Game Review: WWE 2K23

 

I have an unashamed love for all things professional wrestling. Ever since I was a kid I remember being drawn into the dramatic narratives and high-octane acrobatics that wrestling was built up of.  While today, my love for wrestling tends to rise and fall depending on the season and current quality of its content, there’s no denying I will always inevitably come back to it at some point. It’s probably not all that out-there to say the biggest name in the professional wrestling field is WWE. This company has had a titanic foot in the industry since the 1950’s and is showing no signs of being anything less than the glass ceiling of this industry. Part of this company’s massive portfolio of entertainment can also be found in its extended media offerings; more specifically it’s video games.  I’ve been no stranger to WWE licensed video games, I’ve played a ton of them growing up. I still remember getting Smackdown vs Raw for the PlayStation 2 for Christmas as a kid. Similar to the promotion itself, the level of quality behind WWE’s games has wavered up and down throughout the years, especially when you take a look at the 2K licensed games the company has been pushing out ever since 2014.  The biggest stumble in the 2K library of WWE games was probably with the 2K20 entry. I still remember how much of a laughing stock that game was on it’s release, with poor reviews and tons of clips online of all the downright bizarre glitches that showcased the very worst of what these games had to offer.  Since this massive fall from grace however, it's worth noting that 2K and Visual Concepts have worked together to redeem themselves with WWE 2K22 and WWE 2K23; the latter of which I just finished playing. 

Developed by Visual Concepts and published by 2K, WWE 2K23 was developed and released across PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X on March 17th 2023. WWE 2K23 serves as the 2nd game helmed by Visual Concepts solely after series regular Yukes stepped away from developing the games back in 2019.  Visual Concepts already obtained a lot of good will from fans and critics after their initial redemption with WWE 2K22 and WWE 2K23 was their attempt to keep the momentum going with all that good will they retained.  The big stand out of this year’s release was it’s chosen cover mascot of John Cena, who serves as the star of this year’s signature Showcase mode. Along with Cena’s dedicated presentation, WWE 2K23 also features an updated roster of wrestlers and the first-time introduction of the War Games game mode. Besides those noted aspects, there’s not much new, innovative functionality in this game; instead it seems Visual Concepts choose to refine as apposed to redefine with this entry. 

John Cena has had a storied 25 year run throughout WWE with a ton of highs and lows. The really interesting thing that this year’s showcase mode decides to do is put a spotlight on some of Cena’s biggest losses as apposed to his biggest wins. I think on the whole this was a really interesting choice because any typical WWE fan knows John Cena’s career has been built up of a multitude of wins which actually makes his losses stand out way more notably. Having Cena on hand to give some modest previews to the matches in this mode adds a nice bit of exposition and levity to the context behind his biggest losses too. While the intent and variety behind the matches you are put into are appreciated, I can’t help but feel the way these matches are presented to players is sadly underwhelming. Each match in this mode lacks any commentary track and it’s layered with some really weird music which reminds me of the royalty free music you’d find on YouTube. On top of these strange elements, the gameplay is often segmented with actual clips from the matches you’re taking part in playing over the gameplay. I’m not against this idea but the balance is all out of skew and I felt I spent more time putting my controller down to watch these clips than I did actually fighting. Each of these choices may seem inconsequential on their own, but together they end up hindering the overall quality and potential of the mode substantially. 

Besides the showcase mode, one of the other big game modes I played through was the MyRise career mode which allows you to create a custom wrestler to take on their very own WWE career journey. The nice thing about this mode is it offers two distinct storylines. One in which you play a female wrestler trying to define herself in the shadow of the legacy of her hall of fame aunt.  The other story you play a male wrestler called The Lock, who comes into the WWE from the indies and seeks to define himself as the next big thing in the company. I wasn’t really expecting all that much from these modes but I actually found myself enjoying them the most. The Legacy storyline in particular is one I really enjoyed just for how well acted some of the dialogue was between the custom wrestler and her aunt. The biggest selling point behind these modes is the ability to define your own wrestler with distinct story paths depending on your choices. While I don’t really feel these choices feel all that fleshed out, especially in comparison to some of WWE’s prior attempts, it’s hard to argue that there isn’t a valid attempt to give some sense of choice in how you want to emulate your character. I feel the idea behind this mode is to give you a genuine feel for what it’s like to BE a wrestler in the WWE. With backstage bouts, social media management and shifting narratives, there’s a ton of scope in this games content to help you feel truly immersed into the WWE lifestyle.  I think what hinders this mode somewhat though is repetition, as load screens often plague each scene and unless you follow the main story you will end up doing a lot of the same type of matches and challenges which ends up inflating the playtime superficially. 

Besides those two modes, there are a mix of other modes which I took a small dip into during my time with the game. Universe Mode returns once again, offering players all the tools and options on hand to let the player experience a living, breathing world of WWE. This mode lets you set rosters, storylines, rivalries and champions to your hearts content. It’s the ultimate sandbox to let you lay out your ultimate WWE fantasies and it feels like there’s an entire sub-level of playtime which you can lose to just this mode alone. MyFaction also makes a return offering a live-service style game mode akin to that of Ultimate Team from FIFA, where you open up packs of cards and build up a faction of wrestlers to take on other players online.  This mode in itself doesn’t personally speak to me but I can at least appreciate there’s again a multitude of content in this mode alone to keep any player invested for a long duration. MyGM also is another simulation style mode which offers players a more managerial perspective of WWE, having you play the role of General Manager for a WWE brand of your choosing.  This mode goes more in depth with the overarching management of a brand through roster lists with salary management and draft bids. Again, this mode isn’t something I particularly go to, but the fact such an in-depth mode is there for players to delve into is another feat worth praising. The fact that there’s even more content littered in this game besides what I’ve already mentioned like the online portion and multitude of creation tools just goes to emphasize the insane value for money you’re getting with the gameplay content of this game alone.

A game is only as good as it’s gameplay though and thankfully WWE 2K23 stands talk with a thoroughly impressive combat system which feels tight and responsive with so much room to experiment with. Each wrestler in this massive roster, either male or female is given a unique set of combat moves which makes their implementation into fights distinct and memorable. Their unique move set is made all the more accessible through the game’s tight controls. Stuff like the combo system or the grappling system makes setting up an executing an array of devastating attacks so much fun. It’s a combat system which stands tall on an easy foundation but offers layers of depth for players to adapt to if they really want to perfect a playstyle which works to them.  This combat system complements the games numerous game modes too. Whether you’re fighting one or one, in a two vs two tag team or a 30-man Royal Rumble, the control system will always benefit these modes with controls which successfully complements all of it with complete ease. 

On the presentation front, this may be one of the best elements of the game for me. This game looks and runs phenomenally. The models for the majority of the superstars in the game feel the closest they’ve ever been to the real-life likeness of these wrestlers. They don’t just nail it with their modelling either but right down to their attires and entrances. The fact the audio team got the serenade in Seth ‘Freakin’ Rollins entrance down or the “Woah!” in Cody Rhodes entrance on point just goes to show the team at Visual Concepts went to every effort to make this feel like a proper simulation of what it’s like to step into the boots of these much-loved wrestlers.  It’s not all perfect though, there are some members of the roster who I feel got the crap end of the stick when it came to reimagining their likeness. I get it, when you have over one hundred and seventy-eight people to render and animate, some of them are going to get more attention than others. It’s just a shame that attention to detail couldn’t be applied across all of these wrestlers, because it definitely feels like some of these wrestlers look like boot leg versions of their real-life counterparts. 

Despite some of the game’s rougher edges, WWE 2K23 has far too much good stuff to ever let its weaker elements ever weigh it down. This is a game which truly realizes the idea of wrestling simulation and gives the player all the tools to simulate it to whatever extent they wish.  There’s a plethora of game modes for players to get lost in here and it never comes off as overwhelming. It’s a wide canvas of potential and the game is smart enough to never try to guide you to play in any one particular way. It’s that intrinsic freedom that serves as this game’s true core quality and whatever type of wrestling fan you consider yourself, there’s easily going to be something here for you to sink time into and enjoy.