WWE 2K24 is taking advantage of WrestleMania’s upcoming 40-year milestone to celebrate the event, and it turns out to be a party worth attending. Pleasing additions and clever upgrades reinforce their ever-improving formula, making it the strongest in-ring start since the return of the series.
The control scheme of 2K24 remains practically unchanged from 2K23, but it has new mechanics, such as the Trading Blows mini-game. This gamification of the “boo/yay” back-and-forth punch trope adds a fun wrinkle to the action. Other well-spent moments in the ring to attract attention are organizing big dives into a crowd of opponents – I rarely use it, but it’s nice to have. This feeling applies to the new varieties of the game: coffin, ambulance and special guest referee. I’m generally lukewarm about these provisions in real life and I won’t address them often here, but they are well replicated. I especially like how the special referee has a counter that restricts the antics of the referee to prevent him from being completely one-sided in matter you are facing a corrupt referee. It also promotes strategic traps for the pinstripe player.
An awesome list of over 200 ready-made superstars ranges from pretty good to just right in the audience section. I also appreciate the smaller presentation elements, such as real referees like Charles Robinson and Jessika Carr appearing for the first time. Regardless of the boots you wear, playing 2K24 is still a largely good hands-on experience, even if some moves may be less mechanically dense. It’s easy to forget about all the rude options that are available to you, but a solid tutorial will help to simplify this learning curve. The provisions of existing games are still entertaining, whether solo or online, although the latter goal is a complicated offer when released due to irregular connections.
The showcase mode allows players to relive iconic matches during the first 39 WrestleManias. Taking into account the wrestlers who cannot appear due to their current employment in rival organizations or because of general problems, it is a strong selection of actions. Corey Graves’ comments during transitions to real footage add a nice touch compared to last year’s silent scenes. I also think it’s great that the key prompts for the targets are now displayed on the screen, which reduces the trips to the menu screen to figure out how to perform a particular maneuver. The crazy finale of the showcases is not as memorable as last year’s big twist, but the mode is a general improvement over the 2K23 version and a great celebration of WrestleMania that inspires me to watch my favorite matches of the event again.
Myrise’s narrative-driven double journeys have more narrative ramifications, which result from decisive decision-making moments. Whether you’re playing an indie legend navigating the main waters of WWE, or building up the credibility of a low-card act getting chaotically inserted into the World Cup cover picture, I like how the choices create a more meaningful engagement with your overall entertaining storylines. There are delightfully silly moments, and I also like to see characters and plot points from last year’s MyRise reappear here, which gives a welcome continuity to the alternative 2K WWE universe. Fortunately, the created characters and unlockable elements will finally be transferred to more modes, which will bring a deeper return on my MyRise investment.
A personal favorite target, MyGM continues to be a good time reinforced by extended match types, managing directors, talent interactions and other options. It also feels more strategic now, as you can improve individual talents by placing them in specific matches and negotiating superstar swaps between brands every season. While the Universe mode is less of my problem, I’m pleased to see that the huge sandbox sim will get options like money in the bank cash-ins and run-ins, as well as other cutscenes that will contribute to its TV-like presentation. Myfaction on the topic of card collecting has never been my thing, and 2K24 doesn’t change that, but it’s nice to see that it gets more depth in the match types and competitive multiplayer options. The already outstanding creation suite includes additional elements to build the coolest – or dumbest – superstars, arenas, tickets or championships you can imagine, but don’t expect any major changes to the reliable roster. The last point applies to almost all 2K24 offers: good iterations of an established formula.
