During the first episode of the Ringside Report, Visual Concepts went into a deep dive detailing the improvements made to WWE 2K22.
It’s been about two years since 2K released a WWE game, after the woeful 2K20. The game was such a mess that 2K decided to skip a year. And by the looks of things, it seems that the added development time is paying off.
Ringside Report will be an ongoing series of developer diary presentations that explores the various aspects of WWE 2K22. In the first episode, we hear from Creative Director Lynell Jinks, Art Producer Christina Diem Pham, Principal Designer Jason Vandiver, Senior Producer Jonathan Rivera, and Senior Designer Derek Donahue.
In the 16 minute video, we are treated to 9 minutes of in-game action featuring the legendary Rey Mysterio and the current WWE United States champion, Damian Priest.
Booyaka, Booyaka!
One of the first aspects explored in the Ringside Report is not only the improved character animations and textures, but also the lighting effects. Having a big entrance with pyro and flashing lights is a huge part of the spectacle that is professional wrestling. So, the developers at Visual Concepts have spent a lot of time getting this element exactly right.
While WWE 2K22 isn’t powered by a new engine, the developers have tweaked the current one. Hopefully, it will allow the game to feel fresh and new. The developers say that the WWE Superstars will feel more responsive, and the player will have more control than ever before.
By Gawd, he’s been broken in half!
The developers also spoke about how you can interact with the environment, such as using weapons like steel chairs and kendo sticks. Visual Concepts claim that each of the weapons used in the hand will naturally deteriorate, depending on the impact.
They also claim that ringside barricades will break “dynamically.” Rather than being its own cut-scene to highlight the damaged barricade, it will now all happen in real-time. So, it will be interesting to see how that works first-hand when the game is released.
Button bash vs Strategy
Furthermore, Visual Concepts wanted to ensure that WWE 2K22 is welcoming to new and returning players alike. So, if you like to button bash or attack with strategy, WWE 2K22 will cater for your gameplay style.
A big emphasis in WWE 2K22 is on defensive strategies. In previous WWE 2K games, your best form of defence was a well-timed counter, which was a limited gameplay mechanic. However, in WWE 2K22 you can now dodge, block, and counter moves.
Interestingly, the counter limit has now been removed, so there’s no limit to how many counters can be performed in a match. This should make for some epic comebacks at the very last breath, replicating WWE true to life.
Overall, I was impressed with the first episode of Ringside Report. To me, it seems like Visual Concepts is trying to find a balance between 3D fighting games such as Tekken while retaining what fans like about the WWE 2K series.
Are you looking forward to WWE 2K22? Let us know across our social media channels. WWE 2K22 will release for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S on March 11th. Unless you pick up the Deluxe or nWo editions, in which case, it will be March 8th.
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Featured Image Credit: 2K Sports