WWE 2K16 has a lot to live up to. 2K Sports has claimed that the game will boast the largest roster in series history, but they've made such claims before. Past games have padded the roster by counting the same wrestler multiple times, only at different points in their career.
However, WWE 2K16 may finally live up to the largest roster promise, and in a legitimate manner. Starting today, 2K Sports will reveal new roster additions for WWE 2K16, leading up to its release at the end of October. Kicking off these weekly roster reveals are 12 new wrestlers from a variety of pro wrestling eras:
- Booker T
- Colonel Mustafa
- Emma
- Eva Marie
- General Adnan
- Kalisto
- Kane
- Lord Steven Regal
- Sin Cara
- Summer Rae
- Tamina
- Triple H
These 12 wrestlers join the previously revealed superstars for the game, which includes the likes of Daniel Bryan, Finn Balor, Paige, Seth Rollins, and of course, cover athlete "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.
These 12 newly revealed wrestlers highlight numerous eras and speak to a diverse roster, which is supposed to have over 120 playable characters before its all said and done. Some of the additions are obvious choices, such as Triple H, but other inclusions are a bit more interesting.
For example, 2K Sports has apparently decided to go with the Lord Steven Regal ring name of the wrestler better known as William Regal, the current General Manager of NXT on WWE programming. Lord Steven Regal was the name that William Regal used while in WCW, which could mean a couple of things. Since the game is set to follow the career of Steve Austin, it's possible that it will start during his WCW days. Another possibility is that this is indeed a case of roster padding, and both Lord Steven Regal as well as the better known William Regal will be included in the final product.
Two other interesting additions to the roster are Colonel Mustafa and General Adnan. For those unaware, Colonel Mustafa is the lesser known ring name of The Iron Sheik, one he used while allied with Sgt. Slaughter during an infamous feud with Hulk Hogan in the early 90's. With Hulk Hogan pulled from WWE 2K16, it's strange to include these two characters at all, since their WWE tenures are almost entirely defined by their interactions with Hogan.
Besides the 19 actual wrestlers confirmed for the roster, WWE 2K16 also features The Terminator as a pre-order bonus. It's possible that other fantasy characters will be announced for the game as well, which could help add additional flavor to the roster, and also help 2K reach that 120 character commitment without having to resort to including the same wrestler multiple times.
WWE 2K16 is scheduled to release on October 27th for PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
Source: IGN