WWE2K26 PS5 Review 7/10 “Core Gameplay and GM Mode Save The Stagnation Issues” 🤼‍♂️

I always brace myself whenever I’m about to play a new WWE 2K game after years of ‘two steps forward, one step back’ for over a decade in the 2010’s. I’m always nervous, 2K have been on a good run for the last few years, there have been improvements and 2K have been taking what they have and building onto it instead of taking things out... to then only put them back in years later and claim its a new feature. 

So, when I booted up WWE 2K26 I wondered if, just like The Undertaker at WrestleMania 30 was the streak about to end? I can thankfully report that, no it hasn't...but it has run into a bit of stagnation. 

The core game is solid but I would say this edition doesn't feel like the jump that previous years have had, and a few new issues have been brought into play.

The gameplay is fine, it has been that way for a while now and this year remains the same, the wrestling feels great, the animations are good, the matches feel fluid and responsive, there has not been too many tweaks to the combat, aside from the fact that counters now require stamina, meaning you can’t reverse all the time – this will definitely be divisive. 

I don’t really mind it but I can understand the criticism. Opponent AI still feels crisp, they still do some crazy things at times but having recently observed the AI for WWE 2K18 at a recent wrestling night, this iteration is far better - and it should be by the way, it has been nearly ten years! - but it was a real shock to see just how awful it was back then. I think not constantly fiddling with gameplay and controls has been a strong plus for this revived 2K series, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ is an old adage for a reason.

Showcase mode was the second biggest interest in the release that I had this year, as a hater of this mode since it was brought in, I wondered - could CM Punk finally be the deciding factor to change my mind? The man who brought me back to watching weekly wrestling TV three separate times, in 2011, 2021 and 2023? 

I thought that if one wrestler could do it... it’s him. Yeah, not even CM Punk is enough to get me to like this mode, I just find it boring, having to do irritating goals to watch a cutscene of the match, to then do more irritating goals just to watch another cutscene - I find nothing enjoyable about it, and to unlock a lot of the stuff in the game you unfortunately have to play through it, which to me is a shame as I really don’t enjoy it at all. 

What I will say is it does tug at my nostalgia strings, Punk’s introductions are good enough, but still slightly bland for him, I’d say playing out matches against opponents such as Eddie Guerrero, and Stone Cold Steve Austin in a ‘what if’ scenario was probably the most fun I had in Showcase mode. 

Now. if you like the previous showcase modes I’m sure you will have fun with it, but for me it is not the best in the world... even with the self proclaimed ‘best in the world’ leading it this year.

What is the best in the world is GM mode, ah sweet, amazing GM mode, you do get better every year, and being the mode I care about most - that does make me happy. The slight disappointments from last year have been addressed, you now can have 6-person tags, 5-way matches, handicap matches, inter-gender matches - all the matches you could ever want. 

This pleases me, and I may not enjoy Showcase - but GM mode is amazing, being able to choose what titles you want for your show is fantastic, this mode has finally started to reach the promise that everyone was hoping for when they brought this back a few years ago. 

PLE’s such as the Royal Rumble, and Money In The Bank are the next thing that should be fixed, being able to have the rumble winner then go on to ‘mania and cash in the MITB briefcase do need to be added, so fingers crossed for next year. Overall, a big thumbs up for the improvements this year, I will lose many an hour to this mode and I will love every second of it.

The other modes are where the stagnation feels like it hits most, The Island has had work done to it and it has been improved but still feels like a hard sell, they are trying to capture something of the past chaos of the much older wrestling games but it never reaches it, and I can’t say I would ever really play it. My Rise has its moments, and I was never bored going through it, but it is never as exciting as last year which told an interesting tale and felt like more of a complete and engaging story, but you can get enjoyment out of the mode, so it is worth a playthrough.

SUMMARY
The yearly release schedule has finally started to wear on the series, this is nowhere near a disaster but the strides of the previous few titles aren’t here. 

Personally the one mode that has shown improvement happens to be my favourite in GM mode. 

So the great core gameplay that has been built up from previous titles and an improvement to the best game mode means it might not be the huge stride you may hope for, but a good time is still to be had.

7/10

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