WWE 2K25 Review

Introduction

I have been playing wrestling video games for a long time now. I think I started playing them at the height of the Attitude Era with WWF Attitude on PlayStation and WWF No Mercy on N64. These games have had their ups and downs, from the highs of SmackDown: Here Comes The Pain to the lows of WWE 2K20. With that absolute low point in the series came many improvements from WWE 2K22 onward. WWE 2K25 is no different, improving Showcase and MyRise, adding chain wrestling and intergender matches, and tweaking tried and true modes like MyGM and Universe. There’s also the addition of The Island, which I’m not so sold on. There’s much to discuss, so let’s get into it.

Game Details

Tutorial

I contemplated not stopping by the tutorial mode this year because there aren’t too many new things to worry about. However, I’m glad I did because it helped with the re-introduction of Chain Wrestling and the addition of being able to jump off the barricades. The in-depth tutorials will teach you everything you need to know, whether you’re a novice or an expert. I’m glad they continue to do this every year because the sheer number of moves you can perform can be daunting to newcomers to the series.

Presentation and Gameplay

Graphics and Audio

WWE 2K25 is a great-looking game. The hair can still be a little wonky, but the bruises, blood, and sweat make this one of the most realistic WWE games ever. Certain stars look better than others, but with hundreds of characters, there are bound to be a few duds. I was impressed with the variety of stars in this game, with oddities like The Headbangers and Mighty Molly to Batista and everyone in between. There are still some odd collision detection issues here and there, but I didn’t run into as many as I have in the past. The commentary is solid, and the sound design adds to the excitement of the match as the crowd goes wild for a near-fall or a big move.

Gameplay

The action in the ring is as good as it has been this year, with 2K not deviating too much from the tried-and-true formula they’ve had for the past few years. It’s nice that I don’t have to learn a new control scheme every year as I did in the mid-2000s when they seemed to change something every single year. As I mentioned before, Chain Wrestling has made its way back to the game this year. It’s a mini-game near the start of the match where you advance through maneuvers or even take a cheap shot on your opponent if you choose to do so. This is performed with the analog stick as you try to find the sweet spot and hold it quicker than your opponent. I wasn’t a massive fan of it as it felt like it slowed the action, and it caught me off guard more often than not. It’s a good idea. I would prefer it to be implemented differently. The mini-games always feel tacked on. There are also barricade dives in the game this year, which I can’t believe took this long to implement.

Game Modes

New Match Types

There are a few new match types in WWE 2K25, and I think they knocked these out of the park. Intergender matches finally make their way into the game and allow women and men to fight in the ring simultaneously. It gives you fun new options that you didn’t have in years past. Underground matches mimic one of the latest match types in WWE, with no ring ropes and winning by KO or depleting all of your opponent’s health. Bloodline Rules matches are chaotic and include run-ins by friends and enemies. It’s nice to see some new additions to an already stellar lineup of match types.

Showcase Mode

Showcase Mode focuses on the Bloodline this year, with Paul Heyman hosting the different matches you’ll play through. There’s a ton of archival footage for this one, and they’ve done a good job re-creating the specific arenas and moments for the game. There’s still some awkward face-blurring, but nothing too egregious. This is one of my favorite Showcase modes in the series, and I think a big part of that is that it didn’t overstay its welcome. There’s a good amount of content without feeling like it’s dragging on. I enjoyed that you could rewrite history in some matches and that the cutscenes were in-engine versus shooting out to a video. Playing as The Headshrinkers and “High Chief” Peter Maivia was awesome, and there was a ton of variety here.

The only issue I had with Showcase mode in WWE 2K25 is that you have to get lucky with certain things you do. There was an instance in the Money in the Bank match where I was playing as Tamina. I had to complete a specific action within 30 seconds on a particular Superstar, and I couldn’t complete it because I couldn’t get there in time. This happened a few times during the Showcase when I had to restart to ensure I finished all the objectives to get all the unlockable items. Time limits are so annoying when you’re at the mercy of what the CPU is doing, and they show up quite a bit throughout the objectives.

MyRise

MyRise mode is so much fun this year, with many choices regarding your created Superstar’s path. This year’s story sees current and former NXT Superstars band together to form NXT Mutiny in an attempt to take down WWE. There were plenty of twists and turns that I won’t spoil, along with some cool moments at the WWE Archives and appearances from WWE Legends like Trish Stratus. I’ve played through it once, but you’re encouraged to play at least twice to see things you missed in your first playthrough. I’ll be going back through to unlock some more items. The voice acting can be a bit suspect, but I had a lot of fun going through the story and interacting with the many different Superstars involved.

MyGM/Universe Mode

MyGM returns this year with the added benefit of being online. That’s right, you can now battle for brand supremacy against friends. There’s a bigger selection of General Managers and even cross-brand Premium Live Events that can span two days. This year, Universe Mode brings back promos with multiple different types, outcomes, and branching choices. These modes didn’t add much new content but were already solid, so I’m sure players will be satisfied with what’s on offer. You can control pretty much anything you want in either mode.

MyFaction

MyFaction returns this year as expected, and I can’t get excited about it. I’m so tired of these Ultimate Team clones. Yes, they can be fun, and it works pretty well to create a team of wrestlers, but the microtransactions are out of hand. World Tour replaces Proving Grounds this year, allowing you to travel to different locations and making it non-linear. I still get annoyed that there are unique wrestlers/attires that you can only obtain in MyFaction. It’s shady, to say the least.

The Island

The Island is WWE 2K25’s newest mode and one I have mixed feelings about. Roman Reigns invites you to an island to compete for a WWE contract (I’m not sure how he has the power to hand those out). This is precisely like NBA 2K’s The City, as expected. It’s a large open space devoid of any real interaction. It’s quiet and empty. You perform mostly single-player challenges given to you by different Superstars in text boxes in places like the Arcade of Tomorrow (a play on the Empress of Tomorrow, Asuka). This could have been innovative, but it’s just here to grab more money out of you. I played it for an hour, and that was about all I could handle. I had much more fun with the main modes.

Conclusion

WWE 2K25 is genuinely one of my favorite wrestling games of all time. I’ve played about 50 hours of it this week and plan to spend more time on it. There is a mode for every type of player, whether you want to create your star, go through the Showcase, build your show, play out an entire universe, beat everyone online, or challenge yourself on The Island. I’m not happy with the microtransaction-heavy modes, but I am pleased with the wrestling and the creativity you have to do anything you want to do. WWE fans will love this one.