Alright, so I finally got my hands on NBA 2K24 for the Switch. I’ve been a 2K player for years, mostly on PlayStation, so I was curious how it would feel on the Switch. Let me tell you, the controls took some getting used to! Here’s how my experience went.
First Steps: Ouch, My Fingers!
First thing I did was jump into a quick play game. Man, the button layout felt completely different! I kept pressing the wrong buttons for shooting and passing. The Joy-Cons are so much smaller than a PlayStation controller, so my muscle memory was all messed up. I spent a good 15 minutes just dribbling around, trying to get a feel for the basic movement and passing.
Diving into the Controls Menu
After getting embarrassed by the AI a few times, I paused the game and went into the controls menu. That’s where things started to click. I realized I could customize things a bit, which was a lifesaver. I spent some time looking through that.
Basic Offense: Getting the Hang of It
- Shooting: Figuring out the timing on the Switch was tricky. I found that holding the shoot button (usually X or the right face button) a little longer than I was used to helped. I finally starting a couple.
- Passing: This was surprisingly intuitive. The A button (or the bottom face button) for regular passes and B (or the left face button) for bounce passes worked pretty well. I did accidentally throw a few lobs when I meant to do a chest pass, but I got better.
- Dribbling: Using the left stick to move felt natural. It was the special moves that tripped me up. The right stick handles the fancy stuff, like crossovers and spins, and it took some practice to get the timing right without losing the ball. I had use the training to figure this out.
Defense: A Whole New Ballgame
- Stealing: Trying to poke the ball away with the Y button (or the top face button) felt awkward at first. I kept getting called for fouls. I had to be more precise with my timing.
I had to keep reminding myself not to just spam the button.
- Blocking: Jumping with the Y button to block shots was okay, but getting the positioning right on the smaller screen was a challenge. I often jumped too early or too late.
- Rebounding: This was surprisingly tough. The timing felt different from other consoles, and I kept getting boxed out. I’m still working on this one!
Post Moves and More: Practice, Practice, Practice
After getting the basics down, I tried some post moves. These were definitely harder to pull off on the Switch. The timing felt tighter, and the small buttons made it easy to mess up. I spent a solid hour in the practice mode, just working on post fades and hook shots. I would say to keep using the training mode to get familar with post moves.
Final Thoughts: It’s a Learning Curve
So, after a few days of playing, I’m finally starting to feel comfortable with the NBA 2K24 controls on the Switch. It’s definitely a different experience than playing on other consoles, but it’s still fun. It just takes time and patience to get used to the smaller buttons and different layout. If you’re switching (get it?) from another console, be prepared for a learning curve, but don’t give up! It’s worth it to be able to play 2K on the go.
