NBA 2K12 Official Cover Release

The NBA arguably has more marketable stars than any other major sport in the United States, and yet 2K Sports has decided to not use any of them to promote this year's NBA 2K game. 2K11 was centered around former Chicago Bulls guard Michael Jordan and included a great deal of in-game content devoted to the greatest player in league history. For 2K12, Jordan will return as the cover star, but he'll be joined by two other all-time greats: Los Angeles Lakers guard Ervin "Magic" Johnson and Boston Celtics forward Larry Bird.

Each of the three will have his own cover, all of which are more extravagant and stylized than past covers. (2K Sports says this style is a one-time thing.) The Bird and Magic covers will be available "in a limited quantity" at launch; Jordan will again be the primary cover star.

There's no indication that the limited edition versions will be any different than the Jordan version; there's no need to worry about missing out on anything more than the design if you aren't able to land a copy with Magic or Bird on the front.

Kobe Bryant was the last current player to be named as an NBA 2K cover star as the lead man for2K10. Many expected 2K12 to feature reigning MVP Derrick Rose or NBA Finals MVP Dirk Nowitzki.

NBA 2K12 is scheduled for release on PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation Portable on October 4. Like last year, it won't face any competition in the sim space from EA Sports, as their next basketball sim won't be out until 2012.

source http://www.1up.com/news/nba-2k12-cover-opts-three-legends