He was also given creative control over many of the game’s visual elements, from the design of the menus to intro and outro videos. This made sense given his profession, and naturally his selections included a few of his own tracks. Instead, Jay-Z’s role as executive producer included curating the soundtrack for NBA 2K13. It seemed unlikely that Visual Concepts would turn complete creative control over to a rapper with no history in video game design, and indeed, that’s not what happened. Although the role isn’t as well-defined when it comes to video game development, it’s generally the person with a significant amount of creative control and responsibility for assembling the game’s dev team.
#JAYZ NBA 2K13 TV#
It generally refers to a leadership position, though depending on the medium an executive producer can be the creator of a project, the person who oversees the creative content (such as the head writer and/or showrunner on a TV series), someone who manages financial and legal aspects (or in the case of a film, provides funding), and other such roles. The announcement trailer didn’t give much away, leaving us to wonder what his role actually entailed.Īfter all, the title of executive producer is used to describe different roles in the entertainment industry. MJ was in NBA 2K13, but the famous Brooklyn landmark was in fact a nod to Jay-Z. Some figured that it might’ve been a hint about Michael Jordan, who was born in Brooklyn but grew up in North Carolina. Gamers correctly guessed that the roses, spider, and griffins represented Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant, and Blake Griffin respectively, but the presence of the Brooklyn Bridge was a bigger puzzle.
As it turned out, his involvement had been hinted at in the game’s teaser cover. In July 2012, it was revealed that Jay-Z was an executive producer on NBA 2K13. His title also briefly inspired a trend in our modding community. Obviously, the rapper wasn’t actually spending hours coding at Visual Concepts’ studio in Novato, but as it turned out, he had a significant impact on the game.
After all, it’s even better if I can cover these topics when there’s interest, and to that end, I’m open to suggestions!įor now though, let’s focus on Jay-Z and his role with NBA 2K13. That topic was actually already on my list of ideas for Wayback Wednesday features, but since it’s been requested, I figure there’s no point delaying it any further. I received some nice compliments from people who enjoyed learning about that for the first time, as well as some suggestions to look back at Jay-Z’s involvement as an executive producer on NBA 2K13.
This week, I’m taking a look back at the role Jay-Z played as an executive producer on NBA 2K13.īack in December, I wrote an article about Jay-Z’s forgotten cameo in NBA Live 07. You’ll also find old NLSC editorials re-published with added commentary, and other flashback content. Check in every Wednesday for retrospectives and other features on older versions of NBA Live, NBA 2K, and old school basketball video games in general. This is Wayback Wednesday, your midweek blast from the past! In this feature, we dig into the archives, look back at the history of basketball gaming, and indulge in some nostalgia.