2019 wasn’t a good year for WWE fans who just so happened to be gamers. With the splitting of Yukes and 2K Games, Visual Concepts was left to pick up the ball in trying to make the latest installment in the “WWE 2K” series practically from scratch while under a strict deadline. The end result was a sheer disappointment of an experience that saw fans turn against the developer & publisher for not delaying what should’ve been an evolution of a mostly fun “WWE 2K19”. Deciding it was for the best for the “WWE 2K” franchise, the developers changed their approach for 2020 by presenting a game the embraced the absurdity of pro wrestling and WWE in general. I came into “WWE 2K Battlegrounds” with a bit of optimism for what was sure to be a budget experience where the fun, hopefully, wouldn’t be marred by technical difficulties & anti-consumer decisions.
Did I Complete “WWE 2K Battlegrounds”?
“WWE 2K Battlegrounds” obviously takes cues from arcade brawlers of the past while forgoing the more simulation-based action “WWE 2K” seen throughout the eighth gaming generation. By being unlike its predecessors, the game also changes what is available for completion purposes. The game’s “Campaign” mode lasts anywhere between four to ten hours depending on how well the player does or if the AI wants to become a reversal beast. The extended time necessary for completion in “Campaign” mode comes courtesy of branching paths that doesn’t add more to the story – a narrative focusing on developer-crafted wrestlers brawling throughout the world in hopes of becoming WWE Superstars under the watchful eyes of Paul Heyman & “Stone Cold” Steve Austin – but does give the player an opportunity to unlock extra wrestlers, “Power-Ups”, and vanity items for the player’s own created grapplers. In regards to building a player’s own created wrestler, “Battleground Challenge” is presented in the same way as “Campaign” mode with branching paths & no story. “Challenge” is just an opportunity to upgrade the created character’s skills, “Power-Ups” (these “Power-Up” upgrades work across the board and is not just limited to the created wrestler), and earn some “Battle Bucks” to pay for in-game unlockables. Completion of “Battleground Challenge” can take another ten to twelve hours.
Featuring quite a few modes, “Battlegrounds” gives the player enough to see what absurdity the wrestlers can get into including regular one-on-one bouts, survival-style “Gauntlet” brawls, the Royal Rumble, and even an electrified Steel Cage. Thanks to the “Campaign” mode, experiencing all the match types will happen if the player simply plays through the story without taking any of the branching paths. Online action is also available with “Tournament” mode being a series of singles matches where the player will have to win six matches in a row with the hope of earning more “Battle Bucks”. The other online mode is an online Royal Rumble with real players entering the ring until one stands as the “King of the Battleground” – a mode that can be extremely fun if the game doesn’t glitch thanks to people falling through the nearby ropes or friends teaming up to dominate unsuspecting players.
There is no ranking system for the online modes, but the leaderboard will showcase how well the player has done in “King of the Battleground” mode. The trophy/achievement list is pretty sparse with the hardest goals to complete include winning a thirty-man Royal Rumble match on “Medium” difficulty. The biggest grind comes with unlocking all of the wrestlers & their three costumes. Considering the price of most wrestlers not unlockable in “Campaign” mode it should take the player anywhere from twenty to thirty hours to unlock everyone (if not more) without spending real money on gold coins that, not surprisingly, reduce the cost of unlocking anyone from AJ Styles to Shawn Michaels.
Did “WWE 2K Battlegrounds” Live Up to the Hype?
Stripping down a WWE game to the bones and rebuilding it in the image of something like “WWE All-Stars” or even “WWF Wrestlemania: The Arcade Game”, “WWE 2K Battlegrounds” doesn’t overly complicate things with its gameplay. Every character has a standard set of attacks with their presentation differing depending on the class associated with them – “Brawler”, “Technician”, “Highflyer”, “Powerhouse”, or “All-Arounder” – with punches, kicks, throws (which can be amplified with both gorilla press tosses and impressive attacks like launching an opponent into a “Street Fighter”-esque uppercut), Irish whips, submissions that can only be done on downed opponents (initiating a mini-game where, in the case of the PS4 & Xbox versions, the player has to rapidly tap the trigger buttons to either free their character or prevent their opponent from surviving) and the ability to block with a perfectly timed block when being struck producing a parry effect for a hopeful counterattack.
Each character in a class also has the same special attacks, strengths & weaknesses such as “Highflyer” class grapplers being able to pull off springboard maneuvers, but can’t pick up & toss opponents out of the ring like their “Powerhouse” counterparts. “Technicians” have better throw strength, “Powerhouses” can armor through strikes while producing seismic-like attacks, and “Brawlers” literally pull weapons like chairs and even a motorcycle out of their back pocket. The only real difference that comes from playing someone like The Undertaker or Sgt. Slaughter is the fact they have unique Signature/Finishing Maneuvers. These flashy maneuvers can only be performed when the character’s “Heat Bar” located underneath the character is full. Unfortunately reversals (which uses up a quarter of the “Heat Bar” with each use) are finicky at best thanks to the execution needed by the player with random face button popping onscreen when a reversal is available. With a varying reversal window and the button needing to be tapped being randomized can make it difficult to pull off reversals especially when someone is lifting the player’s downed character that can only rise if the player continuously hits the throw button; meaning the downed player may still be hitting the throw button when their opponent looks to pick their character up and a reversal suddenly becomes available.
“Power-Ups” play a miniscule or major role in any match depending on the ones chosen by the player or the AI. Each character’s HUD will feature a meter that fills up; making “Power-Ups” available in stages of three with the highest “tier” “Power-Up” taking the longest to fill and will reset the meter when used. Some “Power-Ups” including being able to set a character’s fists on fire to make punches do more damage, or become encased in stone to reduce the effectiveness of incoming attacks. But some “Power-Ups” don’t necessarily prove too effective without upgrading them in “Battleground Challenge” including making it more difficult for an opponent to kick out of a pin or restoring a good amount of health. Fan excitement affects how fast the “Heat Bar” fills up and making it easier to kick out of pins or stop submissions. Thanks to mid-match challenges such as “Perform a Taunt” or “Do a Special Maneuver” add to the fans’ satisfaction meter.
Certain stages feature interactive moments including the highly promoted crocodile ready to bite down on a thrown grappler in the Everglades or controlling a ram via a remote. Some elements seen on WWE TV even play out here with a destructible ring that removes count-outs when the ring collapses. Overall, the gameplay perfectly captures the “pick up & play” charm expected of its visual presentation, but lacks any type of depth outside of “Power-Ups” and certain stage interactables.
There are quite a few match types available including prototypical & tornado tag team matches, the aforementioned Royal Rumble where the character’s health bar will mean the difference between being easily tossed out of the ring or surviving to potentially eliminate a foe, one-fall Fatal Four Way bouts, and an innovative Steel Cage offering. Steel Cage matches play differently than anything seen in previous WWE games with money randomly appearing inside the cage to be collected. Once the character collects enough money they can climb the cage and hopefully escape. Attaining money can be difficult for both the player and their opponent because the cage will periodically become temporarily electrified; sending unfortunate souls spiraling down to the mat if they are on the fence at the wrong time.
The biggest issue with Cage matches is how quickly an opponent can get up in correlation with how long it takes to hold down the climb button to retrieve a hanging bag of cash. If the character is caught by the opponent before they can make the money disappear, a mini-game just like the one used for the submission system and preventing an elimination in the Royal Rumble match appears that may or may not work in the money grabber’s favor thanks to how the gauge hesitates. Steel Cage matches are some of the most fun the game can produce when everything clicks and one of the most annoying experiences when the AI goes reversal crazy, it takes forever to get money, and the opponent refuses to stay down.
Outside of the match stipulations is the aforementioned “Campaign” mode where the player takes control of six differently classed wrestlers through at least sixty story events & matches of 118 moments while the story is told via comic-style slides (no voice acting or cinematic moments including the final scenes). Character creation options are not as robust as those seen in the previous “WWE 2K” games with most outfits being lacking, though facial morphing is surprisingly detailed. Unfortunately there is no ability to share created wrestlers via “Community Creations”; the same goes for the rather impressive “Create-An-Arena” mode. To upgrade a created fighter, the player must enter the “Battleground Challenge” where they can go through multiple matches with the intent of getting enough “Battle Bucks” to fill out the CAW’s skill tree and power up those “Power-Ups”.
But there is something that greatly hinders character creation and, generally, the entire game: micro-transactions. The game features two forms of currency with “Battle Bucks” being rewarded for completing matches, leveling up the player’s profile, finishing “Daily Challenges” such as playing three Royal Rumble matches, and completing scenarios in both the “Campaign” and “Battleground Challenge” modes. These “Bucks” can purchase everything locked in the game, but the prices are usually exorbitant especially when compared to how much money the player is attaining from playing the game & how much these unlockables cost if the player spends actual money to buy gold coins.
For example, Triple H costs 12000 “Battle Bucks” to unlock, but only 300 gold coins (and that’s only for the base unlock, not his two other costumes that also need to be unlocked by spending in-game currency). This currency system is embedded in almost everything the game has to offer including unlocking a majority of the game’s cover stars such as Steve Austin and The Rock, entering special versions of online “Tournament” mode like one where you can play as the women wrestlers because the base “Tournament” mode doesn’t feature that option for some reason, and having more than five Create-A-Wrestler slots (yes, the player will have to pay to unlock CAW slots). With the promise of so many wrestlers available at launch, it’s shocking that a majority are either locked behind a paywall or stuck in “Campaign” mode where the player has no idea who they are unlocking until they do so including discovering that John Cena does exist in this game.
Technically, the game isn’t as bad as “WWE 2K20”; though is still rough around the edges. The commentary isn’t bad, just terribly executed with Jerry Lawler & Mauro Ranallo having delayed, exaggerated, or even wrong reactions like Mauro going crazy for an Irish whip or Lawler saying someone came off the top rope for an impressive attack when they never left their feet. Character bodies are ridiculously disproportionate to complement the cartoon-like style, but some of the faces are incredibly off including The Miz and Baron Corbin. The AI is always backpedaling, rarely looking to fight. Hit detection can see the player missing strikes or being grappled even if their character visibly initiated an attack first. In multi-person matches, the lock-on system can become difficult to control with the player’s character sometimes deciding to focus on someone else without the player forcing them to do so – a problem that can result in an unwarranted counterattack.
Matches like the Royal Rumble or even tag team bouts can produce drastic framerate drops at any given moment that may make the player think the game is about to implode. Glitches can happen both offline and online like being counted out when outside of the ring for only three seconds or an opponent refusing to stay down no matter what the player hits them with in regards to the prior. Online will see players pinned after only a two count, the game refusing to load a match when certain characters are chosen by the players, and hard crashes that will end a “Tournament” mode match with the only hope for the player being they made it far enough to earn a checkpoint so they don’t have to start from the beginning.
One of the biggest issues comes down to a developer decision as the game needs to be online at all times if the player wants to earn those post-match rewards (profile experience points & “Battle Bucks”). No matter if it’s a single-player “Exhibition” match against the CPU or a Steel Cage bout in “Campaign” mode, if the player is offline they won’t get any rewards and the game will not make up for those lost “Bucks” when the player goes online afterward.
When keeping things simple, “WWE 2K Battlegrounds” is a very fun, arcade-style brawler meant for short-term enjoyment. But the grind to unlock way too many wrestlers, lacking creation options including the inability to share CAWs, and some odd decisions in handling the “Campaign” mode & reward system makes this another misstep in the “WWE 2K games” era.
Should You Play “WWE 2K Battlegrounds”?
With the emphasis on producing a game that doesn’t ask for the player to work too hard to enjoy the in-ring action, “WWE 2K Battlegrounds” mostly succeeds in being an exciting, over-the-top grappler that avoids the simulated experience of previous “WWE 2K” games. Though priced twenty dollars less than a Triple-A title or the usual new WWE video game, “Battlegrounds” makes up for it by locking way too many wrestlers, adding monetary stipulations to aspects that shouldn’t be hindered by micro-transactions, and the developers trying to entice the player to spend more actual money to make things so much easier to enjoy. If someone doesn’t care about unlocking almost every major star associated with WWE’s recent past and present and just wants to have some wild, though repetitive battles it’s hard to not recommend this as least a rental; if not a full purchase when it’s on sale in a major way. But if you’re looking for a WWE game able to have some longevity it’s best to look elsewhere unless the basis of your entertainment comes from watching Carmella losing her mind during her entrance.
