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The 10 licensed universities in NBA 2K16
Back in July it was discovered that 2K Sports had obtained the license for at least 11 universities for use in an unknown capacity within NBA 2K16. It has now been confirmed that only 10 schools will appear in the game.
Arizona, Georgetown, Kansas, Louisville, Michigan, Texas, UCLA, UConn, Villanova, and Wisconsin will be be the options to choose from in 2K16’s MyCareer story mode.
There are playable elements to both the high school and college portion of the story. As expected the time spent in each are very limited, with there being three games in high school, and possibly (as of yet unconfirmed) only three in college as well. Unfortunately the run in college may not be in the form of a tournament which seemed to be maybe the most natural and engaging way to handle that stretch.
Arizona State and Davidson it would appear then were licensed only for the purposes of displaying their uniforms on the individual covers of the game featuring James Harden and Stephen Curry. It had been noted that 2K had the license for Arizona State from the CLC while Davidson handles their own deals. The other covers feature Anthony Davis and Michael Jordan where all signs of Kentucky and North Carolina were scrubbed from their images.
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PES 2016 tops Madden NFL 16 to become highest rated sports game since 2013
Earlier this month Madden NFL 16 was able to stake a claim to being the highest rated traditional licensed sports game on Metacritic since 2013. The 84 on Metacritic rose above all others that followed FIFA 14 which had a score of 87/88.
Now Pro Evolution Soccer 2016 has taken the title away as the game currently stands at 87 on Metacritic. Many will point to competition as being a factor here, with the FIFA series having been dominant for nearly a decade. Konami has been forced to to offer dramatic improvements to become a viable alternative outside of particular regions where it remained strong all along, despite being hampered by limitations in areas such as licensing.
As was the case with Madden, the title may be short-lived for Pro Evolution. NBA 2K16 is out late this week and could be the rare sports game to reach or exceed 90 on the review aggregator. It’s great to see the quality of the sports games that are still around rising considerably, in a time where the selection is more sparse than ever.
The competition may not be direct for all of them but given the broken sports gaming schedule only the strong will survive.
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Update adds new course and makes some improvements to Rory McIlroy PGA Tour
EA Sports today released the second patch for Rory McIlroy PGA Tour on Xbox One and PS4. It includes fixes and improvements to various aspects of the game and introduces a new course. There are now ten licensed courses in the game plus four fantasy courses.
It took over two months from release for the first new course to make it to the game. East Lake Golf Club is the addition and it’s available to use within all modes. Read more
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The top rated power forwards and centers in NBA 2K16
2K Sports the top rated players at power forward and center NBA 2K16. The ratings system this year has changed, with the scale now considering a 99 to be the best of all-time. That means ratings in general will appear to be lower than in the past. Read more
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Review of FIFA 16
The latest edition of the biggest selling video game franchise in the world releases this week. FIFA 16 is facing a strong challenge from Pro Evolution Soccer 2016, making it the only sport that features true competition in the genre. FIFA has been on top for nearly a decade but EA Sports is starting to struggle in holding onto that position.
This is the least I’ve enjoyed a FIFA game in a long, long time. It’s still a good game, but new frustrations related to gameplay, and a sleazy implementation of the new FUT Draft were immediate turn-offs. Check out the full review now over at Sporting News!
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The Line Drive for September 20
The Line Drive is a weekly collection of news, links, deal alerts, and updates that didn’t necessarily warrant their own postings.
♦Check out the latest content created for Sporting News and Hit The Pass:
   •How the Broncos-Chiefs Thursday night game would have ended in Madden
   •Madden NFL 16 predicts the week two games
   •Breaking down the eight expert-drafted Madden NFL 16 fantasy teams
   •Kansas Jayhawks make an appearance in new NBA 2K16 trailer
   •Madden calls Tony Romo clutch, rates Peyton Manning lowest in 16 years
   •Two online matches of FIFA 16 played against Rich with our commentaryÂ
   •Hit The Pass Radio: Interview with Ian Cummings about Derby King
   •Hit The Pass Radio: Forza 6 review roundtable
   •Subscribe to Hit The Pass on Youtube for great upcoming content!♦Make sure to get entries in for the NBA 2K16 giveaways! Here and Hit The Pass.
♦Some women had to be removed from national teams in FIFA 16 due to NCAA’s threats.
♦Top rated teams in Western Conference and Eastern Conference revealed for NBA Live 16.
♦The mobile companion app for NBA 2K16 won’t be out until October 1st.
♦Rasheed Wallace will not be on the 2000 Blazers and 2004 Pistons rosters in NBA 2K16.
♦New episode of the Press Row Podcast is a review roundtable centered on NHL 16.
♦New DLC pack is coming to Rocket League sometime next month.
♦EA Sports released a complete list of all the leagues and teams included in FIFA 16.
♦The transfer market is back on the web and mobile for Ultimate Team in FIFA 16.
♦Konami is shutting down all game development on consoles except Pro Evolution Soccer.
♦It has been reviewed great on consoles but the PC version of PES 2016 is best avoided.
♦The TD dance Thursday night from Travis Kelce was a tribute to Super Smash Bros.
♦This article will probably change your perspective on playing daily fantasy sports games. -
Top rated small forwards in NBA 2K16
2K Sports today revealed the top 10 small forwards in NBA 2K16. The ratings system this year has changed, with the scale now considering a 99 to be the best of all-time. That means ratings in general will appear to be lower than in the past.
LeBron James – Cleveland Cavaliers – 94 Overall
Kevin Durant – Oklahoma City Thunder – 91 Overall
Carmelo Anthony – New York Knicks – 88 Overall
Kawhi Leonard – San Antonio Sports – 87 Overall
Paul George – Indiana Pacers – 86 Overall
Gordon Hayward – Utah Jazz – 83 Overall
Rudy Gay – Sacramento Kings – 83 Overall
Andrew Wiggins – Minnesota Timberwolves – 80 Overall
Giannis Antetokounmpo – Milwaukee Bucks -79 Overall
DeMarre Carroll – Toronto Raptors – 79 OverallIn terms of movement from where they were at the end of 2K15: Carroll (+3), Hayward, Gay, Wiggins (+1), Antetokounmpo and Anthony went unchanged, Leonard (-1), LeBron and George (-2), and the sharpest drop (-3) is for Durant.
Previously revealed: Top 10 Point Guards – Top 10 Shooting Guards
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EA gambled in attempt to get NBA Live 16 positive publicity and they lost
The NBA Live franchise has somehow made it through arguably the worst five year stretch of any sports game of our time. A cancellation, a year off, another cancellation, a terrible release they later apologized for, and a decent effort that saw sales fall because of the previous year.
EA Sports can’t seem to catch a break – but often it’s of their own doing. That’s the case again after awful player faces for some of the professionals in the game went viral yesterday.
Many of the faces in question will be fixed with an update for the game prior to its release date later this month but the damage has already been done. NBA Live trended on Twitter for much of the day, and now the more casual consumer audience knows one thing about the game and the impression is that it’s a joke of a product. Read more
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