English
Gamereactor
Videos
WWE 2K24
HQ

WWE 2K24 - Video Review

We're returning to the ring to check out this year's instalment of WWE 2K24, to see how it shapes up to its predecessors.

Audio transcription

"It seems that the WWE 2K series really needed to experience the tragedy that was WWE 2K20, one of the worst games we have ever played. This led the developers to pause the series, which had been very mediocre even before this game, to get it back on track. The return then gave us WWE 2K22 and WWE 2K23, both of which have revitalised the series, and now WWE 2K24 continues this effort as a very good game, which unfortunately has some classic problems that never seem to go away. It's hard for us to let go of the sadness from four years ago, but it seems like the time is now. 2K24 offers pretty much everything we need and want from a wrestling game, from great gameplay to deep game modes, but how hard can it be to fix things like hair physics? How many years has hair looked like plastic seed, often cutting right through a wrestle? Too many years is the answer. The game otherwise looks mostly fantastic and while some faces have received too little love and clearly been hit in the face with a steel chair too many times during development, the quality is very good in an apparent sense. The quality of what happens in the ring is also good. There have been no major changes from what we saw last year, which is a good What has been added is a little mini-game when the wrestlers exchange blows, you know the classic, you hit me, I hit you, you hit me, I hit you back. You now have to time these punches by holding down the punch button and releasing it in a shrinking zone. Anyone who fails three times has lost the battle and is the one who gets the short end of the stick."

"The guest referee system has been revamped. Any character can now be a guest referee, whether it's a woman in a match with two men, a manager or a buddy of one of the participants.
It was previously possible to have or to be a guest referee, but they had to wear their normal clothes. However, now everyone has their own entrance in a classic black and white referee shirt. If you choose to play as a referee it is up to you to count 1, 2, maybe 3, but how fast or slow you want to count is up to you. You can switch between referee mode where you just do the things the referee does and wrestler mode where you can fight if you want to. If the referee is computerised and has a positive relationship with a participant, it will give them an advantage and the opposite if it's someone it doesn't like."

"The big focus this year is on 2K's showcase of the Immortals. WrestleMania turns 40 years old and 2K celebrates this by offering 21 matches. The first match is from WrestleMania 3 with one of the best matches ever, Ricky the Dragon Steamboat against Macho Man Randy Savage. Just like previous years in the showcase we play with objectives and after accomplishing this the match seems to transition to actual footage of the match. We would have liked a little more audio from the matches while playing instead of generic music, but the game mode is a nice tribute regardless."

"The My Rise Story mode is back with the same focus as last year. There are two different stories, one for a custom male character and one for a female. 2K seems to want to create a kind of universe now as many side characters from last year's edition return in different forms here. Both stories are fun to play through and are a great setting to sink your teeth into as a solo player. There's also the classic sandbox mode, universe mode, where you are essentially a god and are able to plan shows down to the last detail and basically do whatever you want. We can see players easily spending hundreds of hours here. You can certainly do that in MyGM2, a game mode that came back a few years ago. Again you have to plan shows and make them as good as possible, but here you compete against at least one other person – computer control or a friend – by booking the best matches and getting the most fans."

"There are some small additions this year. It is now possible to trade wrestlers with another show, plus there are more match types, more titles, some extra shows and GMs and talent scouts to find new talent.
That leaves us with what is probably the game's most controversial game mode, My Faction."

"This is an ultimate team-like game mode where card packs are purchased. There is obviously a market for this and the money will roll in, but at the same time it doesn't feel like wrestling is a genre that needs this. When it was introduced a couple of years ago it wasn't even possible to play online, which thankfully has now changed. The game mode is good for what it is, but like we said, it's not needed."

"WWE 2K24 continues on the same nice track that the train has been on for a few years since WWE 2K20 went off the rails. It's fun to play, looks great, has many varied game modes and match types and a nice tribute to Wrestlemania's 40 year history. A few minor annoyances remain, but not enough to detract from the overall gaming experience."

Reviews

More

Videos

More

Movie Trailers

More

Trailers

More

Events

More