how I fell out of love with sports video games

[@chumcalmdown]

People don't understand what it was like to game and play sports games during the 2000s. It was so different

[@lilbrobeast1122]

Especially the PS2 error and the PS3 era and Xbox 360 era

[@SportsPlug-cp1eq]

Late 90s was great too starting in 94 with NHL then madden slowly gained momentum in the late 90s around 97 it was great lasting till the late 2000s 😢

[@jackson711247]

Facts I been playing since the 90s and refuse to buy these games just for graphics and a new player or 2. If you play dynasty/season modes each year will become different anyway with trades,drafting,retirement, and graduation in college games.

[@sammymac2546]

Yep especially after school was out for the summer…played outside with friends all day long, came back home and gamed until 1-2-3 am with the cousins..legendary

[@PharSyde6ix]

@@SportsPlug-cp1eq Blades of Steel and Tecmo Bowl!

[@BLee09]

The selection was insane back then. I don't wanna say that there's nothing worth playing because i still be on my game, but man, it feels like an absolute chore to do so unless I'm on with my friends. And atp, it's just us really hanging out.

[@ThaaKannon]

I feel the same , if I’m not on discord with friends I’m playing older games like the Batman arkham games or old Assassins creeds .. I like the new NCAA but online gaming is trash now everyone spams broken plays

[@BLee09]

@ThaaKannon bruh I did the same. I just recently went back to playing the old gears of war campaigns. Playing online is filled with people who just exploit the game. It's horrible. That's not how I grew up. It was an unwritten rule between me and my bros that it's just certain moves or certain players we just couldn't play with because we knew they were broken. However, nowadays, people literally search for what's broken and they'll use it the entire game. I'll never understand how that is fun.

[@HoopsClips247]

Totally agree about microtransactions, not just in sports video games, but in most games these days. As for recycled content, I think sports games don't have much of a choice. Their modes are naturally limited since they're based on real-world sports, unlike fantasy games where there's more freedom to create new and diverse content. I still play NBA2K14 til now and just update the roster, I still think it has the best in game feel out of all the NBA2k versions.

[@petercasnocha5340]

Interesting...NHL gameplay was also best in NHL14 version..last game before the switch to Xbox one/PS4, although I had much more fun playing NHL 04 and 09 on pc

[@Jay2Stoney]

I miss when sports games took risk. Like NBA Ballers & NBA Street

[@troy028]

I loved nba streets

[@achildnamedhotchick1739]

ssx tricky

[@erawadi]

I think it’d be dope if you made videos contrasting the different franchises of each sporting game. When 2k and live both fell off PGA vs Tiger Woods Madden v 2k. I’d watch your take and tell me some more how much you played these games and loved them. Keep up your work great job bro!

[@Chief24.7]

I got Vic tattooed on my player on 2k16 after he dies 😅 now, on 2k25 I couldn’t tell you an npcs name at gunpoint

[@airforcereserve14]

It was weird how after your first season ended the story was over and Vic was never mentioned again

[@binreaper7781]

@@airforcereserve14nah it wasn’t. Remember we ONLY had so good of a story bc it was written by Spike Lee, not 2K. They probably didn’t pay the man for multiple seasons bc it(MyCareer) wasn’t the leading micro transaction mode back in 2016 that was MyTeam, they’re cheap asl.

[@somethinggood7764]

@@airforcereserve14 well he died so

[@JordoTWFS]

Got this in my recommended while playing nba live 03 on GameCube. You ain’t alone dawg

[@no_name_2549]

It’s really yearly releases that are ruining them, but it makes them so much money but people keep buying

[@lordiro]

We still playing 2k5 in this house Great video 🤙🏾

[@slimtim2079]

This is a dope ass video man. You really brought be back to the good days. Keep up the great work bro! 🔥

[@robertcouch1675]

One thing about NFL 2K5 that goes underdiscussed is the price point it came out at. NFL 2K5 was only $20 at launch while Madden was going for $50. Shortly after, EA slashed Madden 05's price to $30 to stay competitive. This was great and reminded me of how great the diversity of sports titles were back then especially with arcade games like the EA's Street series, NBA Ballers and NFL Bltiz.

[@Shinzu2021]

Same here brother. All the way from the Gameboy to the latest, PS5. NIntendo DS, PSP, Vita, everything!! It just isn't the same nowadays, I'll forever be grateful for the experience though. It's just weird yk bc with how the world today is, everything is evolving but we (ogs) still choose to play those old games.

[@26k_actual]

hey man, recommend checking out some indie sports games, myself and others have shared the same sentiment over the years and started making our own games. What we lack in production value and licenses, we make up with love and dedication to bringing fun-first games back to the genre. I made a game called Sunday Rivals that's on Steam, there's a more popular football game called Legend Bowl that's on pc and consoles, and there are other developers making different types of sports games right now that just need support to grow.

[@ramtyree]

@@26k_actual man, nothing but praise to you for the work! i’ve heard nothing but great things about Sunday rivals and if only all devs had as much passion as you into your game! I don’t have a gaming PC yet (so no easy access to steam) but I am fully behind you and can’t wait to see what’s next!

[@26k_actual]

@@ramtyree appreciate it, hope you get a chance to check them out someday!

[@26k_actual]

@@ramtyree appreciate that, def hit me up if you get a pc!

[@sardeegaming]

8:23 my guy what are you smoking nba 2k17 over anything from 2k10-14 crazy. Enjoying the video tho 😂

[@Jay-dv2nv]

U gained a subscriber bro 🙏I applaud u for not buying them no more , as a sports fan it’s so hard out of the love but it really sucks knowing you’re going to spend $70 on a recycled game every year with updated rosters 😢

[@Iz8ah]

Please don’t stop uploading stick to this vid is fire

[@ramtyree]

more to come bro 🙏🏾 thank you!

[@YoungMan9427]

To me I even dipped into the hockey games as well which were awesome!

[@nostalgicgamer1363]

Wonderful video..the only thing is i never heard someone say 2k17 was the goat. First time for everything

[@benngill7232]

sick video bro. I hope you keep making this kind of content. this was a good watch.

[@ungratefulninja4535]

You're on point with this one! Subbed. The sports games just don't seem as fun. They just seem too animated & unresponsive imo.✌🏾💚

[@ryanhammond6688]

Amazing video. Well done. You should do one about the introduction of VC was the start of nba 2ks downfall.

[@WEOFFNDR]

I think what changed is also the local multiplayer dimension of gaming, i waa never a fan of online and competitive stuff. Games are now absolutely neglecting the local multiplayer, thats what made games so special back in the days, especially sports ones

[@k_rog5]

The editing is on point! I see you leveling up! 👏🏽

[@ramtyree]

@@k_rog5 more to come - thanks for watching!

[@texansfan98]

Great video

[@DrewSkiVideos]

Omg I'm so glad you said backbreaker!!!! That game was so much fun!

[@digitalvictory8266]

Man, what a wonderful video, and a fantastic look back the halcyon days we all miss. For me, (as an old guys) - that era was the mid 90s. The emergence of the white-label EA Sports games for my Genesis was heaven on Earth. NHL '95; Madden '93; NBA '95; PGA TOUR GOLF 2; World Series Baseball... I still play those quite often on emulation. Great times. What you said at the @12:50 mark is the answer to all your questions. Sadly, that's the world we live in, more's the pity. Anyway, thanks for posting this thoughtful video, it was highly enjoyable. Liked and Subbed!

[@LorenzoMedina-dm1fg]

Keep grinding fam ur gonna be big one day ❤️

[@ramtyree]

only up, man! 🙌🏽

[@dfrnt_hues]

This is the first time in about 20 years I didn’t get Madden or NBA 2k/Live. The games suck and have the same issues every year. I dont miss annoyances & frustration.

[@CryptoFeez]

Great video new sub … loves the early 2000 sports games I’m a little older than you but def share that nostalgia… don’t change up after you blow up!!!!

[@DzapperGaming]

Bruh! Yes! Every sports game back then was so lovingly crafted. This video made me think about Madden 2005 on the Nintendo DS. They had a different studio develop the whole game and it used the DS touch screen for calling hot routes…..What a Time to be alive.

[@Da_Franchize410]

I remember NBA 2K16 when you could get every badge on bronze level. That was when I made most of my online friends because I had grinded to get them all and was locked in. I use to love Madden too. I haven’t bought madden in five years and this is my first year skipping 2K. They sacrificed quality for micro transactions. Great video.

[@Munnyteem]

Bro great video much success

[@justinjones7604]

Just brought 2k12. Frist time hearing that's intro was so sad cuz i know we probably never that the feelings of sports games like that again

[@peanutbutterjellyandbread]

cfb 25 was the closest to the feeling i’ve had in years (01’)

[@jackson711247]

Man i been playing sports games since the 90s. It has gotten so bad i started exploring with alot of story mode games with open world.

[@HammeredHoffman]

THANK YOU for giving 2K17 its flowers. People trashed it because of the online micro transactions but the gameplay and animation blending was the smoothest that 2k has accomplished. Perfect for an offline gamer like me

[@marcoyaque]

Great video man! one small note, you said in 2017 there was only nba 2k17 and nba playgrounds, but you forgot about nba live (which i preferred back then)! they stopped after nba live 19.

[@ramtyree]

@@marcoyaque good catch! I was on the fence with that part (since technically we can always go back to the older titles) but we do need more choice today!

[@J.E.T.Lee16]

How did you make a video of my childhood? 💀 Keep up the good work

[@LoCoAde87]

You are me several years later, mate. Tony Hawk Remastered, keyword being Remastered is the last sports game that I have enjoyed.

[@williama5159]

It’s why most people just go back to their favorites and enjoy them for what they are now

[@kaytrout3836]

I lover ultimate team for Madden back in the day. You’d get lucky and pull Bo Jackson or Joe Montana then add them to your franchise. I stopped playing most these games back in 2019. You hit the nail on the head

[@SliteKonto]

This video gon be a banger

[@fadercreek]

EA with the exclusive license deal literally ducked competition

[@joshg1529]

What’s funny about that is EA help f things up with that because 2K got the 3rd party exclusive rights to mlb which took away mvp baseball.

[@henning14]

Well said. Pretty similar experience for me. I used to play sports games since mit 90s. I’ve turned my back on FIFA almost 10 years ago. NBA 2k24 was my last NBA game. I also got no hope that there will be any changes for good in the future. The games are too expensive to be produced by any Indie studio in the future. Some much data for the real world has to be imported but the biggest problem is license. All mayor players (NBA, FIFA, musicians, famous (voice) actors etc.) know the value.

[@shawndonq135]

Ohh man you brought back a sweet childhood memory when you mentioned PES that game was actually good

[@FinesseFather]

I haven’t bought a 2k since like 2k 13 and I’m glad I don’t think I’m missing out

[@natelavallee4034]

7:35 backbreaker is so nostalgic

[@biffjfk18]

Mannnn i miss those xbox 360 games

[@claytonwilliams4783]

I recogonize that Kur beat in the background bro lmao

[@ramtyree]

@@claytonwilliams4783 real recognize real always 😂🫡

[@Kowabunnga]

It's simple. Lack of competition. 20 years ago (not the 80's guys we're getting old) nearly every sport had 2-3 options to play. These days with only one source to choose from companies do whatever they want because our purchase is inevitable.

[@RonnyTheGamer]

Preach my guy!! Great video

[@adrianofficialmusick]

When FIFA, Madden and NBA 2K was at its best. It was like nothing ever before

[@jhardwick1969]

🙌Preach! Preach! Preach!🙌 And let the church say AMEN!!!!

[@RumboJumbo]

somebody send this tot he EA devs asap!

[@ramtyree]

@@RumboJumbo haha I’m finding their contact info as we speak 😂 thanks for watching!

[@clevercode30]

😂🤣😂😂 like they care

[@dylanmoore5138]

Sports games used to be made by people that were passionate about creating the best game possible with the most immersion. Now the only goal is to maximize profits while minimizing work required to do so.

[@ramtyree]

Sad but so true, smh man…

[@HighAltitudeMMA]

I grew up back when the developers were setting out with the goal to make the best possible gaming experience... not setting out with the goal to nickle and dime me as much as possible.

[@obasiswift]

NBA 2k13 will be my favorite one

[@nicholassealy251]

2000s sport games was lit. GameCube ps2 Xbox

[@lIeaper]

I'm honestly gonna get a psvita so I can play some of games I used to play when I was younger

[@tyreeryan686]

Nah fr paying real money to drive around on a scooter in game is crazyyy 😭

[@felishaj8740]

Great video…. Memories 👌🏽

[@yahiamohamed7809]

Also with online games being so easy we lost the enjoyment of going to our friend's house to play the game and have the time of our lives

[@Truthx31]

Great vid bro.

[@saviorofs0ng]

Man, whether it was real simulations or arcadey and whacky or Mario themed if you had a gamecube, you had tons of choices. Whether it was football, basketball, baseball, hockey, golf, tennis, skateboarding, roller blading, skiing, boxing, wrestling, racing cars; there was just so many. I used to play a ton of MVP 04 and 05, MLB Slugfest 04, backyard basketball on PS2, Madden 05, Madden 08, NBA Live 08, NBA 2k11, SSX tricky, Evolution Skateboarding, Tony Hawk Underground 2, Day of Reckoning 1 and 2, Wrestlemania 19, NBA street vol 1, mario baseball, mario golf, mario super strikers. I remember the way that I would choose between baseball, basketball and football was dependent on which season it was lmao. My cousin had Aggressive Inline, SSX World Tour, V for Vendetta and NBA Street V3 where you could play as Mario, Luigi or Peach. We'd also play a ton of Medal of Honor Frontline or Rising Sun. That "EA BIG" slogan is still fresh in my mind and THQ was involved with so many of the games that I had growing up. It was so wack when 2k pulled out of making baseball games which left anyone who didn't have a playstation without a realistic baseball game to turn to until recently when they made MLB The Show became available for Xbox yet none for PC other than Super Mega or OOTP. Madden games just became $70 roster updates and I stopped enoying 2K after 2k20. Sports games really did take a dive. Well, most types of video games since there used to be niche ones like that Universal Studios game or games based on cartoons/TV shows like Rugrats, Rocket Power, That's So Raven, etc. Shit, to this day I still play Madden 08 and Mario Baseball on emulator.

[@babygoat_szn2548]

Forgot NBA live! NBA live was legendary

[@BrandonCollins-s5y]

I’m 30 and I just bought a Xbox 360 just to play old sports games Nba/nfl/fifa street, blitz the league, nba ballers , skate, nba jam

[@tyreeryan686]

I miss when the helmets use to pop off from hit sticks in madden man … that was ELITE gaming 🥹

[@EvanSanti]

He look like Christian Woods

[@ramtyree]

😂🤷🏾‍♂️

[@javiergorguis7796]

Great video!

[@alexha2884]

I miss nfl street on the psp. Take me back

[@MelloWyatt]

NBA 2k16-17 was the peak for me. Madden was 07-12.

[@gamblingcookie2519]

Bro has not played NCAA 25 Brought me back to play a sports game

[@puffdutchtwo]

I been playing NCAA since 2000 then played all the 2ks MLB madden all of it and it’s not the same at all now got a 360 and NCAA 14 over 2k24 and I ain’t touched 25 either might get a GameCube soon older games had soul and u felt it these new games are beautiful shells just empty

[@thakidfloe]

Yearly releases and then 1 developer working on a sports game killed everything. When I was younger we had EA, 2K, and 989 sports. They all offered something different and created a healthy competition. EA Killed that. THQ is an honorable mention when it came to ufc games. I miss nfl 2k til this day smh.

[@RackGuerra]

This is so true bro I still play my ps3 and old sports game are so much better only good thing with sports these days are graphics and that’s not enough!

[@Him_Downstairs36]

Madden didn't seek out the rights. The NFL put the license up for sale because this was around the time they started getting super image conscious and wanted to be more hands on with the game. They didn't wanna have to do this for the 4-5 NFL games that were being made.

[@camejko]

Sports video games used to be focused on fun and player experience. I could spend 5 minutes explaining nfl street 2 to a person who has never played a sports game b4 and he would get the concept and be able to play. Still probably loose to a more experienced player but both players would have fun... Now with 2k and madden tweaking the controls every two years, i have to relearn how to play every time I play a new game

[@marcusrudolph5961]

Same here bro I feel out of touch because no sports game has made me want to upgrade to the new Xbox even the new cfb 25 dropped import draft class, the spring game, and a lot of the record keeping

[@SimuLord]

I fell back into love with NBA 2K in as much time as it took them to introduce a full Eras franchise mode. The '80s were my NBA, the NBA I grew up in Boston watching. As for other sports, the best sports games are the ones that don't have a license but do have great gameplay-Super Mega Baseball 3 was my 2020 Game of the Year for a reason (too bad EA ruined it when they bought Metalhead Software.) I enjoyed Legend Bowl, the retro-styled American football game from a solo developer. And Tape to Tape is turning into the best video game hockey experience since the SNES days. If some indie developer made a basketball game with the same love, I'd probably choose it over 2K.

[@Kenzakee]

YOU SPITTIN WIT BACKYARD FOOTBALL

[@SageHeru]

We still play Fight Night Champion from 2011.

[@aliyamarah7796]

Sports games try to be so realistic that I'd rather just play the sport IRL. In the 90s and 00s, they were strictly about being creative and fun while being realostic in certain aspects. NFL blitz, nba street, even NHL games! They were bangers. Now, it's soulless money grabs.

[@gabo8954]

I feelnyou Bro. RN Im actually playing PS2 Classics,

[@ukrainiansareproto-mesopat9235]

Sports games, particularly FIFA, NBA and Madden actively make their franchise modes' worse to usher people to ultimate team. It's an insult. I am still in love with concept of sports games, but haven't played any for years now.

[@SlumSapien]

we dont even need a nba licensed game. Just a basketball game with solid mechanics that can compete with 2k.

[@patrickpeterson6947]

I stopped playing sports games (so basically video games in general since that’s all I played) around 2015. I noticed the year over year degradation of the product and it started to lose its luster. Well, amidst the pandemic when the ps5 dropped, I figured why not get one since I’m at home anyways, and let’s see if the new Madden will have some fun nostalgia. Bro. Just one game in to Madden 22, my jaw dropped at how not fun it was. I honestly couldn’t believe it. Even outside of the unnerving amount of glitches, the gameplay just was a complete shell of itself compared to even 7 years prior (which was at the time still considered “not good”). I ended up selling my ps5 because of that, and i kinda been wanting to get a new one to try the College Football game, but a part of me just wants to keep the pristine memory of NCAA 14 in my mind and not get disappointed by the latest EA money-grab. Which sucks because - just like you - I grew up in that prime era of sports games and it was soooooo fun. Sadly, I don’t think we’ll ever get close to reaching the vibe of that era. Sucks man. (Great video though by the way dude!)

[@kennyneal1987]

Well....let's just say before I make my comment I loved the late 90's til early 10's with sports games and I'm a 2000's catalyst especially with the sports game junkie mentality....I still have FIFA 95, NHL 94, NBA live 2004 and 2005 along with Madden 2005....The problem is not a sentiment or high quality competition issue with substantial gameplay especially in the scenario aspect of it! The problem lies in the logic of the game franchises experimenting with the packages and the revenue turning out to be higher and higher every year. In other words they were accurate with this generation of gamers and there is no substance because they don't know history....so they don't know that their being finesse with additional packages and the parents of the game heads (sports in particular) is just keeping their children satisfied with different ventures....catch my drift

[@ramtyree]

Facts!!! I hope videos like this one can help some young people realize that they’re being bamboozled smh

[@FR0Z0NEkeys]

Last time 2K took a risk, the community was crying whining and bitching over the difficulty. The original MyPlayer is leagues above all the other ones and once 2K scrapped it, showed that it’ll cater to casuals more.

[@brandonw6139]

They became soulless

[@JoiRandom]

.. like everything else

[@jitsan2368]

Great fucking video!

[@jayinri6658]

He was calling real ones in w/ the thumbnail

[@michaelfranklin1964]

It's not just the microtransactions. EA has paid for the NBA and NFL licensing exclusivity. No one else can legally make a football or basketball game with the actual athletes. What's left is an annual roster update disguised as a $70 game that's going to need a 7 hour update download out of the box with broken features. All that eventually will be patched 2 weeks before the next release.

[@MacTeezy15]

What are you talking about? They only bought NFL… 2k is not EA

[@og_mante5138]

The NBA license isn’t exclusive. EA just stopped making Live because no one buys it.

[@TheRealMRGG85]

I used to play Madden it used to be my favorite sports game. But to be honest with you I stop playing Madden after 2010 because the product was clearly going downhill. I play franchise mode and I used to love to do all the off-season stuff and they basically tuck training camp out the game after that I was done because they were consistently doing stuff like that I actually switched to 2k. 2K is still a decent product it has a lot of microtransactions but you don't need to participate if you want to make 50 build then yes you're going to need to spend money but if you want to make 1 to 3 builds you really don't got to spend any money you can earn enough VC for that just by playing the game throughout the year spend 40$ on your first build grinded to a 99 overall by the time you're done doing that you're probably having a VC saved up to start your next build don't waste your VC on stupid stuff like scooters.

[@US30JOURNAL]

video games now feels like psychological wafare

[@quemecl]

Bro great video, but how u called PES a indy game

[@TeflonnVonn]

I notice with every *next gen* console that gets released, sports simulations take a MASSIVE step in the WRONG direction. It genuinely makes no sense. I shouldn’t after just 4-5 hours of day 1 gameplay be questioning if the developers even play tested their game.. We waited a DECADE for college football to return just for it to be released with the worst pursuit angles you’ve ever seen in your life. I stomached it for a month then had to drop it. It was unplayable at the time. Hopefully they’ve improved it since

[@dustinnrussell]

430 views ! Ts better go viral

[@bbryant9455]

Even just the NFL lineup was insane. Without getting into the other sports, i had NFL QB club 99, gameday, Madden, and ESPN football all at the same time lol. Shiiit i still ain't shit on that first person football on ESPN football 🤣🤦☠️ y'all know what I'm talkin about hahaha

[@wumbosaur6111]

Personally I was only ever big into 2k and the only reason I still don’t play it is cause the games are just bad now (I did play Madden casually never like dropped money on it tho)

[@yasugi0153]

Subbed

[@brandonw6139]

The last 2k I loved was 2k13