When it comes to fighting games, whether they’re based on fictional characters or portray actual sports, the roster is the most important thing outside of gameplay. Why? Because you need to either have your fictional characters connect with people enough to make them want to play them more. Or, you need to have some of the best athletes from the sport you’re recreating so that they can play their favorites. When it comes to games like WWE 2K23, that’s easier to do because you just look at the Raw, Smackdown, and NXT roster and go, “who can we put in that people would like?”
Granted, only some people make the cut right off the bat. That’s what DLC is for, and WWE 2K23 has already outlined the numerous packs you’ll be getting later this year. However, as people have noticed as they play the game, there’s one person who arguably shouldn’t be on the roster, yet he is.
We’re talking about Vince McMahon, whom you may know as the chairman of WWE, and the man who took the company from his father when it was WWF and rose it to new heights. He changed the wrestling world in numerous ways, including unifying the “territories” as they used to be known into one country-spanning banner. His banner. Then, he made WWE a worldwide phenomenon, which made him very wealthy.
However, people like Eurogamer are talking about this inclusion because last year, McMahon was accused of various “misconducts” that forced him into “early retirement,” leaving the company to his son-in-law to run. This run has been significantly better in the eyes of most fans and critics.
Yet, despite those allegations and the settlements McMahon was revealed to have paid to get out of them, Vince is not only in the game but also trying to get back into WWE. First, he was found to have used his Chairman power, which he retained despite retiring, to get back into the driver’s seat partly due to how WWE is up for sale. Then, reports indicated that he was backstage at WWE programs and might have been directing segments.
The fact that he’s in WWE 2K23 is arguably the most disturbing because this is something that they willingly allowed. Removing his character from the game would’ve been easy, yet he’s in there.
That’s not to say that he couldn’t be removed, but no word on whether that’ll happen has been given.