It’s been a long time since browser games were even somewhat relevant to the gaming community, despite the monumental impact they had on the indie scene. Still, some great browser games float around on the internet, beloved by their small communities, and ZenGM’s Basketball GM is one such title. Its following certainly exists for good reason; there is a lot to love about Basketball GM for fans of the sport as well as gamers in general. That said, the game isn’t perfect; it has a major flaw, and players will feel it when playing. This article will go over both the good and bad of Basketball GM and detail the overall quality of the product.

The Good

Realism

The big thing to remember about Basketball GM is that it’s a sports game, much like the NBA 2K or Madden franchises. One of the most important aspects of a game falling into that genre is to realistically portray how that sport functions, either from the perspective of a player or someone in a management position. Failing to do that often breaks immersion and generally makes the title aggravating to actual fans of the sport, which is a near death sentence for any sports game. Luckily, ZenGM has done and is doing a fantastic job of implementing a realistic portrayal of being a basketball team’s GM into the medium of video games. It has all the core parts of working as a GM, such as trading, free agency signings, resigning players, etc. The negotiations unique to each of those things also feel very true to life, as they all account for a team’s situation and a player’s feelings about a team, respectively. A rebuilding team will likely demand a lot in return for trading their picks or a promising young talent; a top ten player in their prime isn’t going to sign with a terrible team; 35-year-old veterans are likely to accept a low contract; all of these things are things that people can see happen in the landscape of actual professional basketball. This heavily assists in immersing the player in the experience (and Basketball GM is surprisingly immersive) and makes the game incredibly appealing to basketball fans.

Ways To Play

One of the most unique aspects of Basketball GM is also one of its biggest strengths, which is the sheer number of ways a player can play the game. That statement doesn’t just mean the game supports multiple playstyles, although it absolutely does. What is being referred to is the fact that players can fundamentally change how a league functions, in addition to being able to run their team in a number of ways. They can change how the draft functions, how the salary cap works, and even the number of players on the court in a league. These factors heavily influence gameplay, and allowing players to change parts of that gameplay ensures that the gaming experience can be tailored to their liking. That helps to increase the entertainment factor and gives Basketball GM a more universal appeal. The amount of playstyles the game supports also helps with immersion and gameplay fluidity. It doesn’t feel like some things are just off the table for the player; they’re allowed to consider and react to any situation in the way they see fit, which is a big boon for Basketball GM.

Gameplay

The final notable positive about Basketball GM is simple: the game is just plain fun. Its gameplay is simple in concept but surprisingly thought-provoking in execution, which makes for an incredibly enjoyable gameplay experience. Of course, the main goal of the game is to win a championship, but the path to getting there involves a lot of thinking and decision-making. Recognizing if a team is good enough to really compete for a championship, if a player is worth keeping, if a contract is worth resigning, or if it’s worth it to make a superstar trade—all of these will require a lot of deliberating on the player’s part, keeping them engrossed in the game and entertaining them in an almost brain teaser-esque way. That process of deliberation, final decision-making, and results keeps Basketball GM mentally engaging. In short, that cycle makes its gameplay phenomenal because of how it makes players think.

The Bad

Overall System

The biggest flaw of Basketball GM is its misleading and, at times, confusing overall system. The overall system essentially communicates to the player how “good” a player or team is, but its flaw is evident: context of skill. Players in Basketball GM can have a high overall rating for a number of reasons. A player could be incredible at defense but a so-so offensive player, meaning they can’t be put into a vital offensive role on a team aiming to contend despite their high overall number. The same goes for team overalls. A team could have a high overall rating because it has one or two amazing players, but the rest of the roster could be terrible, meaning that team couldn’t win a championship despite being in the top five of team overalls. It isn’t inherently bad that the overall system in Basketball GM is based on all stats, but because overalls are presented in a way that draws attention away from those individual stats, it’s very easy for players to think a team or player is more or less valuable than they actually are. ZenGM somewhat rectifies that problem through the player skills displayed next to the player’s name as well as by making individual stats easy to look at in-game. Still, the way overall numbers are highlighted, in contrast with the minimal presentation the stats that create the overall number get, makes Basketball GM a bit of a frustrating game to get into at first. To summarize, Basketball GM’s overall system is quite difficult to fully grasp, making the game hard to start up. However, this issue could be fixed if what goes into those overall numbers is highlighted to the player more in-game.

Conclusion

Basketball GM is a fantastic game for both basketball fans and gamers. Its gameplay is incredibly mentally engaging, its realism immerses the player in the experience, and the many ways it can be played allow it to have something for everyone to enjoy. On the flip side, its overall system is one of its core gameplay features and a primary way the game communicates with the player. Its confusing and misleading aspects make the game tough to start playing for the first time and, at times, frustrating for even more experienced players. That doesn’t ruin the game, though, and Basketball GM is certainly a phenomenal sports game. Its quality is striking despite its notable flaw, and because of that, I’d give the game 4.5/5 stars (or a 9 out of 10, if you prefer that type of scaling). It’s a must-play for any basketball fan or a fan of simulation games, and given its zero-dollar price tag and browser-level availability, it certainly isn’t hard to get access to it.