5 Features We Want Included (& 5 Things Need To Avoid)
Emma Horne WWE 2K20 is a disaster. It released as a broken game and the bugs have not been fixed. This game is so disastrous that there will not be a yearly 2K game this year. Instead, there will be an arcade-style 2K Battlegrounds. For the 2K games that fans love (except 2K20), they will have to wait an extra year for 2K22.
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2K will have to make some big changes for 2K22 if they hope to redeem themselves to fans. There are several things the 2K series has utilized in the past that they desperately need to avoid and there are features fans have been begging for for years.
10 Avoid: Same Gameplay Engine
The 2K games have been largely the same for years. They have had the same gameplay loop with the same moves and animations. The same mechanics with minimal updates for the next full-priced game is something 2K really needs to avoid this time around.
Instead of making the same game yet again, there needs to be significant updates and changes to the gameplay to make it actually worth buying another full-priced game. Fans would be excited to see a game that isn't just a carbon copy of years prior.
9 We Want: GM Mode
GM Mode has been one of the most commonly asked-for features to be added to WWE 2K games. Fans have been clamoring for the return of the beloved mode from the older Smackdown Vs Raw series.
GM Mode allowed players to take the role of the general manager of a brand and manage all the responsibilities that come with the job. The player would book shows, sign superstars, and compete with other brands. Players would love to step into the shoes of a general manager again when 2K22 releases.
8 Avoid: Showcase Mode
There is nothing inherently wrong with Showcase Mode, as many fans have actually enjoyed past iterations of the feature. However, it is a mode that 2K should leave behind. Showcase mode makes the player hit certain objectives to relive a match exactly the way it went down.
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While that concept was fun in previous years, it becomes a tedious chore of hitting all the objectives to get to the next cutscene. Instead of Showcase Mode, 2K should bring back Road to WrestleMania or just focus their efforts to make a better story mode.
7 We Want: Better Story Mode With Player Choice
The last two 2K games both had interesting story modes. 2K19 had the far superior effort, while 2K20 had a weird story revolving around the player's dead parents. The real problem with this mode in previous years is shallow player choice.
Players have been able to make choices within the story but the choices don't actually change anything. 2K22 should feature a story mode where choices actually matter. Players should be able to pick their superstar's path and make choices with consequences.
6 Avoid: Shallow DLC
In previous years, DLC for WWE games would include superstar packs of legends or up and coming stars to add to the roster, as well as new moves. While 2K20's DLC added new moves, the rest of the content was incredibly shallow.
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2K20's DLC included different attires for existing superstars, basic tower modes, and lazily written showcases. It was a lazy effort that players paid for, expecting decent DLC. 2K definitely needs to avoid these shallow DLC offerings in the future, as they will further lose players' trust.
5 We Want: New Reversal System
For the past several years, WWE 2K games have used the same reversal system. There is one reversal button that you have to time correctly. It is a simple system that leads to the same reversal animations over and over in a match.
A new reversal system with new animations would add to the excitement of a match. Instead of performing the same reversals for each move, there should be reversal animations that actually make sense for the move being reversed. This would help with the flow of the match, something WWE 2K games struggle with.
4 Avoid: Poor Graphics
There is no acceptable reason for the poor state of the graphics in WWE 2K20. The characters actually look worse than the previous year's entry. This is an area that 2K definitely needs to update.
Fans should not be paying the same price for a 2K game with horrendous graphics that they are paying for the best AAA games coming out. There is honestly no excuse. This was an area where 2K20 really dropped the ball and something the team desperately needs to fix.
3 We Want: New Animations For Moves And Move Cycles
Like the reversals, the moves and cycles of move animations have remained the same for years. The same moves have been in the games and the sequences of reversals for these moves have stagnated also. Keeping these same animations speaks to laziness that is unacceptable when selling a full-priced game.
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2K22 needs revamped animations for moves to make this feel like a fresh game, instead of just another copy of every 2K game before it. Players would be excited to play with new animations instead of the same move animations from the PS2 days.
2 Avoid: Game-Breaking Bugs
This should really be obvious but after the state of 2K20, it bears reiterating. WWE 2K22 should under no circumstances be released as a buggy, broken game. 2K20 has had bugs since release that have not been fixed and 2K Games have no intention of fixing them now.
Fans who paid full price for 2K20 bought a broken game full of bugs that would ruin the action or completely crash the game. This was an unacceptable state for the game to be released in and what's worse, it hasn't been fixed. If 2K makes the same mistake with 2K22, they will completely lose fans' trust.
1 We Want: Better Creation Suite
The creation suite in WWE 2K games is both too complicated and not good enough. It is complicated in the sense that the choices are overwhelming. However, the amount of choice does not make up for the fact that so many of the choices do not look good.
2K22's creation suite should be both deeper and simpler, so players can have more fun creating and have a simpler time of doing so. Another feature the creation suite should have in cross-platform community creations. 2K players love downloading other players' creations and don't want to be limited by platform. Oh, and bring back Create A Finisher.