You may soon be able to play as Devin Booker in a hockey video game

I don’t play. NBA2K. I don’t. I love basketball. I love video games. But I don’t love basketball video games.

There are too many options. There are too many buttons. It is all very confusing. Visual Concepts, you think I have the time to learn this?

Post-Shimmy Fade: Hold L2 to post up. With Left Stick neutral, hold R2 + Move and hold Right Stick down left or down right

WELL I DON’T.

Fortunately, for those of us whose brains have already absorbed everything they are going to absorb, there are alternatives.

In December, Apple Arcade released a new sports game franchise called ‘Ultimate Rivals.’ The first release is ‘Ultimate Rivals: The Rink.’ Straight from Apple:

In “Ultimate Rivals: The Rink,” the first title in the franchise, players choose from more than 50 superstar athletes to compete in exciting two-on-two hockey matches. Players can combine, for instance, Alex Ovechkin and Alex Morgan against De’Aaron Fox and Jose Altuve or Skylar Diggins-Smith and Wayne Gretzky. Different combinations of heroes unlock unique ways to play and win against the AI or other gamers in online multiplayer matches. On the ice, the action is driven by players’ quick reflexes and are brought to life with stylized visuals and immersive sound FX.

This one is out now, available on iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and Mac. Here are some moving pictures with game play and full rosters:

The Phoenix Suns are not featured in ‘Ultimate Rivals: The Rink.’ Though Apple says, “Additional athletes will be added over time, ensuring long-term depth in the game.”

BUT WAIT, THERE IS MORE VIDEO GAME NEWS.

The second installment of the franchise is right around the corner. And you have to think that this one will feature future NBA Hall of Famer Devin Booker the day the game is released.

‘Ultimate Rivals: The Court’ will release in the Spring of this year. And it sounds like you’ll get much of the same game play as ‘Ultimate Rivals: The Rink.’ Just, you know, not on ice.

Final details you might want to know:

Bit Fry Game Studios, Inc., an independent multi-platform developer and publisher of sports video games, is composed of gaming, as well as entertainment and sports veterans, and is the first studio to combine licenses from all player unions as well as four leagues into a single gaming franchise. Bit Fry has secured groundbreaking licensing agreements with nine major professional sports organizations, including the NHL, NHL Players’ Association (NHLPA), NBA, National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), MLB, MLB Players Association (MLBPA), NFLPA, Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), USWNTPA, as well as Wayne Gretzky. The company was founded in 2013 with its first investment coming from former Red Sox owner and vice chairman Les Otten, and now counts among its investors many leading names in sports and gaming, including NBA Commissioner Emeritus David Stern, Xbox co-creator and managing partner of 1UP Ventures Ed Fries, MLB all-star and World Series champion Ryan Howard, private equity fund Dugout Ventures, co-founding partner of March Capital Gregory Milken, Barclays’ head of Equities Trading for the Americas Todd Sandoz, and BITKRAFT Esports Ventures.

Apple Arcade is a video game subscription service that launched in September of 2019 and will run you five bucks a month.