WWE 2K15

[cnoslim]

Starting the topic early, so just discuss what you would like to see and any news you on hear on the upcoming title

[road doggy dogg]

thx for this

[cnoslim]

http://www.examiner.com/article/wwe-2k15-announcing-character-and-more-details-revealed-for-ps4-and-xbox-one

[drave]

Anything that improves the shitstorm of 2K14. It was the first one I have not purchased in 3 years.

[Fignuts]

Fuck, so yukes is till involved?

Was hoping it was all 2k.

[cnoslim]

I know right, i hope 2k got more say over the development and hopefully yukes is only there for a supporting type role.

[cnoslim]

http://www.justpushstart.com/2014/04/rumor-first-details-wwe-2k15/

[whiteyford]

Will be waiting on this appearing in the sales, last years was meh.

[XL]

A Universe Mode closer to GM Mode.
Re-introduce all the bits they've removed over the years (fighting in the crowd, the ability to move through the arena in Falls Count Anywhere (unless you can do that already), Create-a-PPV, etc)
DLC stories

[Cool King]

I haven't really played 2K14. In fact, I think I've only ever played it twice, which says something as I've always bought the WWE games and in the past, spent a lot of time playing them.

I don't know why but 2K14 hasn't really interested me at all, and I've never had that urge to play the game like I have in the past with previous games, and to think, I spent a lot of money on the special edition that comes inside The Undertaker's Coffin. Seems like a waste of money now that I think about it. :-\

At the moment, I'm not really feeling much for 2K15, but even more so now that it looks like Yukes are still involved. I just want something different but I feel like with Yukes still being involved, we won't get different. It'll just be the same game, but with an ever so slightly different roster and a five slapped on the cover instead of a four.

But it is very early days right now, and I really hope I'm wrong and that I'm surprised at what I see and read about come SummerSlam time.

[cnoslim]

Ya i know, i goes to play wwe 2k15 and ends up playing a current mod for TEW2013

[cnoslim]

Wwe 2k14**** ^^^

[Droford]

I like how Justin Roberts recording "from West Newberry Massachusetts" is confirmation that Cena will be in the game. Oddly enough I think its silly they'd rerecord things like that every year..

[Disturbed316]

The game needs a complete overhaul. Yukes has had it's time.

[Jaded-Dragon]

I was really hoping that when 2k got the license they would start from scratch and make a new engine. But of course they ended up following the EA sports model of "Hey if it ain't broke, break it." Not only is Yukes still involved but 2k brought over a lot of THQ employees that had worked on the series previously which is why we basically got the exact same game.

Playing through the Wrestlemania's in 2k14 was about the only cool part, everything else is lackluster at best and it's really time for a new product.

[Fignuts]

2k14 was already well in development, with less than a year til release when 2k bought the license. Can't really blame them for that.

Only way to judge their work at this point is to wait and see how 2k15 turns out.

[Kalyx triaD]

I mean... I liked 2k14. There's a bunch of stuff I'd like to see or get improved but as far as a pro-wrestling game goes it was a nice package. They're doing a lot of shit that, quite frankly, other games don't even attempt.

[teamXtremist]

Want to see a shield triple power bomb

[dronepool]

A engine improvement- I'd like to see better physics and more fluid animation/movement. This game has had a signature stiffness to it.

[Kalyx triaD]

Careful what you ask for. There's a few reasons why I think it'll always look like that, and the best we can hope for is smooth transitions (which they did get way better at). A game with stock moves (like a fighting game) simply has to be this way. The actual moves look great viewed piece by piece; perhaps it just looks robotic after a while?

Would something like GTA's physics engine be better? I don't think so, it would probably introduce leagues of other issues. I'm just thinking the stiff movement isn't a limitation after all these years and it's just something inherent to pro-wrestling game design.

[Fignuts]

I mean... I liked 2k14. There's a bunch of stuff I'd like to see or get improved but as far as a pro-wrestling game goes it was a nice package. They're doing a lot of shit that, quite frankly, other games don't even attempt.

Their customization suite was incredible, as well as the roster, match variety, new universe, etc.

All that is great, but all the features in the world can't help a game with lackluster gameplay. It's not near as bad as many of it's detractors would have you believe, but it's not particularly great either. The massive cuts to the movelist over the years have damaged it quite a bit as well.

Much as I love the creation stuff, I'd be willing to give some of that up for more refined gameplay, and a larger movelist.

[Kalyx triaD]

They're not mutually exclusive, the gameplay essentially comes down to theory - and it always boggled my mind why people think that's related to a hard budget number. It isn't. The way Killer Instinct plays is not because of the power of the Xbox One - it's core theory can be replicated on Xbox 360. On Xbox, really.

We don't need to lose features that need extra time and budget to do for better gameplay, that depends on the wherewithal of the combat designer(s).

[whiteyford]

They need to skip a year, I know they won't and why, but the extra dev time wouldn't hurt.

[Kalyx triaD]

There's some stuff I've wanted for a few years now. I don't know what they have up their sleeve, but histories says it won't be what I'm thinking. Doesn't stop me from doing a wishlist, though.

Counter Triggers

- The return of two reversal buttons; the triggers preferably. You can keep the harsh timing introduced in 2k14, but PLEASE remove the window adjustment per character stat. For Cena and Undertaker I suppose that's just being realistic, but for a game it's maddening finding out your fave wrestler's reversal stat makes him chow for high flyers.

- The Left Trigger would be for Strikes, including high flying and diving attacks. The Right Trigger would be for any all grapple moves.

- There would be quick catch animations for the Counter Triggers, introducing both a visual cue and a recovery period for reversals. This way one can't spam it and it could be punished. This would promote a slight meta-game of timing on top of the returning mix-up from having two reversal buttons.

- Pressing them together would counter specials, which would always have a small window of opportunity.

High Flying Reversal

- The Left Trigger (STK RV) must be pressed at the point the opponent leaves the fucking turnbuckle/apron/thru-ropes. Essentially any time he goes airborne. For the love of god.

- You will halt in place if timed correctly, leading to reversal animation and follow-thru. If you mistime it the recovery will leave you eating the attack, of course.

Face/Heel Reaction System

- Basically; your meter now builds according to how you get the fans' attention. Faces need to generate cheers, Heels need to generate boos. Whether you're face or heel should be noted (and editable) on the wrestlers bio menu.

- This means doing actions that befit your archetype. Taunting the crowd (using what I'd like to call the Taunt Shot feature) or over a fallen opponent is a Heel action. Taunting your opponent to his face or before a big move is a Face action. Using weapons illegally or hurting the ref (who will stay his ass down for once), is Heel stuff. So on and so forth.

- Once your meter is full, the Signature, Wake-Up Taunt, Special system remains.

Hype Investment System

- A sister mechanic to the Face/Heel dynamic, where both types have ways of 'saving up' the audiences empathy for meter payoff later. This is partially inspired by SF4's Ultra system, and also WWE TV.

- The actions aren't exactly taunts, which directly fill meter, nor are they moves that do damage. They are things that add 'ghost meter' that becomes usable if you 'cash it in'.

- Face: After taking a moves that knocks you down, you can choose to sell the move to gain audience empathy. The longer you stay down selling the move, the more ghost meter you gain. However, you are prone to attack in this state (though it wouldn't negate your earned ghost meter). Once you filled enough ghost meter for a special, you need to cash it with a reversal during the Sell State. The fans will pop hard, and you can go to Signature right from there. You could potentially sell a beating the whole match and come back hard.

- Heel: After knocking down you opponent, you toy with his limp body, slapping his head and or yelling taunts at him. The crowd will hate you, building ghost meter. The opponent could actually counter this with either reversal trigger, making it risky. You may also get separated by the ref, who you can then argue with or push. In fact you can contest most of the ref's actions, from two-counts to taking your illegal weapon away. All this builds ghost meter until you cash it with a Strong Grapple after taunting your opponent. The fans are crushed, now you may finish your opponent.

Taunt Shots

- Now when you taunt you don't have to face your opponent, you can 'direct' your taunt at him or the fans or the ref. Taunts will have either Walk, Spin, or both as interactive actions. There are already taunts with some degree of walking or twirling, just imagine you directing that. Now you can really get in the fans face to pump up or diss. Pick Daniel Bryan and have a YES! contest with a fan.

Come-Back Creator

- Choose your own sequence of actions for your comeback. Each part has the opponent quickly stand up to receive the next action. And on Come-Backs in general; you can only counter them if you have a Special or full ghost meter stocked up.

- The creation options would be;

Starter (Standing/Running/Turnbuckle)
- Grapple (Standing)
- Action (Bouncing off ropes, getting on turnbuckle)
- - Running Grapple/Attack/High Flying Grapple/Attack
- Vain Action (opponent attempts a move only to miss, continuing the Come-Back)
Ender (Grapple or Attack)

- The three options in between can be set in any order. Up to five step sequences can be created.

Online Run-In

- If your friends allowed it in the pre-match options, you can join the game, pick your wrestler in secret, and run-in anytime you wish with 2 Specials stocked up.

[Emperor Smeat]

http://www.justpushstart.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/WWE-2K15-Justin-Gabriel.jpg
Justin Gabriel has recently revealed on his official Instagram account that he was scanned to be in WWE 2K15.

The above image clearly shows him getting scanned for what would be used for his character model in WWE 2K15. He has since deleted the image from his Instagram account, but the description was that he was getting scanned for the new WWE video game.

Not much is known about WWE 2K15 as of yet, but it will be out later this year.
http://forums.2k.com/showthread.php?471511-Face-scanning-technology-is-back-for-WWE-2K15!

[Cool King]

The face he's pulling there and that he's doing it for a video game, just makes me think of the weird faces you would get for wrestlers on WrestleMania 2000 and No Mercy for the N64.

I can just imagine the camera sweeping down to an N64 version of Justin Gabriel, as he runs to the ring and he's got that face for his model.

[Purgatory]

looks like he's squeezing a shit out.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Must be a deep roster if Justin Gabriel, who hasn't done shit for months on end, made it into the game.</font>

[Disturbed316]

They need to make me want to play the game more. I loved Attitude Era/Wrestlemania modes but hardly touched the game outside of that. Streak mode was just stupidly difficult (and not in a good way) and Universe is still as broken as previous games.

[Kalyx triaD]

Well that's a vague kind of metric. We all wanna enjoy games more. I wanna watch cool movies; how does the writer/director make use of that production note, ya know?

We need to highlight what kind of gameplay and feature set leads to replayability, 'fun', and investment. We also need to satisfy the Monday Night fan who boots the game up and just wants to play a match or two and then move on to Titanfall. Then we need a feature set for guys who use every slider in CAW mode.

It's more than saying we want to play the game more.

[DaveBrawl]

They really shouldn't have to look too far, their NBA games are exactly like that. I bought 2k13 shortly after it came out played it once, and let it sit for a long time, but lately I'll just pick it up and play a game or two just for kicks before diving into Dragon Age or something time intensive. I don't touch the online or career mode, but I love franchise mode. I don't know much about the various plays or truthfully even how to call them as I've never tried, but it's there if I ever do want it. You can create your own shoes and win others that give various attributes, change coaching tendencies and so many other in depth options for people that love that part of basketball. On the other hand it also lends itself easily to a guy like me that just wants to pick up the controller and drain a few 3's and eventually get the championship cutscene.

The thing that mainly got me off the WWE games is that the matches all felt the same. No matter who you picked it felt like there were 2 "styles" high flyer or everyone else. What I loved about Fire Pro is that it had so many varieties in style among the wrestlers and the NBA games are this way as well and even force you to play to that. Jeremy Lin isn't going to power dunk on anyone and Roy Hibbert isn't going to drain 3's. You try and you are going to lose. The WWE games never really felt that way to me, aside from going for the groggy moves too early and they would be reversed until you wore the other guy down, everybody played the same unless they were diving over the ropes or off turnbuckles. Even the high-flyers felt the same when they were going toe to toe with opponents. Height, speed and weight never mattered much.

[whiteyford]

I want to want to play the game more.

[DaveBrawl]

The last one of these games I actually wanted was the first one that had Bret Hart in it and that was what '10? I got a couple after that as gifts but never really did much with them. They've all felt the same since the second or third one, and still did as of '13. I guess I just got tired of the style.

[whiteyford]

Seems like they take more out every year than they put in.

[DaveBrawl]

A career mode where you could play as a guy for years and have rivalries that somewhat make sense and happen with regularity and have to work more than 20 shows to get into the world title picture like one of the PS1 or 2 games had would be great.

[whiteyford]

I'd love them to cherry pick from older games and add more match types, make use of the video library and the Network to add stuff from older promotions, they all but featured a Wargames match in the last game for example.

[Disturbed316]

I want to want to play the game more.

Exactly, outside of the modes I mentioned what else they offer doesn't draw me back to the game. I want them to make me want to play. I want to be able to loose hours going through different modes and having interesting matches. The last few years hasn't done that.

I believe a substantial overhaul is needed, it won't happen but I think an extra year would be beneficial to tweak everything.

[whiteyford]

Think I'm one of the few here who didn't enjoy the Attitude Era/WM mode, felt too forced and the novelty wore thin fairly quickly, but it was nice having different 'legends' for once, really would rather have an Axl Rotten or Stevie Ray than another version of Cena in a different coloured top.

[Kalyx triaD]

I tend to roll my eyes at any mode that merely aims to recreate any event or era of the WWE. I found the original storylines of the SvR era much more appealing.

[whiteyford]

Yup gender swapping through a magic wand isn't eye rolling.

[whiteyford]

Was kinda meh being forced to recreate old moments though, more awkward/frustrating than enjoyable at times especially with the hidden objectives. Given the mix of talent on the roster you'd think it'd be easier to create dream matches like the Wrestlemania game.

[Cool King]

Yup gender swapping through a magic wand isn't eye rolling.

Neither is Finlay and Santino becoming zombies.

[whiteyford]

If Russo was booking that might have happened.

[Kalyx triaD]

Keep in mind real life story lines are only a little less stupid than the magic wand thing, nor do I even see your point; recreations are better because original story lines might be silly? Okay..?

[DAMN iNATOR]

Was kinda meh being forced to recreate old moments though, more awkward/frustrating than enjoyable at times especially with the hidden objectives. Given the mix of talent on the roster you'd think it'd be easier to create dream matches like the Wrestlemania game.

LOL, what?! You're telling me you didn't enjoy playing each of the WM matches and doing the hidden objectives, not just to be historically accurate, but also so you could do a hidden objective and maybe get a short cutscene that makes you say "Oh, yeah! That part of the match was so cool! I'd completely forgotten about that till now!"

Seriously I've found the trip down Nostalgia Lane with Attitude Era mode in '13 & 30 Years of WrestleMania mode in 2K14 to be tremendously fun and by far the most enticing features of the last couple of games.

[James Steele]

I think Universe is supposed to take the place of career mode with all the alleged cut scenes and storylines, but the mode is so messed up it doesn't work out that way. I enjoyed Attitude Era and 30 Years of WrestleMania modes, but I do wish they could at least add in some kind of mode just to play through as a CAW and develop. With NXT and everything now, it'd be an easy storyline to make with a few branches that made you play through 4-5 times. If they could somehow import those rivalries and things into Universe mode when completed it'd be even better.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I wonder what, if any, "theme" there would be. I mean they could always do Attitude Era Mode 2.0 picking up with Austin getting run over at Survivor Series or something but I kinda doubt they'd do that.

A proper WCW mode could be doable now that Sting would presumably be on board for the game. Basically every other WCW guy of importance has been in a recent game so I doubt they'd have issues bringing most of them back in.</font>

[Kalyx triaD]

Sports games have this interesting thing where real life events were recreated and installed in the game as special ongoing challenges. A weekly show that doesn't have an off season could potentially upload entire cards for players to play out, change outcomes, etc.

[whiteyford]

LOL, what?! You're telling me you didn't enjoy playing each of the WM matches and doing the hidden objectives, not just to be historically accurate, but also so you could do a hidden objective and maybe get a short cutscene that makes you say "Oh, yeah! That part of the match was so cool! I'd completely forgotten about that till now!"

Seriously I've found the trip down Nostalgia Lane with Attitude Era mode in '13 & 30 Years of WrestleMania mode in 2K14 to be tremendously fun and by far the most enticing features of the last couple of games.

Nope the novelty wore off quickly, I only played through it to unlock everything, having to drag a match on just to hit a specific button at a certain time isn't fun for me.

[whiteyford]

Keep in mind real life story lines are only a little less stupid than the magic wand thing, nor do I even see your point; recreations are better because original story lines might be silly? Okay..?


My point is you said recreations are eye rolling compared to the original stories, gender swapping via magical wands and zombie possessions seem vastly more eye rolling to me.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Sports games have this interesting thing where real life events were recreated and installed in the game as special ongoing challenges. A weekly show that doesn't have an off season could potentially upload entire cards for players to play out, change outcomes, etc.

WCW Mayhem had something like that. Somehow it programmed matches based on PPVs that didn't happen yet.

[cnoslim]

http://fansided.com/2014/04/14/first-possible-details-wwe-2k15/

http://www.examiner.com/article/wwe-2k15-announcing-character-and-more-details-revealed-for-ps4-and-xbox-one

http://www.examiner.com/article/wwe-2k15-ps4-controls-dynamic-changes-and-nba-2k-similarities-discussed

http://www.latinopost.com/articles/5602/20140415/wwe-2k15-rumors-wwe-network-characters-will-be-more-realistic-fight-everywhere.htm

[DaveBrawl]

I think Universe is supposed to take the place of career mode with all the alleged cut scenes and storylines, but the mode is so messed up it doesn't work out that way. I enjoyed Attitude Era and 30 Years of WrestleMania modes, but I do wish they could at least add in some kind of mode just to play through as a CAW and develop. With NXT and everything now, it'd be an easy storyline to make with a few branches that made you play through 4-5 times. If they could somehow import those rivalries and things into Universe mode when completed it'd be even better.

Yeah that's what I was thinking about, they have Universe mode, but my CAW never seemed to get any of the cutscenes in the year or so I played through before getting bored of it. I'd get a random month or two fued with a random guy every few months but it had no build or reason behind it. I guess everyone was too scared to attack the KISS Demon.

As for the other's I kind of enjoyed the Road to Wrestlemania mode in '12 (aside from the stupid backstage handicap matches), but it was really short and gave no reason to replay it. I never even had any interest in playing Attitude Mode in '13. I mean I had already seen all of those moments and enjoyed them, there was nothing I was going to be able to do to improve on them.

As for the legends I never have had any use for them, especially if they are really old or dead in real life, I just end up moving them to a show where they will never be used. I'd much rather use a bunch of recent scrubs than top guys from decades past, same as the other sports games. I have no desire to play as the '99 Broncos in the year 2014 no matter how much I love that team.

[Fignuts]

i think they should just cut "story" mode, and put all it's time and development into improving Universe.

[XL]

They kinda mixed the 2 together all the way back in 2000 for No Mercy. They had multi-branching stories that either happened in real life or branched off into a different tale. And each belt had its own branches. That had replay value. You had to replay matches to get different outcomes to follow a different branch. I wouldn't mind replaying storylines where I know the next chapter if there's the option to go off script and follow a new chain of events.

[road doggy dogg]

wrasslin' MMO, book it

[Kalyx triaD]

My point is you said recreations are eye rolling compared to the original stories, gender swapping via magical wands and zombie possessions seem vastly more eye rolling to me.

You bring up two examples when there were other examples, such as a draft storyline from SvR 06 or 07, that could have been on TV. The actual WWE writers were involved at the time. And there were more legit 'this could be TV' original angles than the extreme stuff you keep mentioning.

WCW Mayhem had something like that. Somehow it programmed matches based on PPVs that didn't happen yet.

I suppose WCW booking was fairly obvious at the time.

[whiteyford]

You bring up two examples when there were other examples, such as a draft storyline from SvR 06 or 07, that could have been on TV. The actual WWE writers were involved at the time. And there were more legit 'this could be TV' original angles than the extreme stuff you keep mentioning.

I've brought it up twice in response to you, I'm dying to know what real life WWE storylines are on par with the wand thing though, please enlighten me.

[Kalyx triaD]

Kane/Vickie
Murder of Paul Bearer (by CEMENT)
An entire episode featuring the Muppets (but was actually kinda awesome but still)
Kane using his powers to light a technician on fire
Kane using his powers to light a trash can on fire
Kane using powers
God has competed in a tag match in the WWE
Anything with Hornswaggle
A few of the Boogieman's scares
The Hurricane's secret identity as a WWE reporter, played fascinatingly straight
"Santina"

[James Steele]

At the risk of looking like I'm ripping off DTTS's gimmick:

Kane/Vickie
Murder of Paul Bearer (by CEMENT)They never claimed he was killed.
An entire episode featuring the Muppets (but was actually kinda awesome but still) It was entertaining which is all that matters.
Kane using his powers to light a technician on fire He lit JR on fire and it made sense since he was this deranged angry monster. He didn't use magic either - just gasoline and matches.
Kane using his powers to light a trash can on fire No different than the "mind games" Undertaker plays.
Kane using powers He hasn't used magic powers in months.
God has competed in a tag match in the WWE That was clearly satire/intentionally facetious on Vince McMahon's part mocking HBK's religious beliefs as part of the whole "McMahonism" storyline.
Anything with Hornswaggle I concede this point.
A few of the Boogieman's scares I can't believe you got scared by The Boogeyman.
The Hurricane's secret identity as a WWE reporter, played fascinatingly straight If you didn't read the internet, you wouldn't have known.
"Santina" I concede this point.

[James Steele]

Poking fun btw, Kalyx. You know I love you for the spastic passionate bastard you are! :p

[Kalyx triaD]

I know, but none of that really squashes my point. Some people were entertained by the original stuff no matter how zany, so saying something gets a pass because it worked can be applied to whatever whackiness was in the SvR story modes. It's cool.

Just saying, original angles are still better than re-lived stuff. I mean, you could potentially relive any match/card/PPV anyway, while some dev-side support would be required to enjoy fully fledged story lines for... say... your CAW. Surely we can agree with that.

And yeah, Kane did totally use magic to set a technician on fire. Not ambiguous spooky mind games - it was D&D shit. Probably on YouTube. Hell, I loved it.

[XL]

Was that when he struck somebody with lightening?

[Kalyx triaD]

YES

[Kalyx triaD]

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/BDIQAhLXEbc?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

This is fine but not in a videogame where they should be allowed to get fantastical. It's a strange argument, honestly.

[Disturbed316]

I've always wondered how they managed to do that, especially the one from the finger.

[teamXtremist]

Hopefully more realistic ai

[James Steele]

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/BDIQAhLXEbc?feature=player_detailpage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

This is fine but not in a videogame where they should be allowed to get fantastical. It's a strange argument, honestly.

That was cooler than setting JR on fire. JR laying motionless yet screaming in complete agony was an odd scene.

[James Steele]

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/0JyPJHj2U94" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[James Steele]

JR, why the fuck would you let Kane have a jug of GASOLINE on the coffee table during your interview?

[Kalyx triaD]

Maybe his car was low on gas.

[FourFifty]

Has Triple H been confirmed yet? If he's not on the roster I'm not getting the game.

[DAMN iNATOR]

Maybe his car was low on gas.

And with prices these days, I'm not surprised!

[whiteyford]

Kane/Vickie
Murder of Paul Bearer (by CEMENT)
An entire episode featuring the Muppets (but was actually kinda awesome but still)
Kane using his powers to light a technician on fire
Kane using his powers to light a trash can on fire
Kane using powers
God has competed in a tag match in the WWE
Anything with Hornswaggle
A few of the Boogieman's scares
The Hurricane's secret identity as a WWE reporter, played fascinatingly straight
"Santina"


The only one even close is the Hornswoggles DX run stuff the rest are just clutching at straws and a lot of Kane.

[Kalyx triaD]

Kane used a lot of magic.

If some of that stuff were original storylines made for the game you would have cited those just as well.

[whiteyford]

Kane uses a lot of pyro, it's kinda his thing. And like I said, only one of those things is even close so I seriously doubt I would, I wouldn't have even cited the two I did if you hadn't come across as a pretentious cunt the post before though.

[Kalyx triaD]

You know pyro is not what I'm pointing out. The video above is very clear. It's presented as magic. They could easily do the examples you stated on TV and they would be perfectly in line with their whackier angles/scenes. That is my point; they been doing goofy shit.

[James Steele]

They are not presented as magic. They are presented as supernatural powers given unto him from The Great Evil Of This World, Mr. Lucifer Satan Devil

[Kalyx triaD]

Magic.

Though I think zombies would be an interesting match. You get pinned you're infected and must work for the other team.

[Cool King]

So pretty much just "Virus" from the TimeSplitters series?

[Kalyx triaD]

You mean "Infection" from the Halo series.

[whiteyford]

Magic.

Don't be so ridiculous, there is no such thing as magic. It's hellfire and brimstone clearly.

[whiteyford]

They kinda mixed the 2 together all the way back in 2000 for No Mercy. They had multi-branching stories that either happened in real life or branched off into a different tale. And each belt had its own branches. That had replay value. You had to replay matches to get different outcomes to follow a different branch. I wouldn't mind replaying storylines where I know the next chapter if there's the option to go off script and follow a new chain of events.

This kinda thing though, not sure which game it was but you basically did everything from the locker room before you went to your match. I'd love them to take that as the basis for your 'storymode', you create a caw and start each show in the locker room with that shows contents available so you could pick which matches you want to interfere in if any, even making you walk to the Gorilla position before you start your match and giving you the chance to interact with other wrestlers to create angles or as a means to have 24/7 mode for the hardcore belt. Drop the voice overs, which can be pretty dire anyways, and you could fill the discs with hundreds of different branching stories.

[Kalyx triaD]

True.

[Cool King]

You mean "Infection" from the Halo series.

Well seeing as I've never played Halo, I wouldn't know about that.

So no. I don't mean "Infection" from the Halo series, I mean "Virus" from the TimeSplitters series.

[Kalyx triaD]

Well it's definitely Infection from Halo. Fucker.

[Cool King]

Explain to me then why it's Infection and not Virus?

[whiteyford]

It's magic.

[Cool King]

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NFQCYpIHLNQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[whiteyford]

I hate Mr Bean sooooo much

[Kalyx triaD]

Explain to me then why it's Infection and not Virus?

Never said it wasn't Virus. There are always different names for one gametype concept. What's Conquest here is Domination there, and Hardpoint somewhere else I support Halo's term because I play Halo.

[Cool King]

Well I do know that when it comes to different names you condescending prick.

It's just with the way you adamantly went on about it being Infection and not Virus, I thought that maybe they were different in some way, but after reading up on Infection, it turns out that they're not and it was just you being a arsehole.

It's all well and good that you "support Halo's term", but there's no need to try correct someone on something that's the exact same as what you're trying to correct it with, just because you use a different name for it. That's just pathetic.

[DaveBrawl]

I hate Mr Bean sooooo much

You monster. Mr. Bean is fantastic. :mad:

[Kalyx triaD]

:'(

I'll never stop correcting. Never. Until you learn.

[Cool King]

Ok, you keep telling yourself that.

[Kalyx triaD]

I just told you. BRING IT.

[Cool King]

Is this actually happening?

[Kalyx triaD]

Make your last move, bro.

[DAMN iNATOR]

The only time a WWE game presented magic/mysticism type stuff that felt out of place was in SvR ’11 for the Vs. Undertaker storyline where you could use a CAW or one of like 4 or 5 guys on the main roster (odd, why wouldn’t they let you just pick anyone not in their own RtWM story???), and eventually you have to take this stupid fucking urn and collect little blue/purple orbs.

Dunno why, it just really irked me.

[Cool King]

Damn, yeah, I totally forgot about the orb task.

[DAMN iNATOR]

Damn, yeah, I totally forgot about the orb task.

I think like some of it may have been optional, but if you got them all, “Masked Kane” would appear in Week 12 (last week before WM XXVI).

[Cool King]

Yeah, though I can't remember the story behind it. Were they suppose to be souls or something that escaped from the Urn when the lid fell/was taken off?

I now remember getting them all though and having to run around like an idiot backstage trying to find them.

[DAMN iNATOR]

I guess, something like that. There was even 1 or 2 weeks in there where you'd have to not only collect the orbs but avoid caskets.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to Take Two's fiscal report, Yukes got demoted as the sole developer for the WWE with Visual Concepts (NBA 2k series) now helping out as a full-time developer.

WWE 2k15 might end up missing the usual Fall release window because of the changes though.

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2014/05/13/wwe-2k15-may-miss-regular-fall-release-.aspx

[drave]

That's okay though. I am all for waiting for a BETTER product. 2k14 was complete doo doo butter.

[Kalyx triaD]

Pretty much in line with my expectation that this will be in-house by 2015. Hope 2K does some research.

[Fignuts]

Oh fuck, that is good news. NBA 2k series is amazing. If they put as much effort and passion into WWE2k15, it could be really great.

[Kalyx triaD]

Making a pro-wrestling game is really tricky. Not exactly a fighting game, not a sport, with lots of theatrics and stunts you must reproduce. I'm sure we could make a system, because we're bout dat lyfe, but my observation is many Western studios failed in the past. Many of them take the combat mechanics either too seriously or flak on it. Presentation is easy.

[Disturbed316]

Glad to hear it could take extra time, series needs it.

[Emperor Smeat]

The release date for the new WWE 2K15 video game has been pushed back. Instead of the usual October release, the new WWE video game is scheduled for an early release, likely in March of 2015, which would coincide with WrestleMania 31.

There hasn’t been a lot of details revealed about the specifics of the game, however there is rumors that a “My Career” mode will be replacing the “30 Years of WrestleMania” mode, which would feature the player of the game starting out in NXT and working their way up to the main roster, and ultimately to championship glory.
http://www.sescoops.com/release-date-wwe-2k15-pushed-back-details-new-career-mode/

[Fignuts]

Nice. Would be great to finally get an NXT roster.

[Dark-Slicer Diago]

That's great news, not that I hate the game at all, but it's surely lacking depth.

[Fignuts]

If it's getting delayed, I wonder if we'll even see anything at E3.

[Kalyx triaD]

I imagine we get at least a teaser, otherwise they'd have no E3 presence at all until launch.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Great news. They need some new blood in this series.

Hope this means we'll finally be able to have a 4 on 4 or 5 on 5 Survivor Series matches.

[Dark-Slicer Diago]

Indy wrestler Adam Pearce isn't the only person doing the mocap this year, joining him NXT's Kassius Ohno(Chris Hero) who posted himself in the 2k motion capture suit on instagram.

[Fignuts]

Chris Hero was released months ago, way before the roster cut off date, so I'll take that with a grain of salt.

[James Steele]

2K still may have brought him in to do Motion Capture.

[Kalyx triaD]

As a studio contract they could do that. It doesn't have to be a WWE guy.

[Dark-Slicer Diago]

Exactly, just like in WWE 12 when Austin Aries did the mocap as well as the voice for Jacob Cass.

[teamXtremist]

Should be a solid game glad their taking it sloow

[dronepool]

A delay? No annual copy and paste? Yay!

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>A proper My Career mode for WWE 2k15 would be awesome. So far they haven't announced any "theme" with respect to the roster or anything so I think it might be going back to current roster focus for the first time since WWE 12. Really the rosters for the last two games were large enough I think they could easily fit the entire current roster plus a bunch of notable NXT guys in. They'd need at least some NXT guys to make the My Career mode work especially well.</font>

[whiteyford]

Would seriously rather it featured a bunch of Job guys from the 80s/90s than 4 versions of Cena/HHH/Hogan, PN news > Cena in a green Shirt.

[Kalyx triaD]

As many current people as possible. No/few legends.

[Frank Drebin]

Legends with cool theme music/entrance/pyro. Big Bossman with blue shirt is a must this time. I demand it.

[whiteyford]

I would accept multiple Bossmans in place of multiple Cenas.

[screech]

If there's no Maven, we riot.

[whiteyford]

Or the Bushwhackers.

[Cool King]

I'm still waiting for Steve Blackman.

[whiteyford]

I mean how much would it cost to sign up the likes of Maven/Steve Blackman/Damian Demento/ future top billing hall of famers Mosh & Thrasher to deals to put them in the game? Seriously who in their right mind wouldn't want to unify all the titles with the Headbangers?

[Cool King]

I would much rather see guys like Blackman, The Headbangers, Mideon, Max Moon, Gangrel, Raven, Saturn, Molly Holly, Tekno Team 2000 and the like, be included in future WWE game rather than seeing guys like Hogan, Andre, Bret, Austin, Rock and so on, for the 457th time.

[Cool King]

Then again, that could have just been down to the laziness of THQ/Yukes.

[whiteyford]

You're always going to get the same group of core Legends year in year out but it's the 4 versions of the same wrestler where only the entrance changes but we can say it's 4 separate wrestlers to inflate the roster number thing that irks me, especially with some of the CAWs out there that have 3 or 4 skins that really do the same job.

[Disturbed316]

Would prefer as many current wrestlers rather than legends. Other than Attitude/Wrestlemania modes I never used them. But all I'm really wanting is the replay value that the series has missed for so long. Like I've said previously, I want the game make me want to return to it, rather just play it for a couple of hours or one game mode then trade it in.

[screech]

I want more 1999-00 midcard guys, dammit! D'lo Brown, Val Venis, Ken Shamrock, Jeff Jarrett (not really feasible, I know), Al Snow - guys we haven't seen in a while. No reason to, as whiteyford alluded to, have different versions of the same person taking up roster spots.

Basing these picks on playing No Mercy/watching 1999 PPVs, by the way.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

I would much rather see guys like Blackman, The Headbangers, Mideon, Max Moon, Gangrel, Raven, Saturn, Molly Holly, Tekno Team 2000 and the like, be included in future WWE game rather than seeing guys like Hogan, Andre, Bret, Austin, Rock and so on, for the 457th time.

Community Creations usually fits the need without having to pay them royalties. Some of them online are better and more detailed than DLC.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

I want more 1999-00 midcard guys, dammit! D'lo Brown, Val Venis, Ken Shamrock, Jeff Jarrett (not really feasible, I know), Al Snow - guys we haven't seen in a while. No reason to, as whiteyford alluded to, have different versions of the same person taking up roster spots.

Basing these picks on playing No Mercy/watching 1999 PPVs, by the way.

There was a reason. It was necessary for the full immersion of the Attitude/WrestleMania modes.

The only character that didn't really change at all in the modes was John Cena.

[Eklipse]

I just want to see my CAS actually wear a title or have it over their shoulder...not floating 3 feet away from their body...

[Cool King]

But all I'm really wanting is the replay value that the series has missed for so long. Like I've said previously, I want the game make me want to return to it, rather just play it for a couple of hours or one game mode then trade it in.

This.

Recently, I've barely touched my WWE games. The last WWE game from the main series, that I kept coming back to was SvR11, and that was only really to try to get 100% of the achievements, as I did that with SvR10.

The last WWE game from the main series that I honestly enjoyed and couldn't wait to play again was SvR07, though I'd say SvR06 is my favourite of the SvR series.

[Optimus Bone 69]

Hopefully we will get Angle this year

[XL]

I'm happy to have semi-active/recently retired guys like HBK on the roster as it allows you to do dream matches with the likes of Bryan. Can do without having long-haired HHH or some of the older guys. Honestly, did anybody play as Bruno this year?

[DAMN iNATOR]

And what does end up getting changed in Universe has mostly been for the worse in my experience. The one thing I did enjoy in the original (SvR 2011?) was after × # of wins on RAW, SD! and Superstars, Vince would show up and you'd fight another opponent that when beaten became playable.

I'd also like to see the return of tournaments, which I believe they did once, in SvR 2009. Used to play the hell out of KotR and Beat the Clock tournaments.

[screech]

Hated beat the clock in games. Love King of the Ring in all forms, though.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

And what does end up getting changed in Universe has mostly been for the worse in my experience. The one thing I did enjoy in the original (SvR 2011?) was after × # of wins on RAW, SD! and Superstars, Vince would show up and you'd fight another opponent that when beaten became playable.

I'd also like to see the return of tournaments, which I believe they did once, in SvR 2009. Used to play the hell out of KotR and Beat the Clock tournaments.

They have tournaments in 2k14. How does something return when its there?

[Fignuts]

Yeah, they actually made a big deal about it, when it came back in 2k13.

[teamXtremist]

I'm looking forward to a more immersive career mode with my caw

Also no more starting your caw as 100 ovr make them work their way up like svr 06

[Fignuts]

That isn't happening.

A lot of people like to make guys that aren't in the game. Forcing people to grind through career with every single damn one, just to get their proper stats was bullshit, and I'm glad we have the freedom to edit stats as we please now.

[Kalyx triaD]

Agreed.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Yeah I agree to a point. I don't like how every wrestler is 100 online though. People taking advantage of the convenience. In other games you have to level up to be a superman.

[Fignuts]

Make online leveling seperate from singleplayer.

Problem solved.

[Cool King]

The "WWE 2K" Facebook account has announced that WWE 2K15 will be released on October 28 (I'm assuming in North America) and October 31 internationally, for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.

[Kalyx triaD]

That's not a delay at all!

[Emperor Smeat]

Amazon had those dates up earlier as well.

If I had to guess, the WWE didn't want the game to be delayed beyond the year. Would be similar to WWE 2k14 where Take Two wanted a delay or to skip a year while the WWE demanded it to be made in time because of the financial mess from THQ's demise.

[Fignuts]

That is very disappointing, though not at all surprising.

[Emperor Smeat]

WWE 2K15 will be released on October 28th for Playstation 4, Xbox One, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. You can pre-order the game now from Amazon.com.

Based on what we’re hearing this week, WWE 2K15 will include an all-new career mode that will be similar to NBA 2K14, where gamers can create a character (or use an existing Superstar/Diva) and rise up the ranks from rookie to legend. This will involve paying your dues and making a name for yourself in NXT before making your way up to the main roster.

The career mode is expected to include several NXT talents for the first time ever, so we could see playable characters like NXT Champion Adrian Neville, NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte, Sami Zayn and Tyler Breeze.

Aside from the all-new career mode, it’s expected that the 30 Years of WrestleMania mode will be returning.

Both Sting and Goldberg are rumored to be featured in the game as legends.
http://www.24wrestling.com/new-details-wwe-2k15-nxt-career-mode-legends/

[DAMN iNATOR]

UGH. I'm still $20 from having Borderlands Pre-Sequel pre-order paid off, not to mention I haven't even STARTED to look in earnest for a decently priced copy of 2K14, and now you want $63 MORE for 2K15 just 2 weeks after BL: TP-S is out, 2K?! Methinks this will be a 1 or 2 time rental until at least Holiday '14, maybe even sometime in '15, and that's even if EVERYONE says it's a must own immediately game, which I'm guessing it probably won't be, at least not this year. I hope and expect 2K to make some improvements but if they're releasing this soon I'm not going to hold my breath that this effort will make my jaw drop through the floor.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Sting has "pre-order exclusive bonus" written all over him</font>

[Purgatory]

They should retool the "Belt Creation". Make it more like SVR2007/SVR2008 or something like that. More styles, center plates, etc. I loved SVR2007, except that created titles couldn't be worn by CAWS. I thought it was just something with my PS2 version at first, so I traded it in for the 360 version and it did the same thing. I later found it was a glitch in the game across all platforms.

Custom textures, or being able to put your own face on a CAW via Kinect/whatever PS4 users use.

[Kalyx triaD]

You could totally asked people with the 360 version before making that trip.

[Purgatory]

it was a few years ago anyways...roughly 2008 or so. It was my first SVR game, as they didn't have SVR2006 at Gamestop at the time.

[Purgatory]

and from what I'd heard about SVR2008, $10 for 2007 made alot more sense than ponying up the $40 or so for that one. I gotta buy it to round out my collection now, tho.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

2006 too.

[Cool King]

Just posted on the 2K Instagram account.

We're here at #E3, giving a select few a sneak peek at what to expect from WWE2K15.

<iframe src="//instagram.com/p/pE1xmbn6gG/embed/" width="612" height="710" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowtransparency="true"></iframe>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I was bored so I tried taking a stab at the potential roster factoring in the rumors of NXT inclusion, etc. and keeping in mind that the roster cutoff for current guys seems to be somewhere between February and March. I decided to not exceed a roster of 82, which was what the roster size was last year not including DLC.

Current Roster

Alberto Del Rio
Bad News Barrett
Batista
Big E
Big Show
Bo Dallas
Bray Wyatt
Brock Lesnar
Brodus Clay
Cesaro
Christian
Cody Rhodes
Curtis Axel
Damien Sandow
Daniel Bryan
Darren Young
Dean Ambrose
Dolph Ziggler
Drew McIntyre
Erick Rowan
Fandango
The Great Khali
Goldust
Heath Slater
Jack Swagger
Jey Uso
Jimmy Uso
Jinder Mahal
John Cena
Justin Gabriel
Kane
Kofi Kingston
Luke Harper
Mark Henry
The Miz
Randy Orton
Rey Mysterio
Roman Reigns
R-Truth
Rusev
Ryback
Santino Marella
Seth Rollins
Sheamus
Sin Cara
Titus O’Neil
Triple H
The Undertaker
Zack Ryder

The current roster would be really well represented here, especially since there has been very little turnover. I would think CM Punk is one of the first character models that they worked on, but I can't see WWE wanting him in the game right away. If anything, I could see them holding Punk up for DLC. A few head-scratching inclusions like Gabriel, Clay, Ryder, etc. but recent history shows that guys who have been in the last year's version of the game have a better chance at being thrown in than brand new characters, like Los Matadores. As an aside, I have Bo Dallas and Rusev listed here since they're technically now main roster talent, but really I think they'll be in for NXT mode as they were making regular appearances there during cutoff time, otherwise they'd have missed out and been DLC, like Adam Rose.

NXT

Adrian Neville
Aiden English
CJ Parker
Corey Graves
Konnor
Mojo Rawley
Sami Zayn
Tyler Breeze
Viktor

It's not a huge NXT roster by any stretch, but I think they'd have gotten most of the "key" guys in. Could not give a fuck less about Mojo Rawley, but I think he'd be more likely to get in than Enzo, sadly. As mentioned above, if you figure Rusev and Bo Dallas are representing NXT in Career Mode and you sprinkle NXT with main roster guys like Cesaro as they do in real life, there should be plenty of guys to make the start of Career Mode fun. I won't even complain about CJ Parker being in because he'd be fun to use as a test dummy against CAWs.

Legends

Billy Gunn
Edge
Goldberg
Hulk Hogan
Jake Roberts
JBL
Mr. McMahon
Road Dogg
The Rock
Scott Hall
Shawn Michaels
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Ultimate Warrior

13 legends would make me go "ugh" but then again the way they're categorized in this list could be misleading. Vince is always in, it's just a matter of whether he's listed as a legend or main roster guy. Ditto for JBL who I think will play a role in NXT in Career Mode, though I'd rather have Regal for that. The Outlaws are also just kinda listed as legends by default as they're no longer acive, I think they're getting in the game because they were the tag champions at the time of cutoff and featured on TV weekly pretty much right up until WM. Roberts and Hall I just kinda threw in as placeholders since they went into the HOF with Warrior this year but really there are a billion legends that could be put in the game interchangeably on a year in, year out basis. Sting will probably be in but technically as a pre-order exclusive, so I won't count him in this list.

Divas

AJ Lee
Brie Bella
Cameron
Charlotte
Emma
Naomi
Natalya
Nikki Bella
Paige
Sasha Banks
Summer Rae

I honestly would be fine with no divas in the game since I really never use them, but that won't happen. AJ was the long running divas champion at cutoff, so she gets in along with pretty much everybody from Total Divas, because of course WWE would want to put them in. Paige and Emma are main roster divas now, but I figure they're mainly in for NXT to go against Sasha and Charlotte. Summer Rae could play into that, too. I would think there will be a divas Career mode of some sort so they'd at least want NXT representation.

You have RVD, Los Matadores, Adam Rose, Xavier Woods, etc. all kept aside for a possible DLC pack along with a standard legends DLC pack and possibly even another NXT pack if more people debut sooner rather than later.</font>

[Cool King]

http://oi58.tinypic.com/i2nkgw.jpg
http://oi58.tinypic.com/fmqv51.jpg

[Cool King]

http://oi62.tinypic.com/2qicvw5.jpg

[Kalyx triaD]

Cena confirmed.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>WOOOOOO 5 for 5 so far</font> :shifty:

[Purgatory]

Random injuries should be in again, only make it more frequent and random. Maybe this time throw in bumps and bruises that carry on for awhile (maybe a closed eye, or a black eye), something like that.

[Emperor Smeat]

Visual Concepts is incorporating its impressive scanning tech made famous in its NBA 2K games. The team has hounded WWE's roster of wrestlers during their nonstop travel schedule and already has 90 percent of the in-game roster scanned in. Interestingly, I saw a photo of Hulk Hogan getting scanned. While a classic version of him is in the game (alongside announced wrestlers John Cena, Bray Wyatt, Roman Reigns, and Cesaro), it's unclear what role today's older Hulk would serve. Maybe he shows up for a hosting role as he did for the recent Wrestlemania XXX.

This new tech is already showing impressive results. I saw side-by-side character models for wrestlers like John Cena, A.J. Lee, and Daniel Bryan, and they all looked leaps and bounds closer to their real-life counterparts. Hair, skin, faces, and ring gear are all majorly upgraded. VC is capturing a variety of facial expressions so that wrestlers will express more realistic emotions in the ring. A John Cena facial rig demo showed off lifelike expressions of pain, excitement, and exertion.

The ultimate goal of all this is to closer match WWE's TV presentation. I couldn't get any specifics on actual game mechanic changes, but Visual Concepts is working toward more realistic match pacing and flow. The key to all of this is a new mo-cap studio that contains an actual WWE ring set up by a real WWE ring technician. This will result in five times the number of animations than 2K14. A new months-later cutoff date for inclusion of the latest WWE content will help ensure that the game is that much closer to the latest roster and storylines.

Audio is getting a complete overhaul as well, with five times the sound of last year's game. For the very first time announcers Jerry "The King" Lawler and Michael Cole will be recorded in tandem, creating more natural conversation threads. I heard a sample clip of the two discussing Undertaker's Hell's Gate submission and it already sounds much improved. There will be a massive 30 to 35 hours of commentary per announcer to keep things fresh and prevent hearing constant repeats.

http://www.gameinformer.com/games/wwe_2k15/b/playstation4/archive/2014/06/10/wwe-2k15-new-gen-first-details.aspx

[Kalyx triaD]

I dig it, but I need some game mechanic news.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

So far so good. Hope they can get Regal, Saxton, Tom Phillips and Renee for NXT mode. Love them all. Nothing on mechanics except match flow jargon. 2k has major problems with game flow in NBA series. They have insane comeback modes.

[Kalyx triaD]

Oh boy.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Cant believe they never had Cole and King together talking. I guess they can't fucking stand each other. What about JBL Maggal?!

[Disturbed316]

I would expect the graphics to be improved, given the change of dev and next gen too. Just want the mechanics sorted out so that it 'feels' more real.

[Cool King]

We're thrilled to have the voice of the WWE, Michael Cole, along with Jerry "The King" Lawler, back for ‪#‎WWE2K15‬. Even better, for the first time in WWE Games history, they're recording their lines together!

https://scontent-a-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t1.0-9/10411299_10152322347138355_6651015233664198260_n.jpg

[Cool King]

Cant believe they never had Cole and King together talking. I guess they can't fucking stand each other. What about JBL Maggal?!

I quickly scrolled past this to post my previous post, and I initially thought the "Cole and King" part of that post said "Cool King".

[DAMN iNATOR]

I quickly scrolled past this to post my previous post, and I initially thought the "Cole and King" part of that post said "Cool King".

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/2f/73/4d/2f734d6beaaed9123f9987fbe9caee93.jpg
:shifty:

[Disturbed316]

I wonder if the commentary will no longer sound so robotic now they are doing it that way.

[drave]

http://media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/2f/73/4d/2f734d6beaaed9123f9987fbe9caee93.jpg
:shifty:

And the creepy LawlerStalker in red.

[Cool King]

If anyone wants something to read.



WWE 2K15 promises a more polished game for next-gen consoles

http://cdn0.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/34233859/WWE2K15_John_Cena.0_cinema_960.0.jpg

When 2K Sports does motion capture for its WWE game, it does so with a full, regulation, touring ring provided by the wrestling circuit. Turnbuckles, ropes, steps, even those dastardly kendo sticks hidden underneath. The WWE sends an official ring setter-upper to make sure it’s all regulation whenever they’re filming.

Yes, Mark Little, WWE 2K15's executive producer, has jumped off of the top rope.

"It hurts like a —" Little said, catching himself before saying what I figured to be a 12-letter word. "I jumped off onto one of our thin crash pads and still hurt myself. It hurts. It really hurts."

Motion capture is just one realm in which 2K Sports is promising a much more polished gem when this game arrives in late October. Last year, the explosion of Planet THQ sent everything it owned hurtling through space; the team at Visual Concepts, 2K Sports' in-house studio, woke up one morning with a huge asteroid called WWE in its back yard, wondering what to do with it.

So last year wasn't really the time for overhauls. Work already had begun on the 2013 edition of the game when THQ cratered in January. After acquiring the license and the game, 2K's influence was seen mostly in its marketing, built largely by Yuke's Future Media Creators, which has made WWE video games going back to 2000.

"Obviously we were all very happy to be able to get the license, be a part of the WWE universe, bring on a new team, and still get a game done in the midst of what was an absolute disaster," Little said. "So the fact we were able to get WWE 2K14 done is a testament to everybody who was involved in that project."

But it was still a game that showed a lot of age and a lack of polish in its core gameplay and visuals, and commentary. This is where Visual Concepts comes in. In its first full year managing the game — and the series' debut on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One — Yuke's still is a full partner in development, but Little vows that WWE 2K15 will show the polish and attention to detail that have made the NBA 2K series so highly regarded.

That's where the wrestling ring comes in. Little says WWE 2K15 will feature at least five times the animations of any previous WWE title and while that's something developers across all sports titles like to tout, its benefit should be recognizable in this one. WWE 2K has suffered from a lot of popping in and out of animations, some rather brutal transitory movements, and very long animations that instead of being interruptible by the player, appear to be sped up.

It should be noted here I did not see any gameplay in what was basically a table-setting discussion at E3 2014 with Little. These are his assurances, not my impressions. Still, 2K's basketball title is well known for having animations upon animations that make its brand of basketball fluid and balletic, and give players a greater sense of control over the players. That's what WWE 2K15 is going for.

Supporting that will be full head and body scans for basically every wrestler, and I was shown comparisons of John Cena in WWE 2K14 and what he looks like after the scan. Straight away I noticed Cena now has creased lower eyelids, which does a lot for how you judge the realism of his look. I was shown some new facial expressions, also taken with the head scan — so this was Cena himself making the faces. The lighting systems used on the NBA 2K series also will help out, removing the plastic sheen bare skin had in the past. Little said the new lighting and rendering systems will be a part of the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions as well as the next-generation version.

Bodies also will be better proportioned — Little showed me Cameron, one of the Divas and a star of their reality show. Cameron was based on a more generic female body type in WWE 2K14; her curves are more accurate in the latest modeling. Clothing and other textures also are improved under better lighting, especially Cena's trademark jorts.

In gameplay, Little didn't get into specifics but laid down the game's new goal: "We're not a fighting game featuring WWE superstars." Visual Concepts wants matches to have a pacing similar to that of a real WWE event. Little concedes the basic impossibility of replicating something scripted, but has it as a goal anyway, just to give matches less of a free-for-all tone.

"At no point do I think we'll get it to be quite the same as a broadcast, just because of the scripted nature of the event, especially between two humans," he said. "The choreogrpahy that goes on in a match in the WWE is a very different thing than what we'll be able to replicate. But what we will be able to bring to life is that opportunity to have that experience. So if you want to use the ring psychology of a wrestler, the match will play out like a normal wrestling match should."

I asked if this meant the toolkit players have used to construct rivalries, storylines, run-ins and other staples of televised pro wrestling also would get an overhaul. The toolset is very deep, but users are thrown into its deep end with a balky tutorial and a laborious assembly process. Little wasn't commenting on that feature today, but said, "I think you should expect us to build upon what's been there. Some of it's going to be rethought, specifically inside the context of a match, we're going to rethink of a lot."

The roster reveal is a huge marketing campaign for 2K Sports, so there was no way I was getting much more than a peek at E3. However, Bray Wyatt will make his debut in this series (though the man who portrays him appeared as Husky Harris in WWE '12, and be joined by mainstays like Cena and Hulk Hogan, as well as another star on the rise, Roman Reigns.

Finally, Visual Concepts is going to bring its best-in-class commentary to bear on WWE. No other sports studio does presentation like Visual Concepts, so when they say they're improving the presentation, it rates plenty of trust that they are. Announcers Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler have now spent about 35 hours in the booth recording new lines — most of them together. I heard an introductory clip in which they bantered about The Undertaker and it sounded a lot more natural. Lawler, recorded separately, had a tendency to overact as himself and here he is what he's supposed to be on the show — the analyst, chiming in with his take on whatever Cole has just described.

My sense of it is that Visual Concepts is very much in charge of this project, with Yuke's still very much needed to implement the polish and the changes and improvements 2K is feeding them. "It's a partnership between the two of us," Little said. "In a lot of areas in the game, yes, we're the one fronting that up. But it's still very much a partnership.

"Yuke's has a very long history of making this game, and some people would tell you it's good and bad, but they have a lot of expertise and knowledge about making WWE wrestling games," he said. "My job is to find a way to pull the best out of both groups."

http://www.polygon.com/2014/6/12/5802590/wwe-2k15-preview-e3-2014

There's also a little section on the site that says:

Transcript of a conversation between Owen Good and Mark Little, talking about the roster for WWE 2K15.

Little: "In honesty, some of that has to do with licensing and rights and stuff like that."

Good: "Sure, but, I mean, the folks we’re seeing every night, we’re going to see in here. With the exception of maybe CM Punk."

Little: [pause] "Talkin’ about rosters later."

Good: "Oh. Oh ... Oh? Is this a work?"

Little: "I work on the WWE now; you shouldn’t know what to expect."

[Cool King]

Also, reading that and other stories about how Cole and King are actually working together, it makes me think:

Are we not getting JBL on commentary then?

[drave]

Also, reading that and other stories about how Cole and King are actually working together, it makes me think:

Are we not getting JBL on commentary then?

JBL - $5 DLC

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Meh, adding a 3rd commentator just takes up a ton of extra space.

I remember one game (SVR 08, I think) where they had 3 unique announce teams for Raw, SD, and ECW - and as a result the roster itself was probably one of the worst in the history of the series because so much room was invested for commentary. And the commentary still sucked based on everything I'd read.

Then again, that's the one game in the series I never got around to playing.</font>

[Dark-Slicer Diago]

Out of all the SvR games, 08 was the one I most regret buying(despite it having Marcus Cor Von).

[DAMN iNATOR]

Out of all the SvR games, 08 was the one I most regret buying(despite it having Marcus Cor Von).

Cor Von was awful in WWECW and SvR 2008. The story mode was pretty much absolute garbage. You picked a superstar or C.A.W. and no matter what you played the same shit over and over no matter who you choose. Fucking hated that damned December to Dismember PPV part where your guy could choose to take a week off SD!/RAW and go to DtD instead, and then you get thrown into a match v. ECW guy #1, then when you win that the G.M. makes you fight a second ECW guy, and finally a 3rd opponent and when you win all 3 matches the show goes off the air with Tazz and Styles bitching about ECW getting punked at its own PPV.

The worst though is the stupid fucking "superstar v. McMahons" bit that runs from like Christmas or New Year's through WM 23.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I remember the roster reveal for that game they were hyping 75 characters being in. And there were...including NPCs. They included announcers, ring announcers, refs, storyline NPCs, alt attires, etc. in their count. And they defended themselves by being all like "we said 75 characters, not 75 playable" even though they had to know it was blatantly misleading.

The roster was shit enough that I wanted to skip out but held out hope that story mode would save it. Then they announced you couldn't use ECW guys and the actual list of guys you could use was so small and I skipped. Never played anything of that game other than the demo. Admittedly wish I had given it a rent at one point solely to cane the shit out of people with The Sandman.</font>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I will say I kinda loved SVR 06 and SVR 07's story modes. Yeah the voiceover limited your options for who you could play as, but they still had a pretty solid list available plus you felt compelled to at least play several times through since Raw and SD had their own set of storylines plus there were different ones for face and heel.

I did play the everloving shit out of HCTP's story, though. Probably went through it over a dozen times. Same exact storylines every year no matter what show you were on, but I'd always mix up the rosters and face/heel alignments and it somehow was enough to keep it feeling a bit fresh.</font>

[DAMN iNATOR]

Yeah, SvR '06 had a story mode that was way better than 07 or 08. Fucking loved the Legends Tour story.

Still remember having a CodeBreaker disc with codes for '06 that made a bunch of NPCs playable, good times. Was always funny though to see certain NPCs come up in the selection menu and see it say like, "NO IMAGE" or something.

[Dark-Slicer Diago]

I used the CodeBreaker to unlock Jake "The Snake" Roberts as I didn't have a PSP at the time, and now you made me want to play it's story mode again, so thanks.

[DAMN iNATOR]

I used the CodeBreaker to unlock Jake "The Snake" Roberts as I didn't have a PSP at the time, and now you made me want to play it's story mode again, so thanks.

Yeah, I'd forgotten about the fact that they had a code to unlock him without needing to hook up a PSP since I didn't have one either and he was the only unlockable I hadn't gotten.

[Cool King]

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/t1.0-9/10429335_10152350856883355_1907983264926804240_n.jpg

[Kalyx triaD]

It's been a dream of mine that every superstar in the roster would mo-cap their own entrance, signatures/finishers, taunts, etc. I understand if that's a logistical nightmare. But if they get an active guy with experience working with a lot of different people, in a physical class that makes him able to recreate a lot of different moves, that works too.

[Cool King]

Funny you should say that, as I've just this second came across this image.

http://38.media.tumblr.com/4fce2acf514eac0bea6db76e592a6599/tumblr_n7qtwb2oTF1qeuiqyo1_500.jpg

[Kalyx triaD]

Holy fuck.

[Fignuts]

Obviously brought him in to mocap the shooting star press.

[Razzamajazz]

they motion capped him talking about his client brock lesnar ending the undertaker's streak at wrestlemania

[Cool King]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en-gb"><p>Tonight is the Night: Tune in to Monday Night <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RAW?src=hash">#RAW</a> where <a href="https://twitter.com/StephMcMahon">@StephMcMahon</a> will reveal the cover Superstar for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WWE2K15?src=hash">#WWE2K15</a>. <a href="http://t.co/TL5osBt7vl">pic.twitter.com/TL5osBt7vl</a></p>&mdash; WWE 2K (@WWEgames) <a href="https://twitter.com/WWEgames/statuses/483731937308053504">June 30, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Cool King]

Looks like the next game will be using the new logo.

[Cool King]

https://scontent-a-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpa1/t1.0-9/10455270_10152361783548355_4687014466833936972_n.jpg

[Kalyx triaD]

Kinda boring but it's cool.

[Frank Drebin]

Cena totally turning heel now.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Don't really give a shit about the cover if the game is awesome. But why are they announcing the cover this early? I thought the game was coming in March?

[Disturbed316]

Nope, it's back to October this year.

[Disturbed316]

Huge superstar roster reveal:



http://oyster.ignimgs.com/wordpress/stg.ign.com/2014/07/WWE2K15-Darren-Young1-300x316.jpg

:-\

IGN thought this was a worthy reveal stating 'Darren Young, the wrestler otherwise known as "Mr. No Days Off," will be included as a character in both last and next-gen versions of WWE 2K15.

Young has appeared on several WWE programs such as Sunday Night Heat, Velocity, SmackDown and Raw.'

When was the last time Heat was on?

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Meh, I get why they revealed him. Young was there to promote the game at the Gaymer convention. Wouldn't have made much sense to go to the convention at all had there not been a gay wrestler in the game.

The more the merrier. A guy like Young who has done absolutely nothing since the Prime Time Players split getting into the game should mean anybody more relevant (most of the roster) will be in too.</font>

[Cool King]

Young has appeared on several WWE programs such as Sunday Night Heat, Velocity, SmackDown and Raw.'

Was that from IGN?

Because Heat ended in 2008 and it hasn't been called Sunday Night Heat since 2005.

As for Velocity, that ended in 2006. Darren Young debuted in 2010, so if he did appear on Heat and Velocity, then it would have been as a jobber under his real name.

[Disturbed316]

Yeah that's what they put up, didn't think Heat went much further than 2008.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Wiki says its true but the link to the information it quotes is a dead link.

[Razzamajazz]

there's seriously such a thing as a "gaymer" convention?

[Kalyx triaD]

Yes.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>So via the roster page, social media, or articles written about the game the officially confirmed roster is now at:

AJ Lee
Bray Wyatt
Cameron
Cesaro
Darren Young
Hulk Hogan
John Cena
Naomi
Roman Reigns

I'm batting 1.000 right now with my roster predictions. I rule.</font> :shifty:

[Razzamajazz]

OK.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Vaudevillains yay or nay?

[Purgatory]

definite yay. It's one of the more original gimmicks that I've seen in awhile.

[Fignuts]

Feel like we should at least have a few screen shots by now, if this is coming out in october.

[Purgatory]

Yeah really. We'd also be getting more info on modes, etc.

I have a feeling this is gonna be a last minute delay.

[Frank Drebin]

In the past they haven't done a main roster reveal until SummerSlam so I wouldn't worry if you don't get much until then.

Honestly I wouldn't mind a delay if that gets a better product out there. Can't just have a 2k14 port with a few roster updates as your first game on the new consoles.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Yeah Axxess was their go-to place for the roster reveal the past 3 years or so. With it gone I wonder how it will go.

I used to love the IGN SmackDown Countdown back in the day. Got to see one wrestler's entrance/finisher/stats etc. a day and you'd never know when the person you wanted to see most was going to pop up. Think there was one year where they didn't even reveal the roster at all and just started the countdown, so it was a total surprise.</font>

[Cool King]

Yeah, I remember that. I really liked that.

I get the feeling we'll get some news tonight on Raw, but it'll just be about Sting. I'm sure that's what his "cryptic message" on Twitter is alluding to. He'll be DLC for 2K15.

If that is true, we'll probably get a few clips of his character in action, so we could get more information that way, for example, see more of the roster during the video, with him applying the Scorpion Deathlock on Adam Rose or whatever.

[XL]

I loved the IGN coverage. Although it did feel there was very little to see by the time the game came out.

[Disturbed316]

Pretty sweet hype video for Sting, showed absolutely nothing though.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>There seems to be a lot of panic on IGN and other boards about there not being any screenshots or anything yet.

Wouldn't be shocked if it's basically WWE 2k14 ported over to next gen with better graphics tbh. Next year is when I think we'll finally have a different feel to the game. WWE doesn't exactly help with their rigid production window.</font>

[Frank Drebin]

If that's the case it's a shame. Last year I said I was looking forward to 2k15 expecting last year's version to be the same as 13. One year of that with the developer switchover is understandable. Two in a row and people will start to dismiss that and all future incarnations.

If it's the same, maybe there are issues we aren't privy to, like the aforementioned wwe rigidity, that are in the way of making a complete product.

Who knows. As with many things wwe: Hope for the best, expect the worst.

[Emperor Smeat]

http://downloads.2kgames.com/wwe/site/img/2k15/screenshots/wwe2k15_ss_06-19571075021705712905.jpg

[James Steele]

#SurferStingFTW

[DAMN iNATOR]

Wiki says its true but the link to the information it quotes is a dead link.

Maybe because it hasn't been around anywhere for 6 years? Not to mention between fall '05 and spring '08 Heat was not televised and instead a web show?

[Emperor Smeat]

Roster getting revealed on August 16.

WWE has announced a SummerSlam Panel Series for August 15th through the 17th at Club Nokia at LA Live in Los Angeles. Hulk Hogan, John Cena, Sheamus, Cesaro, Roman Reigns, DX, Steve Austin and the WWE 2K15 roster reveal will be featured. Tickets go on sale this weekend and full details are at this link. Below is the schedule:

SummerSlam Panel Dates & Times
Friday, Aug. 15, 7 p.m.-10:30 p.m.
WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan

Saturday, Aug. 16, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
“WWE 2K15” Roster Reveal with John Cena, Hulk Hogan, Sheamus, Cesaro and Roman Reigns*

Saturday, Aug. 16, 7 p.m.-10:30 p.m.
D-Generation X (WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels & Triple H)

Sunday, Aug. 17, 12 p.m.-3:30 p.m.
WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>3 and a half hours to reveal a roster?</font> :wtf:

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Probably a meet and greet, autographs and panel show combined with it.

[cnoslim]

<font color=goldenrod>3 and a half hours to reveal a roster?</font> :wtf:

Each wrestler will reveal 25 wrestlers each

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Suppose it'll be a lot of talking about their careers, the current product, etc. Hopefully they let the roster out early on though rather than dragging it on the full time.

I'm most interested in hearing what, if any, NXT guys made the cut anyway. Xavier Woods recently said that he was going to be in the game...so if a guy like Woods who had done nothing for months on end got into the game, I'd think it's a safe bet that nearly everybody from the main roster is in.</font>

[Emperor Smeat]

A Gamestop employee in California has sent in word that the unannounced Hulk Hogan special edition of WWE 2K15 will be available for pre-order in early September. It will feature an exclusive Hulk Hogan DLC character from WrestleMania 30, a personal autograph from Hogan, a disc from one of his DVD’s, and an alternate cover for the game.

[Fignuts]

A little over 2 months away and not a single gameplay detail or screen shot. This is fucked, I'm telling you.

[Kalyx triaD]

Yeah kinda worrying now.

[Fignuts]

Still mad they didn't let 2k release it in March. Probably worried about losing sales by taking it out of the holiday season, but releasing it during "Wrestlemania Fever" would have garnered a lot of sales, especially without having to go up against AAA titles that most people are more interested in.

Fuck the suits who bumped it up.

[Kalyx triaD]

Suits are the devil.

[Fignuts]

So I'm just now finding out that next-gen doesn't have custom soundtracks.

That is a huge bummer for wrestling games.

[Dark-Slicer Diago]

That's a bummer, you'd think it would become standard in every game since it was added.

[whiteyford]

Yeah not excited by this game at all so far.

[drave]

But Scott Norton is in the game *RUMORED* -Ryan Clark


STACY KIEBLER BABY BUMP NUDE PICS - MUST SEE!!

[whiteyford]

I would buy the Scott Norton edition obviously.

[Evil Vito]

So I'm just now finding out that next-gen doesn't have custom soundtracks.

That is a huge bummer for wrestling games.

<font color=goldenrod>There's been enough backlash that I think the next-gen systems will eventually release a patch so that MP3s can be ripped to the system hard drive again. I can't speak to the XBOne but for the PS4 the functionality is still there. There are still USB ports even though the PS4 does not recognize them. Hopefully they'll eventually patch it up since they've gotten plenty of complaints.

Would suck if they didn't, though. Will feel like going back to the PS2 days where all of my CAWs had generic themes.</font>

[Cool King]

Yeah not excited by this game at all so far.

Ditto.

At this moment, I'm even questioning if I should even bother getting it at all.

Something really good is going to need to happen for me to want the game now at this stage.

If we see footage of it during SummerSlam Weekend, and it just looks like the exact same as the previous games and with the same gameplay, but with a more up to date roster, then I'm counting myself out.

[whiteyford]

Not a day one purchase, it drops in price fairly quickly here and still comes with the preorder DLC in the box.

[Dukelorange]

If they abandon the Yukes/AKI grappling system entirely, I won't buy the game. Every game I bought was based on that system. I was never a fan of the SvR series because I couldn't wrap my head around the control.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I'll be buying this regardless because I have virtually no games for my PS4. Then next year will be my "skip year" if it seems like there are barely any improvements.</font>

[Cool King]

I just want a game that feels different when I play it.

I want to feel like I'm playing a brand new game and not just the same game I've been playing for the past seven or eight years, but with an updated roster.

[Kalyx triaD]

Unless it has the IGNITE ENGINE.