Ladies and Gentleman, My name is Paul Heyman, and I am the advocate to the reigning, defending, undisputed, WWE world heavyweight champion, of the world, Brockkkk Lesnarrrr!
WWE 2K16 is the latest instalment to the WWE franchise by 2K Sports. Now after the miserable release of WWE 2K15 which was 2Ks first next-gen release. Now, upon release it was hit with negative reviews from disgruntled customers and fans of the series, when near every fan favourite creation modes were stripped from them, leaving them with only the ability to create a wrestler, entrance, moveset, and that was literally about it. This year, 2K had to do something to impress the pundits and the WWE universe. And have they delivered? Yes they certainly have.
Let`s get one thing out there, I`m a huge WWE Fan. I watch it every single week, and I`m attending their house-show in Brighton next week. I was so eager and enthusiastic to get my hands on the newest release. For me, it`s fantastic playing a game that’s based on something you love. I threw myself straight into the play now option, which sees the return of many match types to this year`s addition, after a disappointing number of match types available to the gamer last year. I threw myself straight into a Hell in a Cell between the beast incarnate, Brock Lesnar, and the phenom, The Undertaker. Now, graphically, the game is superb. I think some superstars are hit and miss when it comes to facial scanning, but on the whole, it looks superb. I love the newest addition this year when you no longer have loading screens up between entrances. It sublimes into the gameplay, making it feel and look like you are watching a live WWE broadcast. As soon as the bell rung, I was in Suplex City mode, german suplexing Taker through the canverse, and down to Hell. Suplex, Suplex, Suplex, Suplex, Suplex. By the time we`d come back from Suplex City, I hit him with a F5 and hit the 3 count. Here is your winner, Brockk Lesnarrr!
It feels very good gameplay wise. If you`ve played the previous ones you`ll know the controls, as they haven’t changed for the last few years. If you are new to the WWE games, then the controls are very easy to pick up. The only little critic I have of the gameplay is the new submission system for WWE 2K16. You have to guide the blue block (which is your end) away from being mixed with the red block (your opponent). If both blocks meet the submission bar (what I`ll call it) will rise. Of course, the higher it is, the more closer you are to tapping out and losing via submission. Now, it does take a while to get used to it. I was finding myself tapping out very easily because I was struggling to gather the controls and get to grips with it. It does take time, and even now I still struggle with it, but it`s something a little bit different to the control system, as it`d be boring the same every single year. I like they`ve added something a bit different in.
Now, this year, you have 3 main games mode to have a crack at. MyCareer, which is the main mode where you take control of your own wrestler, and guide him through the Performance Centre, through NXT and onto the main roster where you can have a go at challenging for the number of titles on offer in the WWE. Now, this year has seen it revamped, and extended majorly. Last year`s career mode would see it end if you managed to capture the prestigious WWE championship. This year, you can win it as many times as you like. Your end goal is to reach the WWE Hall of Fame, and you can do this by achieving a number of goals, such as holding any title for 365 days, being a 16 time WWE champion (Woooooooo!), aswell as some more and not so fun goals, such as losing every match in NXT for a year. This career certainly feels different and better with the introduction of backstage interviews, conducted by a weirdly-slighted looking Renee Young, you are able to start rivalries, and lay down the challenges for new, potential rivals. There is also a new feature to MyCareer this year that gives you the option to “run-in” on a opponent, and attack them from behind or during a middle of a match. This would then set up any potential rivalry with another Superstar.
Second mode on the table is this year`s showcase mode, which takes a look at the career of Stone Cold Steve Austin. Throughout this mode you will take on a variety of Austin`s iconic matches, and within each match you will be given objectives. These must be completed for the game to progress. These then recreate iconic moments that retro WWE fans will recognise from the real matches. This is also where a lot of your unlockable content will be made on offer, especially when it comes to the legends and arenas within the games, along with the championships. Of course, if you buy the season pass, then you get the accelerator which unlocks everything in the game, from the start. You have the option to turn this on if you want to get everything straight away, or you can play through the game to have a crack at unlocking everything. Over the next few months more showcase matches will be added to the game such as Rikishi v The Rock, Macho Man Randy Savage v Jake the Snake Roberts, and even the Divas will not be left out with the addition of the iconic Womans Champion Alundra Blayze v Paige. These will all be dropping to us before 31st March 2016, which is also the same week as Wrestlemania 32.
Lastly, you have got the favourite, WWE universe mode, where you take complete control of the shows, and book them the way you want to. You`ll take up the GM position of Raw, Smackdown and NXT, and all the PPVs. Fancy booking a title match for Wrestlemania in a Ladder match? You have complete and control. And this year, you can book superstars to appear on a multiple number of shows. Last year you`d only be able to have a superstar appear on one mainstream show, where this year you can throw anyone into any show. John Cena to appear on Raw, Smackdown, NXT in the same week? You can now make it happen. WWE Universe is the mode for creating those iconic matches, and acting as the Authority and booking them the way you want.
Now, one thing for me the past few years that has really got on my nerves, is the online servers for the WWE games. This is something that has really lacked from the past few years, as the servers have been non-existent. Either down or taking ages to connect into a game. However, so far, and I say so far as I haven’t had many online games yet, are positive. Upon waiting for a game, you are put into a training ring, where you can brush up on those moves and practice those reversals for you to counteract your opponent. You have 3 modes that you can take a shot at, 2K Tonight, which is where you will have the choice to choose from one of the matches that are taking place on the WWE Programming. Today, on the day of writing this is the Smackdown Broadcast, so 2k Tonight focuses on the match types avalible on the show tonight. You get bonus XP for completing them, and you can play as whoever you like. WWE Live is this year`s version of Ranked matchmaking, and Team Up is where you can go online and be partnered with a tag team partner and rise through the ranks, becoming one of the most dominant forces out there. And of course, you have the private match mode so you can face off against your friends.
Overall, this year is a huge improvement on last year`s disastrous version. The re-introduction of the creation suite has been a huge addition and has been well received by fans. The submission system and gameplay can feel a bit difficult to get use to at times, but once you`ve got it, it`s a really neat gameplay system. It certainly is one of the better WWE games of the past 5-6 years, and 2K have done a fantastic job of making it a contender for a title.
A huge thank you to XCN for supplying us with a review copy.
