The Royal Rumble has been a staple of WWE pay-per-views since 1988. Nowadays, the WWE has a PPV every month but the Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, SummerSlam, and The Survivor Series are still considered the big four.
As one of the most popular events in WWE history, it's unsurprising that the Royal Rumble is one of the major match types in WWE 2K22. Historically, however, it's also one of the most difficult match types to succeed in the Smackdown!/WWE 2K series. Thankfully, the new mechanics in WWE 2K22 make things more accessible, and these matches are a lot more fun, but still challenging to win as a number one or number two entrant.
Royal Rumble Achievements & Trophies
For trophy hunters, WWE 2K22 has lots of Achievements and Trophies to unlock, and two can be activated in the Royal Rumble match. As one of the first two entrants in 30-person Battle Royale, the player will unlock the "Maybe They Just Needed a SNICKERS" Trophy/Achievement. In the same match, players can also unlock the "Record Breaker" Trophy/Achievement for eliminating 14 wrestlers in one match.
Settings To Change Before The Match
Before starting the Royal Rumble match, players should head into the Gameplay menu and change the setting to Easy. This may seem like a cop-out, but the content is still challenging, and doing this will make it much easier to obtain the Trophies. Moreover, it helps players get some practice learning the mechanics for the MyRise and Universe modes. Also, make sure that weight detection has been switched to Simulation.
One could also head to the Balancing menu and lower the frequency wrestlers are stunned. Doing so will mean that the player's character will be less vulnerable to getting stunned.
Picking The Right Wrestler
The most effective wrestlers for the Royal Rumble in WWE 2K22's roster are super heavyweights like Andre The Giant and Braun Strowman. Braun is a great choice because he's powerful and has great Recovery Stats even though his Stamina stats can only be increased to 65. However, it's still worth increasing this to the maximum, so he's more effective in the match. It may be worth increasing his Strike and Grapple Reversal stats to help him fight off his assailants. Furthermore, selecting a super heavyweight will mean that many wrestlers will have difficulty throwing them around early in the match due to the weight detection mechanics. Their strength also allows them to Irish Whip most opponents over the top rope.
Learn The Carry Controls
Learning how to effectively utilize Braun's strength with the carry mechanics will also help with eliminating wrestlers by throwing them over the top rope. The carry mechanic has four different grapple holds, all of which can be used to walk the opponent up the ropes and throw them. However, it's more effective when the opposing wrestler has been worn down. The Carry controls are as follows:
- Grab an opponent with the B button or Circle Button on PlayStation.
- Hold down RB/R1 and press the LS button up, down, left, or right.
- RB/R1 and up – The Powerbomb position
- RB/R1 and down – The Cradle position
- RB/R1 and left – The Fireman's Carry.
- RB/R1 and Right – The Shoulder Carry.
Competing In The Royal Rumble Match
Before starting the Royal Rumble match in WWE 2K22, players should make sure that their selected wrestler is either the first or second entrant to unlock the trophy for winning the 30-man Royal Rumble.
The match will begin with the player's character but be careful not to rush in. Follow these tactics for a successful Royal Rumble match:
- In the opening of the match, players should focus on faster light grapples and, if using Braun, the strong attack button. This attack does a great job of interrupting his opponent's own attacks and grapples.
- Instead of going straight for a carry grapple, the quickest and most successful way to eliminate a wrestler is to Irish Whip them into the ropes.
- Hold down B/Circle and the LS stick in the direction of the ropes.
- The opponent will either go straight over the top rope or land on the apron. If they are struggling on the apron, approach them and hit the B/Circle button to eliminate them.
- If the opponent manages to climb back into the ring, players should run and hit them with a clothesline. This may lead to another easy elimination.
- The player's character will quickly have a signature move ready to go. Use the signature by pressing RT/R2 and A/X.
- Don't immediately go for a Finisher. Instead, stack them up and use a strong Irish Whip to easily eliminate the opponent hit with the signature move.
- If the ring is full of wrestlers, don't go for a carry move but instead continue using the Irish Whip mechanic and focus on one opponent.
- For the wrestlers stunned on the apron, hit them with the Finisher by using R2/RT and A/X. This will guarantee an elimination for the player.
- As the ring starts to clear, focus on the weakest wrestlers and go for an easy elimination with the carry mechanic or the Irish Whip to go for the Record Breaker Trophy.
- The match will eventually come down to the final two or three participants. If there are three left, then let the other two wrestlers wear each other down before going for the elimination.
- If there's just the player character and one opponent left then it's time to go for broke and use every possible means to get them out of there. If there are signatures and finishers stacked up just use those to weaken the opponent before throwing them out.
With the 30-person Royal Rumble won, the player should have unlocked the aforementioned achievements quite easily. More importantly, they also got some practice before trying to compete in WWE 2K22's MyRise and Universe modes.
WWE 2K22 is available on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, and PC.