[Note: The copy made available for this review was for the PlayStation 5 console.]
After so many years of entertaining the fan base with various video game entries, it would be easy for WWE 2K24 to become stale and disappoint with its content. However, that’s not the case, with the latest entry in the historic franchise breathing fresh air into the series with fun dynamics, new storylines and plenty of options to customize your own WWE Superstar. After last year, we saw plenty of changes in gameplay inside the ring. This year’s edition was ready to build upon what came before it, providing players with an enjoyable experience.
Right out of the gate, the most enjoyable addition to gameplay in WWE 2K24 should be addressed: the ability to throw objects at your opponent from any distance. Chairs, tables, ladders and many other props can fly through the air across the ring into your opponent’s face. The quickness that comes with the action and the visual gag of the object smashing the Superstar is incredibly fun, especially when playing with friends. For safety reasons, it’s not something you can often see in WWE live programming, but the video game allows the user to lean into the unpredictability of the concept.
Now that the countless funny moments WWE 2K24 can provide with the object-throwing mechanic, it’s time to discuss the My Rise mode. One of the new storylines involves Roman Reigns leaving his WWE Universal Championship vacant to pursue a career in Hollywood. At that point, your created WWE Superstar can try to win the title in a tournament involving Superstars from both Raw and SmackDown. The story’s dynamic does feel less tedious than the ones that came before it, with the pace of the narrative being quicker and giving the player more options to pursue side quests.
During the marketing campaign for WWE 2K24, the team constantly bragged about how many Superstars were available to play in the new game, and it wasn’t an exaggeration. There’s a wide variety of athletes to choose from; some have multiple outfits and gimmicks to play with. It was hard to imagine Sheamus having his old entrance theme music back in a modern WWE video game without the use of mods, but this entry made it possible once again. Some new styles can be unlocked through the My Faction game mode, returning with the dynamics that made it famous in previous years.
This year’s Showcase mode celebrates forty years of WrestleMania, the most significant event in WWE’s calendar. It wasn’t possible to include thirty-nine matches on the list, but the ones selected by the companies were good enough to remind players of the magic that can only take place in the Showcase of the Immortals. Another great feature the new title includes is the ability to select the time of day when your matches take place in outdoor arenas. The only unfortunate downside to this year’s Showcase is that, by filling up the game with various WrestleMania arenas, the rest of the venue selection feels somewhat limited.
The only major bug in WWE 2K24 was the ability to win a match by simply smashing a button and hitting the opponent repeatedly. Last year’s version didn’t allow this to happen, with Superstars performing an automatic reversal whenever the player tried to spam the match with simple strikes. Although this year’s iteration will enable you to win a match by punching someone until you charge your special moves, it’s a bug that can be fixed easily in upcoming updates.
The new match types, including the Ambulance Match and the Casket Match, are fun options to play that implement the button-mashing mini-games fans of the franchise have come to expect with stipulations that haven’t been present in WWE video games for a long time. You can throw chairs from the roof of an ambulance; this is precisely what wrestling video games are supposed to be about. There are moves programmed to inflict damage with the ambulance and casket themselves, adding new dynamics to the combats besides the obvious ones.
At the end of the day, WWE 2K24 is a beautiful way to celebrate four decades of WrestleMania, reminding the players why they love the business in the first place with its multiple storylines, recaps, dynamics and gameplay. There might come a time when this series stays mostly the same year to year, but that’s not currently the case. WWE has constantly evolved on television over the past couple of years, and that change is accurately represented across consoles. Get inside the ring with an entry that can provide endless hours of fun in the way WWE knows how with the improved action of WWE 2K24.
Rating: 9/10