A solid installment to the WWE 2K series
Despite its scripted nature, wrestling continues to be an incredibly popular source of entertainment for a lot of people. There’s something about seeing two people with strong personalities fight and clash against each other that’s just so much fun to watch. Now, fans of wrestling not only get to enjoy watching the sport, but they can also enjoy it in a simulation setting. Since 2000 with the release of WWF SmackDown!, 2K has produced top-notch wrestling video games for fans who want to experience the fun of wrestling in a more hands-on approach. WWE 2K19 is the 20th installment in this long-running series. Can it live up to the standards set by its predecessors?
Like Real-life Wrestling
One of the best things about the WWE 2K series is its impeccable graphics and voice acting, and WWE 2K19 definitely doesn’t disappoint in this aspect. WWE 2K19 features some of the most prominent wrestlers in the industry today, and they’re painstakingly designed and animated to look as life-like as possible. The developers also didn’t skimp when it came to playable characters as WWE 2K19 has a large roster of playable characters. The game also has beautifully rendered cutscenes whenever wrestlers enter the ring. The developers took great pains to really make sure that the cutscenes in the game reflect the entrance choreography of the wrestlers in real life.
In addition to the jaw-dropping graphics of the game, it also features voices from actual WWE wrestlers, and that adds more to the lifelike believability of the game. In terms of gameplay, some of the moves don’t execute well at all times. However, if you manage to get them working, they do look amazing and they are animated fluidly and with great detail.
Performance Issues
Probably the most pressing concern about WWE 2K19 is its performance issues. Right off the bat, the system requirements to get this game working are extremely high. This is not surprising due to WWE 2K19’s highly detailed graphics and complex game mechanics, but it does limit its player base. To make it even worse, even players using advanced systems still experience performance issues. The game is extremely prone to crashing. Most of the time, crashes occur during the entrance cutscenes of the wrestlers.
In addition to the game’s frequent crashing, its audio also often goes out of sync and sometimes the gameplay on much-reduced frame rates. As you can imagine, these are not small concerns as they severely affect gameplay and player experience.
Spectacle Over Substance
Non-fans of wrestling will argue that the sport is nothing but a flashier boxing game that has neither athletic or artistic merit. Nevertheless, no one can deny that wrestling has a lot of entertainment value whether you’re in it for the wrestling itself or the theatrics that comes with it. WWE 2K19 is similar in that respect. WWE 2K19 is plagued with performance and development issues. It’s not breaking any boundaries and it doesn’t have much to offer in terms of multiplayer competition. However, it is a lot of fun to play, and if you’re a fan of wrestling, it’s still a worthwhile source of entertainment.
