse every year until this year it really feels like an exact copy of the last 2 years except with waaaaaay more packs and players shoved into packs and that being the only way to get them. It’s sad.

Yeah, I really miss sports games of the past. I feel like the licensing has to be at least partially to blame, those costs have skyrocketed and of course the exclusivity of Madden/NFL. This is the first video of yours I’ve seen, good stuff!

New sports games feel like your pressing a button to start an animation. You don't feel in control at all.

While the criticisms against the Madden guys are fair and warranted, it should be noted that a big reason so many of the features are removed from the game [like being able to create your own teams with their own names and logos, and such] is because of the NFL's control of the license and how the license is meant to be produced in the market. The NFL wants one company to have the license, they want to be able to pull the plug immediately if something goes against their policies or public image. That being said, EA is a notoriously dumpster fire organization when it comes to any of their sports titles. The fact that the NFL allows EA to incorporate gambling tactics into their licensed product for the sake of selling more MUT bullshit goes to show that it really is about milking as much profit out of the release as possible, and not about creating a long-lasting title that people can actually enjoy. Enjoy it just enough to have the whales buying cards, that is the business model, and it completely ruined the franchise.

I've liked the Madden games less and less since they swapped to the Frostbite engine and made Ultimate Team less and less solo-friendly. The core problem with current Madden games is the engine itself, it's built for shooters and animations - that inherently doesn't work for a game where you need to feel fairly in control. Ever since that swap as well, snow and rain games have felt very unimpactful, with snow being the worst. You used to see inches of snow, sometimes it building up on the field more, and you could FEEL that snow. In rain games you could make the correct read and have your receiver fall before the ball comes out because the cut was too sharp. That's not even touching how they rarely and barely upgrade franchise mode, and are focused more on getting face scans into the game than the core problems with the mode itself. As for MUT, it used to feel good. There used to be legitimate progression in solos, and solo battles were a nice alternative to PvP. Now solo battles is all you get, IF they decide to work, because the battle pass and seasons system has made it so you don't get to go back to programs from previous seasons. That's blatantly to push buying packs, which ALSO got worse because they're expensive, have very few players, and very rarely are worth the dopamine rush. Madden is a great example of how corporate greed can destroy a game. Yes they need to make money but they would make more money if the purchases would be worth making. They'd make more money if the non-MUT players got more than updated rosters and maybe a small handful of changes to Franchise, which may or may not be worth the purchase.

I think with sport games too the league for each game needs to allow the devs to have fun and allow a slower development process not this yearly release. Like for Madden the reason so many things aren’t in that is because of the NFL

Cheers from California mate! Please keep on preaching about the state of sports games , you're spot on. All the racing vids are dope too! Keep on chugging Bruhv

Great video. I really enjoy sports games and wish we had more competition like we did during the PS2 days!

NHL HITZ & NFL BLITZ are amazing games that me and my friends played regularly. Great gaming memories

At first I thought Big Ant was the only reference to Rugby League we'd get, then I caught it in the outro. I love the Rugby League games, the older ones have some of the best Bulldogs teams and the newer ones sort of recapture what made Rugby League 2 fun. Can't say much for Rugby League Live 4 though because I haven't played it, and the less said about Rugby League Live 1 the better lmao

I wouldn't say they got "weird", I would say they got both greedy and worse. With microtransactions the genre doesn't care about career mode or a franchise mode, its more so how much money they can milk out of your wallet to "have fun" with certain virtual card games like MUT, My Team and even to a degree Diamond Dynasty. With no competition there is no urge, need or passion. Look at how good 2K and even EA were during the early to mid 2000's, it's no secret they put out their best games around that time because competition brings out the best in everyone.

There are plenty of great sports games coming out nowadays, you just gotta know where to look. Out of the Park Baseball, Wild Card Football, 3on3 Freestyle, Super Mega Baseball, Football Manager. A shame the industry is so dominated by the top-end names that no one goes to look below the surface.

You gotta make a video on CFB 25 when it comes out

New golf games can’t even compete with Tiger woods 2004 or 2005.

I've never been more mad at new-gen sports games than when I got NBA 2K23 expecting to just boot up career mode and shoot some hoops, but then be forced to do some mandatory SKATEBOARDING side mission with terrible controls and even worse writing...

What you should have mentioned is that 2K released both NFL and NBA 2K5 for $19.99 brand new. EA had to cut price to $39.99 to compete and got so salty about it they bought NFL exclusivity. But for a year, 2K was a company that was so intent of giving gamers a better product for an insanely affordable price they dropped their two biggest games for $30 below retail value. Now they’re getting kids to spend real money on fake currency to buy cool costumes for “The City”, which is literally just a glorified menu turned into an interactive soulless and corporate time sink. Back in my day…

Brooo this is hilarious and accurate ASL love it new sub

Bro is playing 2k on that angle is crazy🤣

There are two things I think is cool about the way eFootball formerly known as PES does with their game. It is free to play in the sense that anyone can download it and give it a try. It is also operating under a yearly update cycle so all the cards that you acquire from the time you begin playing it won't go anywhere because they carry over to the next year. The one thing I will say about it currently is that they only have the dream team mode and co op events but there should be more offline content and features in general besides new legendary packs. I hope that they eventually start to introduce something for people that aren't so bothered about dream team. It is currently a far cry from what they had with the PES series at least when you look at it from a game feature perspective.

I mean like sports games business now and days are only the representation of our society today as well…it’s been that way for years including on ways of producing income…Monopoly in sports games today are sadly a generation model of todays games…so not only it takes away the joy in games but expectations of them seems to be high due to that model and when expectations doesn’t meet, which has been happening over a decade, we the consumers seen to have a feeling of dissatisfaction and lost due to being emotionally invested in playing them…sports games have now been shown as just a liability of gaming due to the aspects of business…

PREACH! Also, totally agree with you about golf. Cannot play it IRL, but boot up PGA Tour 05 and bam, calming energy and fun times.

Yeah, that is honestly true. I think sports games have gone downhill because there’s no competition so they can just re-release the same game every single year like they do

As a madden fan, the gameplay gets absolutely busted with cheesy moves and animation based gameplay and the x factors that are either conpletely op, or sometimes are good.

Some of it is fans. Some of it is next gen. Majority of sports games are great offline. But more than 95% don’t play sports games offline. Also sports games on next gen is more about graphics then about fun and creativity.

The problem for me with a lot of sports games focus on gameplay and graphics, but have put no effort into presentation, minigames, collectibles and whatnot. Madden is particularly sterile - whether that's because of the NFL or EA, I'm not sure. Generic intros, halftime shows and postgame, no sideline interviews, no cutaway shots to fans in the stands, nothing that makes the game feel like a TV presentation (which is part of what captivated me when I played my first NFL game, NFL 2K5) Modern sports games lean too hard into the simulation aspect but the arcade stuff is always more fun to play in a videogame.

I have problems with NBA 2K gameplay….Im a MyNBA rare player and I’m upset I can’t realistically replicate the style of pace my favorite team the Pacers plays with. No long rebounds in the game. Animations that make the players “too cool for school” and slow down fast break opportunities. It’s a mess

Games will be great again the day they make ALL of their PROFITS… FROM GAME SALES… ALONE!!! The problem is… these companies FOCUS THEIR TALENTS ON MAKING PROFITS AFTER THE GAME IS IN THE CUSTOMERS HANDS!! IMAGINE THEM FOCUSING ALL TALENTS ON JUST PLAIN OLD GAME DEVELOPMENT, INNOVATION, GRAPHICS, MECHANICS, LOOKS & FEEL OF THE GAME & CONCEPTS etc etc etc…. Indie games can’t get licensed teams & players so that is their one major problem… ALL GAMES HAVE LOST THAT … “CHARM”. I swear I got a crazy game library (well now most people do) but I don’t have anything to grab me- Fkn sad state in gaming- 🤦‍♂️

Meanwhile mlb the show: you leveled up heres one million packs

I just want GM Connected in my NHL game. Is that too much to ask?

I remember I randomly decided to jump into an nba 2k game in 2020 after not playing one for like 8 years and I was appalled at how trash it was. Literally everything about it was antithetical to anything I want in a sports game.

The show is a great baseball game but can be extremely frustrating with how easy it is to foul off balls, or how often perfect swings result in outs, it’s very frustrating as a player

they took my quality basketball games, i hope they run the market into the ground and they have to sell their houses on a crappy housing market.

Yep, EA are soft af for that exclusive NFL contract. They got scared and didn't wanna compete with 2K. And now there's a monopoly and no choices. Competition is good for consumers. Shame people buy it every year.

Old MVP and 2K baseball games were all classics. The gameplay used to be a lot of decision-making and timing, and they were so fun and deep.

The show nickel and dimes you too. I’ve spent too much just trying to get certain equipment

FC 24 while been a little improvement towards the last couple FIFA games. Has not changed at all when it comes to the same exact aesthetics that the FIFA games have had because if it didn't change at all when it comes to its player and manager modes. And walk gameplay does have a tiny bit of an improvement it still has that frostbite engine where animations comes first then actual physics.

This was awesome man. Wish you got more exposure bc you had a lot of great things to say

I feel like the show isnt terrible in term of micro transactions because you can earn packs pretty easy in dimond dynasty and challenges, now 2k on the other hand has become unbelievable as its almost impossible to build a good character without investing money into a game that you play for 5 months

They used to allow you to take your mycareer save offline if you wanted to play when the servers went down but they started tying the saves directly to the servers eventually because people (like me lol) would just only buy the game every 2 or 3 years otherwise

i remember playing nfl2k5 and thinking, wow, the future of sports games is gonna be insane! i had no idea i was witnessing the peak.