The last three years of WWE 2K's rebuilding process has been good. 2K22 served as a good foundation which was then bolstered by the numerous additions in both 2K23 and 2K24. We're now at a point where WWE fans no longer fear the annual release, as there's always something new and exciting to look forward to beyond the simple roster update. In theory, WWE 2K25 should be more of the same, serving as both a good jumping-off point for new fans and something that old fans can look forward to. In practice, the game does those things well, but it also has a few warning signs about where the series can potentially go.

The wrestling mechanics are pretty much the same as before, which is good news for returning fans and new ones, since the system isn't as complicated as expected. Players can still button-mash to avoid submissions; it's fun, and the same can be done for pins, but using the right analog stick is easier and provides less wear on the hands. Reversals sit in the middle of the difficulty curve in execution, but you can try to perform counters by matching your opponent's strikes at the correct time, which gives you the incentive to learn everyone on the roster to better read their moves. You have quick and strong attacks, a block button and a grapple button. Shoulder buttons can be used for running or climbing the turnbuckles or grabbing weapons out of the ring, while the right analog stick can be used to pin opponents or pick them up. Super finishers have returned, and there's still a bevy of different weapons and interactive objects in the environment. The Trading Blows minigame has also returned; you need to throw punches while stopping the meter at the correct section for it to count.

The new thing this year isn't really that new: Chain Wrestling returns. Just like Trading Blows, this is a minigame where both players get a prompt that lets them select a specific action and then use their analog stick to fill up a meter to execute said move or grapple change. The return of this minigame is exciting for old fans, but newer ones will need to play the tutorial. It isn't as intuitive as the other gameplay elements that have been introduced throughout the past three years.

Each year's release has included some bug fixes, but this year's iteration seems to have introduced a new set of bugs for Chain Wrestling. First, there are moments when you or your opponent can trigger the sequence but never face each other, resulting in an odd situation where both of you face the air and do nothing before the game realizes that the sequence should stop so the action can continue. The second major issue is the fact that Chain Wrestling happens far too often. You can't go through a match without the sequence occurring at least twice in long sessions, and this type of frequency causes the minigame to quickly lose its luster. There's no option to turn it off completely, so here's hoping that a patch will reduce its overall frequency.

When it comes to the roster, WWE 2K25 touts its biggest one yet with roughly 300 superstars before DLC. Just about everyone from Raw and Smackdown are present, and NXT's representation no longer feels like an afterthought. The Legends side has also grown a tad, but there's still plenty of room to throw in a few more, like Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake, who only gets a passing reference in one of the modes. The list of current champions is perhaps the most up to date the series has seen in a while, so there's not much editing needed to make things feel current. The only complaint is that the 300 number can feel slightly inflated, since some wrestlers still appear multiple times in different variations, such as The Undertaker, Triple H, and The Rock filling up multiple slots with minute differences.

Just like in past games, the modes are plentiful. For the creative types, the full spectrum of elements is back, such as the ability to create arenas, entrances, signs, videos and more. The chance to share and download creations is still available, and even though this game is currently only available for those who bought the more premium editions, there has already been the expected slew of wrestlers and related items from AEW, TNA and a few alternative versions of existing WWE wrestlers, just to name a few.

In the basic versus mode, just about every match type has returned, and they can now be fought as intergender matches. There's no blood, but the chance to have Johnny Gargano go up against Candice LeRae in a ladder match, for example, is worth the trade-off. There are other tweaks, such as having Brawls take place in the infamous NXT Parking Lot, but the main highlights for this are two new match types. Bloodline Rules are essentially a WarGames match but with no cage, no rules, and one fewer person per side. You start with a standard 1v1 match, but you can call for backup at any time until you have a 4v4 brawl. Depending on your taste for these types of matches, it can either be chaotically fun or tedious. The other new match type is Underground, but it plays less like what you saw briefly on Raw when Shane McMahon was running it and more like Josh Barnett's Bloodsport in that you're doing this in arenas with a crowd instead of in a dingy warehouse. Wins can only be achieved by submission or knockout, and there are no ring ropes. A crowd of people are all around ringside, but they're decorative since they do nothing but make room for you to fall or move to fill in space, so don't expect anything like a Lumberjack match. It's neat but more suited for quick bouts compared to normal matches.

The one new mode and one of the more hyped-up additions this year is The Island. The premise is that Roman Reigns has invited you to participate in a tournament at his island, and if you impress him, the grand prize is a WWE contract. The island is set up like a virtual WWE theme park, and you'll spend a chunk of your time running around and talking to people to advance the story while getting into matches to progress. For big WWE fans past and present, there are plenty of nods and Easter eggs, such as a low rider food cart serving chicken tendies or stores referencing wrestler names.

While The Island has potential, the execution is barebones. Your normal walking speed is painfully slow, and your running speed isn't much better. Despite there being lots of decorations, nothing can be interacted with. Only certain buildings can be entered, so it's deflating to see a physical Hall of Fame and realize that you can't go inside. You're restricted to entering shops and areas to play special match types, making this more of a glorified menu with loading screens and a few fetch quests.

The Island also shares one big similarity with NBA 2K's The City: love of microtransactions. All cosmetic items need virtual currency (VC), and while you can earn VC through matches, the prices are high enough that it's easier to buy the VC outright. The cheapest pack of VC is $4.99 for 15,000 VC, and while that might not seem so bad, the average price of a name brand item like Nike pants or a Puma shirt can easily cost  thousands of VC, making customization an expensive proposition. It gets worse when you realize that you need VC to increase the stats of your created character, and with a number of people creating characters with a 100 ranking despite being rather low level, this really is a "pay to win" scenario.

MyRISE makes its return with a more unified story mode, as opposed to two different tales. Things start off with the WWE draft, where you're recruited as the new top prospect. Events spiral out of control when it's revealed that some WWE Legends and members of NXT are forming a super group called Mutiny that aims to take over the WWE. The story feels more like the WCW/ECW Invasion angle with a mix of now, since Mutiny features its own branded shows and championships. Parts of it are pretty hokey, but it's still a fresh take on a mode that's about taking a created character to the top. Longtime fans will like how some elements from previous MyRISE stories are still present, such as indie outfit TBD, making this feel like a continuing universe rather than something that's WWE-centric.

The 2K Showcase is all about the Bloodline, and while that may seem limiting, the developers have added some breadth by spreading out the focus to the history of the Fatu, Anoa'i, and Maivia families. Guys like Umaga are featured alongside past legends like Rocky Maivia and current stars like The Usos and Jacob Fatu. The game goes with real matches, such as Yokozuna defeating Hulk Hogan at King of the Ring, to more fantasy scenarios, like The Wild Samoans vs. The Dudley Boyz. All of these are bookended by Paul Heyman setting up the history of each scenario. Some also have talking head segments by living members of the Bloodline, like Solo Sikoa and Roman Reigns providing insight on the real person, not just the wrestling persona. Hearing them refer to Yokozuna as Rodney, for example, gives this a more personal touch and makes this mode worthwhile if you're into the personal side of wrestling.

The only knock against this mode is in the very beginning, where you're reliving the events of the last WrestleMania, where Roman vs. Cody was interrupted by a slew of other wrestlers. Unlike the rest of the Showcase, you have to hit every single task perfectly and in order to get through the intro, and if you've been the type of player who wants to fight through a match and not pay attention to this kind of stuff, you'll be stuck for a while before you can finally reach the good stuff.

All of the other game modes from the past have returned with a few tweaks. Universe mode's big thing is the return of promos, which longtime fans have missed since the PS2 era. The execution is fine since you can't type out word for word what you want, but it's a welcome addition. MyGM mode gets a larger roster of general managers to choose from and cross-branded Premium Live Events to work on, but more fans will be excited about the fact that you can play this mode online if you can't wrangle up friends locally. Finally, MyFACTION has a more freeform approach to its campaign, but it remains the same kind of money sink.

When it comes to the audio, WWE 2K25 hasn't changed too much from its previous incarnations. The crowd noise is awesome, and the commentary remains solid despite the fact that the trio of Byron, Cole and Corey haven't teamed up for some time. The performances from the wrestlers in 2K Showcase are decent, even if the audio sounds too crisp considering where each conversation is taking place. The licensed soundtrack is good thanks to the mix of genres, while the wrestler entrance themes remain a sore spot due to Def Rebel's compositions, which can't be changed on the game side.

Graphically, the game remains in roughly the same position as before; every advancement it makes is countered by regressions and areas where nothing has changed. The faces can be hit-and-miss, so people like Rhea Ripley look great, but Cora Jade looks off. Some of the intro animations also look awesome, especially when you start changing the camera angles to make each intro look distinct, but the animations for some wrestlers look way off, such as when Ethan Page appears and he points to his brain instead of his mouth to show off his smile. There are also no AR graphics for some wrestlers, and it looks like that part of the TV presentation will never happen. The gameplay animations look fine, but there are moments when some moves look like they were adjusted slightly so everything magnetically connects. In short, it's fine, but there's still room for improvement.

WWE 2K25 remains a good game, but the cracks are beginning to show. The addition of Chain Wrestling is awesome, but the increased prevalence of Trading Blows slows down the game greatly. The large roster is great, but we could do without the multiple variations of wrestlers taking up spots. The graphical presentation has quite a few blemishes that should be fixed, but it's generally good, and the same can be said for the audio if you can ignore the generic entrance music. MyRISE and the 2K Showcase are splendid, but The Island is too much of a cash grab when MyFACTION already does this. If you can ignore some of the microtransaction-heavy elements, you still have a very good wrestling game with enough content to last until the next WrestleMania season. It'll be interesting to see if WWE 2K will suddenly become the next NBA 2K in that it's a decent game that tries to bleed you of every cent.

Score: 7.5/10

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