Typically, WWE fans expect the next game in theWWE 2Kfranchise to be revealed aroundSummerSlam, but Visual Concepts and 2K Sports are changing things up for the upcomingWWE 2K22. Fans tuning in to WrestleMania 37 were treated to a brief teaser trailer forWWE 2K22that offers the first look at gameplay, as well as confirms two current WWE superstars for the roster.
TheWWE 2K22trailer mainly focused on the character model for Rey Mysterio, showing that the new game is a significant visual upgrade when compared to the previous release,WWE 2K20. The level of detail is very impressive, and unless this teaser isn’t representative of the final product, it wouldn’t be a stretch at all to say thatWWE 2K22will be the best-looking WWE video game made to date.
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As far as gameplay goes, WrestleMania 37 viewers were able to see Rey Mysterio hitCesarowith a 619, but not much else. While there wasn’t a ton of gameplay on display, the trailer still showed that the animation inWWE 2K22looks to be incredibly impressive, and so hopefully it will win back fans who were burned by the universally-pannedWWE 2K20.
2K Sports and the team at Visual Concepts are aware ofWWE 2K20’s poor critical reception, and that’s part of the reason why it is showcasing the new game so early. The development team wants to be more transparent withWWE 2K22’s development than when compared to previous games in the series. They claim that the new game will be “completely different” and a step in the right direction. The brief footage seen show far is certainly encouraging, though fans will definitely need to see more before they can make any judgment calls.
Thereaction toWWE 2K20was so negativethat the franchise took 2020 off for extra development time, and so far it seems to be paying off. The slogan this year is “It hits different” to emphasize that this won’t be the same experience that fans were treated to withWWE 2K20, but again, it’s far too early to tell if the new game will live up to expectations or not.
WhileWWE 2K22is visually impressive, there could be issues with it that won’t be known until it’s actually in the hands of gamers. As some may recall,WWE 2K20was plagued with glitches and other technical issuesthat played a large part in its negative reception. Hopefully the extra development time helpsWWE 2K22avoid a similar fate.
