Ludography
73/100
Players15 ratings
87/100
Critics3 reviews
More scores
Metacritic5 critic reviews
83/100
Metacritic usersuser score
46/100
Player reviews
66% positive25,910 reviews
Steam Deck
Verified
Runs on
Windows
Price
US$69.99

Where to get it

NBA 2K26 cover

2025 · Visual Concepts · Basketball · Simulation

NBA 2K26

Bragging rights are on the line in MyCAREER, MyTEAM, MyNBA, The W, and Play Now. Showcase your bag of moves with hyper realism, Powered by ProPLAY, and challenge your friends, or rivals, in NBA 2K26’s competitive modes—and leave no doubt that you wear the crown.

Released
5 September 2025
Platforms
Nintendo SwitchNintendo Switch 2PlayStation 4PlayStation 5WindowsXbox OneXbox Series X/S
Genres
BasketballSimulationSports
Developers
Visual Concepts
Publishers
2K
Series
NBA 2K
Perspective
Third person
Themes
Non-fiction
Country
United States
Age ratings
USK 16ESRB EPEGI 3CERO AGRAC 12+CLASS_IND 12ACB M
Languages
Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish (Spain)
Copies sold
8 million as of 2025-12-31
Entry
#27 in NBA 2K
Time to beat
42hmain story79hwith extras403hcompletionist

About

NBA 2K26 is a 2025 basketball video game developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K. Based on the National Basketball Association (NBA), it is the 27th installment in the NBA 2K series and is the successor to NBA 2K25 (2024) and the predecessor to NBA 2K27 (2026). The game was released for the Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Windows on September 5, 2025. It was the last NBA 2K game to release for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Players say

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Development

NBA 2K26 was officially announced on July 8, 2025. The announcement revealed that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander would serve as the cover athlete of the standard edition, following his MVP award and his team's championship title in the preceding NBA season. The following day, Angel Reese was announced as the cover athlete for the WNBA edition, while Carmelo Anthony, who was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2025, was revealed as the cover athlete for the Superstar edition. The most expensive version, titled Leave No Doubt edition, features all three athletes on its cover.

Reception

IGN has rated the game an 8/10, praising its smooth gameplay.

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated NBA 2K26 for "Sports Game of the Year" at the 29th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards.

Awards

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Xbox Series X/SAdvanced Access29 August 2025Worldwide · Worldwide 5 September 2025
WindowsAdvanced Access29 August 2025Worldwide · Worldwide 5 September 2025
PlayStation 5Advanced Access29 August 2025Worldwide · Worldwide 5 September 2025
Xbox One5 September 2025Worldwide
PlayStation 45 September 2025Worldwide
Nintendo Switch5 September 2025Worldwide
Nintendo Switch 25 September 2025Worldwide

Editions and related releases

Included in
NBA 2K26 x WWE 2K25 Bundle

In the same series

Games like this

Collections9 collections

Publishers

Years

Genres

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.