"WWE 2K15" MyCareer Mode Promises Fully Immersive Spandex Simulation

WWE 2K15 and the return of MyCareer Mode.

Image via 2K Games

This past August I finally got my hands on WWE 2K15to experience what 2K has planned for the future of interactive entertainment and the WWE.

2K has stated at length that the WWE franchise is a top priority for them and that the series will stand alongside NBA 2K  and NHL 2K as a tentpole franchise in the 2K stable of sports simulators. During the preview event this past August, I got a tentative look at just how serious 2K is about making WWE 2K15 stand out as a truly next-gen console experience. This past week I finally got to take an in-depth look at the game's highly-anticipated MyCareer Mode. Previous entries in the WWE were always somewhat lackluster in terms of a MyCareer compared to NBA 2K and WWE 2K15 is hoping to change all that.

The character creation suite in 2K15 seems robust, even though my wrestler was a pretty generic heavy-weight who came pre-made. I didn't get the chance to fully explore the customization options but simply browsed the robust menus that offered me selections on everything from an early '90s pookah shell necklace to totally awesome flame crotched singlets. 2K seems determined to give players the same level of control on how exactly they're represented in the digital space in the WWE as they are in the NBA. And it's not just the aesthetics that are being given over to meticulous design, the real meat of  MyCareer is, of course, your career.

1.

Charting your journey from a scrub level wrestler in the farm league trying to climb the ranks of the WWE all begins in the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. With a perfect digital re-creation of the state-of-the-art facility, your wrestlers will learn from the legends while cultivating their ranking, character, and overall commercial viability in the WWE. The Center, both in the real world and the digital, is the WWE's facilty for training the stars of tomorrow and this is where the assembled members of the press finally got their hands on PS4 builds of the game.

To further emphasis how much of a bush-league, struggle-level zero I was, my wrestler was met with none other than WWE head trainer Bill DeMott​. DeMott was in the flesh during the preview event and was easily one of the nicest humans I've ever met. In the ring....not so much. Digital DeMott was quick to point out that I was five-foot-nothing of wasted time and I had no chance of making it in the WWE. So, it was basically exactly like playing sports in real life and isn't that really the whole point of this?

2.

As I progressed through my training I'd receive a rating between one and five stars from DeMott (more often a one star because it turns out you're a scrub for quite some time). Working through your move sets, building up your stamina bar (which can't be turned off) to perform your finishers, and tailoring your style of game play all combine to begin telling the actual story of your character. After each match I was awarded skill points to dole out in different categories like speed, strength, and agility to further move away from the realm of scrub-dom.

I finally clawed my way out of the bush league and MyCareer Mode transported me into the future of the main RAW roster regardless of my ability. Winning or losing matches will also allow the chance for big-name wrestlers to start interacting with my character to further frame a developing narrative. Rivals and allies took the form of superstars of WWE making their way to the ring after my matches. Daniel Bryan strode to the ring after one of my RAW performances and I was presented with the chance to either show him respect by shaking his hand, or, cheap shot him and create one of my very first prime time rivalries.

And it was with this flourish that I started to feel MyCareer really begin to hit its stride. I was a player and the WWE Universe was mine to manipulate. Granted, Bryan was going to remember that cheap shot and at some point in the future I could almost certainly expect him to make and appearance to lay down some well-deserved retribution. It's kind of amazing to think about.

3.

Even though my time with MyCareer mode was brief, it felt like a living construct that I could certainly see myself immersing myself in fully. I'm a lousy wrestler in real life, but the chance to chart my superstar's trajectory to legend status is an appealing one. If MyCareer is capable– from all indications it fully is–of creating a living universe I'm able to step into, then I'm very much looking forward to digesting the mode when the game drops this fall. The game still looks gorgeous and I'm even more pumped about finally deciding which luchador mask really defines me as a person.

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