I remember the first time I booted up NBA 2K17 on my PS4 back in 2016 - the crowd noise felt so real I actually turned down my TV volume thinking my neighbors might complain. Eight years later, I dusted off my copy last week, partly out of nostalgia and partly to answer that burning question many gamers have been asking: Is NBA 2K17 still worth playing on PS4? What I discovered surprised me, and it reminded me of something I'd recently read about boxing - how fighters can find new life after moving weight classes, much like how this game has found unexpected longevity years after its release.

The connection might seem strange at first, but hear me out. I was reading about this boxer who's currently on a three-fight win streak since climbing at super-bantamweight following his ninth round stoppage at the hands of Takuma Inoue in Japan a year ago for the World Boxing Association bantamweight crown. That career resurgence at a different weight class perfectly mirrors what NBA 2K17 has experienced. Released during what many consider the golden era of basketball gaming, this title has somehow managed to stay relevant despite being sandwiched between the revolutionary NBA 2K16 and the graphically superior NBA 2K18. When I fired up my PS4 and saw that familiar splash screen, I was immediately transported back to when Steph Curry's three-point revolution was still fresh and LeBron's Cleveland championship felt like yesterday's news.

The game holds up remarkably well, which honestly shocked me. I expected janky animations and outdated rosters, but the MyCareer mode featuring President Prez still delivers one of the most engaging storylines the series has ever produced. The Neighborhood concept was still in its infancy here, but there's a purity to the basketball experience that later entries have arguably lost beneath all the microtransactions and elaborate side activities. I spent about three hours just running through different game modes, and the shooting mechanics - while definitely different from recent entries - have this satisfying rhythm that I'd forgotten about. The graphics, while not quite up to 2024 standards, still look decent on PS4, with player models that capture the essence of their real-life counterparts better than I remembered.

Now, let's talk about the elephant in the room - the server situation. Since 2K typically shuts down servers for older games, you're mostly looking at offline play at this point. But here's the thing - that's not necessarily a bad thing. Without the pressure to keep up with the online meta or the temptation to spend VC on cosmetic items, I found myself actually enjoying basketball for basketball's sake. The Association mode remains incredibly deep, and creating a custom player without worrying about their overall rating affecting online play was strangely liberating. I built a 6'8" point guard who would be completely impractical in today's online environments but was incredibly fun to develop through multiple seasons.

The MyTeam mode does suffer from the server shutdown, obviously, but the single-player challenges still work if you had the foresight to download them back in the day. I had about 15 challenges still available on my account, and working through them felt like discovering forgotten treasure in my gaming closet. The card art looks dated compared to current iterations, but there's charm in these simpler designs that current MyTeam has lost in its pursuit of flashy special effects and constantly evolving power creep.

What really struck me during my time with NBA 2K17 was how complete the package felt compared to some recent entries. Sure, it lacks the WNBA integration and some of the newer defensive mechanics, but the core basketball experience remains incredibly solid. The commentary from Kevin Harlan, Greg Anthony, and Clark Kellogg still holds up better than I expected, with fewer repetitive lines than I encounter in newer versions. Player movement does feel slightly heavier than what we're accustomed to now, but it creates a more methodical, simulation-style game that rewards smart basketball over explosive athleticism alone.

From a pure value perspective, finding NBA 2K17 for under $10 makes it an absolute steal for basketball fans who primarily play offline. Even with outdated rosters, the core gameplay mechanics translate across basketball generations in ways that make the experience feel timeless rather than dated. I found myself adjusting to the different shooting timing within a couple of games, and the CPU AI provides a legitimate challenge even on default difficulty settings. The fact that the game still has an active modding community on PC speaks volumes about its lasting appeal, though console players obviously miss out on those benefits.

My return to NBA 2K17 taught me something important about sports games - sometimes the newest isn't necessarily the best for every player. If you're deeply invested in current rosters and online competition, obviously you'll want the latest release. But for casual basketball fans or those tired of the grind-heavy nature of modern sports titles, this eight-year-old game offers a refreshingly pure basketball experience. It's like discovering your favorite band's early album before they became mainstream - rougher around the edges maybe, but containing a raw authenticity that later polished releases sometimes lose. The game has aged like that boxer moving up a weight class - finding new strengths and advantages in a different context than originally intended. After spending a week with it, I can confidently say NBA 2K17 still deserves a spot in your PS4 rotation, especially if you approach it with the right expectations and appreciation for what made this era of basketball gaming special.