NBA The Run gives the impression that it’s a spiritual successor to the beloved NBA Street series, swapping indoor courts for locations around the world hosting energetic 3v3 matches. Before you dive in, though, you need to be aware that NBA The Run is an online multiplayer game and there’s no single-player content to ball with.
NBA The Run has two main modes, Solos and Squads, to take part in the NBA Run tournament. With Squads, you team up with other players to play through the tournament, while in Solos you build your team of three to try and win the tournament. At the start of the game, you can pick your NBA pro and team members, and unlock more players as you progress to try slightly different styles of play that take advantage of that player’s attributes.
It’s worth trying out a few different players, as they each offer different shot advantages, with some being great long-range shooters, while others are good at getting to the basket, letting you find the right fit for your squad, and your playstyle.
Regardless of whether you go Solos or Squads, you will play the same tournament with match types chosen at random for each round, each of which have their own modifiers. For example, one match sees alley-oops worth more points than other shots, or all shots are only worth one point, or the points target changes. These modifiers do help keep things fresh for a while as you move through each tournament, but you soon see most of what the game has to offer.
The on-court action is fast-paced, moving steadily from end to end, but it simply isn’t as exciting as it could be. Sure, there are moves to wrongfoot defenders and perform some stylish dunks, but it all seems a little bit stiff as well. After you’ve played and won a few tournaments there is nothing to really draw you back, unless you want to go for the achievement of winning the tournament with every player or spending your earned coins to unlock all the different jerseys and banners.
I do like the way NBA The Run looks and the various street courts from around the world, with care taken to create environments that capture the locality. The announcer is okay too and you can hear the attempt to hype things up, but there are only a few lines. When playing, the connection was good and I was finding matches pretty quickly, with the early player base seeming positive, with teammates working together to get the win and defend.
