NBA 2K21 Comes To Xbox Game Pass This Week On Console And Streaming

Microsoft continues to add high-profile games to Xbox Game Pass to convince people to sign up, and the latest one is NBA 2K21. The company announced that NBA 2K21 will come to Xbox Game Pass on March 4 for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

NBA 2K21 will also stream to the cloud through xCloud, but you need Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for that unique benefit.

Microsoft did not say in its announcement if this is the next-gen edition of NBA 2K21 or the last-gen version that plays on the new console through backwards compatibility.

NBA 2K21 is the first NBA 2K title to come to Game Pass, but it's not the first licensed NBA game on there, as EA's NBA Live 18 and 19 are included through EA Play.

Strauss Zelnick, the head of 2K Games parent company Take-Two, has said he's skeptical of subscription services like Xbox Game Pass. However, the executive also mentioned that Take-Two is a platform-agnostic company and will release games wherever fans want them.

One of Zelnick's main concerns about subscription services came down to money and making sure each participant in the transaction is coming out ahead. It appears Take-Two and Microsoft have come to terms on a deal that makes sense for each party.

Another factor at play with NBA 2K21 specifically is that sports games in general, like most games, are front-loaded in terms of sales. NBA 2K21 has already sold 8 million copies. Bringing the game to Game Pass allows it to reach a wider player base of users, some of which will spend money on the game's lucrative microtransactions.

In other Game Pass news, a series of high-profile games--including The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt--are leaving the catalog soon, so be sure to grab them now while you still can. You can also check out our guide to the best games on Xbox Game Pass right now.