WWE 2K has led the wrestling video game genre since 2013, when the developing studio acquired the publishing rights to WWE’s simulation titles once and for all. Without an end in sight, releases are expected year in and year out for the foreseeable future, except when bullied enough by the fans, shoutout 2020.
Last year's quarter-million copies sold can be attributed to the solid playerbase, attractive star power, and fairly mild reception compared to its predecessor. Yet despite constant complaints, the WWE Universe is always eager to find out what’s next, and this year is no exception.
Promising a new cover star and showcase, an updated roster, arenas, and gears, here's a list of tweaks and features we expect to see in WWE 2K26 as we approach its WrestleMania release:
1. WWE Presentation on a 1:1 Scale
Each year, 2K promises the best-looking WWE game ever, expecting players to go wild. But WWE fans are exhausted of hearing buzzwords and cringeworthy slogans. Players don’t want “polished” products; players want finished ones. That includes one of wrestling’s biggest selling points: presentation.
Accurate and reactive commentary on stakes, former storylines, localization, and calendarization. TV-accurate camera movements for seamless Universe Mode transitions, from establishing crowd shots to backstage segments and the commentary desk. Crowd reaction sliders for Stone Cold-level pops and go-away-heat boos, plus three Entrance variants per Superstar for baby face, top heel, and mid-card reactions. Non-physical stipulations, like #1 Contender’s matches tracked in-game instead of on a player’s Excel, are just a few examples.
All these are impossible with 2K’s resources and/or project management. It truly is only a matter of noticing player patterns and modes of interest and investing deeper and deeper each year. Instead, devs just patch a few glitches, ensure the game runs despite crashes, and include one new idea per year, usually reserved for modes that make extra money, like WWE 2K MyFaction and The Island, shaking my masked head.
2. Showcase Build Instead of Isolated Matches
The current 2K Showcase format has always felt like Mortal Kombat’s tower system to me. Without real-life intros to set the stage and the choreographed, scripted spots to follow, this mode is no better than downloading retro Community Creations and manually setting the match-up yourself.
To turn this annoying instead of engaging mode around, we need to go back to where it all started, or at least peaked for the series. SmackDown vs. RAW’s Road to WrestleMania is sorely missed, with its original storylines that made the game feel more like a parallel fantasy universe than a realistic simulation of the sport. The playthrough thrived on continuity, cutscenes, and multiple objectives, rather than random, disconnected showings.
Therefore, to fix Showcase once and for all, it’s imperative to add even the slightest build-up to the match featured to make players part of the story, letting them emotionally invest instead of forcing them to immediately buy into the sometimes foreign context for newgens and younger fans.
In a company entering its fifth decade, Showcase breaks the number one rule inside the ring: If you’re going slow, go slower. This would ultimately fix the rushed matches, the insignificant explainers, and the lacklustre gameplay, giving players enough context to get hooked on iconic storylines on their own, rather than just showing them the climax.
3. Return GM Mode to Its Glory Days with Free Mode
The freedom and fun this game mode brings should be enough to indicate that fans want to emulate the product's feel, not just simulate its look. SmackDown vs. RAW 2008 hit the nail on the head with this mode.
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Balancing wrestlers’ contracts on a budget, sending them on a calculated PR tour, and booking killer weekly shows were the core dynamics that let you feel the booker’s rush. Measuring your ability to run a show by earnings, ratings, and wrestlers’ content.
Money was spent on Hell in a Cell and Extreme Rules costs instead of on power-ups and bingo halls, unlike in WWE 2K25. We went too far off the deep end and have let go of the principles that a GM position demands of its players. Not rent, not cards, not combos, just the ability to run a wrestling promotion.
We can have a taste of what it felt like by adding a wrestling-centric uncapped version of GM Mode that allows players to book match starts, builds, and finishes instead of the CPU’s button-mashing spot fest and anticlimactic taps.
After the draft, make all arenas, match types, and unlockables available from the get-go, tossing full control of the fantasy back into our greedy little hands. You would no longer be limited by the overwhelming number of options, finally giving you control over the creativity we constantly diss.
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