Yearly since WWE 2K22, it’s felt like I write variations of the identical opening paragraph, that in the end finish with one easy query: How does an annual sports activities sport prime what they did the 12 months earlier than? That query turns into barely extra difficult, although, when some (together with myself) contemplate final 12 months’s entry to be the most effective it’s ever been. WWE 2K26’s reply is easy: you add extra. Heaps extra.
This 12 months, every little thing is expanded and constructed upon, and although nobody factor appears like a very large swing, each mode comes with incremental additions to make it price your whereas. Actually, there was a lot that not solely does it really feel prefer it’s not possible to summarise concisely, however there wasn’t near sufficient time for me to pattern every little thing in my few hours of fingers-on time. So if you happen to’re fascinated by all the brand new updates to universe mode, group creations, MyFaction or The Island, then I’d counsel this isn’t the preview for you. Nonetheless, what I’ll do is deal with the central factor that ties all of it collectively and the iterations that curiosity me probably the most: the gameplay.
Small changes could be felt from the second the bell rings. Final 12 months’s addition of chain wrestling has been expanded, permitting you to create moments tailor-made to every wrestler’s sensibilities. With a fast press on the d-pad, now you can choose to deploy distinctive motions, resembling a handshake, a rush, and even drawing power from the group. There’s additionally a extra ambiguous ‘strategy’ choice, which in flip creates a sub-menu that permits you to start buying and selling blows, have interaction in chain wrestling, or simply have an intense staredown. What could seem like gimmicky really works surprisingly effectively, offering extra cinematic actions to appropriately start something from a pleasant rivalry to a blood feud. Beforehand, my default was all the time simply to run and assault, however these beginning actions now add an additional sprinkle to the already-spectacular spectacle simulation. It’s not going to alter the way in which you play, however it efficiently provides an additional layer of welcome immersion to every match opening.
As soon as the match progresses, issues really feel very acquainted. Match fundamentals work very equally to WWE 2K25, apart from some delicate alterations to the reversal system (which is now extra tied to the stamina wheels) and barricade fight, which now allows you to each climb up and duke it out throughout a balancing act. Most notably for me, although, is the replace to the collision mechanics, one thing that feels prefer it’s been uncared for for some time now. Beforehand, discarded weapons mendacity across the ring served little function as soon as they’d left your fingers, typically mixing into the setting as ornament with no additional affect on gameplay, However gone are the times of characters clipping by them utterly, as in WWE 2K26, dropping a famous person onto metal steps, kendo sticks, or metal chairs issues, with what I assume is a harm stage enhance and new, real looking response animations. Whip Sami Zayn right into a cinder block, and it breaks beneath his weight. Riptide Bron Breakker onto the metal steps, and his physique will crumple round its form. Discarded weapons now have added worth and contribute one other step ahead in the direction of matching the WWE tv expertise.
The standout of those interactive weapons, although, and my private spotlight of WWE 2K26 is definitely a model new addition for the collection – one thing that feels prefer it ought to have been round endlessly, however lastly makes its debut this 12 months. Thumbtacks. Carry up the ring apron, and your weapon wheel will now have a bag of violence able to deploy. Merely pour the handfuls of steel pins onto the mat, and also you’re prepared to show your opponent right into a human pin cushion. Tacks aren’t simply reserved for ending strikes both. Any slam within the proximity of those nasty spikes will embellish their again, knees, and brow in silver, serving to you lastly recreate gloriously violent WWE moments like Cactus Jack’s face-first descent right into a pile of the violent objects by a sinister Triple H.
Thumbtacks, higher collision reactions and beginning actions, though enjoyable, are all in service of matching the WWE product, as are micro changes like the brand new blood splatter impact that splashes the display whenever you or your opponent will get busted huge open. This is in the end a combating sport, however one which is aware of which facet its bread is buttered. Drama and storytelling are the secret, and this 12 months additionally receives an important improve in its voices, with the additions of Booker T and Wade Barrett to the commentary desk. The latter not solely affords a distinct accent to the soundtrack of your actions, however each convey a brand new sense of pleasure that’s onerous to quantify, however very important to retaining the collection sounding contemporary.
From enjoying, it rapidly grew to become clear to me that this 12 months, the second-to-second match motion has obtained small however welcome enhancements to the already profitable system. However identical to in actual life, a WWE fan’s urge for food for chaos is just satiated with new match sorts and WWE 2K26, very like final 12 months, lobs 4 extra onto the pile: Three Phases of Hell, I Stop, Dumpster and Inferno matches.
The Inferno match, which surrounds the ring in a wall of flames, is undoubtedly probably the most visually spectacular addition. Very like its sporadic appearances on WWE over time, it is definitely a spectacle and a worthwhile inclusion, though, like final 12 months’s Underground addtion, it’s onerous for me to take a position an excessive amount of time right into a match sort that limits your capacity to make use of each inch of the ring, because it all the time feels much less fulfilling to me to conclude a battle in something however a pinfall or submission. Due to this, I didn’t spend a lot time on this fiery new mode, however its addition is a welcome one, even when it’s solely from a WWE historic perspective.
The dumpster match additionally helps fill the hole in WWE’s legacy. In observe, it’s a reskinned model of the casket and ambulance brawls, however it’s onerous to see what they may have achieved otherwise from a gameplay perspective. It’s additionally good for 2K to tick off one other match sort as developer Visible Ideas slowly however absolutely works its manner by all of the loopy ideas we’ve seen all through WWE’s historical past, no matter their actual-world success. Though saying that, I might be stunned if we see a Punjabi Jail or Kennel From Hell match anytime quickly. Be at liberty to shock me, although, WWE 2K27.
Relating to contemporary match sorts, probably the most thrilling addition for me, although, is the lengthy-overdue return of the I Stop match. Notably completely different from the ever-current submission bout, which simply limits the choice to a authorized faucet, fairly than the all-out warfare and humiliation the I Stop match can ship. Proceedings start like every other hardcore match, however as an alternative of pinfalls or conventional submissions, the battle will now solely finish whenever you or your opponents verbally say “I stop” into the microphone, with the referee additionally audibly making requests.
How this works in observe is a fast-time occasion that calls for you grasp timing on a spinning wheel stuffed with inexperienced blocks, which is able to shrink over time primarily based on the harm you are taking. Curiously, not like among the different mini video games within the collection, the aggressor isn’t immediately competing for these inexperienced blocks; as an alternative, you’ll be able to place pre-earner blockers to make the timing harder. There’s a deliberate technique to this, and I instantly discovered myself contemplating my submission requests extra thoughtfully, ensuring I had sufficient banked blockers (earned by performing sure massive assaults) earlier than commencing the humiliation routine. You can too enhance your possibilities by utilizing weapons just like the kendo stick or metal chair within the submission manoeuvre, as soon as once more paying homage to basic WWE moments. The I Stop match doesn’t really feel like simply one other match variation on the pile, however fairly its personal beast completely.
All of this 12 months’s changes serve the broader presentation of WWE 2K26, and that ever-shifting, monolithic WWE dragon they’re all the time chasing. Make no mistake about it, whereas the grappling has all the time and can all the time be the core of this collection, the spectacle of WWE is simply as essential part of the bundle. In my lifetime, we’ve gone from WWF Warzone’s soulless arenas (I can nonetheless hear that single voice within the crowd repeatably telling me to open a can) to 1-to-1 representations of pyro-infused, singalong entrances and correct depictions of the ebbs and flows of a rabid dwell crowd. I’ve little doubt that WWE 2K26 is about to be the most effective the collection has ever seemed, sounded, and felt, and if you happen to’re a WWE obsessive keen to duplicate the pageantry at house, then you definately’ve by no means had it higher.
Dale Driver is an Affiliate Director of Video Programming at IGN. Be totally bored by following him on Bluesky at @daledriver.bsky.social