It’s official – there won’t be any basketball game coming from EA Sports this year. During an earnings report, EA finally confirmed that NBA Live 20’s development has been halted and the team behind the title has already started working on a next-generation basketball game.
While most fans were expecting NBA Live 20 announcement in July, back then EA has stated that it will be delaying the project in order “to get it right”. Some even speculated about NBA Live 20 going for a free-to-play model, but now we know that’s not the case. The team is jumping ahead to next-gen consoles and will try to kick 2K’s ass next year.
EA CEO Andrew Wilson said this in the statement:
“New consoles are always an opportunity to drive more innovation in our EA Sports games, as our fans are eager to begin experiencing a new generation of play. That will include our plans for NBA Live.”
While all of this might seem odd to some, especially having in mind that NBA 2K20 is one of the best selling games in the US, we think it’s a reasonable decision by EA. By taking a gap year, EA Sports’ development team can truly innovate, and present something truly unique and fresh for next year. NBA 2K20 had a shaky release this year, so if EA Sports gets the game right, they might just catch up with the competition.
