Video games help fill void left by live sports’ suspension

The novel coronavirus pandemic created an unprecedented phenomenon in the modern sporting era.

There are no live sporting events to watch.

Sure, replays of classic games across different networks help kill time, but they don’t entirely fill that void. Enter video games — both the ability to watch and play.

Twitch, YouTube and Mixer’s platforms afford hungry sports audiences an array of selections of games to watch between streamers playing Madden, FIFA, NBA 2K and MLB The Show.

The NBA in particular has been most willing to embrace a burgeoning esports community. The 2K League, featuring “franchises” owned by NBA teams, began play in 2018 and features the community’s top 2K players who compete under their organization’s banner.

This weekend, the 2K League will stream a 3-on-3 challenge, the “Three For All” showdown, on its streaming channels.

Additionally, various NBA teams took to Twitter to livestream simulations of the games they’re currently missing. The Suns’ Frank Kaminsky and Pacers’ Brian Bowen went a step forward, squaring off against one another with their respective teams on stream.

As for the individual games themselves, each holds an array of offerings.

All the aforementioned sports games offer classic modes of quick play to franchise mode, where any aspiring armchair general manager can take over his or her favorite team and right the wrongs they perceive.

Each game also offers a connected franchise mode, which lets players compete with their peers on the field and in the front office.

NBA’s MyPlayer mode allows gamers to create their own hooper in the game, complete with face-scanned technology through the game’s companion app. Once created, the virtual version of one’s self plays through a brief story mode then joins an NBA team. From there, users participate in drills to upgrade their skills and hit the blacktop to compete against other players.

All of these games include a form of the ultimate team mode that’s become a cash cow for video game franchises.

Ever wanted to see Francisco Lindor back up Bob Feller, or Baker Mayfield hand off to Jim Brown? Those scenarios become possible, virtually, in Madden and MLB The Show.

Among the major sports games, MLB The Show’s “Diamond Dynasty” mode offers the best balance of being able to upgrade one’s team through playing the game and chipping in some more money than the game’s initial cost. NBA 2K, Madden and FIFA’s ultimate team modes require more of a financial commitment to attain a competitive squad.

For anyone interested in a MLB The Show matchup against a World Seriesranked player, drop me a line.

Outside the main titles pertaining to today’s leagues, a handful of other games worth playing — if you still have an old console lying about — include Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, NBA Street and MLB Slugfest. Perhaps most crucial right now, video games offer more than a simple distraction.

Whether heading to the blacktop in 2K or hopping in a Fortnite squad with three of your friends, virtual connection offers slight reprieve from the frustrating necessity that is social distancing.

Find a few friends, jump online and whether you’re competing or playing casually, talk to each other. The mandated space between us may seem a little less vast.

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Capital One Arena, home of the Washington Capitals, is empty, but fans dejected by the sports world coming to a temporary halt because of the novel coronavirus can find some joy in video games.