Many still fondly remember 2002, when WWE RAW was released on PC — one of the first and most striking attempts to bring the world of professional wrestling to computer screens. The game won the hearts of fans not only due to its dynamic gameplay, but also due to its rather advanced technical side for those times. Fighting game fans and WWE show fans spent hours hanging out at it, turning every evening into a spectacular fight.

However, alas, WWE RAW remained the only major wrestling game on PC — both a loud debut and a farewell. For a long time, computer players remained on the sidelines, until a new addition was released in 2015 — WWE 2K15. However, this version turned out to be far from ideal: cut content and a general feeling of incompleteness did not allow it to regain its former success.

However, in 2016, they tried to fix the situation — WWE 2K16 finally made it to PC. And here we have something to talk about: updated mechanics, an expanded roster of fighters and a much more confident approach to the PC platform. Is this version as good as they say? It’s time to find out.

WWE 2K16 Free Steam Account

What’s the most important thing in fighting games? The fights themselves, of course! Here it is — WWE 2K16: a wrestling simulator where you enter the ring to deafening music, throw your arms around, feign confidence, as if you just stepped off the cover. Lights, effects, the crowd roars — and here you are, already in the ring, waiting for your opponent. Everything looks as it should be… until the fight itself begins.

I rush into the attack — my fingers are ready for lightning-fast commands, my brain calculates the enemy’s movements. I want drive, punches, throws from the ropes. I want a show, a spectacle, a rating highlight, in which you deftly throw your opponent around the ring, and then soar from the corner in a spectacular finisher.

WWE 2K16 seems to have forgotten that it is a fighting game. Here, you do not control the action – you wait for the “F” button to appear on the screen so that you can press it in time. The entire fight is not a battle of wits and reflexes, but rather monitoring your own indicator. Want to hit? Wait – maybe at this moment your opponent will press the button before you. Want to defend yourself? Wait, pray, and again – press in time. Miss a split second – get hit in the face.

Almost everything comes down to a soulless guessing game. You wait, press, save up “momentum”. When you have saved it, you press again, this time the “up arrow”. And all this is accompanied by such animation that sometimes you want to turn away. You can stand with your back to the enemy – and somehow manage to charge him in the forehead with your heel. The enemy falls from your blow, but a second later, by some miracle, he himself launches you into the corner of the ring. What is this? A glitch? Or an homage to the games of the early 2000s?

Yes, there are weapons here – chairs, ladders, sledgehammers. But even this does not save. The effect from them is rather cosmetic. The animations of the blows are crooked, the feeling of weight and impact is zero. It seems like it should be spectacular, but in fact it is a mishmash of scripted scenes and strange movements. And although there are many battle modes, they do not bring variety. This is not a fresh wind, but just a set of equally dull situations. The feeling that instead of one boring match, you now have to survive five at once.

Conclusion? WWE 2K16 is disappointing. The animations are ragged, crumpled. The fights are slowed down by endless QTE – you do not fight, you catch the timings. And all that remains is to remember how lively and exciting it used to be. It’s 2016, and the gameplay is only worth a “five” at most. And that’s a stretch.

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WWE 2K16 Gameplay

WWE 2K16 struggles to look like a 2016 game. Yes, the models of the main wrestling stars are decently detailed – not perfect, but enough for fans to recognize their idols. Sweat on the forehead, blood in the heat of battle – these details add a bit of realism. But everything else looks like the developers simply forgot that it’s not 2002 outside.

The arenas are like carbon copies: a dozen almost identical sites where wrestling stars fight, of which there can be from one to eight on the screen. At the same time, the roster is full of clones: for some reason, the same fighter was presented in five different variations. They promised variety, but in fact – déjà vu. The ability to create your own wrestler saves a little – customization is still pleasing. Such a character will definitely not get lost among the others. And his facial expressions, it must be admitted, are really bright. But here too, every movement is plastic.

And now let’s look outside the ring. And it would be better if we didn’t. The spectators are like a set of angular mannequins, the surroundings are flat and lifeless, the shadows are static, the lighting seems to have been forgotten at the design stage. It seems that the studio is once again stepping on the same rake: was it really impossible to liven up the hall after so many years? Yes, there is progress compared to the cardboard dummies of the past, but it is minimal. Oh yeah, and a piece of advice from the heart: don’t look at the reporter at the ring. Just… don’t.

Verdict: The graphics in WWE 2K16 are a story about how all the focus went to the stars’ faces, and the rest of the world was forgotten. Even these star models look more like wax figures than living people. Everything else – the ring, the hall, the audience – does not pull at the level of a modern sports simulator. It is simply impossible to give more than 5 points out of 10 for the visuals.

WWE 2K16 Plot

WWE 2K16 offers a couple of key modes to choose from – “My Career” and “2K Showcase”. And if everything is quite controversial with the career, then the mode with the subtitle “Showcase” is definitely worth attention. Here we are told the story of one of the most iconic wrestlers – Steve Austin, better known as “Stone Cold”. This mode is a real gift for fans of old-school wrestling. For me, as a person who grew up on fights with the Stone Cold, Undertaker, Kane and the Player (now Triple H), it was almost a nostalgic trip. We do not just fight, but recreate key moments from Austin’s career, repeating iconic moves, throwing opponents on chairs and ending fights with powerful finishers. This adds drive and makes the gameplay more meaningful.

But with the career mode, everything is much more prosaic. Here we are given the opportunity to create our own fighter and go to conquer the heights of WWE. Sounds tempting? In reality, it’s more of a disappointment. There is no plot as such. There is only an imitation – a bunch of training, pumping up attributes, choosing techniques and… that’s it. From the very beginning, your hero will get the full program, and even when you learn to win, the feeling of progress will still be blurred. Yes, you can give interviews, choose options for lines – but this is more for show. These “conversations” do not affect the plot in any way, because there is simply no plot.

The entire “career” comes down to fights and boring pumping. It seems like they hint at development, but things do not go beyond these hints. It feels like the developers simply did not bother. But after the movie “The Wrestler” and the general interest in this topic, it was possible to squeeze out much more – come up with a dramatic story, introduce mini-games, show the WWE backstage. But no – only fights and levels.

Ultimately, the game’s main advantage is still “2K Showcase”. Steve Austin’s story is presented vividly, with respect for fans and attention to detail. But this is not a full-fledged plot, but rather a documentary retelling with gameplay inserts. Therefore, if you evaluate the game from the point of view of plot content – the maximum that can be given is 5 points. And that is exclusively for “Ice Block”.

Controls and sounds

One of the main advantages of WWE 2K16 can rightfully be called the controls. It is surprisingly convenient – both for the keyboard and for the gamepad. Even if you play without a controller, the standard key layout will pleasantly surprise you: moves and strikes are easy to perform, without the need for a long time to get used to. But as soon as it comes to something more complex, problems begin. This is especially noticeable when there is more than one opponent in the ring. The system simply does not understand who you want to attack, and you, in fact, fight at random. It happens that the character refuses to return to the ring at all. And trying to carry out a complex move often turns into a lottery: the right combination must be pressed strictly at a certain moment, and the time given for this is literally a split second. Even if you did everything correctly, there is no guarantee that the fighter will do what he intended – he can simply freeze in place or suddenly rush in the other direction.

Here are the difficulties the player most often encounters in control:

• It is impossible to select a target when fighting with several opponents.
• The character does not always respond to the command to get into the ring.
• Combo holds require instant reaction and do not forgive delays.
• Even with precise actions, the fighter’s behavior can be unpredictable.

Now about the sound. If you value high-quality sound in games, then WWE 2K16 will most likely disappoint you. The only thing that really pleases here is the musical accompaniment of the main menu. The soundtracks sound pleasant, as if you turned on the background player. But as soon as the fight itself begins, everything collapses. The entrance to the arena is accompanied by some strange set of sounds that seem to have been hastily assembled. During the battle, there is deathly silence. Commentators and spectators shout something, but they do it without rhythm and meaning, and punches, throws and even blows to the head with a chair remain almost silent. The hero is shouting something, the ring is vibrating from collisions, but you don’t hear it — you only see it in the animation. And the scenes with dialogues are completely devoid of voice acting, as if you were just watching a silent movie.

To be honest, I even began to doubt the functionality of my sound card or drivers. Maybe the problem is mine, or maybe not. But one thing is for sure: the sound atmosphere in WWE 2K16 turned out to be unusually dull — and this is sad, because the game had potential.

WWE 2K16 Multiplayer

WWE 2K16 multiplayer is truly a success. There are plenty of modes for every taste: from classic fights to private matches, where you can set all the conditions of the fight yourself. Want more freedom? Please – create your own alliance and enter competitions with other teams. For fans of competitions, a leaderboard has been added, so there is more than enough motivation to prove yourself. Everything looks like the game was created for active online … if not for one “but”: finding opponents on PC is almost like winning a royal battle without a single blow. Almost impossible.

And now about the sad part. Despite the fact that WWE 2K16 is definitely a step forward compared to 2K15 – primarily due to the expanded roster of wrestlers – the feeling of freshness is elusive here. All this has already been done. The game is marking time, not moving forward: the dynamics have faded, the visuals are outdated, and the abundance of QTE turns everything into an interactive performance, and not a real fighting game. It feels like the developers are just adding new fighters and repainting the interface, hoping that no one will notice. Overall, unless you’re a hardcore wrestling fan, spending your money and time on WWE 2K16 is a dubious idea.

WWE 2K16 System Requirements

How to play WWE 2K16 for free on Steam via VpeSports

Remember how you used to draw the WWE logo on your notebooks and have fights between the figurines on the mat as a kid? In WWE 2K16, you get the chance to live out these fantasies to the fullest — not just watch, but step into the ring yourself. Everything is real here: sweat, blood, applause, and the feeling that you are part of a show where one move can change the whole story.

The choice is yours: rise up the career ladder from the very bottom or immediately burst into the ring as a legend like Stone Cold or Shawn Michaels. Every move, every fight is imbued with the atmosphere of those times when wrestling was not just entertainment, but a real passion. The game recreates this magic so accurately that you will forget that you are in front of the screen.

To start playing, you don’t need to complicate anything. Register on our website, get access — and dive in. We have provided for everything down to the smallest detail, including the ability to launch the game through a free Steam account if you want to try it without investing. Everything is as simple as possible: you log in — the ring is already waiting.

Share your opinion with us after you leave the first match. We do not hide reviews in the basement — we read, respond and value feedback. Sometimes a comment may not appear immediately, but after editing it a little, you will receive an email with access and will be able to return to the ring with a new attitude.

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