Bleacher Report shared their hands on impressions of WWE 2K15. Thanks to the new direction from 2K Games, Visual Concepts and Yuke’s has made many sweeping changes to the franchise.
Prior screenshots of the game show off the jump in quality for the character renders, but the crowds and arenas were clearly at a lower level of quality. This does not completely ruin the game, but it remains an opportunity that 2K Games can improve on.
The combat system has been tweaked to make matches play out more logically. In the new chain-grapple system, the wrestlers start out in the classic collar and elbow position. The wrestlers then enter a small rock-paper-scissors style minigame to determine who gets control.
Whoever wins can then transition into other maneuvers, such as arm cranks or side headlocks. Every time you transition into another move, the minigame will come up, so that a player can escape or take the advantage.
The new fatigue system will no longer force players to constantly run away from opponents to build up taunts. All actions wrestlers do, especially running, take away from their energy. The less energy they have, the slower they move.
This system slows down the gameplay, but it also better simulates the drama found in these matches. It does mean you can no longer simulate frenetic lucha libre style matches, but it makes each move you pull off more meaningful. High impact moves affect both the target and the attacker, and overall, matches become more dramatic.
WWE 2K15 also conveys a sense of the weight of each wrestler. You will also feel a difference between the weights of wrestlers in different classes, such as Randy Orton, Kofi Kingston, or Wade Barrett. A wrestler like Kofi cannot lift someone as heavy as Bray in real life. The game will now reflect this reality as well.
This was not in the build, but WWE superstars Jerry Lawler and Michael Cole revealed that they were working on improved commentary, and JBL’s commentary has also been included.
Overall,WWE 2K15 seems to have the substance to match its style, but it remains to be seen if fans will embrace these changes. It will be released on October 28, on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
