The NBA 2K23 cover athlete reveal has culminated in the announcement that Devin Booker will headline the standard edition of the game.
Visual Concepts has confirmed three separate covers, featuring four different players, for NBA 2K23. This year’s basketball sim hits the street on Friday, September 9, and comes in five different flavours – giving you the choice of a basketball icon, a modern day favourite, or two of the sports’ greatest-ever female players.
Announced this past Tuesday, the Michael Jordan Edition and Championship Edition both feature the six-time NBA champ on the cover. The latter version crosses over from videogame into real life by including a 12-month subscription to NBA League Pass. Also included is the returning Jordan Challenge, recreating 15 iconic moments from his astonishing career. 10 of these playable moments originally featured in NBA 2K11, and have been rebuilt from the ground up.
Those more interested in women’s basketball will be intrigued by the WNBA Edition of NBA 2K22. This one is fronted by all-time leading score Diana Taurasi and all-time assists leader Sue Bird. It looks cool, but there’s a catch for European fans: at present it’s tabbed as a Gamestop exclusive across the USA and Canada. Should that change we’ll let you know, via GR’s NBA 2K23 guide.
The fourth and final cover star is three-time NBA All-Star Devin Booker, meaning Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid yet again miss out on a first-ever box appearance. Maybe next year eh, lads? Booker fronts both the Standard Edition and Digital Deluxe Edition. Not only that, he’s pegged for a sixth edition of the game coming later this year. “A special version of theStandard Edition,recognising the cross-section of music and basketball culture, will be released later this autumn,” says 2K in a statement. “More information will be shared in the coming months.”
As ever, there’s a sliding scale in terms of pricing and extras. The Standard Edition of the game is £59.99/€69.99 on last-gen and PC, and £69.99/€79.99 on PS5 and Xbox Series X. At the other end of the scale, the Champions Edition will set you back $150 (UK price TBC). Here’s everything you get if you go all in with the super-expensive version:
- 12-Month NBA League Pass subscription
- Michael Jordan Themed Go-Kart
- 10% XP Boost on MyTEAM and MyCAREER Season Progression
- Dual-Gen entitlement – PS4 and PS5, Xbox One and Series X/S
- 100K Virtual Currency
- 10 MyTEAM Tokens
- Ruby Michael Jordan MyTEAMCard
- 23 MyTEAM Promo Packs (Receive 10 at launch plus an Amethyst topper pack, then 2 per week for 6 weeks)
- Free Agent Option MyTEAM Pack
- Diamond Jordan Shoe MyTEAM Pack
- Ruby Coach Card MyTEAM Pack
- 10 Boosts for each MyCAREER Skill Boost type
- 10 Boosts for each Gatorade Boost type
- 4 Cover Athlete T-Shirts for your MyPLAYER
- MyPLAYER backpack and arm sleeve
- Custom-design skateboard for MyPLAYER
- One 2-Hr Double XP Coin
It’s a big bundle, but is it worth that much moolah? Only you can decide on that one.
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NBA 2K23 is released for PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC on Friday, September 9.
Ben Wilson
I'm GamesRadar's sports editor, and obsessed with NFL, WWE, MLB, AEW, and occasionally things that don't have a three-letter acronym – such as Chvrches, Bill Bryson, and Streets Of Rage 4. (All the Streets Of Rage games, actually.) Even after three decades I still have a soft spot for Euro Boss on the Amstrad CPC 464+.
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