Finally, The Reviewer has come back to WWE 2K16 and let me tell you something about it brother, it isn’t very good – It’s true, it’s damn true. The bad combat really should never, eh-eh-ever be the same again and despite it looking great, it’s not enough, woo woo woo, you know it! You will find some fun in the modes but ultimately the bottom line is that the gameplay hinders the overall experience making it hard to play. Now can you dig that? Suckaaaaa. . .
With possibly the worst opening paragraph ever written (or best) WWE 2K16, developed by Yukes and is out now is a game that had all its effort put into one aspect that is honestly pretty impressive but it’s a foundation built in unstable ground: The gameplay. One of my favourite parts about the gameplay was the feeling of working on a specific body part, wearing it down and then utilising moves to greater effect. While it seemingly still exists, the fact that each superstar has three bars of health simply turn it into a straight-up fighting game, and a band one at that. Transitions from one wrestling move to another look weird and the flow of the gameplay has been slowed down to the point where it feels like everyone is in their 60s and should have retired long ago – woooooooooo! (last one I swear).
One of the biggest complaints about previous titles was that every match became a game of who can time reversals better. To combat that this, you have limited reversals and while they do recharge over time, the rate at which they do is pretty slow. While this is great to some aspects of the game, once a player recognises their opponent have no more reversals, they can just start whaling on them while the other player is defenceless. It does make it feel more like the real thing as momentum switches in matches, it doesn’t feel like that kind of swing however and I’m sure a momentum-based system can be implemented to better recreate the feeling of watching the actual thing.
One thing that cannot be criticised is its authenticity in presentation. Entrances look incredible, arenas feel electric, and to watch the game is a treat. The highlight of the entire package is the 2K Showcase mode that highlights the biggest moment’s in Stone Cold Steve Austin’s career going all the way back to his initial WCW days. Each match is accompanied by a small video package that was produced by the WWE television production team and it shows. Whether you like the WWE or not, you cannot fault how amazingly well they capture the essence of what can make it enjoyable to watch.
These matches are a little more enjoyable that the rest of the game because it has a set story to it and you must hit certain objectives to recreate what happened in the match. Having this avenue explored and expanded upon greatly is the key to bringing the franchise back in a great way. Not that the game should feel scripted but that it should be about creating those exciting moments that we all remember as fans. There’s no denying that WWE 2K16 has an impressive collection of modes and the biggest roster in the game’s franchise (over 120) but the core of it is so weak the it diminishes the fun to continue. Should they spend the next year or two overhauling the gameplay, the WWE games could easily go back to its very best and quite comfortably surpass them.
WWE 2K16 should rest in peace with 2/5.
★★☆☆☆
Jason Redmond
WWE 2K16 at CeX
Get your daily CeX at
