2K announced the cover athlete for two special editions is a bit of a throwback, but make sense given the editions he will don the cover of.
Michael Jordan will appear on the cover of both editions of the game, the NBA 2K23 Michael Jordan Edition and the “ultra-premium” NBA 2K23 Championship Edition, the publisher announced on Tuesday.
“After making 23 the most recognizable number in sports, it was only fitting that for NBA 2K23 we introduce the Michael Jordan Edition,” said Alfie Brody, Vice President of Global Marketing Strategy for NBA 2K. “Additionally, we’re thrilled to introduce a brand new premium edition of the game with the NBA 2K23 Championship Edition, as no other player embodies the word ‘champion’ like Jordan. This limited-edition version will also offer players the opportunity to catch on-court action throughout the season with a 12-month subscription to NBA League Pass included. We look forward to celebrating this game with the community when it’s released on September 9.”
There will be more cover athlete reveals over the next two days, according to a press release.
2K23 will also see the reintroduction of The Jordan Challenge to “encourages players to recreate 15 iconic moments from Jordan’s illustrious career.”
“All ten of the original Challenges from NBA 2K11 have been completely rebuilt from the ground up and will make their return this year – alongside five new iconic Jordan moments – for an entire new generation of players to experience,” developers said in a press release. “These Challenges take advantage of more than a decade of technological leaps to provide a completely new way to play through Jordan’s accomplishments – all housed within its own game mode.”
Pre-orders for NBA 2K23 will go live on July 7 and will release September 9 on PC alongside Xbox and PlayStation consoles.
