Support for the Australian dollar is finally live. Some studios are still getting around to making their games available locally, but for the most part, prices and games have remained largely untouched.

But then everyone got to work, and very quietly, prices started going up.

Oh no, not this again.

NBA 2K19 players are reporting various bugs in the game’s My Career mode, and some have expressed frustrations with 2K’s slow response to their issues.

What’s an extra day of playing a hot new game early worth to you? What’s the worth of two days? It’s become more and more common for video game publishers to charge players for the chance to play games early. Or maybe they’re just sticking everyone else who pays a meagre $70 with a later release date. This practice has gone from rare to common this season. Here’s what’s being offered.

Let’s start with the good news: NBA 2K19 is not as egregious with its nickel-and-diming as NBA 2K18 was. But that being the good news is also what makes this the worst news.

NBA 2K18 had a lot of problems, the biggest being the fact it was riddled with microtransactions. I’ve been playing 2K19 all weekend and while some of the same issues persist at least there’s one difference: haircuts are now free, and the new barber is very aware of it.

It’s been over a decade since the gaming label 2K stopped making football games to rival EA’s Madden series, but wouldn’t you know it: someone is throwing a football at the end of the trailer for 2K’s latest big basketball game. It’s there to be noticed.