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WWE’s yearly game franchise, WWE 2K, has been bringing the smackdown for wrestling fans on consoles since 2000, back when it was simply called WWF Smackdown! While WWE has released a smattering of games for mobile, including the recently released Mortal Kombat-inspired WWE Immortals, the company is finally bringing its marquee series to smart phones.

With the release of WWE 2K today for iOS and Android, fan favorite WWE Superstars are making the jump to the small screen. For fans worried that the technical constraints of smart phones would diminish the pomp and pageantry of the sport, WWE assures that WWE 2K features the full ring entrances, comprehensive move sets, and technical gameplay that fans have come to expect from the franchise.

WWE 2K touts a roster 19 Superstars deep, with fan favorites such as Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt making the cut along with legends such as Hulk Hogan and Sting. If 19 just isn’t enough, WWE 2K features an in-depth create-a-wrestler mode, allowing fans to craft a unique wrestler.  This created wrestler can then be taken through a career mode, pitting the up-and-coming wrestler against a motley crew of C and B-card Superstars before working all the way up to the best in the business and battling for the gold at the grandest stage of them all, Wrestlemania. In addition to the career mode, WWE 2K games have historically featured a story mode focusing on famous storylines and events, but such a showcase mode is not to be found in WWE 2K, and WWE has made no announcement concerning the addition of the fan favorite mode.

For fans looking to forgo a career and who simply want to kick the snot out of their friends, WWE 2K features an online multiplayer mode that allows players to take on both friends and strangers. Players can battle it out in three match types: Singles, No Disqualification, and the classic Cage Match. Like it's console brother WWE 2K15, WWE 2K leaves quite a few fan favorite match types on the cutting room floor, with TLC and Hell in a Cell being the most prominent. 

Fans looking to team up with a friend in a tag match, however, are out of luck. WWE 2K puts all of the emphasis on singles action, and WWE has not announced any plans to make a change.

Once in the ring, the game is relatively simple. Actions are accomplished with swipes, taps, and pinches, and the match flows nicely. Unlike the console games from which it is derived, WWE 2K doesn’t allow for limb targeting or leaving the ring, which shrinks the technical aspects of the game somewhat.

Once players finally have their opponents shoulders on the mat, it will become glaringly obvious that the game does not feature a ref. The count will still be performed, but the lack of an official may be jarring for fans looking for an authentic wrestling experience. Despite these missing features, the game still features accurate move-sets and well rendered finishers, so fans of Randy Orton don’t have to fret about the small screen diminishing the joy of landing an RKO out of nowhere.

For years, WWE 2K has reigned supreme as the de facto wrestling franchise, and the WWE organization hopes to further this success on mobile phones. While WWE 2K may feel a little bare bones compared to the console series it is derived from, it's still one of the more fully featured options to grace iOS and Android. Whether a player identifies with the Cenation or the Yes Movement, WWE 2K is a great way to get a slobberknocker fix on the run.

Source: WWE 2K