NBA 2K27 Is Punishing Players for Quitting City Games That Never Started

Quitters are the scourge of online competitive games, behind only cheaters and griefers when it comes to the most frustrating opponents to encounter in a match. When the problem of losing players leaving games becomes too extreme, it can significantly hinder the fun of playing online, as it feels like the only way you can get to the end of a match is when you’re taking an L.

This is why developers work hard to put safeguards into effect to disincentivize leaving a match early, ensuring that it’s in the best interest of gamers to stick it out even in a losing effort rather than bail quickly in search of a softer opponent. Penalties for quitting are among the most successful options, as they ensure the price of leaving is too high to make it worth the losing player’s while.

Unfortunately, sometimes these protections can go wrong, and that appears to be the case right now with NBA 2K27, according to a posting on the game’s official Discord channel:

Issue: Players may receive a quitting/sportsmanship timeout for leaving the lobby while still searching for an opponent, even if a match has not been found or started yet.

The problem arises when players queue up for a match and decide to leave to do something else. In this case, some gamers still receive a punishment for quitting, with the game treating them as if they bailed in the middle of a match and handing out a timeout for poor sportsmanship.

While gamers can certainly get behind punishing rage quitters, backing out before a match has even started is another story. The post about the issue lists it as under investigation, with further updates expected as the team at 2K identifies the problem and begins looking for a solution.