In WWE 2K20, striking attacks are often overlooked. Grapple attacks that slam the opponent downwards outshine strikes due to the fact that they can be done on harder surfaces. However, the right striking finishers are often more damaging than grapple attacks. Since WWE 2K20 lets players adjust the arm power or leg power of every superstar, this can lead to skull-crushing results in a simulated wrestling game.
Strikes to the head, in particular, are the most destructive maneuvers in the game. Do them enough times, the referee checks on the victim if he's still good to go. These moves may also come out of nowhere like a snake's poisonous strike. If they don't put the opponent out, they certainly can crack some bones. With that being said, here are 10 jawbreaking striking attacks in WWE 2K20.
10 Kinshasa
The Kinshasa, a move performed by Japanese wrestler Shinsuke Nakamura, is a running knee to the face. When his opponent is in a kneeling or sitting state, he gains momentum, acquires his target, then rushes towards the bullseye with his hard knee.
Inches before hitting his opponent's face, Nakamura extends his shin forward in a snap to increase the impact. The move hits out of nowhere and can be performed standing, running, or from the corner.
9 Boxing Right Hook
Textbook punches aren't thrown much in wrestling. They aren't flashy, and they have more potential to injure an opponent than the other strikes. 'Boxing Right Hook' is exactly what the name suggests. It's a haymaker right done with so much speed and force that the impact brings the opponent down.
It isn't so much of an awe, but it gets the job done. This swift strike comes from out of nowhere, but when it hits, it's a shocker.
8 Tornado Enziguri
This move is both flashy and effective. An Enziguri is a two-step move wherein the first step is the non-kicking leg is hoisted, then with the same rhythm of running, the kicking leg swings over the hoisted leg, using the hoisted leg as a turning point where the body rotates for the kick, then the kicking leg is swung at the opponent's head with all the rotational force.
With the tornado Enziguri however, the attacker spins once, already gaining momentum with the initial rotation, then with the second spin, does an Enziguri with the culminating force of a 720 rotation.
7 Looping Palm Strike
Looping Palm Strike looks like a way to finish off an opponent in a Kung-Fu movie, expecting some explosion to go off in the back. The attacker winds up a clenched palm, swings it around a full 180, and speeds it over the side of the opponent's face.
The attacker finishes knelt in a badass way, and totally turned back from a falling and seemingly knocked out an opponent. This theatric makes the move look even more impactful.
6 Big Boot
A big boot is a straight-up boot to the face. The move hits the opponent's face with the bottom of the attacker's boot. An opponent can run into this move himself, smashing his face into the anticipating boot, or the attacker can run up to him and perform the move.
The Big Boot has a ton of variations to make it more impactful such as 'Discus Big Boot,' or Sheamus' Brogue Kick. But as it is, this simple move can cave an opponent's nose in.
5 Discus Punch
The Discus Punch shares the same motion as if throwing a discus. The attacker sends his fist zooming through 720 degrees by rotating an initial 360 at the windup. The attacker's knuckles meet the opponent's side of the face after generating much force from the rotation, sending the opponent swirling down to the ground.
The force is so great that the attacker continues the rotation even after hitting his opponent. A discus clothesline also exists in the game but as it stands, punches are more devastating due to all the force focused on a small compact fist.
4 Knee Lift 7
Seth Rollins has broken John Cena's nose with a knee to his face, hitting him straight in the nose bridge. Though there are a ton of knee strike maneuvers in the game, the other knee attacks are not as destructive as 'Knee Lift 7.'
This move starts with a textbook arm toss maneuver overhead, then without letting go of the opponent's wrist, the attacker follows up by pulling the opponent swiftly into a face-shattering knee strike. The move is sure to break noses with its devastating execution.
3 Spinning Back Elbow
AEW's Chris Jericho uses this finishing maneuver under the name 'Judas Effect.' The attacker spins a 180, swinging the back of his sharp elbow into his opponent's face. The move doesn't hit with the forearm but rather, with the actual point of the elbow making this quite a face-breaking maneuver. This is a highly effective move in MMA and can quickly put opponents to sleep, considering that elbows are harder than fists. The move is performed running towards the opponent or having the opponent rebound to the attacker, adding to the lethality of the move.
2 Punt Kick
No one has ever kicked out of Randy Orton's punt kick. Some have even been sent out on a stretcher with a neck brace after taking the move. The move is so dangerous that Orton has put it on a shelf, never to be used again even as a heel. However, at the "Greatest Wrestling Match Ever" with Edge, he pulled it out and did so more often, sending all his victims out on stretchers.
The move is simple. Orton gathers some running space, then once his downed opponent is able to prop themselves up, he runs and kicks their head with the force of a 100-yard soccerball kick. This move doesn't just end matches. It ends careers. However, the punt doesn't hold a candle to the next item on this list.
1 Grand Backhand
The grand backhand his a majestic backhand slap that sends the opponent flying through the air. No other move in WWE 2K20 is able to do that, and no other real-life wrestler has been able to hurl their opponent upwards with just a strike; a backhand at that.
The move is glorious to behold, and the way the victim jerks and panics through the air is a crash of beauty. If the move has enough force to ragdoll an opponent like that in a non-arcade physics-respecting game like WWE 2K20, then that means the victim's jaw should be dislocated, if not ground to dust, after being hit with the grand backhand.